Ronald Reagan, 1911-2004

  • Thanks for taking the time Steve, for this memorial to man who, like everyone, had his flaws, and his great moments.

    I was in college as well when Reagan was president.  I remember the good and the not-so-good... but one thing that sticks is that he was the president who "brought down that wall" and effectively started the end of the cold war, and the "iron curtain".

    For all of his flaws, the good outweighs it.  For all of the bad things that are reported, it's nice to be able to reflect and remember the good.  Although some may not agree, he really did stand for peace.

    (As for what this has to do with SQL Server... there are countries now using SQL Server and other advanced technologies, which would not necessarily be using them today, if it were not for the opening of markets, started by Mr. Reagan's activism and leadership in bringing about the end of the cold war.  Microsoft has new markets, and we have new collegues.)

    My thoughts and prayers are with the Reagan family, and may Mr. Reagan rest in peace.

    -- Joe

  • "I come to bury Reagan, not to praise him."

    If it wasn't meant to be political commentary... then could he just please have held off on the negative spin?

    "Yeah... ya know, he was a good prez.  Not bad.  Not great.  Good.  Well... 'okay', anyway.  Heres 5 things that went wrong during his time as president.  The end."

    Pu-leeze!  He's dead allready!  Just say something about how much he liked jelly beans and how he ended the cold war.  And keep a respectful silence for a few days.

     

  • I was able to serve at his second inaugaration while in the military. I was proud to serve in the military under him. It hasn't been until I grew up a little more to finally realize what an incredible man he was who had clear ideas of right and wrong and was able to work toward a goal.

    If you want to link it to SQL Server, I would love to be on a development team where Ronald Reagan was the project manager. With him, you would get clear direction on a worthy project and the perseverence to see a monumental project through to the end. 

    I thank God for giving the world Ronald Reagan for he was a man who didn't just affect the people of the United States, but helped to free people across the globe from the tyranny of communism.

     

  • "As for what this has to do with SQL Server... there are countries now using SQL Server and other advanced technologies, which would not necessarily be using them today, if it were not for the opening of markets, started by Mr. Reagan's activism and leadership in bringing about the end of the cold war.  Microsoft has new markets, and we have new collegues.)" is a bad thing... If we were all using Postgres the world would be a better place where software was opensource, robust and secure and with any luck Bill Gates would be working behind a counter at McDonald...

    "Do you want fries with that?"

  • I think the leader of any nation deserves respect in death if they had values and did not corrupt their nation or embarass themselves.  President Reagan was not corrupt, nor was he an embarassment.  There is a lot to be said for that.  Leaders of many nations have those values and I praise them as well.  One should have respect for those that have the hardest jobs in the world.  It is a role that not everyone can fill.  Otherwise, we would all be president, king, sheik, etc.  My praise goes out to any man/woman in death that worked hard to accomodate the world's needs.  You can't make everyone happy but you can sure as heck do a darn good job at it.  I believe President Reagan did.  May he rest in peace.

  • To ALL:

    God Bless all you guys for acknowledging a man who fundamentally desired to leave things better than he found them.  In this country we participate by having a voice and freedom for opinion and are responsible to exercise it faithfully and intellegently.  I appreciate your taking the time to weigh in.  Whether you agree or disagree, you have been affected enough to answer, and that alone is worthy of consideration.

    For my part, I saw Mr. Reagan as a humble, yet strong and courageous leader and he spoke and acted on the principles he believed in.  That there will be agreement and disagreement will always be true, for every leader, and for you and me as well.  There is a Proverb that says (essentially), 'When the righteous rule, the people rejoice, when the wicked rule, the people are downcast..'

    Mr. Reagan was president for the first eight years of my and my wife's marriage (if you do the math, we're almost 24) and we remember those years as being peaceful and joyful, personally and in general terms.  There's always bumps in our roads, but we had the strong foundation in place to handle it. 

    Sorry for the long-winded post..  CH

  • Steve,

    Thanks for the thoughts and memories!  We've lost a great leader and contrary to some beliefs, it is very appropriate to post what you did, thank you!  I see this web site as more than just a web site, it’s a community.  As a community it’s OK to talk about more than just the base topic.  I find many articles, jokes, stories, etc… posted here and I try to read them all – it’s a nice break from the daily grind (did I say that?) that is database administration.  

    Rarely does someone stand out like Mr. Reagan, and even though some may say he was gone 10 years ago, nobody felt it like they do now.  Many good things came out of his presidency and I am very grateful to have lived during his terms.

     

    Keep up the good articles Steve (and the rest of the staff), they’ll always be welcome on my monitor!

     



    - Vega

  • As one who grew up during the Reagan era, I do remember him as a great president, leader, and man.  He had a rare combination of strength, character, and wisdom that we so often do not see in the world today.  Most importantly, he brought us all closer together and made us proud to be Americans again.  Something that we had for (what it seems) like 2 weeks after 9/11, that is once again gone.  This is what history should remember him for, but I guess the liberal left will put whatever BS slant they want on it.  If you were trying to give the man a tribute, it was an awfully weak effort.

  • I commend Steve for posting a quick tribute to a great national leader.   It probably doesn't belong here on site devoted to sql server but ya know what...it's his site, it's his call.  He's entitled.  That being said, it is probably a bad thing cuz it stirs up emotion from people who have different points of view of the current political landscape and can't see past that to honor a historic figure of our time (how many do we truelly have?). As for me, as I grew up and became more politcally aware of things, I realized just how great a president Reagan was.  At the time, I was too young to appreciate what was happening in the world and how our President helped shape the outcome.  At the dissapointment of the French and Michael Moore fans, this president will go down as one of the greatest.  There will always be people who disagree on this.  Reagan made mistakes, he wasn't perfect, but he had a vision and he saw the world as it was and took on the task of trying to influence it to what it should be...an impossible and thankless task.   Anytime you make a decision, you open yourself up to criticism.  He wasn't afraid to do the unpopular thing if he felt it was the right thing to do.  I admire that.  I admire that of a president the same as I admire that of a project leader or a boss.  I also admire that of Steve for posting his opinion.  He felt it was right even tho it might be unpopular or that people might disagree with him for one reason or another.  That is the characteristic of a good leader...someone I'd like to work for or associate myself with.  I think that is how this all turns out to be  relavant afterall.

  • You've got to be joking.  Reagan ran up the national debt, cancelled social and educational programs that are still absent today, showed disdain for working families and couldn't complete a sentence.  He was, without a doubt, the worst president we've had in modern times.

    But, the real questions are 1) what does Reagan have to do with SQL Server  and 2) what is an "American site" in a global network?  This sounds like another "George Bush-ism" designed to alienate the majority of the population of the world.

    Keep the politics out, show some sensitivity to your audience and stick to SQL Server!

  • As much as I'd like to offer my own opinion on Ronald Reagan, I agree with the international community on this one.  There are plenty of political forums on the Net already without bringing it into a "professional" site respected for it's objective content.

    Doing this type of thing only serves to alienate non American members, generate ill feelings for those American members who did not admire the man, and defocus the purpose of the site.

    An exceptionally bad move, guys.  And if any of this stuff makes it into SQL Server Standard, I'm cancelling my subscription.

  • I find it humorous that the people clamoring to have "politics" taken off the site are the ones who introduced the "politics". So having put in their two cents, they want everyone else to shut up.

  • You people are absolutely amazing.  Is this what this country has come to?  We can't even have a two paragraph tribute to one of the great president's of our era because we might offend somebody?  How pathetic.  In case any of you "I hate America" Americans didn't notice, we had the anniversary to D-day over the weekend.  You know, where thousands of "Americans" died so that you can come here and post your little whiny, politically correct posts.  If someone from another country can't recognize the fact that we may want to pay a tribute to a former president that just died, who really cares.  Guess what, this IS an American site, and this IS America.  So, if you don't like it.....I hear plane tickets to France are really cheap right now.

  • I think you're missing the point Clint.

    We come here for SQL Server help and articles - even though the original post didn't make a political point whayt is dismaying is the way that the majority of posts seem to deify Reagan.

    this just isn't the correct arena and is, in my opinion, damaging the reputation of the site.

     

    cheers

    dbgeezer

  • Okay folks.  I've been posting on here for a long time, and yes, we have gone way off topic at times (i.e., "Anything but SQL").  However, flaming has always been frowned upon.  Mostly, in the past, when we have gone off topic, we embody it with humor.  Let's keep it that way.  This site is the best SQL site out there and there is no reason to get bent over this topic being posted.  That's the freedom and beauty of this web site.  Perhaps the topic should have been included in the "Anything but SQL" thread instead but I bet you would still have the same number reading it because of the importance of the subject matter.

    "Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed, there are many rewards. If you disgrace yourself, well you can always write a book."<O>  - Reagan</O>

    <O></O> 

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