@ James - The quote came from McLoed - I do not have the skill to come with things like that as fast as he did. I use it only to illustrate how "bolshy" the Chinese could be if you wish to restrict their "freedom" to dominate the world. Many in the US assume that all those very expensive aircraft carriers and "projecting power" projects are invincible - the Chinese KNOW they aren't.
As for us Europeans - remember we do call it the old world.
Mr Chuck : I take your point, I wasn't trying to be "in yer face" if you know what I mean, so peace, truce etc. I take your point again about the Walkman. The Ford / Peugeot comparison is a real one - many commented on how similar the cars were at the time. I know what you mean about form following purpose but if you google cars around at the time - FIAT Uno or Punto, Renault 5 or Clio and thats before we start on cars from Eastern Europe (Skoda, Yugo, Lada) or the far east (Hyundai, Kia and the japanese makers).
The top sellers at the time :
Fiat Punto
Renault Clio
Vauxhall / Opel Corsa
OT - The Corsa is GMs effort during the 1990s - note how similar it is to the US Metro etc. but its completely different underneath.