Friday, October 20, 2006

Near-Great

Day four of a week with Bill Kauffman at 2Blowhards:
Y'know what always got me? Those rankings of the presidents by historians. The Greats, Washington and Jefferson excepted, tend to be the warmakers: Lincoln. Wilson. FDR. Those responsible for the most unnatural deaths. The "near-greats" were those who gave warfare the old college try: Teddy Roosevelt. Even the wretched Truman. Those who sat in the White House while peace raged outside the door were average at best, though often below average or the dreaded "failure."

1 comment:

Martin Zamyatin said...

"Who ever would have heard of Lincoln if it wasn't for the Civil War?" - John F. Kennedy

Bully Pulpit - An irreverent tour of American history, with profiles of the presidents from George W. to George W. Bush. "Damning...and damn witty too!" - Howard Zinn

http://scarecrow-prez.blogspot.com/