Presidents Day

I prefer to think of the day as Lincoln and Washington memorial day because, while all the presidents deserve respect for taking on such a difficult challenge, none come close to the greatness of these two who should be revered above the rest.

Just days after the nation honored the 200th anniversary of his birth, 65 historians ranked Abraham Lincoln as the nation's best president. After Lincoln, the academics rated George Washington, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt and Harry Truman as the best leaders overall. Rankings vary as people are influenced by today's issues so the others fluctuate considerably.

In retrospect, often we find the value of one leader to be greater than it seemed when they actually served. Especially with regard to economics, we can often see where hard and unpopular decisions of the day actually paved the way for better times often credited for the leader that followed them. When historians study the issues they realize those hard decisions were the real reason for the success. Of course popularity and personality also influence the public views of greatness as well. But, the more I study of Lincoln and Washington, the more I realize they are truly as significant to America as we have claimed, if not more so. Myths and legends that painted them bigger than life are insignificant ways Americans choose to revere them and to teach values to their children (the cherry tree, etc.) but in the greater matters, reality is that they were heros worth reverence.

In honoring Washington, it is important to remember how he gave dignity to the new role of president. He made it clear he was not royalty, as the new nation's people might have expected, given their past, but his demeanor demanded respect and taught the new nation how the role should be honored.

I hate what has happened in the more recent past in regard to showing respect for the office. Rocky Anderson, former Mayor of Salt Lake city organized rallies against President Bush. This is unspeakable and an embarrassment to Utah, Salt Lake City and America, regardless of how you feel about the current leader.

President Washington also taught us that stepping down after two terms, even at the height of popularity, was the right path for the nation. He understood at the founding of the nation that the role of president was not to be a lifetime occupation and that it was important to the new republic to have rotating leadership and ongoing elections by the people for this ultimate leadership position.

May we never forget and ever teach our children about these national heroes.