I admire the guy down the street who's been running the local hardware store for the last 50 years. The cornerstone of the community... the guy who will rummage around his store room and come up with that snow shovel in the middle of August, if that's what you want. The guy who's been married to the same woman since time began, the guy who employs his neighbors, supports the scouts, the friendly face who has just what you need when you need it most, the guy who has the answer to "what does this thing do?" the one who stands behind his "Made in America" products. I bet there isn't a politician in this country who can stand up to Mr. Woods and his Hardware Store. He is 'the backbone of America'. Ok... maybe the Joe Plumbers come close.

Oliver North.
After graduating Annapolis, this American hero served his country as a United States Marine for 22 years. Among his medals and ribbons are the Silver Star, the Bronze Star for Valor, and two purple hearts for wounds he received in combat.
He has never wavered, never compromised his principles, and never failed to support our troops.
He is hated to this day by the left, in part because of the much-ado-about-nothing Iran Contra crap...the Democrats undying wet dream of another Watergate. The publicity, which was supposed to be negative, only served to briefly elevate North to rock star status.
It is a pity we don't have more like him.

The Pickens are slim but I would have to say George W. Bush. He did plenty of things that upset me, but his determination to keep this country safe after 9/11 trumped those other things. The Democrats and their allies in the media viciously attacked him day after day, but he stayed above all of that.

I really believe he was trying to do what he thought was best for this nation.

Hmm... The Most Interesting Man in the World from the Dos Equis commercials. If bulls refuse to fight him and luchadores take off their masks in his presence, I gotta party with this dude.

UPDATE: This guy.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2SSZA0CjdQ

ORIGINAL: The Judge in the Paul McCartney/Heather Mills divorce trial.  CNN Headline: Judge: Mills' case "boils down to ... 'if he has it, I want it too' "

The wonderful Dr. Martin Luther king. He did so much, and if it weren't for him, think about how bad things would be today. I applaud Dr. King

Harry Patch, the last World War 1 British Soldier to fight in the trenches.

James Ellroy. A man who fought his way through a horrific childhood and dissolute youth to become one of the foremost writers of fiction in North America.

I admire David Letterman, I think he always has something bright to say. I think he is ultimately brillant and scintaliting. There is always a gleeful way he has of saying something that is darned right nasty and makes it sound like whipped cream on top of strawberries. I don't know what it is, his writers are also able to keep him stocked with side jokes, as he speaks to the audience about politics and askes for input from the audience, and then suddenly someone gets up, and says "I don't like that about so and so politician" and then another person gets up, (these people are from the show itself) and they start to fight. He is the cats pajamas. His stints are hysterical, his top ten lists are off the hook, he always has the "light bulb" on his in his head.

I have reviewed the field of those living today and I return to my 94 year old father.  He was born before WWI, lived through the depression, fought in WWII, landed at D-Day, raised a family of six kids, sent them all through college, and remained an ethusiatic and loyal American all this time.


He is both amazed and appalled that he has lived this long.

The one man I respect most would be Winston Churchill who foresaw every serious threat before anyone else knew, and shaped Europe more than any other man in the past century.

Any man who is willing to do the most self-less act on this earth and put his life before anyone else's. Those New York firemen for a start who went into that building and saved lives on 9/11 are a classic example.

I admire the one and only Jesus Christ.

Jared from the Subway commercials for bravely losing all that weight and nobly devoting his life to the promotion of the Subway company.

I know that he is not a man, but I admire the quizno's baby. I mean, it must be hard for a baby to sit there while a computer moves his mouth! But seriously, one of the oly men that I admired was murdered in '99. His name was Brian K. Darling. A lot of people don't know him, but he was my cousin. he was murdered for wrongs from his past. The murderers were only given two years in prison. It was an injustice. Things like that happen everyday and that is one of the main resons as to why this world is so screwed up. Brian was my friend. I was only 8 when he died, but all of the things that an 8 year old could tell someone, my 40 or so year old cousin was the one that i went to. So hold on to your loved ones while you can. One day you might wake up, but they might not.

Muhammed Ali. No man was ever so misunderstood as he in his youth. What I saw even as a young kid was that while he seemed un-American, he loved all people. He seemingly hated Whites but Befriended some othe biggest white jerks in the world. He was the greatest of warriors because of his mind not his mass, And sure enought now in his Golden years he is more loved than ever. I dont mind saying that I can think of less than a handful of black people anywhere that I admire, outside of sports personalities, but he is at the top of my list of all men.

All 4 of my sons, although I admire my wife and daughter equally. I can't believe any of you people actually 'admire' any politician. What mindless sheep! That is exactlly what's wrong with this country.

George W. Bush

Dr. King. . .terrific writer as well. . .charismatic with a keen understanding of the potential of America. I admired his passion and fearlessness. I wish I had it. (PS- all of you can throw stuff at me. I can now see that it had to be someone ALIVE! I'm a dope.)

Mr. George W. Bush. I admire him as a politian. but also very much as a human being. He definitly is not an idiot. I admire him because he beat the odds and became president.

Nelson Mandela has to be the single most admirable man on the planet. To not only survive his incarceration, but remain a serene, loving man through it all is beyond amazing.

Probably Billy Graham. I think he tends to look for the best in everyone, to the point that he has been fooled by a lot of crooked people. Even so, he is never intimidated by powerful people and he shares Christ with every single one of them. He is the true definition of evangelist.

John Kerry and Bill Clinton

Many to choose from... I like people who show sublime courage in facing down impossible odds, doing what they know to be morally right. I choose the man who stood in front of the tank in Tiananmen Square in Beijing in 1989. How dare you try to crush our desire for freedom, he was saying by his fearless act. It just takes my breath away every time I see that photo.

After considering this for some time, I had to choose Wild Bill Guarnere, who served with the 101st Airborne during World War II. He lost a leg in Bastogne when he went to aid a fallen comrade and before that saw things that no human being should ever have to see. But if you see Guarnere in interviews, he's a spunky old man who doesn't mind telling you what's what. He isn't bitter that he lost a limb -- even immediately after it happened he was cracking jokes. That kind of strength and will power is truly rare today and it's refreshing to meet an individual who has survived horrible things and is still fiesty in old age.

Sadly, the men I admired the most have all passed on...my father, my grandfathers, and a great uncle. To me, not a soul I know or know of living today could hold a candle to these guys.

Well...Theres Alot Of Guys Who I Admire,And I Just Can't Chose One.Well Auctully Can.Dale!Hes Smart(At Times...)And Very Funny(No Seriously!)He Can Lighten The Mood Just By A Stuiped Joke(Mark.Now Hes A joke!).

The four men I admire the most would be my greatest friend Beau from India...he is so awesome and very inspiring, my Dad, and my two younger brothers. All 4 of these guys are the most important in my life and I don't know what I would do without them. As for leaders or celebs that I admire most..I would definately say it is a toss up between Bill Clinton and Eminem..both are strong, intelligent, know what they are doing. I admire them alot.

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso. A true man of peace.

My husband, for putting up with all my !@#$. It takes a lot to put up with my crap. He puts up with my stuffed animals and all my pets; he puts up with my cooking (which really does suck, I'll be the first to admit that); he puts up with my whining when I come home from work, or my rants. He accepts the fact that any article of his clothing that I can fit into, I'll probably wear and claim as my own. He accepts the rubber ducky motif in the bathroom. He even accepts my parents (kind of). He sat through the PowerPuff Girls movie for me (he made me watch Dumb and Dumberer, though, so I guess it evens out). He'll watch hours of the Discovery Channel/History Channel, etc., with me, and he actually likes it as much as I do. When I had to go on field trips to art museums, he came along to keep me company even though he hates most art (I have the same distaste for modern art as he does, though). He puts up with me being constantly on RIA or playing video games when I should be doing more productive things. There's not enough room on this site to say how much crap he deals with for me, and how much I appreciate him doing it.

Sean Hannity, my idol and hero.

Ronald Reagan.

George W. Bush

The man I admire the most is my father.