Time Magazine named Vladimir Putin as the 2007 person of the year. That's right, Putin.

I am really surprised. I was expecting Al Gore. Not because he deserved it, but because it was a predictable choice considering the fact that the left has been going wild over him for the past few months. I knew that General Petraeus wasn't going to win. That would have given credibility to the US military and to the Bush administration. We all know that Time couldn't do that.

The reason that Time said that they chose him is because he is the person that most affected the news in 2007. With that criteria, why didn't they go for Brittney Spears, Hugo Chavez, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or Osama Bin Laden?

Second place went to Gore, third was J.K. Rowling, forth was Hu Jintao, and Petraeus came in a very close fifth.

I think that General Petraeus was robbed of the title. He is responsible for turning a losing war in to a winning war. He changed the political climate in the Middle East, in Iraq, and the US. He changed the way that the US fights a counter insurgent war and has saved the lives of hundreds if not thousands of US soldiers and countless Iraqi citizens.

Time Magazine is a joke and they should be ashamed of themselves!

If it is based on influence in the news; Ahmadinejad should win hands down for 2007. He has provided lethal aid to Iraqi terrorists and insurgent groups, dangled the nuclear card in the face of America, while claiming energy needs and peaceful program agendas the whole time. And sucking up every second of air time he can manage.

Based on news alone I would rank it like this:

Ahmadinejad (based on above)

Petraeus (based on all the things Canto said, plus the terrible “Betray Us” ad)

Chavez (based on his socialist agenda, meeting with celebrities, and taunting POTUS)

Putin (based on his agenda to reclaim the glory of Russia, and acting like he is the leader of a powerful nation for once)

Hu Jintao didn’t really make much news in 2007; China did most of their dealings behind closed doors. Or at least those doors were closed at CNN et al due to full schedules covering Iraq, Iran and Venezuela.

If I were voting for person of the year based on actual changes made in the world I would vote this way:

Petraeus (made a dramatic turn-around in this war…although most on the left are in such dire need for us to lose over here that they are convinced he is evil and the war is lost….sorry I can’t help you, you’ll just have to believe whatever makes you sleep better at night in the defeatist beds you made.)

Kim Jong-Il (made dramatic advances in a 53-year conflict that seemed doomed to another 5 decades of diving into the great nothingness. The jury is still out on measurable success on the peninsula, but things have ramped up quickly and solidly so far, and for the better)

Hu Jintao (made drastic investments and ‘buddies’ around the world and is making fast friends with a lot of little, and some big powers in the world. He is on the fast track to making China the next world super-power.)

Please excuse my humble opinions if they offend anyone’s inability to see reason and truth