According to this year's Time top 100 most influential people (Titans of industry, Leaders, Pioneers, 'Icons' and Artists), if you're born in North America you're approximately a million times more likely to be 'influential' in one or other of these fields, particularly if you're born on the east coast, and most particularly, New York.
I exaggerate slightly, but only slightly. The map says it all. It's made to look like this select group of VIPs were born and live all over the globe, but that's only because there isn't room for aaaaall the Americans in America. Tim Cook of that famous fruit company is floating somewhere off the South African coast, which is not where he was born or spends most of his time, methinks.
In order to get the land mass of NZ on the map, even though it contributes NOTHING to world influence, according to the map -- which should please the Australians, except for the fact that neither do they, according to the map -- I had to leave off Barack Obama. You win some and you lose some.
Time for a nap -- to dream about being on the map, possibly in the form of Reese Witherspoon.
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