10 reasons why Theodore Roosevelt was one “Bad Mofo”
// March 20th, 2009 // Comments // books
I just finished “The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt”. Despite his flaws (and he had many), he was a most interesting man. He is most well known as the 26th (Republican and Progressive party) President of the United States. But fortunately, there is much more to his story than that. Its hard to do a proper review of this book as its been done a thousand times. Obviously its a good book, I thought it was excellent in fact, probably the best biography I have ever read. Rather than talk about the book and its merits, I think it better to talk about the man, and what lessons can be drawn from his life.
Theodore Roosevelt accomplished much in his life, here is my (very) short “Bad Mofo” list:
#10- He was and still is, the youngest person to become President and is ranked by most scholars to be one of the greatest US presidents. Almost always mentioned in the top 5 of all time.
#9- He was an avid writer, having written 18+ books, many of them critically acclaimed. He also is considered along with Thomas Jefferson among the most well read of any US president, having read tens of thousands of books, sometimes at a rate of several a day, often in multiple languages.
#8- His image stands alongside Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln on Mt. Rushmore.
#7- He negotiated for the US to take control of and complete the Panama canal (which probably saved our a$$es in WWII).
#6- He was an avid hunter, and as a result, became an extremely active conservationist. Roosevelt almost single handidly started the conservation movement. He set aside more land for national parks and nature preserves than all of his predecessors combined, 194 million acres (785,000 km²). By 1909, the Roosevelt administration had created an amazing 42 million acres (170,000 km²) of national forests, 53 national wildlife refuges and 18 places of “special interest”, including the Grand Canyon.
#5- As a deputy sheriff, Roosevelt hunted down three outlaws who stole his river boat. After capturing them, he decided against hanging them himself as it was against his Christian values. After sending his foreman back by boat, he took the thieves back overland for trial in Dickinson guarding them forty hours without sleep and reading Tolstoy to keep himself awake.
#4- He went on Safari in Africa, acquiring many of the first specimens of exotic (at the time) animals for the Smithsonian Institution. He also went on an expedition in the Brazilian rain forest as part of a scientific expedition, becoming the first to map Rio da Duvida, or the “River of Doubt”. It was later re-named to Rio Roosevelt. During the expedition he contracted malaria from a serious leg wound and almost died. He asked to be left behind as not to impede the expedition, but his son would not have it. He did survive, but lost 50lbs, and never fully recovered from Malaria or his leg wound.
#3- He put together and commanded the Rough Rider’s, America’s first volunteer cavalry regiment. He led them to victory in battle against Spain in the battle of San Juan Hill in Cuba. He stayed on his horse during intense sniper fire to bolster the confidence of his men, and later led the charge on San Juan. He returned a war hero and was promptly elected Governor of NY city. Interestingly he not only won the medal of honor in war, but he also won the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the end to the Russo-Japanese war. His son, Theodore Roosevelt Jr. also received the medal of honor for heroism in the battle of Normandy in 1944. They are the only father/son duo to both receive the medal of honor. Interestingly, when WWII broke out, he volunteered (basically demanded) to form a new regiment, and lead it himself to battle against the Germans. His request was denied for political reasons.
#2- He once gave a speech after getting shot- While Roosevelt was campaigning in Wisconsin on October 14, 1912, a saloon keeper named John Schrank shot him. The bullet penetrated both his steel eyeglass case and passed through a thick, 50 page copy of the speech he was carrying in his jacket. Being an experienced hunter, and thus anatomist, he concluded that since he was not coughing up blood, it must not have penetrated his lung. He then proceeded to deliver his speech with typical Roosevelt gusto, with blood draining through his shirt. Some politicians cant even give a speech without a teleprompter, this guy did it with a hole in his speech, and a hole in his chest!
#1- The “Teddy Bear” is named after him. Nuff said…
Some other interesting presidential firsts to…:
- to fly in an airplane
- to be submerged in a submarine
- to own a car
- to have a telephone in his home
- to travel outside the borders of the US while still in office. TR took the battleship USS Louisiana to Panama in 1906.
- to entertain an African-American in the White House, inviting Booker T. Washington to dinner
- to win the first AMERICAN as well as first President to win a Nobel Prize in ANY of the six categories - he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906.
He also was the first President (perhaps only) to practice Jujutsu, and to practice it in the White House I might add (he used to box since he was a child, and was very good -almost winning the Harvard championship- but later suffered a detached retina, blinding him in one eye. As a result he quit boxing on doctors orders, and brought in instructors from Japan to “roll” with).
There is obviously a lot more to him than his achievements (and far more achievements I might add), and as with most great men and women, how they became who they are is often more interesting than what they have done. I find the story of the death of his mother and wife, hours apart on the same day, his subsequent move to the Dakota Badlands, and his rebirth and return to be very interesting. A similar story can be seen in modern pop-fiction with the movie “Batman Begins”.
This book is a great read, and with some study, it can have a profound impact on your life. I think, IMHO, one of the most important lessons to be drawn from his life, was his love for the “strenuous life”. This not only pertains to his active lifestyle, but also to his sense of personal responsibility, and his desire for constant self improvement- both paradigms on life that have diminished significantly in today’s entitlement minded American society.
His views on conservationism and hunting, radical at the time, echo today in the many private and political arena’s of today’s America. But his views were proven right. His system of having hunters and sportsmen support our national parks and nature reserves has proved very effective, and has allowed people from all over the nation to enjoy our parks at minimal to no cost. Today hunters, shooters, fisherman, and other outdoor sportsman and women contribute around 200 Million dollars directly into the environment each year. That is a sharp contrast to most “environmental” groups who spend the bulk of their dollars on lobbying and lawyers instead, in efforts to raise tax money to support their interests (interestingly individual monetary donations to the environment by environmentalists and “environment minded” American citizens are very minimal in comparison). He felt hunters and sportsmen would be the most responsible for the environment, as they would be the most directly affected by America’s disappearing wilderness. Its interesting to note that today, both the system of responsibly supporting the environment through individuals, and the environment itself are under attack.
There is a sequel to this book, “Theodore Rex”. It is the second in a planned trilogy. I plan on reading that after “Mornings on Horseback”, which is a book about Roosevelt’s childhood.
