# traitors

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [October 11, 2003, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765 "2003-10-11T00:29:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\
**Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765/21 "2003-10-12T15:43:15Z")

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No doubt all the founding fathers would have been considered the archtypical traitors (as Arnold is now) had the war ended differently.

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**Author:** ![mrblue92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@mrblue92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrblue92)\
**Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765/22 "2003-10-12T15:58:17Z")

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From one perspective, that is from the cost of lives, I’d have to say the “worst traitors” were the leaders of the Confederacy. Of course, “traitor” is a pretty loaded term, and as has been noted, one man’s traitor is another’s patriot…

From an ethical standpoint I’d have to agree that Aldrich Ames is the worst traitor I’m familiar with. Most traitors usually have some significant ideological motivation–that did not seem to be the case with Ames.

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**Author:** ![vl\_mungo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc8723/32.png) [@vl\_mungo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vl_mungo)\
**Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765/23 "2003-10-12T17:06:03Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Ringo \*  
> \*\*And we note that poster **vl\_mungo** takes the cake for missing the target by the widest margin.  
> \*\*

You’re right. The correct answer was Nancy Reagan.

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**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\
**Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765/24 "2003-10-12T19:04:53Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Larry Borgia \*  
> \*\*Oops, Forgot about Aldrich Ames. He not only got a bunch of our operatives killed, but he was a despicable person to boot. The commies at least had ideals, twisted and wrong though they were. Ames OTOH: “I did it for the money” \*\*

Well, he might have been a traitor, but his motives suggest that he was American, through and through.

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**Author:** ![moejuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@moejuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejuck)\
**Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traitors/206765/25 "2003-10-12T23:23:40Z")

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Wow. I can’t believe what I am seeing. You guys have missed some of the worst traitors in American History:

1. Art Modell–Sold out Cleveland to take the Browns to Baltimore.
2. Paul McCartney–I still hurt over the Beatle breakup.
3. Pat Garret–Especially in Young Guns II.
4. The Chicago Black Sox–What a bunch of traitors (minus Shoeless Joe of course).
5. Pobably the worst I can think of, New Coke. That was sinful.

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