The Top 10 Most Important People of 2007

This is a top ten list, but it's in no particular order. I have enough difficulty choosing ten, let alone ranking them! You won't necessarily see all of the big news makers here. Britney Spears gets plenty of press, but I just don't see her problems having a huge influence on the rest of the world. Who does have an influence? Read on.

Al Gore
An Inconvenient Truth, global warming, and a Nobel Peace Prize. Need I say more? All that's left is for him to declare himself a candidate for President. But truthfully, we do need to listen to this man. What he's telling us about global warming will affect us for generations to come.

Oprah Winfrey
Oprah shows up on a lot of power lists. We know people listen to her, whether she's telling them which books to read or which foods not to eat. Now she's stepped into the political arena with an endorsement for Barack Obama. Will her influence show here, too?

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
President Bush is still threatening military action against Iran, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the President of Iran. Does that really mean anything? According to the Iranian constitution, he actually has less power than Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a Shi'ite cleric who was president from 1981 to 1989. Ahmadinejad is, however, the face of Iran to the world right now, and with his wild, anti-Semitic and anti-U.S. statements, he gets the attention and thus has the power to influence millions of people in the Middle East.

Vladimir Putin
TIME Magazine has chosen Putin as its Person of the Year, not because they approve of his leadership, but because of his influence and power. Putin is near the end of his eight years as President, and has made Russia more financially stable while also limiting many democratic freedoms, such as a free press. Russia is stronger now than it was, but are the people better off? Putin's popularity ratings are normally around 70%, so they seem to be OK with this.

Jerry Falwell
Yes, he is still dead. Falwell died May 15, 2007, taking with him his leadership of the Religious Right. There are other leaders -- but Falwell was a big one. He was a pioneer in bringing religion into the public square, and making religious values a voter issue. His influence there is still being felt.

Hugo Chavez
Speaking of the Religious Right, this is the guy whom Pat Robertson recommended we assassinate (exactly what Jesus would do, right?). Chavez recently lost in a referendum which would have changed the Venezuelan constitution to eliminate term limits for the President and to give him increased centralized power. Although he lost, Chavez is still in office until 2013. Right now, he's saying that the U.S. and Europe may be planning to invade Venezuela (Ahora Cuba, December 18). I certainly hope there's no truth in that, but even so, he may be influencing Latin Americans to distrust the U.S.

Mahmoud Abbas and Ehud Olmert
Otherwise known as the Palestinian President and Prime Minister of Israel, these two men have agreed to continuing peace talks between Israel and Palestine. What happens between Israel and Palestine affects the situation in the entire Middle East.

Pervez Musharraf
I didn't know much about the President of Pakistan, besides the fact that he had declared a state of emergency in Pakistan, suspended the constitution, and effectively instituted martial law. To us, this seemed rather sudden, but apparently this is fairly standard operating procedure for him. He came to power by ousting the Prime Minister in a military coup and suspending the constitution. He then appointed himself Chief Executive, and later President.

Pakistan is a nuclear power. They have nuclear weapons, otherwise known as weapons of mass destruction. They also have ties to Al Qaeda. The U.S. must now watch the situation with Musharraf closely.

Hu Jintao
Hu Who? Sorry, couldn't resist. Hu is the President of China. Frankly, I didn't even know his name until I started researching this subject. However, his position gives him a great deal of influence in the world. According to the latest Department of the Treasury Bulletin (December 2007), the U.S. is 81.5 billion dollars in debt to China. That debt hangs over any trade negotiations or human rights negotiations the U.S. might have with China. China's economy is booming (while the U.S. is still struggling), and as the Chinese middle class grows, China consumes more and more of the world's goods and resources. China will be a key player in the world in the coming decades.

SOURCES

Wikipedia, "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Ahmadinejad

Adi Ignatius, "A Tsar is Born", TIME.com, http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1690766-1,00.html

Ahora Cuba, "Chavez Warns Against Possible Invasion of Venezuela", http://www.ahora.cu/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=5830

Wikipedia, "Pervez Musharraf", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pervez_Musharraf

U.S. Department of the Treasury, "Treasury Bulletin, December 2007), http://fms.treas.gov/bulletin/b2007-4.pdf