We already knew 8 of Barbara Walter’s picks for the 10 Most Fascinating People of 2010. Those 8 were:
- Cast of Jersey Shore
- Kate Middleton
- Sandra Bullock
- Sarah Palin
- Jennifer Lopez
- Betty White
- Justin Bieber
- LeBron James
Tonight, we found out the identity of the last two. One, I had correctly guessed to be Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook. The other one, who was Barb’s pick for the most fascinating person of 2010, I believe took every one by surprise: General David Petraeus.
General Petraeus is a United States Army general who serves as the current Commander, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan. He was appointed by President Barack Obama to replace former Gen. Stanley McChrystal as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan.
Barbs explains General Petraeus is kind of a “rock star” in the military. Barb continued, “In life, it seems, there are people who break things and people who fix them. This man is a fixer. A lot depends on General Petraeus and his combination of humanity and strength.” It seems that in this war, it is a combination of compassion and firepower which is needed to combat the specific enemies facing the US in that terrain.
Petraeus believes in creating order by gaining the trust of the locals. In practice, this means constructing schools, teaching farmers new techniques, helping local businesses grow, bolstering the government to provide basic services to its own citizens, and maintaining peace to keep it from becoming a launching pad for terrorists.
Petraeus joins an eclectic and bizarre group for the title of “Most Fascinating Person,” as selected by Barb over the last 18 years of the list’s existence. Last year, first lady Michelle Obama was named the Most Fascinating person. In 2008, it was then President-elect Barack Obama. Past honorees include Laura Bush, J.K. Rowling, Nancy Pelosi, Paris Hilton, Camilla Parker Bowles, Lance Armstrong, Gen. Tommy Franks, Colin Powell, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Nelson Mandela and more. Yep, you read that correctly. The top honorees over the years have in fact included both Paris Hilton and Nelson Mandela. If that does not spell eclectic and bizarre, I don’t know what else would.
Here are some clips from tonight’s special:
