At Davos, crisis culls the guest list

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more: http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/25/business/davos.php

At Davos, crisis culls the guest list
By Nelson D. Schwartz Published: January 25, 2009

GENEVA: The Masters of the Universe no longer sit atop the magic mountain.

Not long ago, at the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Richard Fuld Jr. of Lehman Brothers held forth on the state of the global economy before mesmerized journalists and cowering subordinates while other Wall Street stars mingled after-hours with the likes of Claudia Schiffer, the German supermodel.

As business, government and nonprofit leaders trek up the peak made famous by Thomas Mann's novel, but now better known for the gabfest that begins Tuesday, star power no longer is in.

Politicians, not corporate titans, are poised to be the big draw this year, echoing the broader power shift away from the free market as one government after another tries to prop up its sinking economy.