The main thing in my life that isn't either total shit or on somewhat shaky ground is my professional life. I have a number of people I look up to or who have inspired my thinking -- people most here probably haven't heard of, like Gerald Weinberg, Steve McConnell, Roy Soltoff, Lewis Rosenfelder, and Dave Fulton, all of whom influenced the formative years of my career in various ways. There are others, like Grady Booch, who I don't entirely agree with, but whose thinking I admire, and there's Margaret Hamilton (the computer scientist, not the actress) or Judea Pearl, who I regard as largely unsung heroes -- or at least, insufficiently sung, as it were.

These people made a difference in large and small ways, and demonstrated personal integrity, dedication, perseverance, clarity of vision and a relentless dedication to quality in both thought and work product.

In the broader world I greatly admire Bernie Sanders, George Carlin, and Seth Abramson, to name a few. Alas ... I fear the inmates are now running the asylum and undoing much of the progress we owe to these people and others like them. I suppose one must, as Camus said, imagine Sisyphus happy, and believe that the current ebb of civil society will be, historically speaking, a short paroxysm of suffering that will over-correct the other way. But having just spent the past few days with my oldest grandson, now 16, I had to frankly apologize for the world as it is and as I'm handing it over to him. He was kind enough to point out I didn't personally fuck it up, but still. It's a scary world he's stepping into, despite all my heroes and their and my best efforts, and that makes me sad.

Christopher Hitchens, Bart Erhman, Martin Luther, Erasamus,Matt Dillahunty, Bill Maher, George Carlin, Bob Dylan, Monty Python, MLK, Don Imus, Barach Obama, Chelsea Handler,Plato, The Village Voice, Calvin Butts, Lewis Black, Sartre, Camus, Kierkegaard, Pat Conroy, Larry Mc Murtry, John Irving, John Lennon, Tecumseh, Gen George Patton, Ghandi, Van Gogh, Simone De Beauvior, Badlands North and South, Caves of Jewel, Dachau, Petra, Haifa, Amsterdam, Edinborough Castle, Big Ben, Notre Dame, Sistine Chapel, American Cemeteries at Normandy, Basking Naked in the Mediterannean, Psfat, The College of Iconology in Bethlehem, Staying in the Old Walls of Jerusalem, Petra, Jordan, Yad Vashem, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Smithsonian Museum, Viet Nam Wall in DC, Potbellies, Au Bon Pain, Katz's Deli, Wo Hops, Staten Island Ferry, Myrtle Beach, Gettysburgh, Antietam, Wounded Knee, Presque Isle, Nickel City, 100 St. Patrick's Day Parades, Marches in Washington DC against Gun Violence, Picket Lines for Union Workers, Bernie Sanders, Chris Kristofferson, John Pine, Jimmy Carter, Jimmy Durante, Malcolm X, Victor Frankel, Franz Fanon, Larry Flynt, Jackie Robinson, Stormy Daniels,
Lots more whose names and episodes escape me, but I have many if you care to contribute.

Chris dorner really inspired me... and joe rogan inspires me along with elon musk and every child that questions everything and constantly is say "WHY".

I am a mental health clinician. My clients give me hope every single day. The courage and resourcefulness and resilience they display over and over inspires me.

I had one of those once. He wore his flying suit under his regular clothing and people could see that and always asked him why he wore so much clothing. People wondered when it was over and done why he let others pull his beard and hair out, then chose that look forever in his glorious body. If you needed him he would start to pull back his clothes from his chest and you would see the "J" there before he ran off to a phone booth or another room to change. Wait. There were no phone booths and depending on the dominate culture of the time the letter on his chest might change and be different. Sometimes he was just "E."

Today he does not inspire me. He was imaginary.

My dad for sure!

Emma Gonzalez

i do not equate inspiration with hope. i can't think of any individual who gives me hope. i can only hope we don't blow ourselves up before today's children can grow up and make their OWN mistakes, maybe, if we're very lucky, fixing some of ours along the way. voting helps. meanwhile, inspiration? a hell of a long list. let's start with hypatia.

g

Elon Musk, Richard Branson-- regardless of their own motivations, they're working to help us as a species.

James Aspey, Earthling Ed, Joey Carbstrong, Meagan Duhamel, Michelle Obama, Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, Birute Galdikas, Kathy Reichs.

Spiderman, batman, the punisher, daredevil, professor x, magneto,

Humans will eventually run this planet out of orbit

David Suzuki, Matteo Salvini, and Nigel Farage.

Yaron Brook

My mate Steve. Whenever I am undecided I consider what would Steve do.

Their all dead

Politicians! Haha!!
Without naming names, my inspiration comes from creatives. Writers, painters, film makers.

Elon Musk

I can't think of many politicians that inspire anything other than anger and revulsion.

I'm a Brit, and I find the NHS inspiring. Dara O'Briain is both very funny and intelligent. Terry Pratchett for his creativity and humour. That's just off the top of my head

Hope?