Yep, a strong and stable Euro, displacing the U.S. dollar as the alternate currency for oil revenues is quite a threat indeed.

(1) J.P. Morgan announced that it had hired Tony Blair part time in some vague capacity, similar to Major’s at Carlyle, and at a huge annual salary.

(2) Blair today fueled rumors that he might run for President of the EU.

(3) Sarkozy at one point suggested Blair was one of two prominent candidates.

Were one German or Italian one might be a bit anxious to lock up the silverware.

It has little or nothing to do with Machiavelli himself, or his political analysis and theories, but everything to do with the way “The Prince” was understood.

Using that sense, how Machiavellian are the various factions behind the Bush administration?

If, as I suspect, thoroughly so, someone or several are already desperately considering ways the US might destabilize the Euro.

To do so, on the other hand, would also be cutting their own throat.

The “asymmetry” the Russian Defense Minister recently threatened in response to the Bush administration’s provocations against the Russian Federation no doubt includes both oil and the dollar.

About the only people still in the dark are Americans, including the Corporatists and Neo-Cons, who think they control policy in both the US and over the world.

Whether they do or not, they no longer control the value of the dollar.

When there is a choice between putatively stable currencies, no one currency dominates as the “petrodollar”.

Which means, completely independently of what any American Corporatist or Federal official might want or like or need or may do, every time oil goes up, the dollar is devalued in terms of the Euro and a barrel of oil.

Meanwhile, under a different set of compulsions, Bernanke lowers interest rates.

In the past 100 or so years, wars have been started and continued because of their profitability. The minders for McCain (should he be chosen as president) will keep whispering into his ear that the war ‘needs to keep going’. There are massive industries depending on its continuance. Perpetual wars for perpetual peace for perpetual profits. That’s what its all about.

Since the government is owned by heavy hitter corporations that are neck deep in war money, they will pull all the strings necessary to keep the likes of McCain (and others like him) on the warpath. All the other candidates (save for Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich) are mentally weak and will give in to their influences.

That is the sad state of affairs we live in today. That is the sad state of affairs we’ve had to live in for the past 100 years.

Structurally, if there is no impeachment, it really does not matter much which of the Corporate candidates, left or right, wins the presidential election.

Start working toward what comes after the fall.

Actually I’m not that worried about any of the so-called republicans making it (as opposed to Paul, actual republican…but I don’t think he’ll make it either), you will not see a President Huckabee, Romney, McCain, or Giuliani. They were already screwed this cycle, and those are not choices that would throw any balances off. I want Huckabee to win the nomination, I just think it would be funny and since the process is already hopeless we ight as well have a few yucks along the way. Same with Giuliani…a republican candidate in a dress, you couldn’t make this stuff up.

Save all your fear for Hillary…although you have to admit, and it pains me to say this, she’s a better choice than any Huckabee, Romney, McCain, or Giuliani. She may be part of The Machine, but at least she and her husband know how to work the damned thing.

McCain in dress whites instead of a bamboo cage? You know he does bring it up on the campaign trail…and it’s not like G Bush would have missed a chance to bring that up along with the make-believe black baby. And there would have to be some plausible reason why he would be the first POW I ever heard of to be treated in that way.

I’m not saying it’s impossible, I believe a lot of crazy stuff, but this one fails any common-sense test. Are you suggesting that McCain is VietCong sleeper agent posing as a right-wing militarist? That might explain why he’s always showing up on the Daily Show…appealing to both sides, those crafty little MoFos!!

I did a google search and while yeah there might be some circumstantial evidence the veracity I have no way of knowing…I had forgotten that he was one of the Keating 5!!!!!! How can taking bribes in return for legislative favors not prevent you from being president? Yeah I know the Clintons are just as dirty but the taxpayers never had to bail them out with millions of dollars, instead we got a $6 trillion surplus.