I think some here are misinterpreting what this 'award' is.
it's not the nobel prize for being good.
it recognizes people who 'made' the news (not just 'to' the news), made a difference, influenced the events more than anyone else in the last year.
and though this year there is a 'good guys' connotation kinda of atttached to it (and it can't be denied that what the gates -and bono- are doing has/will have a huge impact on million of lives), the 'award' went frequently to 'questionable' people also: hitler and stalin were 'honored', along with khomeini, gingrich clinton+starr and bush (3 times IIRC).
it also went in many occasions to groups of people (including the US soldiers in 1993).
it even went to an object, the computer, once.
this year, I would have given it to Katrina as a symbol of the forces of nature and global warming.
it's not the nobel prize for being good.
it recognizes people who 'made' the news (not just 'to' the news), made a difference, influenced the events more than anyone else in the last year.
and though this year there is a 'good guys' connotation kinda of atttached to it (and it can't be denied that what the gates -and bono- are doing has/will have a huge impact on million of lives), the 'award' went frequently to 'questionable' people also: hitler and stalin were 'honored', along with khomeini, gingrich clinton+starr and bush (3 times IIRC).
it also went in many occasions to groups of people (including the US soldiers in 1993).
it even went to an object, the computer, once.
this year, I would have given it to Katrina as a symbol of the forces of nature and global warming.