Eamonn 61 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 While not finding what I was looking for, I came across: http://beatles.ncf.ca/millenniumlists.html The lists were fun to look at and disagree with. But the Most Influential Americans List was strange. 1 Walt Disney 2 Thomas Edison 3 Henry Ford 4 Bill Gates 5 Steve Jobs 6 Martin Luther King Jr 7 Jackie Robinson 8 Franklin D. Roosevelt 9 James Watson (partner of Crick in discovering DNA) 10 The Wright Brothers But the Best Humanitarian (Irish Millennium Top Ten Internet site) was really strange. 1 Gerry Adams 2 Mother Teresa 3 Mother Theresa (sic) 4 Diana, Princess of Wales 5 Oprah Winfrey 6 Jane Goodall 7 Jimmy Carter 8 Bono 9 Pope John Paul II 10 Jesus Christ Eamonn Link to post Share on other sites
TheScout 10 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 Kinda a joke. Where is George Washington on the most influential Americans list? Also on the link they have Martin Luther King Jr. the 8th most influential leader of the millenium. Are you kidding me? Link to post Share on other sites
kenk 11 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 Clearly the most influential Americans are ... ... PARENTS. Link to post Share on other sites
JimmyD 10 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 In my opinion Jimmy Carter didn't do much. Reagan should've been there instead. Martin luher king jr. is there Lincoln should be there also. Link to post Share on other sites
OldGreyEagle 5 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 Jimmy Carter did more as an Ex-President with his Habitat for Humanity work and his monitoring of foreign elections than any ex-president in my life time. His comments on the current adminstration do detract from his legacy. Jimmy didnt put the status of ex-president on the auction block as Reagan Link to post Share on other sites
John-in-KC 311 Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 My thoughts: Historic Americans: Any list which does not include George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjaming Franklin and Abraham Lincoln need re-evaluation. My personal list includes: Dwight D Eisenhower John F Kennedy John J Pershing John McCain (not so much for his Congressional activity as for his example to all as a PW of the North Vietnamese). Jonathan Wainwright ... and some guy named WD Boyce...(This message has been edited by John-in-KC) Link to post Share on other sites
Hunt 11 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 These online lists are wacky. Sometimes people can vote multiple times. Another factor is that if you are asked to identify one person, the top couple can have many, many more votes than the rest, but you can't see that from the list. Thus, while many people would list George Washington as one of the most influential Americans, maybe not that many would list him as THE most influential American. Also, lists like this are often skewed toward more recent people. How else do you get Paul McCartney as the greatest composer of all time, over Mozart and Beethoven? Link to post Share on other sites
SemperParatus 1 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 kenk...great answer! Link to post Share on other sites
Trevorum 24 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 I'd like to see a list of the most influential people, excluding politicians and soldiers. Link to post Share on other sites
CA_Scouter 11 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 Trev, I don't know your politics but what is your objection to soldiers? Sounds like you are implying that there is something wrong with being one... Link to post Share on other sites
scoutingagain 20 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 Well let's not forget the most influential person on the US economy for the last 20 years or so. Alan Greenspan. I suspect Trev is looking for influential folks who are outside an occupation already in public service and did not intend to slight those that already are. That's how I read his post. In that instance I might say Oprah Winfrey. SA Link to post Share on other sites
Trevorum 24 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 My mistake - One should never put politicians in the same sentence with soldiers! Some of my heroes have been military, starting with my father (Semper Fi!). However, the military and politics are easy picks for a top ten list of most influential. As SA suggests, my intent was just to look a bit more deeply for those who have influenced our country. On my list I think I'd have Thomas Edison, Robert Goddard, and Rachel Carson Link to post Share on other sites
CA_Scouter 11 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 Apologies, Trev.. .guess my political cynicism is showing, eh? Some ideas: Bill Gates Tiger Woods Link to post Share on other sites
OldGreyEagle 5 Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 I can hear the catcalls already, but if you are talking about being influential in the area of women's fashion's, you can't dismiss the effect of Britney Federline nee Spears Not all influences are positive, then again, it depends on ones perspective, don't it? Link to post Share on other sites
Eamonn 61 Posted October 25, 2005 Author Share Posted October 25, 2005 I'll take Sir Paul over Mozart and Beethoven any day!! Band on the run is outstanding!! Eamonn(This message has been edited by Eamonn) Link to post Share on other sites
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