Just wondering who your non footbag heros are (I guess you can include one footbag hero if you like - I just don't want this to be a list of your favourite footbaggers).
Mine are probably:
Bernie Banton
Bernie is a campaigner against James Hardy (asbestos company). Having been awarded compensation for himself, he then started campaigning for compensation for all suffers and I think he's an amazing person who really inspires me.
Steve Goldberg
Probably "hero" would be the wrong word, but there is no doubt in my mind that Steve has done more for footbag than any other person - certainly so much more than anybody who is just known for their skills.
Ang Sung Su Chi
Her efforts for democracy in Burma (Myanmar) are amazing and to see somebody continue to fight through so much oppression is an amazing example of the strength of the human spirit.
Hunter S Thompson
Although his drug exploits are what makes him so famous, I see him as one of the only journalists with any integrity and it is work for freedom, equality and free speech that impress me the most.
Your non footbag heros?
Good topic. I may end up posting multiple times, with one person per entry, cause its a hard question.
One of the first ones to pop into my head is Mister Rogers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rogers
He hosted a TV show when I was growing up called "Mr. Rogers` Neighborhood" which I thought was great back then, and watching re-runs now (when I am 26), I think is even better.
I found him really striking by how honest and straightforward he was with children. I remember as a kid appreciating that. Now that I`ve grown up, I see how many adults can`t interact honestly with kids. They end up role-playing, or condescending to them, but Mr. Rogers always treated kids on-the-level.
His show wasn`t super flashy. The mouths of his puppets didn`t move, there wasn`t lots of animation, and there weren`t weird alien characters. But he dealt with important, serious themes which are on kids minds, that adults often just neglect, such as death.
I remember the episode about death, and being reassured by it. I watched it again recently, and was just amazed by it; I really couldn`t imagine any contemporary show dealing with that subject, much less in such an honest and forthright manner. Mr. Rogers talked about a cat he had who died, and explained that all living things die, and that its natural. Your toys can`t die, so you don`t have to worry about that. And even though dead people look like they are sleeping, death and sleep are very different things. Most importantly, he explained how talking about your feelings when somebody dies is a good way to make you feel better, even though it is difficult.
I just think its great that Mr. Rogers didn`t just complain about how crap TV was, he actually bothered to do something about it. On a personal level, I really appreciate that. Some might say Mr. Rogers was a boring program, but I found it comforting. The recurring theme of teaching kids to love themselves and treat others well is a valuable one, and I`d say I owe a good chunk of my moral foundation to his show.
One of the first ones to pop into my head is Mister Rogers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rogers
He hosted a TV show when I was growing up called "Mr. Rogers` Neighborhood" which I thought was great back then, and watching re-runs now (when I am 26), I think is even better.
I found him really striking by how honest and straightforward he was with children. I remember as a kid appreciating that. Now that I`ve grown up, I see how many adults can`t interact honestly with kids. They end up role-playing, or condescending to them, but Mr. Rogers always treated kids on-the-level.
His show wasn`t super flashy. The mouths of his puppets didn`t move, there wasn`t lots of animation, and there weren`t weird alien characters. But he dealt with important, serious themes which are on kids minds, that adults often just neglect, such as death.
I remember the episode about death, and being reassured by it. I watched it again recently, and was just amazed by it; I really couldn`t imagine any contemporary show dealing with that subject, much less in such an honest and forthright manner. Mr. Rogers talked about a cat he had who died, and explained that all living things die, and that its natural. Your toys can`t die, so you don`t have to worry about that. And even though dead people look like they are sleeping, death and sleep are very different things. Most importantly, he explained how talking about your feelings when somebody dies is a good way to make you feel better, even though it is difficult.
I just think its great that Mr. Rogers didn`t just complain about how crap TV was, he actually bothered to do something about it. On a personal level, I really appreciate that. Some might say Mr. Rogers was a boring program, but I found it comforting. The recurring theme of teaching kids to love themselves and treat others well is a valuable one, and I`d say I owe a good chunk of my moral foundation to his show.
General Gutierrez Mellado
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_Gut ... ez_Mellado
Pretty much every Spaniard knows who this guy is, but I think he`s pretty much unheard of outside of the country. Anyway, some background. For almost 40 years, Spain was ruled by Gen. Francisco Franco, a conservative fascist dictator who ruled Spain with an iron fist. After his death in 1976, he passed power to the king, Juan Carlos I. To his credit, Juan Carlos immediately instituted democratic reforms, which wasn`t easy. Anyway, for the first few years of Spain`s return to democracy, it wasn`t really clear if Spain would successfully rejoin the free world, or if it would slip back under some sort of conservative dictatorship, since the military and conservatives still exercised a lot of power.
On February 23rd,1981 an attempted coup was staged. Members of the Civil Guard armed with submachine guns entered the Spanish Congress, fired shots into the air, and announced that a coup was taking place. Amazingly, a cameraman was there, and filmed the first 30 minutes of this event, so the rest of the world actually saw and heard what took place. It`s pretty incredible footage. The armed militants enters the building and you see people get spooked, and then when a shot is fired into the ceiling, almost everybody hits the floor in a panic. One guy though doesn`t budge. General Mellado, who`s nearly 70 years old, stands up, doesn`t flinch, and demands to know who these people are. Since he`s a senior general, he orders them to stand down. The leader of the coup, Tejero, orders his men to subdue the general, who actually puts up a fight. Dude is 69 years old, 20year olds with submachine guns are shooting them in the air, and he tells them to stand down. Multiple coup militants try to subdue him, and can`t take him down. Wow.
Eventually, the coup failed, and Spain went on to become a democratic country. But at that critical moment when democracy was threatened, General Mellado really embodied the democratic will of Spain, and his act of bravery in the face of terrorism is permanently etched in my mind, as well as those of millions of other Spaniards I`m sure.
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_Gut ... ez_Mellado
Pretty much every Spaniard knows who this guy is, but I think he`s pretty much unheard of outside of the country. Anyway, some background. For almost 40 years, Spain was ruled by Gen. Francisco Franco, a conservative fascist dictator who ruled Spain with an iron fist. After his death in 1976, he passed power to the king, Juan Carlos I. To his credit, Juan Carlos immediately instituted democratic reforms, which wasn`t easy. Anyway, for the first few years of Spain`s return to democracy, it wasn`t really clear if Spain would successfully rejoin the free world, or if it would slip back under some sort of conservative dictatorship, since the military and conservatives still exercised a lot of power.
On February 23rd,1981 an attempted coup was staged. Members of the Civil Guard armed with submachine guns entered the Spanish Congress, fired shots into the air, and announced that a coup was taking place. Amazingly, a cameraman was there, and filmed the first 30 minutes of this event, so the rest of the world actually saw and heard what took place. It`s pretty incredible footage. The armed militants enters the building and you see people get spooked, and then when a shot is fired into the ceiling, almost everybody hits the floor in a panic. One guy though doesn`t budge. General Mellado, who`s nearly 70 years old, stands up, doesn`t flinch, and demands to know who these people are. Since he`s a senior general, he orders them to stand down. The leader of the coup, Tejero, orders his men to subdue the general, who actually puts up a fight. Dude is 69 years old, 20year olds with submachine guns are shooting them in the air, and he tells them to stand down. Multiple coup militants try to subdue him, and can`t take him down. Wow.
Eventually, the coup failed, and Spain went on to become a democratic country. But at that critical moment when democracy was threatened, General Mellado really embodied the democratic will of Spain, and his act of bravery in the face of terrorism is permanently etched in my mind, as well as those of millions of other Spaniards I`m sure.
I remember seeing an episode of mister rogers where he shows someone making a steel drum, thats awesome..., along with the fact that his was one of the few kid shows that had jazz as theme music
I've been reading rudolph steiner, sort of a hero for me, an Austrian philosopher, literary scholar, architect, playwright, educator, and social thinker. He is the founder of anthroposophy, "a movement based on the notion that there is a spiritual world comprehensible to pure thought but accessible only to the highest faculties of mental knowledge"[1] and many of its practical applications, including Waldorf education, biodynamic agriculture, anthroposophical medicine, and new artistic impulses, especially eurythmy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_Steiner
frank zappa, hermeto pascoal, astor piazzolla, Cachao, Django Reinhardt, all musicians, theres so many more I look up to....
I've been reading rudolph steiner, sort of a hero for me, an Austrian philosopher, literary scholar, architect, playwright, educator, and social thinker. He is the founder of anthroposophy, "a movement based on the notion that there is a spiritual world comprehensible to pure thought but accessible only to the highest faculties of mental knowledge"[1] and many of its practical applications, including Waldorf education, biodynamic agriculture, anthroposophical medicine, and new artistic impulses, especially eurythmy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_Steiner
frank zappa, hermeto pascoal, astor piazzolla, Cachao, Django Reinhardt, all musicians, theres so many more I look up to....
Plain, with everything.
I'd also have to say my parents are the closest things to heroes I have - there are literally hundreds of thousands if not millions of heroes who grew up in South Africa in the 50's and 60's, the equal, not just the contemporaries, of Mandella, and I think my parents are two of them. Day after day that environment threw such insane situations at these people, and they faced these situations with compassion and morality that transcended their environment.
I think there's a difference between people you find inspiring and people you consider heroic. Theres alot of people who inspire me - amazing teachers, artists, sporting figures, etc, but I don't really consider them heroic.
I think there's a difference between people you find inspiring and people you consider heroic. Theres alot of people who inspire me - amazing teachers, artists, sporting figures, etc, but I don't really consider them heroic.
Who wears short shorts?
Dylan Govender.
Dylan Govender.
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Iron Clad Ben
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Mathematicians/Scientists: Newton, Einstein, Lagrange, Navier, Prandtl, Reynolds, Bernoulli... probably more I can't remember.
The guys who invented VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet. I'm an excel jockey, couldn't live without it.
Richard Bandler and John Grinder, the guys who invented NLP
Milton Erickson, the grandfather of hypnosis
Sting. The music he's put over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's putting it out there, I respect that. sorry, but someone had to do that one
Abraham Lincoln. The guy had balls of steel and was way ahead of his time.
The guys who invented VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet. I'm an excel jockey, couldn't live without it.
Richard Bandler and John Grinder, the guys who invented NLP
Milton Erickson, the grandfather of hypnosis
Sting. The music he's put over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's putting it out there, I respect that. sorry, but someone had to do that one
Abraham Lincoln. The guy had balls of steel and was way ahead of his time.
Arnold Schwarzenegger for me.
He grew up in a small town in Austria. During his body building career, he moved to America not knowing English. After becoming a body building legend, he played in dozens of films/movies and now is the Governor of one of the most populated states in the US. There are even people pushing for an amendment so that he can run for president.
What's amazing about Arnold is that he accomplished everything he set his mind to. He has so much drive and determination. He wanted to become the best in body building, and so he did. He wanted to persue acting, so he did. He wanted to become Governor, so he did. Nothing in his way stopped him.
Looking past how he treated women in the past, I believe he has made a great turn around. I aprechiate his character as well. He is always looking striving for more and more, becoming better and better.
"For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer" Arnold Schwarzenegger
He grew up in a small town in Austria. During his body building career, he moved to America not knowing English. After becoming a body building legend, he played in dozens of films/movies and now is the Governor of one of the most populated states in the US. There are even people pushing for an amendment so that he can run for president.
What's amazing about Arnold is that he accomplished everything he set his mind to. He has so much drive and determination. He wanted to become the best in body building, and so he did. He wanted to persue acting, so he did. He wanted to become Governor, so he did. Nothing in his way stopped him.
Looking past how he treated women in the past, I believe he has made a great turn around. I aprechiate his character as well. He is always looking striving for more and more, becoming better and better.
"For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer" Arnold Schwarzenegger
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BainbridgeShred
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You live a loooong way from California, son.Arnold Schwarzenegger for me.
He grew up in a small town in Austria. During his body building career, he moved to America not knowing English. After becoming a body building legend, he played in dozens of films/movies and now is the Governor of one of the most populated states in the US. There are even people pushing for an amendment so that he can run for president.
What's amazing about Arnold is that he accomplished everything he set his mind to. He has so much drive and determination. He wanted to become the best in body building, and so he did. He wanted to persue acting, so he did. He wanted to become Governor, so he did. Nothing in his way stopped him.
Looking past how he treated women in the past, I believe he has made a great turn around. I aprechiate his character as well. He is always looking striving for more and more, becoming better and better.
"For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer" Arnold Schwarzenegger
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HighDemonslayer
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shred villain
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Iron Clad Ben
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Here is a great vid of Fred Rogers talking to Congress back in 1969. Definitely worth checking outC-Fan wrote:One of the first ones to pop into my head is Mister Rogers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rogers
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3Sd7TcVH670
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bigdirtyfoot
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That was touching actually.Iron Clad Ben wrote:Here is a great vid of Fred Rogers talking to Congress back in 1969. Definitely worth checking outC-Fan wrote:One of the first ones to pop into my head is Mister Rogers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rogers
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3Sd7TcVH670
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smokefree
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Would you be inspired by Arnold even though he tried to fuck our good state over a few times? Though youre in NH. YOU HATE CALIFORNIA THATS WHY YOU LOVE ARNOLD. Jk. But Arnold has been doing good things lately, im starting to like him a lot more than his first year or two. Maybe I can even forgive him for trying to rob our schools.
Anthony
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