Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader just isn’t feeling much like blogging today. Although that will not keep him from trotting out a few links and comments for your reading enjoyment…

First off, a follow-up to the piece from last week about researchers “rediscovering” the Spanish Flu, which was the cause of the Influenza Epidemic of 1918. Here is a great piece from the Washington Post about the quest to find the genome of that famous flu. Your Maximum Leader should also respond here to Loyal Minion Bill’s comment about reinventing the flu as a trigger for a “Stand” moment. (Bill’s comment can be read here - in the trail following your Maximum Leader’s last flu post.) Your Maximum Leader remembers reading in one of these articles that the Spanish Flu of 1918 is reasonably harmless now. As with most flu variations, if you survive it once you build up immunity to it in the future. So, most humans alive today have some natural-born resistance to that variation of the flu. Of course, we have no natural-born resistance to the newest version of the bird flu that appears to be spreading around Asia right now. There doesn’t seem to be any reason to fear the Spanish Flu escaping the lab and wreaking havoc on an unsuspecting population.

Excursus 1: Your Maximum Leader does, in fact, have some lingering fears that biological weapons manufactured and improperly stored in the former Soviet Union. Those biological agents do pose a real threat to cause a chain reaction of plague as described in the early chapters of Stephen King’s novel, The Stand.

Excursus 2: Your Maximum Leader believes that 100 years from now when people are studying late 20th Century literature (f in fact they do study literature in the future) the only book of Stephen King’s that will be read will be The Stand. Of all of his novels it is the only one that is truly epic in scope.

Secondly… Your Maximum Leader predicted an upset victory of the Atlanta Braves over the Houston Astros in the National League Division Series. Well that didn’t happen. Neither did the Red Sox over the White Sox. St Louis prevailed. And we’ll see who wins in the Yankees/Angels series. At this point your Maximum Leader would like to see a St Louis/White Sox World Series. Frankly he wouldn’t mind a Houston/White Sox World Series either. He doesn’t want either the Angels or the Yankees fighting for the American League. Your Maximum Leader, in honour of the Astros, doffs his bejeweled floppy hat towards the fair Minion Molly (of Houston). Your boys won a great series. You should be proud.

Thirdly, while talking baseball. Your Maximum Leader, now that the regular season is over, will officially announce he is switching sides… Sides in baseball that is. You may remember your Maximum Leader’s struggles with Washington DC getting the Nationals. Well… Your Maximum Leader went to a Nats game a few weeks ago and at that game got himself a authentic fitted Nationals cap. On the way home from the stadium, he drove through downtown DC and gave his Atlanta Braves cap (purchased at Turner Field during a great Braves/Mets series by the way) to a homeless guy. Thus was your Maximum Leader’s conversion from a Braves to a Nationals fan complete. He is sure he’ll always have a soft spot for the Braves in his heart, but he’s fallen for his hometown Nats.

Fourthly… Your Maximum Leader promises that in the Mike World Order Sadie and Annika will both be on the Supreme Court of the MWO. Frankly, if you are a loyal minions and swear fealty to your Maximum Leader early on (like now) you will be picked for some great patronage job. Your Maximum Leader makes no secret of his support of cronyism in the MWO. To be a Friend Of Mike is everything.

Fifthly… Speaking of Friends of Mike and the Mike World Order… It has been a while since he posted it… So if you read below the fold you’ll have the newly revised list of the 40 Signs of the Mike World Order (in no particular order). Otherwise…

Carry on.

40 Signs of the Mike World Order.
(In no particular order)

1. Your Maximum Leader’s profile on all the coins.
2. A huge democratically elected parliament that meets continually, but accomplishes nothing.
3. Identity papers.
4. Show trials. (With free admission!)
5. O.J. retried, found guilty, and stoned to death.
6. All traces of Michael Jackson erased.
7. Saint Elvis.
8. The dreamy Jennifer Love Hewitt becomes new model for Statue of Liberty.
9. Statue of “Liberty” renamed Statue of “Conformity to the Mike World Order.”
10. Special lanes on all highways for the exclusive use of “Friends Of Mike”
11. Beer for the People!
12. Distilled spirits for the elites!
13. Huge military parades, for no particular reason.
14. Free digital cable for the People!
15. At least 5 quality programs on digital cable at any given time.
16. MLNN, the Maximum Leader News Network.
17. Ted Turner dragged out and shot, just for fun.
18. Public executions. (With free admission!)
19. Did I just say “Beer for the People?” I meant to say “FREE high-quality Beer for the People!”
20. Permits required before people can wear spandex in public.
21. One radio station broadcasting all Richard Wagner, all the time.
22. One radio station broadcasting all Elvis, all the time.
23. Lindsay Lohan v. Hillary Duff - to the death!
24. “No Blood, No Foul” rule introduced tothe NBA to make games more interesting.
25. No hockey teams in places that do not naturally get snow during the winter.
26. Bud Selig dragged out and shot for crimes against baseball.
27. New TV show: Pundit Deathmatch! Reigning champion - Ann Coulter!
28. Barbara Striesand being forced to clean the Big Hominid’s bathroom, with her tounge.
29. Permits required of couples before breeding.
30. More honest labeling of organic products.
31. Photos of topless women on Page 3 of every reputable newspaper.
32. (For the ladies!) Photos of hunky guys on Page 5 of every reputable newspaper.
33. Music appreciation taught in all grades at all schools.
34. One cable channel broadcasting the dreamy Jennifer Love Hewitt all the time.
35. The new MS-Windows OS will be both intuitive and functional.
36. School children taught the poetry of the Big Hominid in 10th grade.
37. Bill and Hillary forced to live together and like it.
38. Shame and humiliation restored to civil society, maybe through strategic use of pillorys.
39. People allowed to drive as fast as they want on toll roads. (You’re paying for it afterall.)
40. Perpetual happiness for the masses under the benevolent rule of an enlighted Maximum Leader.