It seems like it'd be pretty hard to be Angela Merkel, considering she has to constantly convince the German people that shouldering Spain's debt burden is way better than spending all those extra euros on, I dunno, a series of national indoor water parks. Or sausage factories, whatever, it's your money, Germany.…

Forbes has released its list of world's 100 most powerful women, and, despite having a strong hand in what many Americans read over the summer, Oprah couldn't break into the top ten (she's glaring at those rarified ten from her perch at 11). Speaking of pop culture giants, J.K. Rowling is waaaay down the list at 78,…

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and French President Francois Hollande embrace after delivering their speech in front of Reims Cathedral in Reims, eastern France, Sunday July 8, 2012. Leaders of France and Germany meet to mark 50 years of taking an important step toward cooperation after two world wars amid today's…

It doesn't take a PhD in How Shit Works Studies to understand that the notion that any of us can really "have it all" is absurd. The perfect family, the perfect career, the perfect sex life, and the perfect body are all such demanding mistresses that unless we prioritize and choose one or two, we end up with none of the…

And it embarrassed even the notoriously tasteless Daily Mail. The tabloid reports, "The alleged remarks — too vulgar to repeat but referred to sex and Mrs Merkel's physique — were picked up by investigators probing a £660,000 blackmail plot against Mr Berlusconi." He allegedly made them during the same phone call wherein …

[Astana, Kazakhstan, December 1: Well! Looks like SOMEONE is really excited to talk about urgent threats like transnational terrorism and trafficking! Image via AP.]

— The accused misogynist clarifies his feminist hopes and dreams.

The good news is, not one of them is Sarah Palin.

[Berlin, December 3. Image via Getty]

Forbes magazine loves to track the wealthy. It has lists dedicated to billionaires, top earning CEOs, and top-earning dead celebrities. So why, when it comes to the new list about women, have editors decided to use the vague metric "influence?"