Indeed, it was the envy of many Westerners, who were fed up with self interested lobbying, pesky labor unions, and meddling politicians.

The Americans are happy that India s pesky left, reduced to a paltry 24 seats, has been all but eliminated from national government.

Perhaps he also thought that, well ahead in the polls, he did not have to bother to engage the pesky fellow who imagined replacing him in the White House.

Meanwhile, the financial industry is pushing the talks as a way to overturn the pesky and highly effective rules being implemented in the US under the Dodd Frank Act.

For as it does, China is using its colossal financial firepower to expand its strategic position on the continent, without linking aid and investment to pesky demands for good governance.

For those who have long scoffed at the possibility that China might be willing to deal decisively with its pesky North Korean neighbor, the results of US Secretary of State John Kerry s recent visit to Beijing will be all too predictable.