What do you think of Alexander Hamilton?

[rug]

I'm 400 pages into a biography of him. I'm amazed.

[Adsos Letter]

1. I'd really like to have a lot more portraits of him...

he's on the ten-spot :hide:

Seriously, I know very little about his history. How is the book? What about him most surprises you?

[Kire]

2. I thought he sounded like a real a--hole.

I was probably not in the right frame of mind when I started Chernow's book. The way he treated John Adams in the HBO movie was pretty nasty only served to confirm my suspicions.

Can you give me a brief summary of why you are amazed? I have a genuine curiosity, but sometimes it's easier to just pick something else up.

Thanks.

[rug]

3. He was a prodigy.

Between the Federalist papers and his administration of the Treasury, his accomplishments were enormous. He essentially invented modern government, all while being self-educated for the most part. Frankly, in Chernow's book, by comparison, Jefferson and Madison came out looking more like Reagan with their naive nostalgic Americal pastorale view of society.

Here's something I found apropos of today's Wall Street mess.

http://www.helsinki.fi/iehc2006/papers1/Sylla.pdf

[Itchinjim]

4. A complete BASTARD!

You're dead to me Hamilton. You hear me? DEAD!

[david13]

5. I can appreciate that Hamilton, as I understand it, never had any

money, tho' he was, and was considered a good, a successful and dedicated lawyer.
I also got a very big kick out of his extortion (of him) case, or at least the allegations of it, as certainly, today, with regard to both issues, we only have indications, and can't absolutely know.
dc

[Bucky]

6. A complicated dude. Sometimes heroic. Other times he tried to use the military to play politics.

Utterly brilliant, but I'm glad he was never president.

[damyank913]

7. I don't think he could've been president if he wanted to...

Was'nt he born in the islands? Bahama, Bermuda, maybe the Virgins. Can't remember.