Greatest American? (All Over on Page Eight)

[Dark Jezter]

I disagree with the Reagan naysayers. Not that he was my top choice but he deserves his honors as much as any on that list. He inspired a generation of Americans, me included, to believe in America much as JFK did for the generation of my parents. And inspiration is a powerful thing.

Sure he had flaws, much like JFK, but it isn't the flaws that we remember it is the things he did right. If we are to measure based on flawed characteristics then many of these "great" Americans would fail to make the list, including all of the top five with the exception of MLK.

PS - this is ENworld and while we are each entitled to our opinion it goes against the grain to tear down a figure that others hold in high regard. Talk about the poll and the effect popularism has on all of these polls but leave the ideology at the "submit" button.

Well put. After the post-Watergate disillusionment of the 1970s, Ronald Reagan restored many people's faith in America as well as the office of president. True, his presidency wasn't perfect, but he touched many lives and left a lasting impression on America and the world on a whole. I wouldn't have picked him as the #1 choice (as I mentioned earlier, my pick is George Washington), but I feel that he definately deserves a spot on the list.

 

[sniffles]

I'm sorry, but if Ronald Reagan is the greatest American, then shoot me now. :\

 

[Mark]

I think it is hard to put the events and persons of most recent history, specifically in our own lifetime, into the bigger picture. I also think there are a number of people who made the 100 Greatest Americans list that have no business even being in the running. However, I think almost any President of the USA should have made the list before some of those who did, i.e. Dr. Phil. It's not easy to get elected to the highest post in the land, some say the world, and you really have to screw it up majorly to not to be considered great by many standards, IMO. Once you make the top 100, it's just a matter of turning out the vote and winning the popularity contest. That said, I had Franklin from the start to the finish.

 

[der_kluge]

I can't believe Reagan won out over someone like Abraham Lincoln or George Washington. He was a freaking actor who just happened to be president when communism collapsed. Basically, IMO, he contributed very little to the state of the world. And he ran up huge deficits that spiraled our economy into the ground.

Lincoln freed the slaves. Washington set the tone for the office, and shaped this country into what it is today. A true visionary. Reagan's not even in the same zip code.

Whoever it was that said "paraphrasing" the biggest argument against democracy is to spend 5 minutes with the average American voter was right." They got this one dead wrong.

 

[MaxKaladin]

I disagree with the Reagan naysayers. Not that he was my top choice but he deserves his honors as much as any on that list. He inspired a generation of Americans, me included, to believe in America much as JFK did for the generation of my parents. And inspiration is a powerful thing.

I think that's the key. I was 10 when he was elected, but I can remember how inspiring he could be. People have to remember that at the time he was elected, Iran was holding Americans hostage and we seemed incapable of doing anything about it. Our rescue mission turned into a disaster. The Russians were invading Afghanistan. The economy was in the basement and starting to dig. Inflation was out of control. For people older than I was, there was the shadow of Watergate and Vietnam. There was also the gas crisis a few years in the past. Things seemed pretty bleak right then. Reagan talked about restoring pride in our nation and turning things around -- and later helped do it. A lot of people remember him very fondly for that. It's not about the deficits or any of the other political things that went on during his administration. It's about inspiration that a lot of people felt very personally and that's why I think he was selected.

Now, I voted for Franklin but I can certainly understand why someone would pick Reagan.

 

[wingsandsword]

I've written, and deleted, three rants I was about to post about Reagan being voted "Greatest American", but I scrapped them as just too political for this site.

Suffice it to say, I strongly disagree. He not only wasn't the "Greatest American", he doesn't even deserve to be called "Great". He skyrocketed the deficit, gutted government support for mental healthcare, had economic policies which essentially took from the poor to give to the rich, and was most likely mentally incompetent in the last years of his administration. He was a old B-Movie cowboy actor who played his folksy patriotic charm into a political career, and did nothing notable except be the person who was on watch when the USSR collapsed due to it's own economic incompetence. In gaming terms, the most notable thing about him was that he had a very high charisma score.

George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Franklin Roosevelt, all would have been more fitting choices.

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

I can't believe Reagan won out over someone like Abraham Lincoln or George Washington. He was a freaking actor who just happened to be president when communism collapsed. Basically, IMO, he contributed very little to the state of the world. And he ran up huge deficits that spiraled our economy into the ground.

You may be understating his impact a little bit. Granted, the average American OVERstates said impact tremendously, but he probably deserves some of the credit for shortening the Cold War. It was sort of predestined to end the way it did, IMO, just later.

Now, I voted for Franklin but I can certainly understand why someone would pick Reagan.

Out of typical human (and even more typically American) shortsightedness and egocentrism. Reagan, after all, happened during the lifetime of the people voting, and anything that happened in my lifetime is obviously more important than anything that happened before I got here, right?

 

[Orius]

But what did Reagan do that represents the American ideal?

I'll agree that's it's because he lived more recently than the rest, that his recent death probably has placed him a bit higher in everyone's collective subconscious and far too many people have a very poor grasp of history in this country. It's a result of a lousy education system; there's far too much emphasis on passing standardized tests, and history education is very highly politicized. Even worse, many parents don't really value history either, and that rubs off on their kids.

I'd say Reagan belongs on the list, but I still say Lincoln belongs at the top. Others would be great Americans like Jefferson, Franklin, Washinton, both Roosevelts, MLK, and Woodrow Wilson, just to name a few (and some of those didn't even make the original list, while we had people who are famous, but pretty much irrelevant).

 

[Felix]

I'm quite happy with the returns of the poll, except I would have numbers 4 and 5 in the 2 and 3 places. I'm also happy that those of you who have posted absurdities about President Reagan are unhappy; perhaps it's schadenfreude, but I have little sympathy for libelous individuals.

[I would enumerate the libels and absurdities, but there is a no-politics rule here. Feel free to email.]

 

[MaxKaladin]

Out of typical human (and even more typically American) shortsightedness and egocentrism. Reagan, after all, happened during the lifetime of the people voting, and anything that happened in my lifetime is obviously more important than anything that appened before I got here, right?

Not exactly. I think it's more about the strength of emotion. Living through events can create strong emotions that those who come afterward simply do not feel. I think a lot of people voted for Reagan because they felt strongly that he was the greatest American in a way that had little or nothing to do with a factual comparison of his accomplishments with those of the other candidates. He was an inspirational figure for many Americans and I think people voted for him on that basis.

Yes, he lived during the lifetime of many of the voters and that boosted his popularity, but I think it was as much or more because the people who voted for him experienced the times firsthand and developed strong emotions because of it than it was some sort of egocentrism.