Okay, where do we stand?

bin Laden is still alive. He is a genius at what he does, and the man went shopping in the chaos of the former Soviet Union with somewhere around $1,000,000,000 in his pocket.

In the meantime, we have troops in Iraq. If Israel attacks the Iranian reactors, my guess is that our folks are going to have a really bad day. I don't know if the government of Saudi Arabia or Pakistan would survive.

Any democratic Iraqi government will reflect Iraqi desires, and that is for the colonialist (US)deals to be cancelled, the foreigners (US) thrown out, and for a strong position against Israeli expansion. That happens the day after we leave, if we can leave, and the reservists terms are way past up, and no one is flocking to enlist.

The US dollar is dropping like a stone, and the US is completely unable to stop it, as the budget can not be brought into balance. There are trillions of dollars outstanding overseas as a reserve currency, but it is questionable whether the dollar will continue to be accepted in payment for oil.

The US economy is built on real estate, but those real estate prices are dependent on economic activity, and the manufacturing sector is hurting pretty good already. Defense industries are based in the south and west, and more generally, the transfer of wealth from the northern states to the southern and western states will continue.

The baby boomers are nearing retirement, and health costs continue to soar, along with the number uninsured.

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict continues, with no end is sight. The US stands alone in tolerating Isaeli government actions.

The country is bitterly divided. The more extreme on the right consider W Bush's narrow win as a massive endorsement, when the reality is that more people simply did not like Kerry than did not like Bush. The president's approval ratings are low.

W Bush was tired in the first debate, and now has four more years to go. Note the gray.

The Republicans control both houses, and have no excuses.

The reports on the Office of Special Plans and the procurement scandals are due shortly.

It has been said that G*d loves babies, drunks, and Americans, but I wonder if we're not asking for a little too much.

ep