Reading an autobiography got me thinking about major influences in my life. People that caused a breakthrough or advancement. So I am going to make a list and wanted to hear others. I must preface it by stating that I do not include my parents because they obviously have had an impact on my life. 1. John Stuart Mill. I read his political writings pretty young, then found his autobiography a short time later - that had a great impact on my life. Essential in my early development. 2. Bertrand Russel. Important in the philosophy of math, but also a huge influence in religion, political theory, and social writings. 3. Noam Chomsky. Another similar to Russel. Really advanced the field of linguistics, but also making himslef heard in political and social critique. 4. Beethoven. I was able to see some of his sheet music, along with Mozart's. Mozart's was beautifully inked - no mistakes, no hesitation in his notations. The obvious result of an almost inhuman genius. Beethoven's were ugly, scribbled, full of mistakes, and it seemed as if he almost tore through the paper he was pressing so hard. I prefer one of his late sonatas anyday. 5. John Lunsford. The only person on my list that I actually know. An art historian, but in the true nature of an older education, is in no way limited to this area. My mentor. He humbled me once (not intentionally) by recounting a story of how he had a rich aunt growing up and on his 10th birthday he was told that he could have whatever he wanted, no matter the cost. This 10 year old requested a Phaidon (premier publishing house) art book. I will leave it at five because it ight otherwise get out of hand. There are many others, but these five are the ones to which I can always come back. huh? right. ------------------ "One evening I seated Beauty on my knees. And I found her bitter." "I am a sick man...I am a wicked man. An unattractive man. I think my liver hurts."
DUKE DUKE DUKE would not be the MAN MAN MAN he is today if was it not for his ROLE MODELS!!! These are VERY impotant developmentarian things EVERY kid needs in becoming ADULT. OK SO now you want to know DUKEs models?!? OF COURSE. I will share. ONE: Mrs. Magalacrabby, DUKE" kindnergarten teacher!!!! She was a very old lady and very small, SHE taught DUKE some VERY important lesssons that have served me well. I have them taped on my office wall!! DON'T EAT PASTE DON'T PULL GIRLS' HAIR POTTY TIME AND NAP TIME ARE NOT THE SAME THING Man DUKE never would have become the BIG LAWYER SUCCESS I AM notw if not for THEM RULES. TWO: EVLIS!! He taught DUKE that shaking your hips gets WOMEN'S attentions! DUKE uses his hips to SUMARIZE his points in front of the jury, chicks DIG IT. Bumpty bumpty GRIND, my client did not do the CRIME!!! THREE: Andy Kauffman, the first man to land ON THE MOON, what a hero!!! DUKE LOVES HIM!!! That is all. DUKE SIGNING OFF. ------------------ DUKE WISDOM: if a tree falls in the FOREST and crushes a leprecon is it really dead?
In random order here are some of my heroes/role models. Bark Darwin Michael Martin Marx and Engels Parents ------------------ please venture to atheistalliance and rocketsonline I AM SPARTACUS
i admire most people who have struggled or who have stood their ground.. more the process of greatness rather than the end result. beethoven. churchill. lance armstrong. <more> ------------------ rat-a-tat-tat, who lost a Cat?
Gough Whitlam Lindsay Head Marx (Both Karl and the Brothers) Tim Freedman Paul Keating Drazen Petrovic ------------------ Stuff BBS, the Rockets and you guys It's all Clippers these days, come join the bandwagon and visit http://www.ClippersCity.net
I only have two heroes/role models: - Bartholomew Bond - LHutz ------------------ My dream job is to be a Houston Rockets towel-boy.
Todd McFarlane- His beautiful artwork alone got me interested in comic books. My dream is to just be able to get into the comic business and make a living drawing those things. Looking at his art, you could never even IMAGINE that he was turned away his first several attempts at landing a job in the industry, but he was. However, he took all of those rejections in stride, kept on working at it, and eventually broke in and became one of the greatest comic book artists ever... Without him as an influence, I probably wouldn't even have a dream to chase... Taught me to expect and learn how to deal with almost inevitable rejection... Karl Marx(didn't realize how many fellow Commies/sympathizers were in here!) F.D.R.- brought the nation out of The Depression... Perhaps the only good member of the United States Democratic Party. j/k Charles Barkley- maybe it's corny to put him here... He always says what's on his mind and his career is proof that if you really want to do something, your physical attributes can't hold you back.
Juan, I do not understand your post. Who do you feel is not worthy of your admiration? People you do not directly know? ------------------ "One evening I seated Beauty on my knees. And I found her bitter." "I am a sick man...I am a wicked man. An unattractive man. I think my liver hurts."
As far as people whom other people know, I don't think I have very many at all. Perhaps because I'm too cynical to think anybody is worth my admiration. However, one I can think of is Mikhail Gorbachev (most people are probably thinking right now that I'm a pinko or a cold warrior). I studied Soviet History in college and worked quite a bit on him and I was very impressed with the things he implemented, but even more so that he tried to do them in the first place. Obviously, he failed in the end (which adds a tragic romance to the whole story), but he has a character I can't help but respect. Everyone else I can think of are not people of public standing, so I won't bore you with them. ------------------ Rockets Draft Obligations Summary http://www.gaffordstudios.cjb.net/
My father. God rest his soul. Sometimes the greatest man you'll ever know is the first. ------------------ "One who conquers others is strong; One who conquers himself is mighty" - Lao Tzu [This message has been edited by temujinphl (edited July 19, 2000).]
I have to go with Karl Marx, too. I mean, it's not just anyone who can invent a naive socio-political philosophy that leads to millions and millions of deaths in the 20th century. Adam Smith? Pffft. ------------------ You bring the bullets, I'll bring the wine.
Kagy, lol. If it had at least been on purpose, I could have respected it. I actually think he was a very good political scientist, but I'm not sure that is a respectable thing. Rimbaud, to answer your question: I generally don't think public figures warrant my admiration. I think it is dangerous to pattern yourself after others and you should therefore be very careful about who you pick as your role model. With public figures, you know things about them, but you don't know them very intimately. Given that Man is inherently evil (I'm asserting that as an axiom to this argument), there are misdeeds and evil motivations buried in the hearts of those you venerate. When those are people you know -- your brother or father or whatever -- you are familiar with the particulars of their evil. When you don't know them, you are not familiar so you can't navigate your way around those evils. With Gorbachev, I feel that I know him pretty damn well now, given all the reading I've done on him. There aren't many other people that I've learned a lot about that I ended liking after I knew them (like Jean Arp, what an idiot!). ------------------ Rockets Draft Obligations Summary http://www.gaffordstudios.cjb.net/
Juan, I understand your statements, but can't anyone have a positive influence on you without you having to like them as a person? Perhaps we are talking on different levels. I have not patterned myself after anyone I mentioned, nordo I want to, I have mearly felt a great debt to them for presenting something to me that has helped me in my life, mostly in intellectual terms. I, like you, do not really feel that any one person should be a complete hero/role model. I believe that the best result is to pick different aspects of many. That is what I have tried to do. I have a very healthy ego and a great deal of confidence in my abilities, but I also understand that no one, no matter how grand, can develop completely alone. In this way, I am tipping my hat to those who have helped in whatever way. They, then, are my "heroes". ------------------ "One evening I seated Beauty on my knees. And I found her bitter." "I am a sick man...I am a wicked man. An unattractive man. I think my liver hurts."
Some might remember my heroes from a while back: (In no particular order) Arnold Swarzeneggar - Amazing what an Austrian immigrant can accoplish. Multiple Mr. Olympia titles and superstar action/adventure actor. I respect him because he was able to do so much here in America barely even knowing how to speak the language at first. I mean how many immigrants become Mr. Olympia? And how many hold the record for most Mr. Olympia titles? And how many Mr. Olympias become household names as actors? Jim Carrey - This guy has gone through hell to get where he is today. His family was homeless and living out of their van in Canada after his dad got laid off from the plant he worked at. Then he tried moving to L.A. to make it in show business and failed. Even after all that he's been through, he's still one of the funniest men on Earth. Nice to know you can keep your sense of humor even when times are bad. Mike Tyson - A poor kid out of the projects becomes the youngest heavy weight champion of the world. To me he's the perfect prototype for a heavy weight: strong, compact, mean, a little crazy, not overly intelligent. Yeah, it's easy for people to pick on him now. It's always easy to kick people when they're down. He's been through a marriage where his wife was manipulative and in my opinion only married him for his money and to promote her own name. He's been through a rape conviction, and in my opinion he had the most incompetent lawyers since the prosecutors of the O.J. Simpson trial. Does everyone realize that the woman he "supposedly" raped came up to his hotel room where he was at 3am by herself? What was she going to do with Mike, play Canasta? I could go on for hours, but to sum it up. I just think this guy had a great talent, and that was to fight. He also had a great trainor in Cus D'Amato. But, Tyson is not extremely bright and that has caused him to be vunerable to people taking advantage of him over time. Hakeem Olajuwon - He's simply my favorite sports figure of all-time. I've enjoyed watching him play basketball since the U of H days. I totally respect how he handles himself on and off the court. Even when he was younger and before he reaffirmed his Muslim faith I respected his aggressive style of play. His is another amazing success story, something out of the movies: 7 foot Nigerian soccer player comes to the U.S. and becomes a millionaire and one of the best centers in the NBA ever. I'm sure there's more, but that's all I can come up with for now. ------------------ I have a dream.........his name's Hakeem. DREAMer's Rocket Page
I agree with JuanValdez on this one, which is why I can't really name a public figure as a "hero" right now. Is this a sign of my not being educated enough or the depth of my thoughts? The heroes, that I have encountered and admired are those whom I have actually known. As JuanValdez stated before, you really have to know a person to be able to conclude that they are heroes. Granted, I often admire a public figure's actions at a certain point in time, but there has never really been an instance where I regard that person to be my hero. In the end, I think that this whole conversation cannot go along any further due to the fact that we have not yet established what we mean by a "hero." Certainly JuanValdez is taking the entire picture into consideration, while others are simply praising heroic acts and calling those who accomplished them "heroes." Not to say that the latter is incorrect, as I am simply trying to broaden the scope of the original thread. ------------------ Nederland 2002 Qualifying Campaign (Damn those penalties!!!) Houston Rockets Space Center- Not just another ClutchCity.NET clone. We're that and more!
My father -- not that any of you know him..I think. An influence and a hero to me George Washington -- everytime I say this someone smirks...but you guys talk about standing your ground or being commited to integrity..this is your guy! Read, "Washington: the Indispensible Man". An incredible book. We think of him in sort of a touchy-feely surface way as our first president but his character was amazing. He completely shaped an office that had yet to be invented. He led a war, taking little credit for his success, and gave up a great deal of his family wealth supporting that effort. In addition, if you ever come across a book about the fates of those who signed the Declaration of Independence, read it! Most of these men lost their families, their homes and died as paupers. They were completely committed to the principles they believed in. John Locke -- much more of an influence than a hero. He was incredibly influential on my thoughts on socio-political systems...even when his ideas were spewed out of Thomas Jefferson some 100 years later! Bill Doran --seems out of place among those above. But those who grew up in Houston in the 80's loved this guy. He played a tireless second base and kept his mouth shut when he was robbed of all star game appearances. Just a gutty guy and a huge influence on Craig Biggio. Ronald Reagan -- again...you always knew where this guy stood, even if you would disagree with it. He had principles by which he ran his administration and they were constant. George Orwell -- "1984" scared the hell out of me. It really had a big influence on my political philosophies. ------------------
I watched Hurricane the other day. And if that story is true, he's a role model. Good FLic. ------------------ humble, but hungry.
