lance armstrong exposed,many people deflated, well just one of the stories that ,we see. lincoln now being deconstructed, nixon not so bad, kennedy not so good, washington quite a poor general etc, oh and churchill was a imperialist may i ask what ever happened to all the heroes ??? it is of course an aspect of a modern society to look to the past, eulogise about people and struggles, yet upon close scrutiny very few major figures can retain the aura of greatness bestowed upon them er zietgiest or commeth the man? is it a need that society once had, and have now outgrown
My hero's will always be with me, they were my mother and father who I owe my life to for bringing me into this world and caring for me with all the love and understanding they could give.
What I meant was they are both in my heart and mind for they are both deceased. I just remember when they were here thereby keeping their memories alive within me.
I think the concept of heroes is noble but possibly a bit naive, or even childish. Almost every remarkable person is found, on examination, to have feet of clay. That's the human condition, I'm afraid. Possibly it is a mark of maturity to be able to respect these people for their achievements, without expecting them to be like gods. And for the rest of us, perhaps it is encouraging to see their frailties, alongside their successes.
Nixon was worse than usually portrayed, not better. Lincoln was heroic, in a world of corruption and violence and venal scum - his mistakes or personal flaws do not detract from his stature. Washington is not revered for his military strategy and battle command, but for his personal strength of character and ability to hold an army's loyalty to a goal - he really did refuse to be crowned King of America, you know, despite being not only offered the crown but pressured to take it: how many men in his position, throughout history, have ever made that crucial decision? Consider if Jefferson or Burr or even Franklin had been offered that crown. Of course we as adults will be often disappointed if we take our heroes from professional sports - although Alis and Fraziers do come along, the pond is too shallow. The confluence is of private character crucial to public cause - and a current problem in America is the degradation, even the depravity, of the public causes and means available. The private character is still there, one presumes, but when the public cause is the operation of FEMA in Katrina's aftermath, or the invasion of Iraq, or preventing the President from getting anything done, or protecting the wealthy from tax hikes, or blocking the national borders against economic refugees of our own political agency, there is no scope for heroism. The public world is a legacy of Reagan being run by Cheneys and Limbaughs and McConnells - it's like being an Italian hero under Mussolini: where's the opportunity?
What Cromwell would have done had he been offered and pressured to take the Crown itself is not certain (England had an established line of monarchy, unlike the brand new America) but what he did after unilaterally and by force dissolving the elected Parliament is on record: That, in addition to the atrocities committed by his armies and the mistreatment of the Irish and Scots at his direction subsequent to victory, slots him at a hero level considerably below Washington's - despite his notably superior military abilities.