Who is the Hero of our Time?

[Inca]

Circumstances, love, and the approaching summer, forcing me to ask you, dear HBGAMES-users:
Who is the Hero of our Time?
I interested in any of your opinions: problems of the hero in modern culture, Modern hero and a hero of the Past, a hero in life and hero in the game, an interesting hero, a true hero ... It is desirable that your thoughts have not gone far from the entertainment industry. In general, what thoughts arise in your mind when you hear the phrase "A Hero of Our Time".

 

[Brewmeister]

I think of 'real' heroes... cops, firemen, soldiers... anyone that does something against their better judgment or without concern for their own welfare but for the benefit or good of others. Or, more simply, someone who stands out as setting an example for the rest of us to aspire to.

 

[Cryranos]

My heroes are Molly Brown, Martin Luther King Jr., Harvey Milk, and Dmitri Shostakovitch.

Molly Brown saved a whole bunch of people, while the other three put themselves into a political and social quagmire for the betterment of the voiceless victims of oppression... or in Shostakovitch's case, his friends in GULAG.

 

[bacon]

Yeah, Martin Luther King Jr. is the first person that pops into my mind when I think of hero of our century, even though I was not born yet. Nelson Mandela also is a really big hero as well to me at least and I would think he is the most famous "hero" alive to this day.

 

[Ellie]

I don't consider many people to be heroes, as trendy as that sounds, because I don't believe one person really has that much impact (now that we aren't a complete dictatorship). I don't believe even Obama could impact the world in one move, he has people above him and below him etc.

The true heroes? I don't know, I would say some (some) of the people in Libya are heroes, and people who help out in disasters such as Japan are definately hero worthy.

 

[united washcloth express]

http://bb.ohsk.net/uploads/burgin.jpg

The man who created this burger is a hero. People may see this choice as shallow, but it is an honest choice. This is clearly a man who excels at his craft and puts pride into his work. From what I have seen in my life, the idea of putting pride into one's work regardless of how menial and pointless it may seem to others is becoming a lost art. It is almost tragic.

 

[Cryranos]

Whoever ate that burger is really fat.

 

[Venetia]

"hero" is pretty figurative & based on popularity! i can't say many specific people who are seen as heroes have had a very significant, if any, impact on my life.
there are american heroes like Lee or Washington. there are female heroes like susan b. anthony. but they wouldn't be recognized as worldwide heroes.

and then what if there's some amazing sonofabitch in malaysia or uzbekistan or somewhere that totally deserves the title, but i just didn't hear about it?

(also: i doubt that most of us are old enough for MLK to be a hero of OUR time. he died in '68. and, in any case, ghandi is probably "superior" just in sheer number of people affected by his efforts (but he died in the 40's - also assassinated by gunshot).)

not to mention--freely-available and prolific news (e.g., TV & internet) have made it difficult to focus.

there have been all sorts of bastions for causes in the past few decades, but their names are lost in the sea of information.


Let's think about it: Name 10 people who were exceptionally notable (and popularly notable) that were actively being heroic within the past 20 years. Or, hell, even 30 years. Actual names, not "that guy that did X".


nelson mandela famously called for an end to apartheid in south africa in the early 90's after decades in detainment.

mother theresa was pretty giving (died in ... '97, i think?). lived her entire life in direct service of the sick.

a lot of people thought princess diana was a hero (i sort of disagree but w/e). also died in the late 90's.

some people think ronald reagan was heroic for ending the cold war and calling for the destruction of the berlin wall. (but then some think he was the devil, lol). (u.s. president in the 80's.)

tenzin gyatso (the dalai lama) is a bastion for peace in tibet.

ever heard of shirin ebadi? a female iranian lawyer & judge, who worked her entire life against the subjugation of women. (still alive). (though i only know of her b/c i am an NPR dork.)

jack hanna & steve irwin (and even al gore) brought tons of attention to maintaining ecology & wildlife (which actually affects everyone on the planet indirectly)


probably wouldn't consider it, but what about Bill Gates & Warren Buffet? They have contributed UNTOLD wealth into charities ($30B+ USD). CARE Int'l, yearly scholarships, disaster relief, business startup grants, university funding, libraries, etc.


most our modern heroes just aren't very exciting to document.

 

[So fist]

Rajon Rondo. You can lock this thread now.

 

[BlueScope]

I'd define hero as someone who takes action for the good of others, putting their own well-being in possible or to-be-expected danger.
By that definition, lots of people actually apply for the title. You could argue that it makes sense to choose the biggest hero depending on how much danger he or she put themselves into, or how many people's interest they were serving, however that'd tone down the importance of even the little ones. I guess everyone would have their personal heroes that did something for them, but there's no Top Tier I really would want to name.

 

[Jason]

Spoiler: There isn't just one hero, I'd say there's a few, here they are

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym5TTqPY2sk

 

[Misery]

Jbrist is officially the hero of our time.
Why you Ask?
Because not everybody has their own religion

 

[Anski]

Whoever abolishes the ban on gay marriage across america will be a hero in my books.

 

[Venetia]

i have a feeling that the navy seals ops who took out bin laden will be getting some heavy praise as soon as we figure out who they were.

 

[So fist]

It would be nice to have that kind of story that trumps everyone else's story regardless of how much detail you put into it. Guy sits there and retells how he shot an elephant for a good twenty minutes and says heh you ever been on a hunt like that. Ex seal shrugs, "Nothing as big as an elephant but there was that one time I shot Osama in the face."

 

[anon007]

Nelson Mandela is no Hero
Have a look what MK did his arms struggle
Video
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=5ba_1305391944

 

[Ellie]

Thanks anon for signing up to post that. Stick around!

 

[Venetia]

The ANC placed Bombs in several places in South Africa during apartheid. Meany people were killed by these bombs, boms don't discriminate, black and white were killed. The interesting part is the arms strugle was started by Nelson Mandela and he refused to stop the arms struggle, the government of that time said they would release him immediately if he would stop the arms struggle. Oliver Tambo i

truly, a more reputable source of information there has never been.

but, you know, no one really likes Meany people anyway. Maybe they deserved it?

 

[Spoo]

There's no one who really deserves to be called the hero of our time. No one individual has done enough to save mankind from disaster. There are only several notable people who have worked for the betterment of society as a whole. But tbh, there are probably people out there who have done more than the famous ones who go without recognition. Most of the best known heroes are the martyrs and the rich.

 

[glorious caesar]

dudes so many of the names mentioned aren't eligible because the time we are living in now is MASSIVELY DIFFERENT than 50, hell 20 or even TEN YEARS AGO. the hero of OUR TIME isn't going to be anyone who did all their shit during the 1900s (haha wow the NINTEENHUNDREDS that's so weird).

also a hero I think is someone who TRIUMPHS in an outrageous way. usually there's a massive element of morality to it but really whoever has the power to CHANGE THE WORLD is a hero.

mark zuckerberg and im not joking or being sarcastic. maybe him as an INDIVIDUAL but the way the world is turning right now, in that we are beginning to settle into our existence as an internet-based culture and all that, seems like a pretty massive turning point in human history. and mostly because of the movie (gooood movie btw) propelled marky "of course i donated to charity so that people would like me" zuckerberg into the popular eye he's the unlikely hero of the whole thing. :specs: :girl: :girl: :girl: