h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

With the profusion of petty heroes (the heroes of comedy, the heroes of ball rooom dancing etc.) is seems that people don't have any real concencus on major heroes any more.
Who are the real heroes, and why?

As I started this, I get the easiest one: Nelson Mandela - for sticking to his beliefs through decades of imprisonment.

Who else gets the real hero status?

Group Captain Leonard Chesire VC. Probably the Only VC to be remembered more for his Humanitarian Work than any one.

Mother Teresa.

(They are both dead, but Hero's in my Eyes.)

Depends what you mean. Nowadays people seem to equate heroes with saints, and you can't put a memorial up to someone without going scrupulously through their life and confirmed that they have never done a bad deed, ever. Heroes are fallible - that's part of their appeal. Bravery only counts if you feel afraid...
So Havng said all this, will someone should me down in flames if I put forward... Lawrence of Arabia?

Bit controversial: Von-whatshisname who tried to use the briefcase bomb against Hitler

Was he anti-HGitler, anti-Reich, anti-Faschism or what?

Would giving Hitler a hero's death just have made things worse?

Von Staufenberg (sp?). Not sure what his motives were for getting Hitler out of the way were. I mean, can you imagine replacing Adolf with a commander-in-chief who knew what he was doing?

In sport, legendary Ozzie cricketer Sir Donald Bradman who only recently passed away. Epitomy of modesty and good sportsmanship.

Reinhold Messner: Did the 14 8000m peaks in the 70s and 80s. Now a green party MEP for an Italian region.

Pete Goss: Turned round in the southern ocean to go to the aid of Raphael Dinelli. Tried to build the most advanced catmaran to sail round the world - Failed. Heroes don't always come out on top.

Wow - was that before or after he left Bros?

In my opinion I see heroes as the people in you are that do good dead. Shoveling an elderly neighbors walkway, helping them with shopping and thing like that just because they are nice people. I enjoy seeing headlines like "Man walking onh river rescues kids from drowning" I'm just weird like that.

Hello,

Incidentally, while people may need to be a saint to be a hero, it's become easier to be a saint. Apparently, the Vatican no longer has a Devil's Advocate, someone whose job is to argue against why people should be saints. So, you've got an easier chance to be a saint. Go for it. We won't tell your little secrets.

On a vaguely related point, some people don't like Mother Theresa as a hero, saying her strict opposition to birth control and some of her financial dealings made things worse than they could be. I guess the point is, it's hard to be a hero to everybody. But that's always been true I suppose (being a hero used to involved triumphing over someone else a lot).

Yours,
Jake

Can we suggest fictional characters?

If so, I would like to nominate Alan B'Stard and Edmund Blackadder, for always getting their own way even though they don't deserve it. And having almost god-like style...

I apologise, I have an inverted sense of values...

Albert Einstein - Physist

Fredrich Nietzche - Philosopher

The Clangers - Little wool mice that live on the moon and are fed soup by a dragon

ken colbung and all like minded individuals are my heroes

a couple of weeks ago the Daily Telegraph ran a story about genetics, which included; "for example, there is not much difference between an Aborigine and Britney Spears" and included photos morphing Noongar (south western Aboringines) ken colbung (ambassador to England for the retrieval of yagan's head) into Britney Spears, implying that aborigines and Ken were on the lowest end of the evolutionary and beauty scale. 'Inside Cover' for the 'West Australian' rang ken and asked him what he thought of the article. He said that politically he was angry, but personally he didn't much care, and that "I think we are all spiritually linked". The amount of crap the aborigines have put up with from us white aussies and still have an outlook like that makes me want to cry.

there's no other people I admire more

I think I'd rather be a hero than a beauty... it's rather more lasting, don't you think? We can still talk with admiration about Galileo or Plato and have a real insight into what they there like. Everyone knows that Helen of Troy had a face to launch a thousand ships, but there's no real connection.

...so I think posterity will probably bear your opinions out, magrat

The closest I come to an idol(maybe not hero, but still) would be Carl Sagan. I have to admit I don´t know an awful lot about the guy though.

But a thing I really don´t like is that there is the term "Warhero". I think it was Dostojevski who said a society can be measured by who it celebrates. Most people apparently celebrate guys who´s killed a lot of other guys. How sad.

OK then, how about the Dalai Lama and Mahatma Gandhi (sorry if they're spelt wrong)?

Oh, and Billy Connoly

I agree with you Xanatic, though there is something to be said for certain war heroes, in Australia we celebrate the ANZACS who landed at Gallipoli, and we all know how badly that went... also, Simpson and his Donkey is probably our most revered war hero, a guy who spent his time in gallipoli picking up wounded (on his donkey) and taking them to safety

Um... they're not mice. They're Clangers. But heroic: I'll go for Mother Clanger

Yes. Staufenberg. He believed in his country, and believed that Hitler was, to put it mildly, giving Germans a bad name. As far as I recall he didn't mind the marching all over Poland (and other assorted bits of Europe) but he recognised when they were going to lose, and wanted shot of Hitler so that they could surrender, end the war and build Germany back up again. That's pretty heroic, given the dangerous idiots surrounding Hitler. And he was prepared to die for that.

Yeah, that's what I've heard about him, I'd put him up there.