The Greatest Americans are from the left side of life for who else could imagine a better world. "Much of what we now take for granted as common sense was once espoused by people who were widely considered left-wing radicals."
The greatest Americans are on the left side of the political spectrum, why is that? Liberals, lefties, and other left leaning radicals need to take a bow. I've often asked my conservative friends to list conservative accomplishments. What you get is an invasion of liberal ideas starting with Humanism in the middle ages, the Renaissance, and finally the Enlightenment. As I have noted often, no nation was founded by conservative ideas as conservative ideas require a foundation and foundations do not exist on their own, they must be imagined and pushed forward against a wall of let's keep things as they are.
"The 20Th century is a remarkable story of progressive accomplishments against overwhelming odds. But it is not a tale of steady progress. At best, it is a chronicle of taking two steps forward, then one step backward, then two more steps forward. The successful battles and social improvements came about in fits and starts. When path breaking laws are passed -- such as the Nineteenth Amendment (which granted women suffrage in 1920), the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (which created the minimum wage), the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (which outlawed many forms of racial discrimination), and the Clean Air Act of 1970 -- we often forget that those milestones took decades of work by thinkers, activists, and politicians. The people I profile in the book were not sprinters; they were long-distance runners for justice."
The book outlines Americans who got things done. Listing Left | Dissent Magazine
But a question remains why is it that change comes so slowly, eventually to be accepted as just the way things are by all? And there are those who claim greatness for people, who while being successful at some endeavor fought against the kind of world that our Preamble imagines.
"You won't find Henry Ford, John Rockefeller, Thomas Edison, Charles Lindbergh, Walt Disney, Louis B. Mayer, Sam Walton, Ronald Reagan, Elvis Presley, Babe Ruth, or Billy Graham in my book. They may have been great in their specific fields of endeavor but they did not contribute to making America a more just, equal, or democratic society. Most of them, in fact, actively opposed movements for social justice." Peter Dreier: The 15 Greatest Americans Of The 20th Century (PHOTOS)
'The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century' The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame - Peter Dreier - Google Books
"President Eisenhower describes his administration's political philosophy as 'dynamic conservatism,' then as 'progressive, dynamic conservatism,' then as 'progressive moderation,' then as 'moderate progressivism,' and then as 'positive progressivism.'" William Manchester
The greatest Americans are on the left side of the political spectrum, why is that? Liberals, lefties, and other left leaning radicals need to take a bow. I've often asked my conservative friends to list conservative accomplishments. What you get is an invasion of liberal ideas starting with Humanism in the middle ages, the Renaissance, and finally the Enlightenment. As I have noted often, no nation was founded by conservative ideas as conservative ideas require a foundation and foundations do not exist on their own, they must be imagined and pushed forward against a wall of let's keep things as they are.
"The 20Th century is a remarkable story of progressive accomplishments against overwhelming odds. But it is not a tale of steady progress. At best, it is a chronicle of taking two steps forward, then one step backward, then two more steps forward. The successful battles and social improvements came about in fits and starts. When path breaking laws are passed -- such as the Nineteenth Amendment (which granted women suffrage in 1920), the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (which created the minimum wage), the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (which outlawed many forms of racial discrimination), and the Clean Air Act of 1970 -- we often forget that those milestones took decades of work by thinkers, activists, and politicians. The people I profile in the book were not sprinters; they were long-distance runners for justice."
The book outlines Americans who got things done. Listing Left | Dissent Magazine
But a question remains why is it that change comes so slowly, eventually to be accepted as just the way things are by all? And there are those who claim greatness for people, who while being successful at some endeavor fought against the kind of world that our Preamble imagines.
"You won't find Henry Ford, John Rockefeller, Thomas Edison, Charles Lindbergh, Walt Disney, Louis B. Mayer, Sam Walton, Ronald Reagan, Elvis Presley, Babe Ruth, or Billy Graham in my book. They may have been great in their specific fields of endeavor but they did not contribute to making America a more just, equal, or democratic society. Most of them, in fact, actively opposed movements for social justice." Peter Dreier: The 15 Greatest Americans Of The 20th Century (PHOTOS)
'The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century' The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame - Peter Dreier - Google Books
"President Eisenhower describes his administration's political philosophy as 'dynamic conservatism,' then as 'progressive, dynamic conservatism,' then as 'progressive moderation,' then as 'moderate progressivism,' and then as 'positive progressivism.'" William Manchester
