Upstage Baba Wawa

[filkertom]

The completely useless Ultimate Fangirl, Barbara Walters, is teasing her list of the ten most fascinating people of 2005. Her idea of the #1 most fascinating person will be revealed! on a prime-time TV special Nov. 29.

Now, I could go into a long snarling about how Baba Wawa is, in fact, damn near single-handedly responsible for the dumbing down of the American TV audience. But what would be the point? The only reason she is a celebrity is that she fawns on other celebrities. And her idea of "fascinating" (including Tom Cruise, Teri Hatcher, and Michael Jackson's lawyer) only overlaps with mine where I pray to a god I don't even believe in that said overlap (Condoleezza Rice) will one day end up in the Hague for her crimes.

But it does lend to a fun game. Your choices for the ten most fascinating people celebrities.

Here are mine, and why....

1. Karl Rove, because we still aren't quite sure to what depths he'll lower himself and America.
2. Condoleezza Rice, because she is obviously smart as hell but just as obviously is incompetent at both the high-level positions she's held and is a lousy liar. Her tell-all book is gonna be something, if it ever exists.
3. Seymour Hersh, a journalist's journalist.
4. Frank Rich, the best damn general political columnist today.
5. Arianna Huffington, maybe number five on that list, but who also got there the hard way -- starting out Republican -- and has wrangled together one hell of a blog lineup.
6. George Clooney, a pretty good actor and, from the look of things, a very good man who cares about America deeply. If he ever decides to run for office, watch out.
7. Patrick Fitzgerald, who seems to be channeling a kindlier, gentler version of my favorite legal pit bull, Vincent Bugliosi.
8. Bill O'Reilly, who seems determined to become The World's Biggest Asshole in public.
9. Keith Olbermann, who was trained in sports reporting but has been, for much of the past ten years, one of the most reliable and beatifully snarky liberal voices on TV.
10. Jon Stewart, for being willing and able to confront the Corporate Media and kick their asses again and again.

Your turn.