Buying The Unknown: Jefferson's Brass Cojones

It seems that politicians these days can't rally to take action on even the smallest decisions, so it's easy to forget about the bold leaders of our past.

But I saw something awesome today in Michael Porath's Manifest Destiny project.

In 1803, Thomas Jefferson executed the Louisiana Purchase. We all learned about it in school. But what's incredible -- and what I didn't learn in school -- is that the size of the land purchased was unknown at the time it was bought.

So, think about that for a second the next time you hear politicians bickering over immaterial issues. Thomas Jefferson paid $15MM in 1803 for a body of land that he had no idea the size of. Now that takes brass cojones and it's a great reminder to follow your gut, because what he was really buying was the removal of French influence in the region, and he knew that alone justified the purchase price.