His Royal Highness

Q. What does it take to become leader of the "Free World?"

A. 100 million dollars.

I would say that kind of levels the playing field, wouldn't you?

Without that kind of money -- mere pocket change for most of us -- the media will ignore your campaign in search of political dialogue (I use that term very lightly) more profitable to their bottom line.

And one more layer of deception in the sham of modern democracy falls asunder ...

But, for more on exactly what it takes to become President of the United States, we have to all the way back 20 years for a Washington Times story (published on 6 July 1988) that is perhaps more relevant today than it was then. It reads, in part:

Bush Related to Europe's Royal Blood

"Vice-President George Bush is a distant cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and has blood ties with every other European royal family on or off the throne, according to the publishing director of a blueblood directory ... Harold Brooks-Baker, an American who has made a name for himself analyzing royal lineages, especially where they link up with the White House.

"Without a shadow of a doubt, Vice-President George Bush is connected to more imperial, royal, and noble houses than any previous president."

This week [Mr. Brooks-Baker] released a copy of Mr. Bush's family tree traced by his directory, Burke's Peerage, back to the 1400's. It says that Mr. Bush is a long-lost relative -- 13th cousin twice removed -- of Britain's current monarch, and is a direct descendant of King Henry VII, of one of Charles II's mistresses and of Henry VIII's younger sister, Mary, who married King Louis XII of France ...

Mr. Brook Baker said that while very few Americans are descendants of European monarchy, "An unbelievably high proportion of American presidents are connected to the 'Blood Royal."

Mr. Bush is without doubt connected to more great royal families than any reigning head of state today except His Serene Highness Prince Franz Josef of Liechtenstein. The vice-president also is related to 21 of Britain's 26 dukes, he said."