The best leaders of your country

[Xanadu84]

Favorite might be FDR. There's a reason he had 4 terms.

Teddy Roosevelt is right up there in terms of just being awesome. I only shy away from him because he is responsible for jocks and the obsession with sports ahead of classes in schools, thanks to importing the idea of Muscular Christianity. But besides that, pure awesome.

Coolidge has the best presidential story ever. Notoriously quiet, a reporter told him that she bet she could get more then 2 words out of him during a dinner. After being quiet all night, Silent Cal turned to the reporter and simply said, "You lose".

im afrad im going to have to call you out on the "jocks and puting sports ahead of schools" bit. rosevelt, who imho was one of the finesit leaders of the us ( my home contry incase you havent figerd that by now) while its true he was an avid enthusites of altetics(be beat his asma at a young age threu puer exesise, and a buttload of coffee) he read mutiple books everyday, amog his many jobs which included Rancher, Soldier, and Politician, he was also a Historian, Author, and aNaturalist. He matriculated at Harvard College in 1876. His father's death in 1878 was a tremendous blow, but Roosevelt redoubled his activities. He did well in science, philosophy and rhetoric courses but fared poorly in Latin and Greek. He studied biology with considerable interest and was already an accomplished naturalist and published ornithologist. He had a photographic memory and developed a lifelong habit of devouring books, memorizing every detail. He was an eloquent conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of the smartest people. He could multitask in impressive fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another, while browsing through a new book. and i havet even stared nameing his REAL accmpishments

Oh, he was 10 shades of awesome, and the jock thing was hardly intentional. But Muscular Christianity was a movement that found its way to the United States heavily thanks to Teddy's influences. The idea is that sports and athleticism with religious underpinnings would greatly aid a powerful, physically strong and cooperative army to conquer with. It was heavily influential in England, and naturally the idea appealed to Roosevelt. Of course soon after, things like science would become more important to winning wars then upper body strength, and this sudden attack on the sport status quo caused a major backlash, with football teams and other school athletes digging in there heels. And that would lead to a present day where football can get funding priority over a science class, and the stereotype of jocks hating nerds. There's a very interesting account of this in the book, "American Nerd: The Story of my People" by Benjamin Nugent

 

[CrazyJew]

Benjamen Nethaniahu. Granted, he is a bit TOO aggressive, prepared to go on an all out war with Iran over nothing, bu I love how he was the first one to grab the mortar-lobbing terrorists in Gaza by the balls and going "Hey, fuckers, when we made this bit autonomous you promised to sit quietly."

 

[Nerdstar]

Favorite might be FDR. There's a reason he had 4 terms.

Teddy Roosevelt is right up there in terms of just being awesome. I only shy away from him because he is responsible for jocks and the obsession with sports ahead of classes in schools, thanks to importing the idea of Muscular Christianity. But besides that, pure awesome.

Coolidge has the best presidential story ever. Notoriously quiet, a reporter told him that she bet she could get more then 2 words out of him during a dinner. After being quiet all night, Silent Cal turned to the reporter and simply said, "You lose".

im afrad im going to have to call you out on the "jocks and puting sports ahead of schools" bit. rosevelt, who imho was one of the finesit leaders of the us ( my home contry incase you havent figerd that by now) while its true he was an avid enthusites of altetics(be beat his asma at a young age threu puer exesise, and a buttload of coffee) he read mutiple books everyday, amog his many jobs which included Rancher, Soldier, and Politician, he was also a Historian, Author, and aNaturalist. He matriculated at Harvard College in 1876. His father's death in 1878 was a tremendous blow, but Roosevelt redoubled his activities. He did well in science, philosophy and rhetoric courses but fared poorly in Latin and Greek. He studied biology with considerable interest and was already an accomplished naturalist and published ornithologist. He had a photographic memory and developed a lifelong habit of devouring books, memorizing every detail. He was an eloquent conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of the smartest people. He could multitask in impressive fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another, while browsing through a new book. and i havet even stared nameing his REAL accmpishments

Oh, he was 10 shades of awesome, and the jock thing was hardly intentional. But Muscular Christianity was a movement that found its way to the United States heavily thanks to Teddy's influences. The idea is that sports and athleticism with religious underpinnings would greatly aid a powerful, physically strong and cooperative army to conquer with. It was heavily influential in England, and naturally the idea appealed to Roosevelt. Of course soon after, things like science would become more important to winning wars then upper body strength, and this sudden attack on the sport status quo caused a major backlash, with football teams and other school athletes digging in there heels. And that would lead to a present day where football can get funding priority over a science class, and the stereotype of jocks hating nerds. There's a very interesting account of this in the book, "American Nerd: The Story of my People" by Benjamin Nugent

while i can see where your coming from with this i hardly think its fair to claim that Roosevelt advocated "Muscular Christianity" at the expense of scholastics and that in turn shaped how sports programs can get priority funding over science,history and the arts.(as already stated he was a renaissance man with a love for both the athletic and intellectual) that i believe stems from multiple sources including the idea of appealing to the lowest common denominator(your average who just wants to watch the game),sports have always been a big thing and there often a communal thing where as intellectual study is(wrongly) perceived as a solitary endeavor,simply put i don't think that Roosevelt was the be all end all reason for the lopsided funding preitys however the idea of the stereotype jock hating nerd idea steaming for this situation dos have merit.

 

[BOOM headshot65]

As an American, there is 5 I can think of (in order):

#1: George Washington-set the bar for all that followed.
#2: Dwight Eisenhower-Very good with policy and foriegn affairs.
#3: Ronald Reagan-Excellent leader all around.
#4: John F. Kennedy-Or at least, what he talked about getting done, which was most likely screwed up by LBJ.
#5: George W. Bush-I just know that I am going to catch flak for him...I still think he was good.

 

[Troublesome Lagomorph]

From what I hear, Eloy Alfaro was alright for a leader in the country I live in.
Until he got lynched by peasants.

The only leader I know about from where I come from is Patric Manning, and he was a fool who jerked off all over the country.

 

[Jak23]

I have always found George Washington to be a boss. Most of the other badass presidents were nutjobs in some way, but he was just awesome.

What he said.
Although I would like to add Ronald Reagan.

 

[SomeBrianDude]

Wartime leaders get all the glory. I don't think anyone needs reminding about Churchill's achievements, like how he bested Hitler in single combat with a blow that leveled Nagasaki. That's how World War II ended, right?

Massive world leader brawl?

No?! Oh, well you learn something new every day.

So, spare a thought for Henry Campbell-Bannerman, British Prime Minister 1905-1908. I won't go into too much detail, but you can essentially thank him (along with HH Asquith and David Lloyd-George) for the modern welfare state. You know the one where the poor aren't punished for being poor? Yeah, that one. Unemployment benefit, sick pay, free school meals, state pensions - all introduced by his government. Clement Atlee runs him close, but the NHS simply wouldn't have been possible without the Liberal Reforms. The pre-WWI Liberal governments were probably the most important of the 20th century (in peacetime, at least).

Captcha: men in suits. They probably did wear suits, captcha. Do you read my posts before you verify my human-ness?

 

[JCBFGD]

I'd say Jefferson, Eisenhower, and Carter are the only really awesome presidents the US has had. Everyone else is either meh or shit.

 

[Xanadu84]

Favorite might be FDR. There's a reason he had 4 terms.

Teddy Roosevelt is right up there in terms of just being awesome. I only shy away from him because he is responsible for jocks and the obsession with sports ahead of classes in schools, thanks to importing the idea of Muscular Christianity. But besides that, pure awesome.

Coolidge has the best presidential story ever. Notoriously quiet, a reporter told him that she bet she could get more then 2 words out of him during a dinner. After being quiet all night, Silent Cal turned to the reporter and simply said, "You lose".

im afrad im going to have to call you out on the "jocks and puting sports ahead of schools" bit. rosevelt, who imho was one of the finesit leaders of the us ( my home contry incase you havent figerd that by now) while its true he was an avid enthusites of altetics(be beat his asma at a young age threu puer exesise, and a buttload of coffee) he read mutiple books everyday, amog his many jobs which included Rancher, Soldier, and Politician, he was also a Historian, Author, and aNaturalist. He matriculated at Harvard College in 1876. His father's death in 1878 was a tremendous blow, but Roosevelt redoubled his activities. He did well in science, philosophy and rhetoric courses but fared poorly in Latin and Greek. He studied biology with considerable interest and was already an accomplished naturalist and published ornithologist. He had a photographic memory and developed a lifelong habit of devouring books, memorizing every detail. He was an eloquent conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of the smartest people. He could multitask in impressive fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another, while browsing through a new book. and i havet even stared nameing his REAL accmpishments

Oh, he was 10 shades of awesome, and the jock thing was hardly intentional. But Muscular Christianity was a movement that found its way to the United States heavily thanks to Teddy's influences. The idea is that sports and athleticism with religious underpinnings would greatly aid a powerful, physically strong and cooperative army to conquer with. It was heavily influential in England, and naturally the idea appealed to Roosevelt. Of course soon after, things like science would become more important to winning wars then upper body strength, and this sudden attack on the sport status quo caused a major backlash, with football teams and other school athletes digging in there heels. And that would lead to a present day where football can get funding priority over a science class, and the stereotype of jocks hating nerds. There's a very interesting account of this in the book, "American Nerd: The Story of my People" by Benjamin Nugent

while i can see where your coming from with this i hardly think its fair to claim that Roosevelt advocated "Muscular Christianity" at the expense of scholastics and that in turn shaped how sports programs can get priority funding over science,history and the arts.(as already stated he was a renaissance man with a love for both the athletic and intellectual) that i believe stems from multiple sources including the idea of appealing to the lowest common denominator(your average who just wants to watch the game),sports have always been a big thing and there often a communal thing where as intellectual study is(wrongly) perceived as a solitary endeavor,simply put i don't think that Roosevelt was the be all end all reason for the lopsided funding preitys however the idea of the stereotype jock hating nerd idea steaming for this situation dos have merit.

Ill agree that blame does not rest solely at his feet. But I do think that he had a part to play, even if it was completely reasonable at the time. And of course, I do have to mention that basically this conversation has turned into, "Teddy was really fricken awesome" "Nuh uh, he was TOTALLY fricken awesome".

I think that the true million dollar question here is, "Who was the best Roosevelt, Teddy or FDR?". That could get downright violent.

 

[Nerdstar]

Favorite might be FDR. There's a reason he had 4 terms.

Teddy Roosevelt is right up there in terms of just being awesome. I only shy away from him because he is responsible for jocks and the obsession with sports ahead of classes in schools, thanks to importing the idea of Muscular Christianity. But besides that, pure awesome.

Coolidge has the best presidential story ever. Notoriously quiet, a reporter told him that she bet she could get more then 2 words out of him during a dinner. After being quiet all night, Silent Cal turned to the reporter and simply said, "You lose".

im afrad im going to have to call you out on the "jocks and puting sports ahead of schools" bit. rosevelt, who imho was one of the finesit leaders of the us ( my home contry incase you havent figerd that by now) while its true he was an avid enthusites of altetics(be beat his asma at a young age threu puer exesise, and a buttload of coffee) he read mutiple books everyday, amog his many jobs which included Rancher, Soldier, and Politician, he was also a Historian, Author, and aNaturalist. He matriculated at Harvard College in 1876. His father's death in 1878 was a tremendous blow, but Roosevelt redoubled his activities. He did well in science, philosophy and rhetoric courses but fared poorly in Latin and Greek. He studied biology with considerable interest and was already an accomplished naturalist and published ornithologist. He had a photographic memory and developed a lifelong habit of devouring books, memorizing every detail. He was an eloquent conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of the smartest people. He could multitask in impressive fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another, while browsing through a new book. and i havet even stared nameing his REAL accmpishments

Oh, he was 10 shades of awesome, and the jock thing was hardly intentional. But Muscular Christianity was a movement that found its way to the United States heavily thanks to Teddy's influences. The idea is that sports and athleticism with religious underpinnings would greatly aid a powerful, physically strong and cooperative army to conquer with. It was heavily influential in England, and naturally the idea appealed to Roosevelt. Of course soon after, things like science would become more important to winning wars then upper body strength, and this sudden attack on the sport status quo caused a major backlash, with football teams and other school athletes digging in there heels. And that would lead to a present day where football can get funding priority over a science class, and the stereotype of jocks hating nerds. There's a very interesting account of this in the book, "American Nerd: The Story of my People" by Benjamin Nugent

while i can see where your coming from with this i hardly think its fair to claim that Roosevelt advocated "Muscular Christianity" at the expense of scholastics and that in turn shaped how sports programs can get priority funding over science,history and the arts.(as already stated he was a renaissance man with a love for both the athletic and intellectual) that i believe stems from multiple sources including the idea of appealing to the lowest common denominator(your average who just wants to watch the game),sports have always been a big thing and there often a communal thing where as intellectual study is(wrongly) perceived as a solitary endeavor,simply put i don't think that Roosevelt was the be all end all reason for the lopsided funding preitys however the idea of the stereotype jock hating nerd idea steaming for this situation dos have merit.

Ill agree that blame does not rest solely at his feet. But I do think that he had a part to play, even if it was completely reasonable at the time. And of course, I do have to mention that basically this conversation has turned into, "Teddy was really fricken awesome" "Nuh uh, he was TOTALLY fricken awesome".

I think that the true million dollar question here is, "Who was the best Roosevelt, Teddy or FDR?". That could get downright violent.

lol, yeah it seems as if our conversation has become a sort of who's the awesomest teddy roosevelt.

indeed roosevelt, may have had a part to play in the thing but then again so has every mom and dad who's ever taken there kid to a pee wee hockey game the

 

[Corax_1990]

This thread got out of control quickly. I mean it really got out of control fast.

To answer the actualy question. John Curtin. His leadership of Australia throughout WW2 and his response to the Japanese threat was extraordinary. Considering the nation, at that time, was not even 50 years old and his resources were very limited (in terms of troop numbers and millitary strength), his management and political manouvering ensured Australia was not forgotten by the rest of the Allies.

His popularity is demonstrated by the fact that he lead his party to their greatest victory in history.

 

[Freechoice]

He comes a close second to President Michael Wilson [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trmPZScztok#t=9s].

What. the. hell. was. that?

I'm not sure my brain can process what I just watched.

DLA

Distilled Liquid Awesome. Not available in the United States. GODDAMIT SEGA

 

[CAPTCHA]

How did he found Britain? That award goes to James VI or Anne. All William did was conquer England and then brutally subjugate it.

Those peasants needed to be repressed. Violence was inherent in the system.

 

[Shock and Awe]

My personal favorite is Dwight Eisenhower, he had his shit together.

 

[Dfskelleton]

I don't care how awful he was as a president, I think Nixon was hilarious. Not because he was trying to be, just his voice, mannerisms and appearance amuse me. He was such a strange looking little man.

As for leaders I genuinely liked, George Washington seemed to be a pretty cool guy, IMO.
And no, it's not just because of this (even though most of it is true):

 

[octafish]

For the United Kingdom:

- Oliver Cromwell. His policies on religious freedom and reform of the law / Parliament were incredibly ahead of their time. It took until the Great Reform Act of 1832 to re-establish what Cromwell had set up during his reign.

Gonna have to disagree with you there. He was a brutal dictator and a religious fanatic who cracked down on anything that wasn't Puritan. The fucker even banned Christmas. That's pretty low. Oh, and there was the small matter of wiping out 30% of the Irish population. He gets the title "Butcher" for a very good reason.

Sure most of that is true, except no. He didn't crack down on anything that wasn't puritan. He championed religious freedom. MasterOfHisOwnDomain was right about the reforms he made. There was a state church under his rule, but no-one was forced to attend and Catholics and Jews were able to worship how they wished. Oh and he didn't ban Christmas, although he did back a law that would have down played the celebrations of Saints days and Christmas, but his minority government had trouble passing it and it was widely ignored.

EDIT: I'm not saying he wasn't an absolute bastard to the Irish, just that he is more complex than popular history/myth would have you believe. If you are Irish you have the right to be aggrieved.

As a soldier he was very Mongol in his approach, massacring a couple of cities to ensure the surrender of many more. Fair enough that he is not fondly remembered in Ireland.

I find Cromwell fascinating, full of contradictions and surprises, and not quite as brutal a monster as history would have you believe. For example the Irish massacres were totally legal in the articles of war at the time.

 

[sb666]

jPaul Keating is my choice. Arrogant, abusive, combatative, brilliant, and commited to his ideals. He is the only Australian leader to have inspired a successful musical. For proof of his brilliance I'd like to post his Redfern speech but I can't work out how to grab the youtube info with my phone.

By the way Poms, are you forgeting Benjamin Disraeli?

I agree he was one of my favourite pms of australia.

 

[Prince Regent]

Tough one. Being Dutch we like our modern leaders (say the last 150 years) boring but capable. Since they wouldn't make for a interesting discussion Some historical figures.

William the silent.

Did not speak much. Maybe the whole boring dutch leader thing actually started with him. He did lead a rebellion agains the king of Spain though and is considered the "Father of the fatherland" of the Netherlands.

Thankfully the part of the netherlands where I'm from Frisia has some leaders of it's own. The most famous being. Grutte Pier (Big Pier)

He's the guy with the massive cleaver.

He was a Frisian Warlord, Pirate and Folk hero. Though he might not have been the "best" leader for all intense and purposes, he could according to legend chop off the heads of several opponents in one blow and that has to count for something right?

 

[Dectomax]

Winston Churchill was a fucking criminal. Almost as bad as the leaders of the axis.

How so?

[sub]I have the feeling this thread will soon be moving to the religion and politics sub-forum...[/sub]

His treatment of the Germans after WW2 was rather horrid. He wanted to kill everyone.

Every leader in WW2 was a fucking scumbag, on both sides, and every one of them did their fair share of atrocities, be it executing jews, sending jews to Germany to be executed, torturing prisoners.... Which is why it pisses me off when one of them is portrayed as a hero. People need to fucking wake up and realize neither Churchill nor Hitler were heros.

EDIT: Just an example of what a fucking nutjob Churchill was: after the second world war he said that if one day England found itself in an economic slump simular to the one Germany found themselves in before Hitler took over, he would want a man like Hitler to lead Britain. Lovely.

I know this is a few posts late ( 4 pages... ) but honestly, I agree with him - I'd want a guy like Hitler to run our country if we ended up in that kind of position. Don't get me wrong, what he did was wrong - but his Charisma, his leadership and his ability to turn a crippled Germany into an economic superpower capable of fighting on four fronts? You've got to admire the leadership there. What I don't agree with is his treatment of the ethnic and religious groups - killing them was inhumane and hoenstly evil. You give me a leader like hitler, without the racial superiority complex; I'd vote for him.

 

[MasterOfHisOwnDomain]

Gonna have to disagree with you there. He was a brutal dictator and a religious fanatic who cracked down on anything that wasn't Puritan. The fucker even banned Christmas. That's pretty low. Oh, and there was the small matter of wiping out 30% of the Irish population. He gets the title "Butcher" for a very good reason.

Going to disagree with all that:

He held some extreme religious views, as an Independent, but he was incredibly tolerant of other religions and sects - so much so that it frightened many people, who were unused to these people being in positions of power. This was the man who readmitted the Jews into England after all.

He 'banned' Christmas because it was an excuse to get drunk and party. I have no problem with that, but for a man with strict Puritan views, this was anathema, clearly. But he also banned cock-fighting and bear-baiting, as well as being drunken and disorderly in towns - many people would consider dealing with the latter a priority in Modern Britain... He wasn't a brutal dictator, and in fact made several attempts to set up Parliaments (the Rump and then the Barebones Parliament) - he only became "Lord Protector" after they invited him to be.

His policy in Ireland is a blot on his name. But as hard as it is to defend genocide, it has to be seen in the context of multiple previous attempts to subjugate Ireland and the fact that the country had rebelled within his lifetime and effectively triggered the Civil War. Cromwell simply did too well in defeating the Irish.

I could talk about how Cromwell made widespread Parliamentary reforms or his astounding foreign policy, but... another time...

I find Cromwell fascinating, full of contradictions and surprises, and not quite as brutal a monster as history would have you believe.

This. So glad to have been able to study him.