Blog Credo

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

H.L. Mencken

Sunday, January 20, 2013

The Original George W

You da man monkey.

After a long morning of driving, we arrived at Mount Vernon and got the George Washington hagiography.

What's fascinating about those who rank Washington ahead of Lincoln and FDR is that so much of his greatness comes from his restraint - what he DIDN'T do.  That's why I can't rank him above Lincoln and usually rank him below FDR.  He's both the indispensable American and yet not its greatest President.  Similarly, I don't rank Jefferson that high as a president because of how poorly he handled his second term struggles with Britain and France.

Jefferson and Washington were both essential figures in American history, but they were not the best presidents.  I think that honor belongs to Lincoln, with FDR the runner-up.

But what the hell do I know.

No comments: