NationStates Jolt Archive

---Post deleted by NationStates Moderators---

I doubt many South and Central Americans would agree with that verdict on Reagan's presidency.

You see what you've done, don't you, Very few people are going to question FDR as the greatest president, TR is up in the air, I'd say he was good, but not great, and Reagan was fantastically mediocre.

BUT

By positioning him next to the other two, you can make anyone who disagrees with reagan disagree, by proxy, with FDR and TR

I doubt many South and Central Americans would agree with that verdict on Reagan's presidency.

Yes, this may be true, but to the US itself, it's irrelevant.

The US pundits all list Reagan, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, and Eisenhower as the four greatest Presidents of the 20th century.

However, in America, Reagan is the only President who's political platform is still instilled in moderan American politics: Modern Conservatism.

He may have had his bad points, but so do all Presidents; besides which, Reagan's political legacy has lasted a lot longer than JFK's, I'm sorry to say.

TH--I think you inadverdantly made the salient point. It's pundits who stick Reagan on a pedestal. But scholars don't. Scholars refer to Reagan, as Pyta so eloquently put it, as fantastically mediocre.

When Schlesinger did his survey of historians a few years back, Reagan came in at 25th out of 40. That's about right in my estimation, although he might make the top 20 (just barely) in my opinion. He certainly wasn't the worst president of all time, but he also wasn't the greatest.

Economist Paul Krugman (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/11/opinion/11KRUG.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fPaul%20Krugman) has a great editorial today about what Reagan's real economic achievements were--and he gives credit where it's due, but also warns against overpraising him. One point Krugman actually fails to mention is the relative price of oil under Carter and then under Reagan, whic undoubtedly added to the rebound.

Mikhail Gorbachev (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5185977/) also adds his opinion to the opinion of those who have argued that Reagan caused the toppling of the Soviet Union. As I've said elsewhere, Reagan's greatest achievement wasn't in pushing the Soviets beyond what they could handle--it was realizing that Gorbachev was a man he could work with, even when Reagan's advisers were pushing for greater pressure and potential conflict.

"Great" can never appear in. The same sentence as "president".

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I believe Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan were the 3 best presidents of the 20th century. They were all three great men, and 3 great patriots. They helped make the world better, and under their presidencies great things happened, and evil empires fell.

Comparing Reagan to the Roosevelts is like comparing a Mercedes to a Ferrari. A mercedes is nice, but I would rather have a ferrari.

---Post deleted by NationStates Moderators---

Ok, now it's just annoying

One of the reasons why FDR, TR, and RR are always grouped together by pundits is because that is what Reagan wanted all along. He felt that he was the continuation of FDR. Unfortunately, Reagan's politics were nearly the exact opposite of FDR's. So, it was a case of invoking his name, but doing the opposite.

One of the reasons why FDR, TR, and RR are always grouped together by pundits is because that is what Reagan wanted all along. He felt that he was the continuation of FDR. Unfortunately, Reagan's politics were nearly the exact opposite of FDR's. So, it was a case of invoking his name, but doing the opposite.

Reagan wanted to strip down everything that FDR and Truman did. He was the beginning of the revisionist movement to begin stating that the depression fixed itself. The movement also wants to wipe out social security, minimum wage, union protections, etc. Reagan was the first neo-con, and I hope Bush is the last. I like McCain conservatives.

TH--I think you inadverdantly made the salient point. It's pundits who stick Reagan on a pedestal. But scholars don't. Scholars refer to Reagan, as Pyta so eloquently put it, as fantastically mediocre.

Sweet! I'm eloquent!

But yeah, I want a McCain Conservatives again. I think that if he ran, he would win in a landslide

Easily. Hell, I'm a hard line leftist and I'd vote for McCain over Bush or Kerry.

While I can't read the initial post, I'd have to say that Teddy Roosevelt was the worst of those three that we've had.
TR hurted the economy. TR nearly made the GOP a left-wing party. TR got involve into wars that really weren't our business. And finally, TR acted far too much like an immature schoolchild when he inherited the presidency of America, then one of the newest of the great powers in the world.

This just in:

Ronald Reagan, still dead.

Film at eleven...

I believe Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan were the 3 best presidents of the 20th century. They were all three great men, and 3 great patriots. They helped make the world better, and under their presidencies great things happened, and evil empires fell.

um.... why was this worthy of the dreaded post deated by NS mods thing?

Teddy Roosevelt: Bully, bully!

FDR: Hitch that bully to a plow and use him to build roads!

Ronald Reagan: Mommy! Look at the pretty doggy!

Here is my take on this whole thing: TR- Trustbuster, and a very popularman amongst the USA. However he did fund another country to fight a war with Panama so we could take the area needed for the Panama Canal. However, he ran for president with the Bull-Moose party against his buddy Taft a few years later because they got into and argument. TR finished second as a third party candidate, which is amazing. Overall as a president I'll give him an 8 out of 10.

FDR- Here is the epitome of a president. A man who passed a series of reforms that changed life in this country for the better. The New Deal is probably one of the best political platforms ever. After 13 years in office FDR had completely changed the USA's views of banks and industry while also changing the way the public looked at the president. FDR was very down to earth as illistrated by his Fireside Chats. An obvious 10/10.

RR- Here is an actor who played the part of the President. He was very cruel to the Air Traffic controllers who were only looking for a slight increase in wage and more breaks so they wouldn't fall asleep at the controls and collide planes. Iran Contra: Let's sell weapons to our enemies so I can play the hero. Reganomics...Thanks to this load of crap the country was in a three trillion dollar debt. Everyone says it finally worked when Clinton was in office. I will say this once...bullsh!t. If it was effective it would not have taken 13 years to work. Everyone loves this man in hindsight, because awww....he is dead. So many people good people, die each day, that it is mindboggling. So many other, better men and women die each day that are a better person than he ever could've hoped to have been, but they don't get a 24 hour a day vigil on their casket. He was about a 2 out of 10 as a president and as far the one of the best in the 20th century. please...you forget JFK, or hell even Jimmy Carter. This man was an actor and he used his trade as a disguise to make himself look like he truly cared about the American people.

I believe Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan were the 3 best presidents of the 20th century. They were all three great men, and 3 great patriots. They helped make the world better, and under their presidencies great things happened, and evil empires fell.

um.... why was this worthy of the dreaded post deated by NS mods thing?

No, he had this thing he would do invloving a picture of George W. Bush holding a gun and the text would read: Liberal killed sir right below the picture.