REVscene Automotive Forum - The World's Most Powerful People 2009

I think Hu Jintao should be #1 on the list.

1. Barack Obama

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How powerful is he? Let's count the ways:

* Presides over world's largest, most innovative, most dynamic economy.
* Commander-in-chief of planet's richest, deadliest military.
* Finger on button of nuclear arsenal containing more than 5,000 warheads.
* Head-of-state of world's sole superpower.
* His Democrats have majorities in both U.S. House and Senate.
* Recently awarded Nobel Peace Prize, apparently for general awesomeness.

2. Hu Jintao

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* Paramount political leader of more people than anyone else on the planet; 1.3 billion Chinese, some 70% in their prime working years of ages 15 to 64 powering world's low-cost workshop, transforming nation.
* Biggest buyer of U.S. debt avoided Chinese meltdown during financial crisis with massive stimulus package to encourage domestic spending.
* "Coming-out party" at 2008 Beijing Olympic Games showcased young, modern, harmonious society; reality often quite different — few political, religious, press freedoms; brutal suppression of Tibet; refusal to acknowledge Taiwanese independence.
* Still, credible estimates have China poised to overtake U.S. as world's largest economy in 25 years — although, crucially, not on a per-capita basis.

3. Vladimir Putin

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* Prime Minister might as well be known as Czar, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russians.
* Vastly more powerful than his handpicked head-of-state, President Dmitry Medvedev.
* Presides over one-ninth of Earth's land area, vast energy and mineral resources.
* Former KGB officer unafraid to wield his power; invading Georgia, cutting off natural gas supplies to Ukraine or Western Europe (again).
* Declared nuclear power has veto on U.N.'s Security Council.
* "I'm deeply convinced that constant change is not for the better."

4. Ben S. Bernanke

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* Former chairman of Princeton's economics department and noted Great Depression scholar now guiding world's largest economy through Great Recession; has overseen massive growth in Fed's balance sheet, from less than $900 billion in liabilities in August 2008 to more than $2.1 trillion today.
* With federal funds rate now effectively 0%, the so-called Bernanke Doctrine calls for using monetary policy to stave off deflation.
* "The U.S. government has a technology, called a printing press, that allows it to produce as many dollars as it wishes at essentially no cost."

5. Sergey Brin and Larry Page

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* If knowledge is power, maybe information is too. Brainy duo met in Stanford computer science Ph.D. program, now trying to put all the world's information at your fingertips.
* Known for collecting best and brightest young tech talent at Mountain View, Calif., "Googleplex"; employees encouraged to spend one day a week on personal projects; company often named "Best Place To Work" in America.
* Google guys' combined net worth of $30.6 billion would place them third on the Forbes 400.
* Yet despite professed intentions to "do no evil," Google is blamed in some quarters for decimating traditional publishing, journalism. Brin: "Some say Google is God, others say Google is Satan."

The rest here;

http://finance.yahoo.com/career-work...eer-leadership