The 25 Greatest Americans Ever

Soccer is the joyous expression of life.

I compiled research for about two days during the All Star Break creating the list. I showed the list to some folks at the Sox game Thursday night and they hated it. That was all the praise I needed.

Keep in Mind:

1. The truly greatest Americans will or have been lost to history. They are the masses who toil everyday seeking a better life. This list is simply a glorification of those who have inspired others to follow their lead. The list is based on the individual’s historical significance,(How they helped to shape life in the United States) both while living and dead. Ultimately, they each needed to have left a mark on the USA that is still being felt today for the list to have any credibility. So sorry to my homies from Lebanon, Jonathan Trumbull and William Beaumont.

2. Just because you are “Famous” does not make you “Great”. So, sorry to the Anorexic Socialite Coke Addicts, Most US Politicians, Athletes, Cable News Talking Heads, and the uber-hip indie film/music impresarios. Most of you achieve some level of fame, but will never be Great.

3. It is my belief that having a philosophy or conceiving original ideas triumphs the use of violence to achieve political, social, or economic ends. Sorry to Andrew Jackson and William T. Sherman, Any Chairmen of the FED, and Oil tycoons everywhere. However, like any Hall of Fame, some individuals with questionable ethics, motivations, and actions made it in the top 25.

4. The goal of the “Noble Lie” is to induce short term conformity and unite disenfranchised populations under the umbrella of the Institutionalized Status Quo. This is not a new concept, it goes back to Plato. What we see in the history of democracies is that the ISQ evolves as the disenfranchised populations’ rebel and new “Noble Lies” are created.

5. Thus, it is not that I have disdain for some of our storied “Founding Fathers”. It is just that I have long believed the ISQ has evolved beyond simple hero worship for the “Founding Fathers”. Yes they were there at the beginning, but they also left a mess. Thus, my inclusion of some 20th Century President’s who took as much as they gave.

6. Even with the self righteous statements made in 4 and 5, most of your favorites made the cut. This is out of both fear and an enriched historical perspective. It seems I am a far more brainwashed white man then I thought I was.

7. I am totally about the 20th Century. It is when the nation peeks in many ways. How is that for nostalgia?

Very Honorable Mention:
Malcolm X
Thomas Edison
Arthur Ashe
Langston Hughes
Nikola Tesla
Louis Armstrong
Frank Lloyd Wright
Upton Sinclair Jr.
Henry Ford
Sam Walton
Tom Brady

The Top 25

25. Woody Guthrie
24. Shirley Chisholm
23. Lamar Hunt
22. Jane Addams
21. Muhammad Ali
20. Alexander Hamilton
19. W.E.B. Du Bois
18. William Randolph Hearst
17. John F. Kennedy
16. Caesar Chavez
15. John Adams
14. Bill Gates
13. Hugh Hefner
12. James Madison
11. Noam Chomsky
10. Jackie Robinson
9. Mark Twain
8. Thomas Jefferson
7. Abraham Lincoln
6. Fredrick Douglas
5. Jonas Salk
4. FDR
3. George Washington
2. Benjamin Franklin
1. Martin Luther King Jr.

Thats it....thats the list........Mahalo