COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Just how much money did US taxpayers dump into GM to save US jobs?


GM plans to boost output in low-cost countries



By Frankfurt Bureau
FRANKFURT -(MarketWatch)- General Motors Co. GM +0.48% doesn't only plan to close the Opel plant in Germany's Bochum and the plant in U.K.'s Ellesmere Port but plans to simultaneously boost capacity in so-called low-cost countries such as Poland, Russia, China, India, Mexico and Brazil, according to a GM strategy paper that was presented at the GM Global Business Conference, weekly magazine Der Spiegel reports.
According to the strategy paper, named Global Assembly Footprint, GM plans to manufacture up to 80% of additional vehicles in these countries once unit sales rise, the magazine reports, saying currently about half its cars are manufactured in "high-cost countries" in Northern America and Europe.
For instance, in Poland's Gliwice plant, where Opel's Astra model is manufactured, production capacity will rise 25% while manufacturing of the Opel Zafira model in the Bochum plant shall be shut down by 2015 at the latest, the magazine reports.
GM plans to increasingly serve the European market by imports from its plants in low-cost countries, the magazine says, with 300,000 additional cars from plants in Mexico, South Korea and China being exported to Europe until 2016.
In addition, GM plans to lower the number of models worldwide by 2018, by reducing the number of car-manufacturing platforms to less than 15 from the current 30 and by barely developing models for a specific market such as Europe, the magazine reports.
Spokespeople for GM's Opel unit in Germany weren't immediately available on Sunday to comment on the Spiegel report when contacted by Dow Jones Newswires.
Magazine website: http://www.spiegel.de 

63 comments:

  1. GM Holden has been given A$275m (US$354m) in taxpayer assistance to build two completely new cars in Australia in the second half of this decade.

    ...

    Industry Minister Greg Combet said that without the co-investment Holden would have likely closed operations in Australia which would have had a big impact in Adelaide's northern suburbs, where the Elizabeth plant is based.

    ...

    Ford struck a co-investment deal with the federal and Victorian governments in January worth around A$103m to keep the company's Melbourne plant open until at least 2016.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I was reading about and viewing some pictures of our Civil War. It struck me how odd it seemed that they had trains and sailing ships, even steel clad ships, but no cars.

    A locomotive is a complex item, let us admit, and difficult to produce, surely much more so than a car, yet the automobile seems an odd late comer to the machine age.

    Does that seem strange? Or is it just me?

    (Quirk is not allowed an answer)

    It is like building the big complex items first, then the small simple ones, assed backwards.

    ReplyDelete
  3. bob said...

    I was reading about and viewing some pictures of our Civil War. It struck me how odd it seemed that they had trains and sailing ships, even steel clad ships, but no cars.

    A locomotive is a complex item, let us admit, and difficult to produce, surely much more so than a car, yet the automobile seems an odd late comer to the machine age.

    Does that seem strange? Or is it just me?

    (Quirk is not allowed an answer)

    It is like building the big complex items first, then the small simple ones, assed backwards.

    xxxx

    You Got Your Hoodies and You Got Your Shroudies

    TRAY von Be Dealin' The Gated Community?

    From the pictures, this Trayvon went from childhood to young adulthood missing puberty.

    Lesson: Don't let Miss T anywhere near your jury pool.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bob, very insightful on the car and I would like to return to that at a later date. My interests are on your referral to the Resurrection.

    Suppose whatever you want, but the fact is, with the possible exception of James the brother of Jesus (and thanks only to Josephus), we don't have a reliable clue as to how any of the followers of Jesus died or when, where or why.

    The Jewish life and Roman death of Jesus was no lie: it led directly to the invention of the Christ myth.

    There is no doubt that some of the followers of Jesus came to believe that he had been, in some sense, resurrected. But it had nothing to do with any empty tomb or walking, talking corpse or with a shroud. Belief is extraordinarily powerful. I agree.

    The Gospels weren't written by or for anyone who knew Jesus. They weren't even known or read by anyone who knew Jesus. The Gospels are post-Pauline for Christian communities well on their way to becoming entirely Greek.

    There was no lie. The Gospels are not lies. They're ancient stories for an ancient people, used to create a successful, living, Christian messiah from out of a failed, dead, Jewish messiah. Because that's what some people had come to believe that he was.

    There's excellent reason why the Gospels, and their rapine misuse of Hebrew scripture, read just like that: the creation of a successful, living, Christian messiah from out of a failed, dead, Jewish messiah. And it worked, at least for Greeks ignorant of Hebrew scripture and messianism.

    One has to conclude that poor, confused Paul believed his own theology and exegesis, but why would anybody else? Or believe the Gospels? Especially anyone who actually knew what Hebrew scripture said and what it meant?

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  5. Interesting link on Travon the Innocent.

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  6. The Guardian is reporting:

    A man in an Afghan army uniform has shot and killed two soldiers at a Nato base in southern Afghanistan, Nato officials have said.

    In a statement, Nato said an individual wearing an Afghan uniform turned his weapon against international troops. Coalition forces returned fire.

    "The gunman was shot and killed," Major Jason Waggoner, a Nato spokesman, said. A western official in southern Afghanistan confirmed the incident took place at the main Nato base in Lashkar Gah, Helmand province.

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  7. .

    Simply reporting facts that the "professional news outlets" are omitting, make up your own mind.


    Ignoring the fact that I've seen all of these 'facts' in professional news outlets before, as I pointed out yesterday, it would be better to wait for the grand jury results before assigning blame in something where we don't have all the facts.

    The post Bob put up? More 'interesting' stuff in a three paragraph post from the 'informed' blogosphere.

    In the first paragraph, the blogmeister makes an excellent point regarding liberal groups response to this incident.

    But then, starting in the second, he repeats Zimmerman's side of the story and begins offering 'facts' highlighted in bold so we don't miss their importance.

    "...we became aware of a witness that observed Martin beating-up Zimmerman..."

    [We have also become aware there were two other witnesses who gave different stories and that one of the witnesses stated the police on the scene cut her off and in effect blew her off.]

    "...Zimmerman suffered a broken nose and a cut to the back of his head>...Martin was shot in the front of his body, not in the back"

    [Emphasized, but hardly addresses who did the intiating orgiginally]

    "...Actually, Martin was a 17 year-old, 6 foot 3 inch high school senior and football player..."

    [True enough. What's not mentioned is, that Martin weighed 140 lbs. Zimmerman is 5'9" and weighs 250 pounds.]

    This shooting also took place inside a gated community, meaning Martin gained entrance to the property by jumping a fence...

    [Martin gained entrance by driving in with his father as they were in the 'community' visiting Martin's girlfriend and her family.]

    "...Zimmerman's father is a retired judge..."

    [Who gives a shit? This is on a par with the arresting officer's claim that one of the reasons that factored into their letting Zimmerman go was his knowledge of criminal law. By the way, it's been reported elsewhere that this same arresting officer was the same arresting officer who was called out for failing to arrest for over a year the son of a police lieutenant who was videotape beating up a homeless man for no apparent reason.]


    Simply reporting facts that the "professional news outlets" are omitting, make up your own mind.

    Just the facts ma'am?

    Well, at least as this guy interprets the facts.

    Wait for the grand jury.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  8. .

    Bob, I'll quit responding when you quit quoting from The American Thinker

    :)



    (By the way, your posts are still dropping off. Haven't you seen your daughter lately? You need to get it fixed (although, some here may disagree.)

    As another aside, not that I know the answer, but regarding the art on the shroud, wouldn't a 33 year old Jew in Israel be expected to be wearing a beard at the time of Christ's death?

    .

    ReplyDelete
  9. wouldn't a 33 year old Jew in Israel be expected to be wearing a beard at the time of Christ's death?



    yes to the beard..

    and no it was not "christ" that died...

    it was jesus...

    ReplyDelete
  10. My apologies Gag for thinking those were your posts. Do you agree with anon that taking out Martin was a righteous shoot?

    ReplyDelete
  11. .

    Just how much money did US taxpayers dump into GM to save US jobs?


    A good question, but not one really addressed by the story on their European operations. The story talks about their 'additional' production. Hard to say what that means for the US production.

    Regarding Europe, GM has been losing money there for some time. Lately, it's driven by lack of demand, tough unions, and government policies that won't allow them to shut down underutilized plants.

    Ford's got some of the same problems there. They will likely lose $500 million in the EU this year.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  12. wouldn't a 33 year old Jew in Israel be expected to be wearing a beard at the time of Christ's death?

    One would think so, Quirk, you make a good point. And that he probably would be married, too.

    The artists may have been thinking of Jesus in Greek terms, before the Shroud image got fixed in the artistic mind.

    I have no dog in the Shroud fight, but I wish they would do the carbon dating again.

    You are a Catholic Quirk, can't you call up the Pope?

    xxxx

    Where die Trayvon The Innocent get the money for those gold capped teeth, dude?

    He seemed such a nice young man. Why would he be flipping the bird to the entire world on FaceBook?

    I am hoping Sunny TV makes something of this story and am going to suggest she do so right now.

    ReplyDelete
  13. .

    and no it was not "christ" that died...

    it was jesus...





    :)

    Our biblical scolar jumps in.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  14. .


    You are a Catholic Quirk, can't you call up the Pope?


    He and I haven't spoken for years, Bob.


    .

    ReplyDelete
  15. .

    Where die Trayvon The Innocent get the money for those gold capped teeth, dude?


    A short while ago, my granddaughter borrowed $400 for a class she had to take but didn't have the money for.

    When I saw her a week or so ago whe was carrying around a $500 Coach purse.

    Go figure.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  16. .

    I said 'borrowed' but that is obviously not the operative word.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  17. Are you black Quirk? I mean, raising your daughter to steal Coach purses - c'mon man, that's low! On top of that, obviously, you approve.

    ReplyDelete
  18. .

    By the way, Bob, you just reminded me.

    I am going to have to modify my pledge not to respond to your posts to be conditional not only on your refraining from posting The American Thinker but also Sunny TV

    .

    ReplyDelete
  19. .

    Ash, all I can say in my defense is that I have had the same wallet for over 20 years.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  20. I have just spoken, er, emailed, with Sunny.

    The seed of the idea of a gig on Trayvon The Innocent has been implanted in her most fertile mind.

    ReplyDelete
  21. bob said...

    I have just spoken, er, emailed, with Sunny.

    The seed of the idea of a gig on Trayvon The Innocent has been implanted in her most fertile mind.

    Mon Mar 26, 09:56:00 AM EDT

    xxxxx



    By the way, Bob, you just reminded me.

    I am going to have to modify my pledge not to respond to your posts to be conditional not only on your refraining from posting The American Thinker but also Sunny TV


    House of Sunny


    :0

    There, that ought to shut the nitwit up for awhile.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Ash

    define a righteous shoot. You argued with me a few years ago about the definition of righteous and self-righteous, which I believe you are.

    So please, give us your definition of a righteous shoot.

    ReplyDelete
  23. A righteous shoot is one in which Ash is the shootee?

    ReplyDelete
  24. A righteous shoot is one in which Ash is the shootee?

    Or, would that be a self righteous shoot?

    ReplyDelete
  25. .

    Bob, please stop with the hoodie stuff.

    No one has said what the temp was but they did indicate it had been, or was, raining out the day Martin was shot.

    Heck, up until the last couple weeks, I have been wearing a hoodie part of the day for most days over the last 5 - 6 months; and I haven't held up any gas stations or took part in any drive-bys with my peeps during that time.

    They are comfortable and have other advantages.

    .

    .

    ReplyDelete
  26. and I haven't held up any gas stations or took part in any drive-bys with my peeps during that time.

    Musta scored big last time out?

    I will knock off the hoodie stuff for you Quirk if you will quit that putting down of Sunny but I insist to point out Mr. Martin gave the whole world the dirty finger on Facebook and Sunny has not done that.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Gag,

    Was he justified in shooting him? From what I can see he wasn't.

    Zimmerman called 911. 911 told him not confront Martin and police were on the way. Zimmerman then had an altercation with an unarmed Martin and shot him dead.

    The anon that I thought was you argued that Zimmerman had a right to confront Martin and since Martin may have objected the shoot was justified.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Here is a question.

    Let's say Zimmerman started the fight by somehow confronting Mr. Martin.

    Let's say Zimmerman found himself losing the fight badly to Mr. Martin.

    Let's say Zimmerman said 'quit, quit' but Mr. Martin kept poring it on, to the point Zimmerman truly began to fear for his life.

    Does Zimmerman have the right to defend himself with lethal force at that point, non-lethal force obviously not doing the job?

    All guards in private enclosed gated communities should wish to know that answer.

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  29. .

    I will knock off the hoodie stuff for you Quirk if you will quit that putting down of Sunny but I insist to point out Mr. Martin gave the whole world the dirty finger on Facebook and Sunny has not done that.


    This is getting complicated, so I can only give a temporary ok to your demands until my lawyer reviews this; but even that conditional approval will have to be based on my demands that you leave my wolves alone in Idaho and stop scaring the wildlife by going commando while fly fishing.

    .

    .

    ReplyDelete
  30. Actually I truly do have an appointment with my lawyer later today and will take up with her the entire bowl of legal spaghetti you have thoughtlessly created, including the meatballs.

    I shall also ask what are her thoughts on wearing hoodies in inclement weather in private walled gated compounds in which you own no property.

    Until then --

    bubbagyro said

    A law in London was advanced to outlaw hoodies, because criminals were walking up to people and knifing them and robbing them. The hoodie prevented them from being identified on the many cameras on London streets. People here are missing the point—the hoodie used in urban settings is primarily not as a uniform or style, but to hide one's identity. Much as the hockey mask is used in bank robberies.
    --

    Your demands about wolves are dismissed out of hand, summarily shot.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Ash

    I dont really have an opinion yet, because I dont think the whole story has been told yet.

    Your past and present posts prove that you believe your written sources to be the absolute truth, sometimes, even when facts say otherwise.

    I try not to do that.

    People get shot and killed everyday, everywhere. It's a shame.

    The liberal news media, with all their power, elects which story to run and sensationalize to further their liberal causes.

    This incident is a perfect example of how they can fuel the racial tension in this country whenever they choose to do so.

    3 Blacks shoot a white guy at Mississippi State, and no where do they mention race in the articles.
    A black student at Jackson State was shot in the face by 2 other Blacks yesterday. Page 15 news.

    Were they righteous shootings? Where is the outrage? Where are the protests? Where is Jesse Jackson? Where is Al Sharpton?

    We are having "hoodie" demonstrations here in Dallas.

    Our bigoted President even joins the fray.

    In my opinion it is all a bunch of silly shit.

    ReplyDelete
  32. .

    Does Zimmerman have the right to defend himself with lethal force at that point, non-lethal force obviously not doing the job?


    You've set up a lot of assumptions, Bob.

    IMO, he can do what he thinks he has to but he also has to suffer the consequnces for intitiating the confrontation, likely prosecution for 2nd degree murder or at a minimum manslaughter or criminal assault.

    But who knows in FL. Their system sounds screwed up to me.

    When I first heard about 'stand your ground', I was all for it. They are looking at passing the same law here. However, based on what I saw in this case, I don't like it, at least, the way it's set up in FL.

    When I took my training for the CCW, they spend the last hour or more bringing in a lawyer and talking about these issues. Here, if you are carrying, besides your permit you better be carrying a cell phone and a business card from your lawyers. If you kill someone, shoot someone, or even pull a gun on someone, you can count on being arrested until all the facts are cleared up. In, at least, the cases of firing a shot, shooting, or killing someone, the prosecutor's office will make the decision on whether charges have to be drawn.

    In florida, evidently, they leave the decision up to the responding officer even in the case where someone is killed. The possibility, even probability, of mistakes or abuse, is unacceptible IMO. It's nutz.

    .

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  33. Seriously, I believe it is impossible to craft a self defense law that is adequate to all the possible situations that may arise.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Yes Gag, loads of folk are shooting each other in America. The Florida case stands out though given their Stand Your Ground law and the, to date anyway, lack of prosecution of this particular shooter. It took media attention to get the authorities to take another look and that media attention seems to have prompted action - the Chief of Police has resigned and they've convened a grand jury.

    ReplyDelete
  35. It may stand out to you, but not to me. The Sanford, FL story reeks with sensationalism.

    Maybe I am wrong. But if I am not, I hope someone has the guts to report what really happened.

    Obama says the kid looks like someone who could be his son. The kid at Mississippi State looks like someone who could be my son.

    Unfortunately, no one is recording my sound bites.

    ReplyDelete
  36. The Mississippi story seems to be quite prevalent in the press and the authorities are hunting down the suspect(s) so I'm not sure what has you bothered about that shooting other than your concern for the victim.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Whole episode has


    Expanded The Definition Of Cracker


    Meanwhile, the New Black Panther Party, which, along with Rufus, has endorsed Obama for President 2012, the New Black Panther Party is putting out a reward for the cracker's ass, d or a.

    This is not the way to win the Hispanic vote.

    ReplyDelete
  38. A man in an Afghan army uniform has shot and killed two soldiers at a Nato base in southern Afghanistan, Nato officials have said.

    Still waiting for Karzai's apology.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Wanted + Reward + Dead or Alive Clause = Fatwa?

    ReplyDelete
  40. Ash

    You choose to focus on the "Stand Your Ground" law. I doubt Mr. Zimmerman was thinking about that law when he decided he needed to shoot for what ever reason.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Sounds like the cracker Zimmerman was no longer standing, but rather flat on his back with the 'kid' hammering on him when he (Zimmerman) pulled the trigger.

    ReplyDelete
  42. I am not bothered by any of it Ash. Your the one who blew a gasket over all this and calling someone else GAG.

    I was merely citing it as an example of how your liberal news media outlets choose to report and not report, which you fail to acknowledge.

    They are quick to sensationalize white on black crime, but never black on white or black on black.

    do you deny that?

    ReplyDelete
  43. Bob

    get your facts straight. A cracker is very white and usually from Georgia. I don't think Mr. Zimmerman fits either description..

    ReplyDelete
  44. Ash there is a big rally coming up, you can go show your support for Mr. Martin. You may be the lone cracker in a black sea but your rationality should protect you.

    After all, no fatwa has been put out on you, only Zimmerman.

    Mr. Martin had been suspended from school for using drugs.

    If only we would legalize all drugs and have them all sold at the pharmacy to those over 18, as Rufus has insisted, all would have been well with Mr. Martin, as he was too young to buy in the pharmacy.

    ReplyDelete
  45. All I can say Gag is see the new definition of cracker at Mon Mar 26, 02:22:00 PM EDT above.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Sorry, Bob

    missed that one. I wish I had the time to open all the links on this blog.

    ReplyDelete
  47. I think Im going to get my "cracker ass" outside. It is sunny and 84 today.

    ReplyDelete
  48. The Sanford Governemnt website has the 911 calls posted and a record of all the calls Zimmerman made to them - quite a long document.

    I don't think the 911 call helps out Zimmerman's case.

    http://www.sanfordfl.gov/index.html

    ReplyDelete
  49. Preliminary charges have been brought against nine people in connection with the alleged prostitution network, including Mr. Strauss Kahn, a police commissioner and a former regional head of a French company, who prosecutors say was allegedly filing expense reports to cover its costs.

    The Lille development comes two days ahead of a hearing in New York, where Mr. Strauss-Kahn faces a civil lawsuit by a hotel maid who accused him of sexually assaulting her.

    New York prosecutors have dismissed criminal charges against Mr. Strauss-Kahn, saying they couldn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the former IMF chief had attacked the maid, Nafissatou Diallo, in May.

    ReplyDelete
  50. 3 NATO Troops Killed by Afghan Forces

    Posted Monday, March 26th, 2012 at 7:00 pm
    Three coalition troops — two British and one American — were killed Monday by Afghan security forces in two separate incidents.
    NATO officials say that in the first incident, two British soldiers were shot dead at a NATO base in Lashkar Gah in southern Helmand province. Coalition troops returned fire, killing the attacker, who was said to be wearing an Afghan army uniform.
    Hours later, another coalition service member — an American — died following a shooting incident in eastern Paktika province. NATO says the soldier was shot by a member of the Afghan local police while approaching a police checkpoint.
    Afghan and coalition forces are investigating the circumstances of both attacks.

    ReplyDelete
  51. f one needed a reminder of why President Obama must be defeated in November, he provided it today in Seoul, where the end of his private conversation with Russian president Dmitri Medvedev was picked up by microphones as reporters were let into the room:

    President Obama: "On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved but it’s important for him to give me space."

    President Medvedev: "Yeah, I understand. I understand your message about space.

    ...

    President Obama: "This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility."

    President Medvedev: "I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir."

    ...

    UPDATE: I foolishly relied on my long-ago high school Latin, plus some quick Internet research, to try to formulate "Obama must be defeated" in Latin. I'm advised by higher authorities that "Obama victus est," my original, would mean "Obama is defeated" (if only!), and that "Obama vincendus est" would be the way to say, "Obama must be defeated."


    - Bill Kristol

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  52. It was an eclectic guest list. A Swiss-born banker and passionate Eurosceptic, a Christian hedge-fund boss who champions family values and the head of an international oil-trading firm who had played a vital role in helping fund the Libyan rebels fighting Muammar Gaddafi.

    ...

    The list of Conservative party donors to have met the Prime Minister for dinner, often in the state room above 11 Downing Street, includes people who have given millions to the party. Chairman of JCB Anthony Bamford and his wife Lady Caroline Bamford have gifted £2m to the Tories since 2006; businessman Lord Andrew Feldman is the party's co-chairman and has donated £74,270; Michael Spencer, chief executive of financial transactions company Icap, has given £173,000 since 2006; while the president of J Sainsbury supermarkets, Lord Sainsbury and his wife Lady John Sainsbury, have donated £905,000 in the last five years.

    One man who gave no money to the party but who was privately welcomed to a function at Downing Street for his support during the 2010 general election was Murdoch MacLennan, chief executive of the Daily Telegraph's publishers.

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  53. On this day in 1979 Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed a peace agreement in a ceremony at the White House. The formal treaty showed both parties officially recognized each other as a state and aimed to establish "normal and friendly relations."

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  54. Ultimately, it's unlikely that Zimmerman will be able to use the "Stand Your Ground" defense. He did ,after all, pursue the man he eventually shot and killed.

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  55. Neil Heywood, who was found dead in a Chongqing hotel room in November, wasn't a full-time employee of the firm, Hakluyt & Co., and wasn't involved in projects in Chongqing, the spokesman said. The work was part time, and was apparently one of several jobs Mr. Heywood held.

    ...

    One person recalled Mr. Heywood introducing himself at a social event at the British Embassy in Beijing two years ago as an adviser to the city's Aston Martin dealership.

    "He was clearly from a good family, in his late 40s or 50s, and was typical British, yet quite old school," the person said.

    ReplyDelete
  56. A company that used the services of a British businessman, whose death is a key element of a political scandal in China, operated in the secretive industry of business-intelligence gathering that is populated by former spies and others.

    ...

    With headquarters in London's wealthy Mayfair neighborhood, which is home to hedge-fund managers and private banks, the company's international advisory board includes senior figures from the business and political world, for example former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley, former Coca-Cola Co. Chief Executive E. Neville Isdell as well as a former chairman of HSBC Holdings PLC and senior political figures, such as a former NATO secretary-general.

    ReplyDelete