"Great Men Are Almost Always Bad Men"
The oft-ignored coda to Lord Acton's famous "power corrupts" dictum comes to mind with Jeff Taylor's article on the worst presidents, in which he notes that "it’s the Lincolns and FDRs who rank at the top while relatively peaceful and socially-well-adjusted men are at the bottom" — Bottom of the Barrel.
Labels: Albion, America the Beautiful, Peace, Tyranny, War and Rumors of War
4 Comments:
As a Brazilian, I would submit the memory of our late Emperor Pedro II as a counterexample, although he was probably only seen as great due to his long reign and the chaos of the Regency that preceded him.
I guess many of the early American presidents would fit, as well, although I am not familiar enough with their histories to say one way or another...
From what I've read of your Emperor, I would agree.
"Woodrow Wilson . . . Opponent of woman suffrage."
Even the really bad guys have their good points.
And even progressive heroines Emma Goldman and Mother Jones agreed on this point!
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