The most powerful man ever.

[Dodes]

Johannes Gutenberg

Oh you mean the guy that brought down the catholic church with a printing press?

I doubt that qualifies him for most powerful man ever. Hell, it only effected Europe, which was only just emerging as something of note in that time.

europe is the most important place on earth, until the end of WWI, and so if you greatly effect the early stage of the early stage of the world that must equal power of the earth? Or does that not qualify as power? Brains over brawns

 

[Almalexia]

europe is the most important place on earth

Thank you, Mister Supremacist.

 

[Dodes]

europe is the most important place on earth

Thank you, Mister Supremacist.

It's not supremacism, Europe had the most profound consequences on the world and thus it is the most important
if maybe modern day China had more strife than it would be arguably, but the Ming Dynasty had not much going on that really revolutionized anything besides sciences, which without Europeans would not have been as important as it is today

 

[Yvain]

europe is the most important place on earth

Thank you, Mister Supremacist.

Just to play devil's advocate here, Europe has been extremely influencial on the world, especially when you consider that our time's most powerful country is an extension/modification of European culture/ideals (with other influences as well, but heavily European). Of course, Asia has also been very influencial and innovative over a very long period of time, just in a more subtle, quiet, yet consistent way.  I suppose that ultimately, every region of Earth has been highly influencial in some way.  No one culture/geographical area can claim to have been more influencial/powerful than any other region in the world throughout the entirety of human existence.

 

[ScientiaExcelsa]

So let me get this straight, Dodes.  Europe was the most important place in the world until after WWII, and it is the most important place in the world because of its effect on the modern world?



Also, you're one to talk about supremacism, TDM, you Hitlerite.    Just kidding.

Anyway, personally I'd go with the Mediterranean as the most important place in world history, not Europe.

 

[Almalexia]

Well at the time of independent European invention of the printing press, colonization had only just begun, and only then mainly in America.

 

[Dodes]

So let me get this straight, Dodes.  Europe was the most important place in the world until after WWII, and it is the most important place in the world because of its effect on the modern world?

yeah that is a much better statement
thanks for the edit
When I said after WWI I was thinking more of the actually Ideas more than actions of people, although when I threw my answer to the "most powerful man ever", I did say Adolf Hitler as one of my top three

 

[ScientiaExcelsa]

I was being sarcastic.  Oh well, I was just trying to be difficult in the first place.  I know what you meant.

 

[hruza]

Europe was pretty much backyard for most of the human existence. It rose to prominence for perhaps last 1000 years (if you put Romans in to comparison with Chinese which were pretty much on par). But really 1000 years is very little. If there is part of the world which was most influential up until today, it is Mesopotamia, Middle East and Eastern parts of Anatolia. That is where most of the agricultural revolution took place, civilisation was born, writing was invented, first cities were build and most of our religious concepts were put in to place. That happened some 8-10 000 years ago. Nothing more important was invented ever since I can think of.

 

[Yvain]

Europe was pretty much backyard for most of the human existence. It rose to prominence for perhaps last 1000 years (if you put Romans in to comparison with Chinese which were pretty much on par). But really 1000 years is very little. If there is part of the world which was most influential up until today, it is Mesopotamia, Middle East and Eastern parts of Anatolia. That is where most of the agricultural revolution took place, civilisation was born, writing was invented, first cities were build and most of our religious concepts were put in to place. That happened some 8-10 000 years ago. Nothing more important was invented ever since I can think of.

That's mostly a fair point, but I'd like to present a different point point of view.  Human civilization has been in a constant evolution process where one civilization comes up with a good idea, then another civ takes that idea and inproves upon it.  So just because Mesopotamia at one point was very innovative, that hardly makes it the most influencial, in my opinion.  Every powerful/influencial civ has had periods of a rise to power, and a fall from prominence, and the new dominant powers rose to take the lead, improving upon the great ideas of the past.  Every great culture has been influenced by another great culture that came before them. 

Also, you are treading on the borderline of ignorance by claiming that Europe has been "backward" throughout human existence.  That sounds like a hugely biased, anti-European opinion.  While I'm all for opinions that are different from my own, your opinion has too much obvious evidence against it that suggests that Europe wasn't backwards at all, and has been extremely influencial in its own right the past 2,500 years or so, for me to think that your opinion (only on the part about Europe, everything else is a fair point) is credible at all.

 

[hruza]

That sounds like a hugely biased, anti-European opinion.

Well I am European myself as well as all my ancestors as far back as I know or guess and while it is kind of fashionable nowadays to denounce everything European (or white for that matter) its not my case. For one think, I did take some pain to learn history of my people as well as others. That at the same time prevents me from going the opposite extreme however.

Europe did score prominently during past 2500 years and it was most influential continent for last 1000 years. No question there. But for me at last, one thing is to invent something and another to take over and develop. Of course there are things which Europeans invented on their own, many of them, but those I stated are so basic that we sometimes fail to appreciate their greatness. And truly great they were.

By the way from what we know today, origins of most of the European people, those speaking Indo-European languages at last, are to be found somewhere there too. Remember we are relative newcomers. And those are mostly Indo-Europeans who made Europe what it is now. We gave it even its name.

 

[mark259]

50 cents definitely is the most powerful man on earth, eva seen "Get Rich Or die Trying''?

 

[Amroth]

50 cents definitely is the most powerful man on earth, eva seen "Get Rich Or die Trying''?

This man is clearly well educated.

 

[mark259]

50 cents definitely is the most powerful man on earth, eva seen "Get Rich Or die Trying''?

This man is clearly well educated.

This man was clearly joking, well I thought.