What does "Real American Hero" conjure up in your imagination?
Asked by
6rant6 (
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February 27th, 2012
I Googled this phrase and, well, I don’t want to taint your answers, so you’ll have to look yourself after you answer.
Who do you think deserves the appellation, “Real American Hero”?
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People who call America out on their BS, helping to get rid of the plentiful lies and propaganda that are still so pervasive. For example, the rich being job creators. We should be drowning in jobs with the widening wealth gap. Or supply side economics, or bombing brown people so we can liberate them and give them democracy etc.
Believe it or not
I’m walking on air.
I never thought I could feel so free-ee-eee
Flying away on a wing and a prayer
Who could it be?
Believe it or not
It’s just meeeee
aw, loving the William Katt love here =)
Well since I’ve sorta been on a streak, this guy
“Fightin’ for freedom, wherever there’s trouble, GI Joe is the-e-ere!
GI JOE! A real American hero! GI Joe will dare…”
And the extremely silly cartoon show that goes with it, with lots of weapons and explosions that never kill anyone, but destroy vehicles that launch successful passenger escape parachutes, and volleys of weapons fire that all miss and are a prelude to fist fights. Arrrgh – lame too-tame pro-violence messages for kids.
Morgan Freeman is about ready to marry his step-granddaughter. How is that for a real American hero?
@Jude Sounds about right, actually.
three words that I usually dislike individually put together in a way that makes me angry
@Jude All right, all right…I’m guessing you think marrying his step-granddaughter is an issue…he’s not related to her by blood and age shouldn’t matter…right?
Interesting question. There are the obvious ones like the emergency response teams who rush into burning buildings to save those who can’t save themselves. Then there are the folks in our military who go above and beyond the call of duty. However, to me the real American heroes do not get the human interest stories in the newspaper or the tribute on the evening news or the parade in their honor for all their sacrifices. The real American heroes are those who persevere day in and day out just simply doing their best at whatever they do, more often than not totally unnoticed by the rest of the world. I’m talking about the mom that gets up before the crack of dawn to make lunches and stays up after everyone else has gone to bed to do the laundry. I’m talking about the dad who works two jobs so his family will have a roof over their heads. I’m talking about that guy they call out in the middle of a rain storm to fix the cable just so you won’t miss your favorite TV program. I’m talking about that lady who volunteers at the local food pantry just because.
I read a quote the other day that I believe embodies the soul of the true American hero:
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” – Mary Anne Radmacher
@Blackberry – That is the first thing that came into my mind!
@Mat74UK Oh I get it, like the sandwich.
let’s not contribute to fat-shaming now
Evel Kneivel jumping over a row of apple pies whilst “riding” Shelley Winters.
All I can say @ucme is “God bless America!!!!”
@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard – Most of time I do. Mostly in the way that it’s used/abused. If the word ‘American’ is used in a sentence, there’s probably a 75% chance I am about to have an objection.
It conjures up an image of an unreal American hero from a comic book or some such.
@tom_g OMG, I read “erection” instead of “objection.” Off to the eyeglass center for me . . .
@Kayak8 I think you need more than eyeglasses :P
Me and about half a dozen of my friends.
I can tell you who is not a Real American Hero and that was Whitney Houston.
Nothing against the woman at all, but making a hero out of a drug addict sends the wrong message to young people.
@Kayak8 – :) quite the opposite, really.
no question in my mind. Ronald Reagan was the archetypical American hero
I apologize for the trite and stereotypical answer, and I don’t mean to offend, but you said what it conjures, so I can’t very well make something up; I think about a big muscular guy with a buzz cut, sunglasses and a shitload of firearms, who fights for the best interest of America.
All I know is movies. And even then, the idea my mind conjures is laughable today; what I describe was only awesome in the nineties.
If I google ’‘Real American Hero’’, I bet it’s gonna give me something like that, though.
Otherwise, I don’t know. Maybe a real American hero is someone who did something for their country’s best interest, as described by the constitution, and despite being opposed in their idea, still made a difference for the better of what America aspires to.
EDIT- I Googled it, and it’s just what I thought, eh.
Seriously, the first thing that popped into my mind was Captain America xD
He’s in the search results
lol! Yeah, I had a feeling he would be…
To answer the question in your title: it conjures up someone I would not like.
To answer the body question: no. I won’t say. I don’t have any heroes. I don’t really like heroes.
The first person who popped into my head was John Wayne. Not that I think he, himself, was a hero, just that he portrayed a lot of heroic characters.
I’m curious as to how many people who negatively answered this question also answered the question about African American heroes with a concrete reply. An African American hero is still a type of American Hero.
@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard This question was asked a little differently to me by asking to “conjure up my imagination” hence why I let it run as opposed to a serious answer.
oh yeah! He was a Lifeguard in his youth and saved several lives there. He rescued a woman in Hollywood from a strongarm robbery using a revolver. He was very active in the USO aiding our soldiers during WW2. I believe history will recall him as one of the Great presidents as well. Politics aside, as a man, He was a great man from the great generation, who loved his country and served his fellow man as best he knew how. My father was cut from a similar bolt of cloth, but figured it would do no good to put his name out there.
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