Influential people

There’s been a fair amount of angst expressed of late – including by yours truly – about the terribly imperious comments attributed to the CEO of a high end clothing company. It remains to be seen whether this idiot’s elitist pronouncements will cost or earn him business. After all, we should know by now that for every person like me who finds his stance disgusting, there will likely be a well-heeled and borderline anorexic patron who revels in the idea of the increased selectivity of his offerings.

I’ve calmed down considerably since my first outraged Facebook ‘share.’ Perhaps my pique should have been more sustained and it likely would have been if I considered this an important issue. But the sad fact is, there are oodles of self-impressed chowderheads only too eager to leverage their financial wealth into what I consider to be inappropriate channels. That some of them choose shallow paths is a very human failing and frankly, I just don’t have the time or the interest in spending my days analyzing the motives of people whose life experience I don’t share and whose motivations I don’t understand.

I’m much more bothered by a recent issue of Time magazine than by this tempest in a crystal martini pitcher. I use Time as airplane reading and consider it an important source for current events and analysis of same. The April 29 – May 6 issue of the magazine was themed as a compilation of “The 100 Most Influential People in the World.” And sure enough, there were a number of people I’d never heard of but whose profiles were sufficiently interesting to lead me to want to know more. Malala Yousafzai, Ren Zhengfei, Gina Rinehart, and a trio of forward-thinking AIDs researchers made the cut and reading their brief profiles added to my learning and inspired me in various ways. I found Joaquim Barbosa’s story heroic and Aung San Suu Kyi’s a reminder of Margaret Mead’s famous comment on the power of a committed few.

These and others made the issue worth the price I paid and if it had been limited to this group, I’d have had no complaint. Unfortunately, the world’s 100 most influential personages apparently include at least 26 entertainers (full disclosure - I lump actors, directors, athletes, etc. in this group), mostly famed for their impact in the U.S. Apparently, there is something globally important about the life work of Justin Timberlake, Mindy Kaling and Beyonce. Admittedly, I agree that Jennifer Lawrence is a fine actor but world-wide relevance? Important beyond her craft? Hm-m…Not so sure.

Since the days of Jefferson, Madison and Hamilton, we’ve agreed that an informed electorate is essential to the democratic process. We have relied on the press and broadcast journalism for our understanding of current events, historical references and future trends. When one of the most respected – until now, that is – avenues for chronicling and informing our democracy fails to comprehend the difference in importance between Palaniappan Chidambaram and Jay Z, the degradation of our ability to understand the choices we make accelerates.

For me, the big problem is not the current snotty CEO of a limited market clothing retailer. We have much more to fear from the incompetence of Richard Stengel and his minions among the Time editorial staff, and from the sheepish attitudes of those who, entrusted with the historic right of democratic franchise, will read this magazine and think these 26 are really among the 100 most important people of our age.