Of course, he couldn’t. Instead? He had to remove General Fraser from the mix. True. Nicely. By giving his cap another star, and putting him in charge of trucks and transportation. No longer in the Mideast, though.

I can imagine that both James Baker and the Sultans in Riyadh, bang their toes on lots of furniture.

While the Saud’s? Just like 9/11. They remain free and clear of any fallout.

Deomocracy is one thing. But what’s at work, now? CAPITALISM. The Saud’s saw an advantage. While at the same time disliked the dropping dollar.

Profound unintended consequences, ahead? I hope so. Driving about LA, I noticed that more than one freeway has less traffic. My son made it home, here, from San Diego (to Pasadena), in one hour and 40 minutes. Record time.

Car makers are also dealing with the fallout from the higher gas prices. As consumers “adjust.”

Oh, for a windfall? Bush schtooped $600 checks into American pocketbooks. And, these billions zoomed right into the Saudi coffers. Sure, the money makes them dangerous.

And, Lebanon is now freaking headed for a showdown with Nasrallah. No Israelis present. Look for it to see the inhabitants of Riyadh ENRAGED.

As to Rome, once Caesar crossed the Rubicon, it was OVER for their republic. Headed into a decatorship. And, worse off for having murdered their one genius. Caesar. Do you know what happened to Cicero after that? Because Cicero blustered on with his hatred for Caesar. And, the losers gained control. Cicero found out the price of that one! Among his biggest rhetorical mistakes was in being jealous of the genius. And, de-facto, throwing Rome to the wolves.