I'm less sure about Cain (he was too "homespun" for a major party to take him seriously, and I think he was chosen specifically to make the other clowns seem more electable; not to imply a racist agenda, but it seems like the Democrats usually use Jesse "Marble Mouth" Jackson or Al Sharpton for the same purpose), but that's a debate we can have in private if you want, and I largely agree on (any) third-party candidates.
I should mention, by the way, that if he did it, Swartz almost certainly should have been punished for what amounts to criminal trespass or breaking and entering into the room where he plugged his computer into the network. But we shouldn't be talking about years in legal Hell to bankrupt him before the case starts, plus a lifetime of incarceration hanging over his head if he loses.
But yes, "hero" works on quite a few levels. On top of disruptive politics, as stories come out, I'm finding it surprising how many tools I use (Markdown, for example, which if you need to do any writing, I recommend looking at it and Pandoc) were at least strongly influenced by him.
