The long view.

2005: a look ahead ...

From the Washington Post, Page 1, January 11, 2005:

   Former Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein
   has agreed to a plea-bargain arrangement
   with the interim Iraqi government, according
   to State Department sources. The
   terms of the plea, which was finalized
   over several days last week in consultation
   with American officials and
   Hussein's attorney, Mark Geragos, stipulate
   that in exchange for his public
   and vociferous support for the
   upcoming Iraqi elections, the
   former dictator will receive safe
   passage to a villa in the Arab city-state
   of Dubai. Known as the "Idi
   Amin Scenario," the possibility
   of a deal was first floated by
   Geragos before the Christmas
   holidays after a long and
   tearful session with his client.
   "He just wants some of his stuff,"
   Geragos told reporters. "He wants to
   move on and begin a new chapter of his
   life, in privacy and seclusion." Hussein's
   forthcoming autobiography, Call Me Sad,
   is set to be released this autumn.

From the New York Times, Business Day section, March 12, 2005:

   Ousted United Nations secretary general
   Kofi Annan confirmed this morning that
   he had been offered, and has accepted, the
   position of president and CEO of the
   Disney Company. "It is with great excitement
   and anticipation that I turn to this
   new opportunity, and I look forward to
   stewarding this great American brand
   into the next century." In a statement
   released by company directors, they cited
   Mr. Annan's "brilliant financial management"
   of the world diplomatic body as a
   "key factor" in their decision to offer him
   the post. Concern about Mr. Annan's lack
   of experience in the entertainment industry
   was brushed aside by Disney's
   chief executive, Michael Eisner. "Has
   he ever made an animated fairy tale? Of
   course not," Mr. Eisner said at the news
   conference announcement. "But is he
   familiar with the concept of make-believe?
   Emphatically yes."

From Time, May 23, 2005:

   Former President Bill Clinton's doctors
   are mystified by his persistent heart trouble
   and have confirmed that the former
   leader has suffered numerous small heart
   "events" since his successful heart surgery
   last year.

      "We just haven't been able to nail
   down the problem," Clinton's cardiologist
   said. "He'll be fine, and then after a
   relaxing weekend with his wife, suddenly
   he'll start having chest pains. Weird."

      The gregarious former president, who
   in recent months has become something
   of a national spokesman for heart-disease
   prevention, maintains
   that he has closely followed his
   new heart-healthy diet. "I eat
   right, exercise, all of it." His
   wife, Senator Hillary Rodham
   Clinton, has confirmed her husband's
   discipline in a phone
   interview as she was traveling to
   a speaking engagement in Iowa.
   "I know he's not cheating," she
   said, "because I fix all of our
   meals when we're together. He eats
   whatever I put in front of him. But you
   know, sometimes heart disease is tricky.
   You never know when disaster may
   strike."

From the New York Times, Business Day section, October 19, 2005:

   Ousted United Nations secretary general
   Kofi Annan, who has been serving as
   President and CEO of the Disney Company,
   has decided to step down from that
   post, it was announced today. This follows
   a difficult and stormy year, which
   some sources have claimed was marked
   by inaction and lethargy on the part of Mr.
   Annan. His tenure was also tainted by the
   disappearance of almost $127 million in
   cash receipts from Disney's three major
   theme parks; the funds were last seen in
   several cases in the trunk of Mr. Annan's
   Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. "We are grateful
   to Secretary Annan for his leadership
   this past year," the company said in a
   statement, "and are sorry to see him step
   down." Although the precise details of his
   severance package have yet to be disclosed,
   sources say that it will surely
   include a cash settlement in the hundreds
   of millions, and use of the Disney corporate
   jet for a period of years. In addition,
   Mr. Annan's son, Kojo, will continue on
   as a consultant to the company . . .

From Time, December 8, 2005:

   In deference to a distraught Hillary
   Rodham Clinton, Chappaqua investigators
   have decided to close their preliminary
   investigation into the sudden death
   of former President Bill Clinton, and
   have ordered the county medical examiner
   to return the president's body to his
   family in time for the state funeral,
   scheduled for December 24. "I don't like
   this at all," Tajiko Hayakawa, Chappaqua's
   medical examiner, told reporters.
   "There's a lot here that I can't explain.
   Like, what was the cause of his massive
   heart failure? There's no sign of blockage,
   or muscular damage. His recent
   EKGs were all fine. I'd like to do a liver
   section to see if there are any traces of
   poison, but I guess an autopsy is out of
   the question." Senator Clinton, appearing
   before a cheering crowd in New
   Hampshire in black crepe, announced the
   formation of an exploratory committee
   for the 2008 presidential campaign.

From Mediaweek, December 12, 2005:

   Bill O'Reilly, anchor of The CBS Evening
   News, was formally suspended today for
   hitting a small child during an interview.
   The child, a national spokesperson for
   Children with Hearing Disabilities,
   enraged the volatile anchor by refusing to
   "shut up" when ordered to. Sources report
   that the child, an eight-year-old girl with
   80% to 90% hearing loss in both ears,
   simply could not hear the red-faced
   O'Reilly bellowing at her, and so continued
   to describe the recent efforts of the
   CHD to improve the lives of the partially
   deaf. The anchor was unavailable for
   comment, but his spokesperson referred
   all questions to the platinum-plus member
   section of Oreilly.com.

From the New York Times, Page 1, December 24, 2005:

   Hours after attending a somber, though
   at times uplifting, private lunch at the
   Georgetown home of Senator Hillary
   Rodham Clinton following the funeral
   ceremonies for former President Bill
   Clinton, New Mexico Governor Bill
   Richardson and Indiana Senator Evan
   Bayh were hospitalized with severe
   chest pains. Doctors were baffled by the
   unexplained coincidence. Neither man
   has any history of heart disease, and
   both have at times been mentioned as
   potentially strong candidates for the
   Democratic presidential ticket in 2008,
   along with the host of the lunch, Senator
   Clinton.