http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200612/influentials

1. Honest Abe
2. Ol' George
3. Tom Jefferson
4. FDR
5. Alex Hamilton
6. Ben Franklin
7. John Marshall
8. MLK
9. Thomas Edison
10. Woodrow Wilson

The list itself has many recognizable figures, but where would these people rank on your list? Who is missing?

3
1
2
6
9
4
5
7
10
8

John Adams is too low, Walt Disney is far too high, I have no idea why Elizabeth Stanton is in the top 75, much less top 30. Grant seems so high.

Nikolai Tesla should be on the list for his development of alternating current which made the use of electricity on a large scale practical. He also designed the first hydroelectric generator, and first transmitted power using radio waves, although Marconi figured out how to transmit sound. Without Tesla, his work could not have happened.

William Bradford and Roger Williams belong on that list.

Ernest O. Lawrence, Harold C. Urey, Isidor Rabi, J. Robert Oppenheimer and all the others associated in the making of the atomic bomb. They all had a huge influence on America.

Well, I suppose Einstien really started the work on the atomic bomb.

Anyways, the wright brothers shouldn't have been on the list. Flight had already happened, and others were nearly as successful at the time the wright bros became famous. From what I've read on them, they weren't that influential.

Norman Borlaug.

Norman Borlaug.
I will shake his hand in two weeks!

Robert A. Heinlein

Eli Whitney?

WTF. This list is whack. He didn't invent shit.

Ford belongs close to the top. He buddied up with the Nazi's which helped to create the massive destruction in Europe that allowed the US to jump ahead economically. (in addition to the car thing).

Just another BS list. The most influential people never get mentioned, only the figureheads that take credit for others work.

He didn't invent shit.
He created a rifle with interchangeable parts, laying one of the foundations of the Industrial Revolution. He is also widely credited as inventing the cotton gin, thus flooding the world of the US with textiles and slaves.

Spin it any way you like guerilla, but the majority of the historical intelligentsia will disagree with you.

no mention of the cotton gin
no mention of the internal combustion engine
the electronic ignition
the cog
the fulcrum
the gear
the computer that controls your very comfort

so smug, you humans
soon you will know how it is to be overlooked
how it is to be discarded
to be irrelevant
to cease to be

I'm just glad Thomas Paine made the top 20. That guy has simply not gotten the recognition he deserves.

The signers of the Mayflower Compact

General Lew Wallace--author of Ben Hur-- a work that has never been out of print; also served on the Lincoln assassination trial

Clarence Darrow--superb orator and defense lawyer

Jesse James--symbol of the Outlaw West and all it represents

After reading half of Executive Order, I would like to nominate Tom Clancy for the #7 most influencial american :D Who knows who John Marshall is anyways

He is also widely credited as inventing the cotton gin, thus flooding the world of the US with textiles and slaves. Right..being credited with something does not necessarily make you influential on history. Which is exactly why I think lists like this are usually just filled with bullshit.

Eamonn deValera

100 Herman Melville-should be higher

96 Ralph Nader-wtf is he doing on here.
89 Walter Lippmann
The last man who could swing an election with a newspaper column. IMHO he doesn't deserve to even be here.

78 John Brown
Whether a hero, a fanatic, or both, he provided the spark for the Civil War. This little intro gives hime too much credit again IMHO. The Civil War would've started without him just fine.

72 Sam Walton - Should be higher. Especially when you consider the economic effects Wal Mart has had and continues to have throughout the country.

47 Frederick Douglass- Deserves to be higher.

35 Jackie Robinson - Deserves to be higher. The dignity he showed while being subjected to hatred enabled people to accept him for what he was, not for the color of his skin.

23 Wright Brothers - should be much higher.


8 Martin Luther King Jr. - Probably should be in the top 5
His dream of racial equality is still elusive, but no one did more to make it real.

Again this is in my honest opinion. Which as we all know opinions are like assholes, everybody's got one.

Number 1: Simón Bolivar

Number 1: Simón Bolivar
Socialist, gtfo my internets. The man was Venezuelan.

I think Socialist is replying to the thread header, 'most influential Americans', not US citizens.

Socialist, gtfo my internets. The man was Venezuelan.

He was more an Américan than any of those transplants from Europe!
So gtfo yourself!

I agree with Evakian. The list was intended to be a list of the 100 most influential American citizens, not people living on either of the two continents with America in their name.

Just look at the list. All are citizens of the United States or are closely identified with the United States.

Socialist is just up to his usual shit stirring.

I think Socialist is replying to the thread header, 'most influential Americans', not US citizens.
There is only one country in the Americas where people are referred to as the nationality of "Americans."
He was more an Américan than any of those transplants from Europe!
1. Honest Abe
2. Ol' George
3. Tom Jefferson
4. FDR
5. Alex Hamilton
6. Ben Franklin
7. John Marshall
8. MLK
9. Thomas Edison
10. Woodrow Wilson

These people were all born in the USA besides Alexander Hamilton.

Actually, some of them were born in the thirteen colonies. There was no USA at the time.

Actually, some of them were born in the thirteen colonies. There was no USA at the time.
Now you're getting picky.

Not picky, Evakian, more precise.
Not all the people on your list were born in America or were even American citizens but they were all closely identified with the United States of America.

People who don't fit your list are:
Thomas Paine (never an American. He considered himself a citizen of the world.)
Andrew Carnegie (born in Scotland)
Albert Einstein (born in Germany)
Enrico Ferme (born in Italy)
Jonathan Edwards (born in England, pre-USA)

My late grandfather

Yo Socialist,whats wrong with those transplants from Europe, they built your country.

Yo Socialist,whats wrong with those transplants from Europe, they built your country.
Simon Bolivar is a transplant from Europe, in Socialist's line of logic.

Yo Socialist,whats wrong with those transplants from Europe, they built your country.
Nothing wrong, man, after all, the whole "América" was colonized by Europeans, and most of us are their decendants, though many of them commited atrocities with the natives of América, but that was long ago. And it seems that only Europeans refer to those born in the USA as Americans, but in other countries they are refered as Estadounidenses, if there is a translation it would be something like United Statians.

The liberation of the whole América was a bigger task than the liberation of those 13 colonies, the British didn't inflict the same kind of atrocities to those born in those British colonies, actually it was all about excesive taxes. But Bolivar and San Martin, and all those that liberated América had a bigger fight to get rid of Spain. If ever you have the time see if there is an English translation to the “Carta dirigida a los españoles americanos” by don Juan Pablo Viscardo y Guzmán, you'd find it interesting.
http://img314.imageshack.us/my.php?image=19deabrilde1810zd4.gif

i will look into it,no probs.

Nothing wrong, man, after all, the whole "América" was colonized by Europeans, and most of us are their decendants, though many of them commited atrocities with the natives of América, but that was long ago. And it seems that only Europeans refer to those born in the USA as Americans, but in other countries they are refered as Estadounidenses, if there is a translation it would be something like United Statians.

The liberation of the whole América was a bigger task than the liberation of those 13 colonies, the British didn't inflict the same kind of atrocities to those born in those British colonies, actually it was all about excesive taxes. But Bolivar and San Martin, and all those that liberated América had a bigger fight to get rid of Spain. If ever you have the time see if there is an English translation to the “Carta dirigida a los españoles americanos” by don Juan Pablo Viscardo y Guzmán, you'd find it interesting.
http://img314.imageshack.us/my.php?image=19deabrilde1810zd4.gif

They came from Asia, the first colonizers.

When I went to school,which was a rare occassion, we were taught that the natives of North America were actually RUSSIANS,its a funny world.

When I went to school,which was a rare occassion, we were taught that the natives of North America were actually RUSSIANS,its a funny world.
People coming from China went north into Siberia, and onto Alaska. Don't ask me why these morons would travel through all that, but it is the dominant theory.

So, Russians then, yes.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Beringia_land_bridge-noaagov.gif
Behold, the Bering Land Bridge.

People coming from China went north into Siberia, and onto Alaska. Don't ask me why these morons would travel through all that, but it is the dominant theory.

I think the theory is that the morons were following their food source. Maybe they weren't so stupid after all. ;-)

Nope. It was the fucking reindeer that were stupid.:corn:

Nope. It was the fucking reindeer that were stupid.:corn:
Precisely.

They came from Asia, the first colonizers.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!....... Talking about the Europeans that came here after Cristobal Colón (Christopher Columbus)... Those who almost wiped out those first colonizers.
Now the theory about those coming from Asia through the Bering Strait says that it happened both ways, they traveled from Asia to América, and from América to Asia. So, who was first, the egg or the hen?

The Mexicans.

People coming from China went north into Siberia, and onto Alaska. Don't ask me why these morons would travel through all that, but it is the dominant theory.

Perhaps that area wasn't as cold as it is now, (even warm)? And it probably took hundreds of years if not thousands to happen, the theory doesn't say it happened right away, just people moving (nomads) from one place to another, following dry land... Walk a little, settle here, walk a little more settle there... And just by chance it happened that they crossed the Bering Strait, that probably wasn't a strait, but continuous dry land. Who knows?

The Mexicans.

That was funny!!!:D :D :D :D :D

And it probably took hundreds of years if not thousands to happen, the theory doesn't say it happened right away, just people moving (nomads) from one place to another, following dry land... Walk a little, settle here, walk a little more settle there... And just by chance it happened that they crossed the Bering Strait, that probably wasn't a strait, but continuous dry land. Who knows?
Of course that was the case, it probably took tens of thousands of years. I was just making light of their situation crossing harsh terrain.

Yea,I bet they said' 'fuck this', when they seen Texas.

Yea,I bet they said' 'fuck this', when they seen Texas.
Beats Canada and Alaska, and most of the northern US states. No winter here.

The only time I've seen snow was when I was a wee one in New York.

Well that bit I have to agree with.

Why isn't Al Gore on the list? I thought the invention of the internet was a pretty big deal...

I thought the internet was developed by the Dept. of Defence as a communications system,but they ditched it because they couldnt secure it.

Eli Whitney?

WTF. This list is whack. He didn't invent shit.

Ford belongs close to the top. He buddied up with the Nazi's which helped to create the massive destruction in Europe that allowed the US to jump ahead economically. (in addition to the car thing).

Just another BS list. The most influential people never get mentioned, only the figureheads that take credit for others work.
it's not the "car thing"...it's something much more important- the assembly line. without that, the computer you're using would cost as much as a house.

Yea,I bet they said' 'fuck this', when they seen Texas.

Actually, at the time they first arrived in Texas, it was much wetter than it is now, with lush semi-tropical forests on the coasts. Further west it wwas oak savannas with Mastodons and other big game. It probably looked like a pretty good place compared to the glaciers further north.

Why isn't Al Gore on the list? I thought the invention of the internet was a pretty big deal...

I thought the internet was developed by the Dept. of Defence as a communications system,but they ditched it because they couldnt secure it.

The Internet grew from the DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Administration) network. The project took place because of an earmark appropriation sponsored by Al Gore. The Defense Department did abandon it because of security concerns because it linked University computers with Defense Department computers. It continued to grow on it's own, however, because it was useful.
Interestingly, Al Gore did not say he invented the internet. Jay Leno said that he said that. What Al Gore said was that he was responsible for the creation of the internet. Given that it was his earmark that got things started, that seems accurate although taking a little more credit than he deserves. He did not develop the technology, just provided the funding.

Actually, at the time they first arrived in Texas, it was much wetter than it is now, with lush semi-tropical forests on the coasts. Further west it wwas oak savannas with Mastodons and other big game. It probably looked like a pretty good place compared to the glaciers further north.
How long ago are we talking about, 10,000 years.

How long ago are we talking about, 10,000 years.
Sure. Around that time, Mesopotamia was the prime hunting and farming location. Climates change all the time.

Faster nowadays it seems.

Actually were propbably talking about 12,000 years. At least that is the age of the sites found by archaeologists.

So in 12,000 years Texas can go from savanna and semi forest to a dust bowl with green bits,and thats without all the shit we put in the air.

So in 12,000 years Texas can go from savanna and semi forest to a dust bowl with green bits,and thats without all the shit we put in the air.
Texas isn't a dust bowl with green bits. The North has plains, the west has deserts and mountains, the coast is similar to what you'd find elsewhere on the Gulf, and the East is thickly forested.

In 12,00 years, Wisconsin went from covered with several thousand foot thick glaciers to forested hillsides. Read Aristotle on the oak forests in Greece. Look for the cedar forests in Lebanon. The Black Sea was formed when an inland lake was flooded as the ocean levels rose when the glaciers melted and flowed across the Bosporous. The dinosaurs were wiped out by an asteroid impact that changed the climate worldwide.
It is a mistake to think the world was constant before we came along. Change has always occurred, and always will. Man has created changes, but change is also a part of the natural order of things.

12,000 years, hmmmmm, assuming that "f" GWB does not finish fuckin' up the planet before he leaves office.... You know, the fundamentalist christian Armageddon!



Note: "f" = the f word.

Texas isn't a dust bowl with green bits. The North has plains, the west has deserts and mountains, the coast is similar to what you'd find elsewhere on the Gulf, and the East is thickly forested.
Thats what I said, a dustbowl with green bits.