America's Ideological Pantheon

The Times of London is putting together a list of the 100 most influential conservatives and liberals in America. It's an ongoing series that will roll out during the rest of the week, so the newspaper has only revealed the lower two quintiles.

Two quick observations:

(1.) It's always interesting to see what the American political landscape looks like from the perspective of a foreigner.

(2.) The list -- at least so far -- feels more like VH1's 100 Most Awesome One Hit Wonders of All Time than it does Foreign Policy/The Prospect's Top 100 Public Intellectuals. The influence of celebrity is fairly conspicuous and nearly all of those celebrities seem have a shtick that is used repeatedly to hammer home one view or another.

[via NRO]