The World’s Movers and Shakers

Thank you for including a diverse group of influential people in your Time 100 list [May 8]. I was especially delighted to see the story on the South Korean pop star Rain. His fame across Asia and the upcoming release of his English-language album show that pop culture no longer moves strictly from West to East. I don’t speak Korean, but like many Asian Americans, I am attracted to Asian entertainers.
Janet Vo
Boston

It is good to know that American stars such as Angelina Jolie and George Clooney are using their public prominence to address serious problems. Celebrities who choose to get involved in pressing social issues can raise awareness and inspire others to take positive action. Depicting Jolie as a puffy-lipped, pregnant Virgin Mary, however, was a wee bit overboard.
Jack Gordon
Sewickley, Pennsylvania, U.S.

As a college student struggling to decide what to do with my future, I very much appreciated your list of the 100 most influential people. It was inspiring to see that all 100 people who influence society in so many different ways have at least one thing in common: passion. Your article reminded me that the most important thing is not what I do; I just need to love doing it.
Lydia Kim
Evanston, Illinois, U.S.

I admire your including Bill and Melinda Gates in the list of important leaders. As a physician who has spent 50 years working in more than 20 countries, I have always dreamed that there would someday be enough money for the control of diseases in underdeveloped countries. Perhaps my dreams will come true through the immense generosity of that couple.
Fereydoun Arfaa
Danville, California, U.S.

After reading about Costco CEO Jim Sinegal, I am getting a membership to Costco and will never again darken the doorway of Wal-Mart. It seems that Sinegal understands what many companies knew 50 years ago: if you take good care of good employees, they will serve the company, not only themselves.
Paul Herman
Sun City West, Arizona, U.S.

The entire issue deserves commendation, but I especially thank you for the tribute to the Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash written by NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. I have often wanted to send off a note to Nash thanking him for his positive attitude and example, and I wish I could personally know him. To have had the article authored by Barkley must have been really meaningful for Nash.
(The Rev.) Bill Albright
Macungie, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Joel Stein’s “Meet the other 100” gave me a great idea: to make a list of the people who matter most to me. I wish I had started that list a long time ago. At my age, 75, not everyone on my list is alive today, which is regrettable. I never took the trouble to tell a high school teacher or a business mentor or a beloved grandfather what a significant influence each had on my life. I urge young people to make a list every 10 years and make sure you take the time to tell those people why they have had an influence on your life. All will be better for having done so.
Nelson M. Fellman
Voorhees, New Jersey, U.S.

Re “Why Germans are smiling again,” on German Chancellor Angela Merkel: I take exception to the idea that Germans are looking to the future with more optimism because of Merkel. Positive developments appeared in the country before the elections. The fact is that any reform, drastic or timid, will need some time to produce effects, especially when, as in the case of employment, the government has only a very indirect influence. Your story says Merkel is nudging German foreign policy back toward a closeness to Washington. But it is the U.S. that has been moving. President George W. Bush has not jumped to use military means against Iran, while Merkel has been stressing that everything needs to be done to find a diplomatic solution and a consensus among the major powers.
Oliver Hauss
Dortmund, Germany

time‘s story on Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez made plain that the country’s 26 million people are subjected to the desires of a tyrant. With all the loans, oil discounts and financing deals that Chávez grants to Venezuela’s neighbors by way of increasing his political muscle, he has truly given away the shirt off our backs, although not his own. Poverty, hunger and crime have risen, while housing and hospitals have suffered. Is Chávez crafty or demented? He is only influential because he hands out money to weak-minded barbarians and unethical beggars who will crawl for the proverbial piece of the pie.
Rafael Silveira
Caracas

time‘s idea of influence shows a Western perspective and includes mostly people from the U.S. The world is much bigger than that. A list of the top 100 influential people on each continent would give a better picture of who really influences world events.
Paul van Wijgerden
Almere, the Netherlands

The Rhythm Method Remains
“Condom fight: the Vatican strikes back” [May 8] reported that the Roman Catholic Church is not changing its position and will not condone condom use under any circumstances. As a former Catholic, I rue the day when I confessed to a priest that I used birth control after having my fifth baby. That man said I was sinning and read the riot act to me. He had a lot of nerve! The church’s policy against artificial contraception is nothing short of medieval.
Mary Thomas
Garden Grove, California, U.S.

The Fruits of Colonialism
Re “Exit strategies” [may 8], on European anti-immigration policies: Perhaps the right-wing elements in the governments of France, Britain and the Netherlands should stop and consider why there are immigrants in their countries. Could it be because Europeans interfered with and exploited so many parts of the world? It is said that history repeats itself. And where Europe has finished, the U.S. has taken over, which is why there will always be human beings searching for the security they do not have in their own countries. Colonialists cannot have it both ways. If you involve yourself in other countries, you have to take responsibility for your past and present actions.
Sara Ahsan
Manchester, England

Ease Off the Gas
The only way to lower the price of gas for good is to decrease the demand [May 1]. We Americans are such gluttons. We consume the most oil in the world, with little regard for the planet. You want the price of gas to go down? Stop driving so much. Take the bus, ride a bike, take a walk, join a van pool, take the train. Buy hybrid cars, and trade in your Hummers and suvs. And once in a while, stay home. The natural order of the capitalist economy will take care of the rest. Then we can we stop blaming the oil companies, the government, the Arabs and the terrorists for the price of gas.
Lee Kann
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.

It amuses me no end to see Americans carping about gas prices while paying less than they are willing to pay for the same quantity of bottled water. It is time to wake up and realize that the price of a precious commodity whose supply is dwindling at an alarming rate can only go up, not down. It is time Americans start investing in public transport and working near their homes or living near their workplaces. Just think how much more you could accomplish if your commute were shorter and someone else did the driving.
Sudhir Jain
Calgary, Canada