Mr. Herzl is the founder of modern Zionism - and therefore one of most important figures of the 20th century - although he is hardly known.

Herzl and many more other after him (including rich families like the Rothschields) tried for a long time to establish a Judenstaat for Jewish immigrants from all over the world. But none of the regional and colonial powers like the British and Ottoman Empire seriously supported the idea. The Zionist were not just religiously motivated, but reacted to a growing anti-Semitism in Europe (not just Germany, but also France and later in Russia).

Only after the Holocaust and a bloody struggle with their Arab neighbors and against international resistance was Israel established.

Theodor Herzl’s idea has come a long and bloody way.

Ted Turner is changed our media landscape with CNN. He pushed the new news cycle into a new era of speed and real time coverage. I still remember watching the beginning of the first Gulf War via CNN at night. Creepy, unreal - but real nevertheless.

He later sold CNN for a handsome profit, but continued his groundbreaking work with the Ted Turner foundation and the incredible pledge to give one billion dollars to the UN. Apart from that he is the largest landowner in the US and also has a started a restaurant chain.

Although highly successful he still is very critical of the media business and politics - not afraid to raise his voice. I loved his recent comments about the decline of his brainchild CNN and celebrity news (quoted from AP News on myway.com):

“I would like to see us to return to a little more international coverage on the domestic feed and a little more environmental coverage, and, maybe, maybe a little less of the pervert of the day,” he said in a speech to CNN employees outside the old Atlanta mansion where the network first aired."

“You know, we have a lot of perverts on today, and I know that, but is that really news? I mean, come on. I guess you’ve got to cover Michael Jackson, but not three stories about perversion that we do every day as well.”

His remarks won applause and laughter from CNN employees, but the moderator for Turner’s remarks, CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour, said: “But everyone else is doing that. Why do you think it’s important not to?”

Turner replied: “Somebody’s got to be a serious news person. Somebody’s got to be the most respected name in television news, and I wanted that position for CNN.

“I wanted to be The New York Times of the airwaves. Not the New York Post, but The New York Times. And that’s what we set out to do, and we did it.”

Amen to that - kick that Wolf Blitzer Crap!

America seems to have forgotten one of it’s most important founding father: Thomas Paine. We was an insightful man and he has written many pamphlets which were the basis for later events. Most important he wrote for the common men - and not for an educated aristocratic few. And he was a bloody liberal and an anarchist (in it’s original sense).

Especially his ‘The Age of Reason’ should be nailed on every Christian-right-wingers forehead. Here Thomas Paine rejected any notion of organized religion as well as the bible. Although he considered himself a believer - he could very well do without a church or any organization around his relationship to God.

Paine himself was an all around genius, he worked as an inventor as well as a writer and sort of early global activist. Although he supported the french revolution - who dared to oppose the execution of King Louis XVI before the french assembly - and was promptly thrown into jail. The British Crown was highly paranoid about him as well and feared he might start a revolution there as well.

His other great works included ‘Common Sense’ and ‘Rights of Man’. He proposed the name United States of America.

Paine was later shunned for his rejection of Christian ideas and concepts - and died a lonely death in New York. Hardly anyone remembered him for a long time. Thanks to Thomas Edison and an enlightened few his memory was kept alive.

"He attacked everything in life with a mix of extraordinary genius and naive incompetence, and it was often difficult to tell which was which."

"In those days spirits were brave, the stakes were high, men were real men, women were real women and small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri were real small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri."

"There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened."

"Nothing travels faster than the speed of light with the possible exception of bad news, which obeys its own special laws."

I really miss this guy. He was one of a kind.

“Glance at the sun.
See the moon and the stars.
Gaze at the beauty of the earth’s greenings.
Now, Think.” ~ Hildegard von Bingen

Hildegard was certainly one of the greatest German women ever - although she is hardly known today (like Meister Eckhardt). Her mind was brilliant - she wrote books, music, prayers and hymns. The work ranged from science to the spiritual - she was an all around genius. She also worked as a healer.

Too bad she was ‘wasted’ in the dark ages - I wonder what such a woman had achieved with better tools and in a free society?!

More? Wikipedia

For me still one of the greatest - or maybe even the greatest US President: Abe Lincoln. He is an important historical figure and a beaming light in our shared history. He showed us that we can break the rules and improve life for all.

I am personally deeply impressed by his many great speeches and quotes. He was a highly intelligent man that usually doesn’t go hand in hand with a high office.

These capitalists generally act harmoniously and in concert to fleece the people, and now that they have got into a quarrel with themselves, we are called upon to appropriate the people’s money to settle the quarrel.

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.

A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved — I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other.

Ballots are the rightful and peaceful successors to bullets.

Paul von Hindenburg is an important and tragic figure of European history. He was basically the last of the German Kaisers men in power - because he actually had to give all power later to Hitler (because he was elected Chancellor of Germany - so it was all legal). They both didn’t like each other:

In October 1931, Hindenburg and Hitler had their first meeting. The Hindenburg-Hitler meeting was a disaster as both men took an immediate and immense dislike to one another. In private, Hindenburg disparagingly referred to Hitler as “that Austrian corporal”, “the Bohemian corporal” and sometimes just simply as “the corporal”. Hitler in turn, often described Hindenburg as “that old fool” and “the old reactionary”. Right up until January 1933, Hindenburg often stated that he would never appoint Hitler as Chancellor under any circumstances. On January 26, 1933, Hindenburg told a group of his friends: “Gentlemen, I hope you will not hold me capable of appointing this Austrian corporal to be Reich Chancellor.”

Hindenburg was also an successful General in WWI on the eastern front. He tried to serve his country in the difficult transition from Monarchy to Democracy - and he had to see it fail. Instead he handed all power to a fascist system. He himself was a monarchist and not very much of a people’s person, he disliked public speeches as well as any grassroots movements.

In that context Hindenburg was as much a ‘transitional’ creature of the old imperialist and colonial thinking in Europe. You could find people with similar mindset’s in the great Nations like France and Great Britain - and exiled Russians as well. The transition from elitist systems to grassroots movements like Democracy and Communism were at the root of Europe’s last two great wars. Hindenburg tried to adapt and he failed - others like Churchill adapted and succeeded.

So for me Hindenburg marks the end of the colonial age in Europe as well as the difficult transition to new political systems. It also shows that societies as ’systems’ don’t change so easily. Revolutions as well as evolutions of societies usually go with blood, tears and bullets.

One of the biggest insult for any modern politician is to called Nazi or a Goebbels like figure. In the later case it’s not only an insult, but also a compliment. Joseph Goebbels obviously stands for extreme and dedicated propaganda to serve and create an evil Reich - but he was smart, witty and extremly skillful.

He not only pioneered several new propaganda techniques like the Volksempfänger, he masterminded the mental seducation the german people. He and Hitler were masters of mass psychology. Goebbels ministry was everywhere - Propaganda was not simply creating advertisement for the government - they formed, educated and developed german society - every detail of it.

It is hard to understand his skills until you heared and analysed some of his speeches. They are really impressive, moving and captivating. The collage ‘Totaler Krieg‘ is a bit more authentic.

Watch this short documentary about Goebbels: Part 1 and Part 2 (although the pathetic music in the background is almost unbearable.

More? Joseph Goebbels @ Wikipedia and a Collection of his Speeches