Or others who have played a major part in recent civic affairs.
A case in point is the recent affair in which the German engineering firm Siemens withdrew from a joint venture with Areva, the French nuclear-energy company, and forged a partnership with Areva's Russian competitor, Rosatom.
You would think that Bullygate, the recent affair in which Brown defended himself against charges that he was a bad boss, would have taught him something.
First, this more recent affair occurred in a different news media culture.
But makeup's use in video art is a much more recent affair.
While the lengthy euro-zone crisis and Europe's poor prospects for growth have dominated recent debate, Ms. Merkel has staked out strong stands in other European affairs in recent days.
The mass street demonstrations of last June have transformed into smaller but often violent affairs in recent months, dominated by aggressive Black Bloc groups.
Knicks fans have engaged in their share of irrational love affairs in recent years, falling for undisciplined exuberance (Nate Robinson), unbridled athleticism (Renaldo Balkman) and plucky overachievement (Landry Fields), only for their hearts to be crushed.
Chinese leaders have not spoken publicly about Hong Kong affairs in recent days, but they have sent an unmistakable message that they are opposed to popular calls to introduce full democracy beginning in 2007.
After a few rather one-sided affairs in recent years, this game showed the full talents the league has to offer and the increasing globalisation of the league, with a number of celebrities and fans from around the world flocking to see this one-off game.
