Comments on: Great Lessons From Great Men

By: The Tao Of Quackgrass (Or How To Get Rid Of The Quack Grass In Your Life)

The Tao Of Quackgrass (Or How To Get Rid Of The Quack Grass In Your Life) — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 18:23:48 +0000

[...] from evil and ignorance and making great speeches with timelessly quotable material, the great men and woman of history were [...]

By: Ares Vista

Ares Vista — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:43:35 +0000

These men understood how to think for themselves, and to recognize how we can all do our part to better the places we live and produce. We should all strive to do good for the sake of doing good, not for any religion or law. If we do things we know to be wrong by following the law or religions, we are not doing good.

By: Pinny Cohen

Pinny Cohen — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:06:53 +0000

JD, fantastic article – I particularly liked your warren buffet quote about patience – that’s one true fact of life explained in a very funny way.

By: mythago

mythago — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 00:00:45 +0000

Rod – it’s well-documented that Ben Franklin was something of a hedonist, though I don’t doubt that Hollywood exaggerated. This doesn’t really make him any less of a great man. I’m willing to be corrected, but I’m not aware of any source that suggests he treated women poorly or thought of them as conquests.

Not sure about generosity….: If every time you’ve given to others they genuinely abuse that gift, then I’d gently suggest you take a hard look at yourself to find out why you choose the friends/acquaintances/significant others that you do. I’m not saying that it’s your fault or that you ‘deserve’ bad treatment in any way; only that you may be exercising poor judgment in friends or partners, and need to direct your generosity elsewhere. As Peter wisely noted above, generosity doesn’ t mean “give it away until you hurt”; it means sharing of yourself, particularly when you are blessed and others are not.

By: Rod Newbound

Rod Newbound — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:16:38 +0000

Well compiled JD. My personal favorite is the Golden Rule, but that doesn’t make any of the others of less value.

I’ve noted in some movies, including the recent on about John Adams, that Ben Franklin is portrayed as a heavy drinker and a womanizer. Given his commitment to his thirteen virtues, I suspect this is another case of Hollywood trying to bring down the memory of great men.

Thanks for writing this. I’ll pass it on to my children, grandchildren, nieces & nephew.