Influential People

Every year in the U.S., a list of the most influential people in the world comes out. This list is like those of the most famous, most beautiful and — there aren't any of these — the most idiotic.

This penchant for simple lists, as if the world were simple, is surprising. It's as if the world were governed from the U.S. Americans believe it because they don't know anything about the world.

It turns out that an American TV presenter is the most influential person in the world, despite the fact that outside the U.S. not even the neighborhood gossip has heard of her.

Navel-gazing produces such perversions. Believing that the square inch we inhabit is the center of the universe, that the part is the whole thing, is what makes the whole nothing.

To understand the absurdity of this, imagine that a TV presenter in China, which has more viewers than the U.S., was declared the most influential person by Beijing.

It would shock those of us who've been conditioned to think that God created the universe solely for the sake of the U.S. Fortunately, that isn't the case.

More realistic polls show another list. The president of Russia, for example, is considered the most influential person in the world. There are certainly more reasons to think so.

These things are useful as a way to measure others. Gone are the years when everyone marched to the beat of America's drum. However, our neighbor to the north hasn't gotten the memo.

Let's make a note of this to find our future rhythm.