Favorite Philosophers?

[vulcanlogician]

Hey Guys! 

I thought it might be fun for people to list their favorite philosophers. If you're not all that into philosophy, just put the name of one person that you like. Or if you're a hopeless wisdom-lover like me, make it a top 5. These don't have to be "canonized" western philosophers or anything-- just your favorite thinkers. Some of you may like Freud or Leo Tolstoy (who, by strict definition, don't fit into the category). Who cares?  Have fun with it. Theists can put Jesus on the list to annoy everyone etc...

1. Socrates
2. Friedrich Nietzsche
3. Henry David Thoreau
4. Plato
5. William James

(Spinoza fights with James for the number 5 slot.)

[Jackalope]

The Dude, of course.

[Whateverist]

I remember being favorably impressed with each of the philosophers you chose, OP.  Though I might choose Aristotle over Plato and his mouthpiece Socrates, since he contributed so much to the foundations of science.  Plato/Socrates always struck me as being as much rhetoricians (a dirty word as I use it) as philosophers, though that might just be the fault of the manner of Plato's exposition.  

Someone who isn't really a serious academic philosopher but made a big impression on me before I studied it in college, was Alan Watts.  If you liked Thoreau and James you might also like Watts, though Watts' woo as a percentage of his writing was much higher.

Nietzsche is thought provoking and colorful and I confess to reading a lot of what he wrote.  But I always suspected I was reading someone who was borderline paranoid and manic or on drugs.  Didn't make it any less fun of course.

I might like to include Hume and I always felt like I should have read Wittgenstein, but too late.  All I read now is novels and honestly, I've probably gotten just as much out of it. Though if I hadn't of studied philosophy I might never have gotten my head out of the clouds.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Will Rogers.

[Whateverist]

The Dude, of course.

But did he really ever abide?

[Minimalist]

[brewer]

Larry, Moe and Curly.

[Aegon]

"A trap is for fish; when you've got the fish, you can forget the trap. A snare is for rabbits; when you've got the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words are for meaning; when you've got the meaning, you can forget the words. Where can I find someone who's forgotten words so I can have a word with him?"
-Zhuangzi

I've been in an ancient Asian philosophy mood for some time now.

[The Valkyrie]

[Angrboda]

Heraclitus.