2011 Fearless Forecasts

Florida, but not Jacksonville, will take a direct hit from a category 3 or higher hurricane.


A major earthquake (6.0 or higher) will rattle a major city on the West Coast.

The Tea Party will strongly influence the Jacksonville city council and mayoral elections. Rick Mullaney will not be our next mayor.

Sarah Palin will decide not to run for President.

Inflation will be above 5% by year-end, primarily due to higher food and gas prices. Gas will be $5/gallon or more.

A second round of foreclosures will cause further declines in the real estate market. Commercial real estate defaults will bring another banking crisis, although not as severe as the last one.

The stock market will decline during the first three quarters but rise slowly in the fourth quarter back to 11,500.

War will break out on the Korean peninsula. China will intervene to stop it.

Israel will take matters into her own hands and strike at Iran’s nuclear production facilities. Obama will be furious at Israel.

Terrorists will hit a train or subway in the U.S.

Osama bin Laden will be captured, thanks to a Special Ops. Unit.

A tornado will hit Godfrey, Brighton or Jerseyville in Illinois.

Hilary Clinton will resign as Secretary of State.

A dormant volcano will roar to life in Europe or Russia.

An earthquake in Afghanistan will kill and injure some U.S. troops, but the subsequent rush to bring aid to locals will help solidify U.S.-Afghan relations with local leaders.

Flooding from Spring runoff in western Colorado or Utah will take out a portion of the old D&RGW rail-line between Denver and Salt Lake City.

Unemployment will stay stubbornly above 9%.

President Obama will announce he will not run in 2012 due to revelations of the Chicago-style corruption throughout his inner circle. Indictments will be expected, if not delivered, by year-end.

Rahm Immanuel, Obama’s former chief-of-staff, will not be elected Mayor of Chicago.

A major art museum will suffer a truly stunning and audacious art heist.

Although Obamacare will not be repealed, Congressional Republicans will be successful in defunding major provisions. Federal courts will continue to hand down mixed decisions on its constitutionality. Eventually, the Supreme Court will declare the mandatory purchase of health insurance unconstitutional but not in 2011.

The news media will be abuzz with the “state nullification” movement as a way of reining in federal power.

Fearless Forecasts for 2007

How time flies when we’re having fun, and even when we’re not. Here it is mid-February, and I still haven’t posted my “Fearless Forecasts” for 2007. These were completed during the first week of January. I do these every year to prove that psychics are no better prognosticators than the average person. (See the entry for January 5, 2007 for how this New Year’s tradition began.) They are in no particular order. So, here goes:


1. Mayor John Peyton will win re-election as Mayor of Jacksonville (FL) handily.

2. Now that Saddam Hussein is dead, things will start to settle down in Iraq. However, U.S. troops will not be withdrawn.

3. We will be engaged militarily with Iran to prevent their further development of nuclear weapons and to keep Israel from acting on it.

4. Osama bin Laden will be captured alive.

5. California, especially San Francisco, will have a very damaging earthquake.

6. Jacksonville (FL) will continue to be hurricane-free. El Nino will continue to suppress hurricane activity, although not as well as in 2006.

7. An F3 or stronger tornado will hit a major American city’s central or downtown area.

8. At least one new case of Mad Cow disease will surface in the U.S.

9. The Jacksonville Jaguars will replace both its head coach and quarterback.

10. There will be a major announcement of a new recreational or tourist attraction, possibly an aquarium or amusement park, for Jacksonville (FL).

11. Construction of the new courthouse in Jacksonville (FL) will still be stalled.

12. With Democrats in charge of revenues and spending, the economy will flat-line unless President Bush finds his veto pen. This year will be the prelude to a recession in 2008.

13. After brief stabilization, housing prices will continue down as unemployment heads up.

14. Nancy Pelosi will find it difficult to manage upstart congressmen with more conservative positions. The Democratic caucus will be more divided than most expected.

15. There will be an accident of some kind (car, plane, something or someone falling) that will really rattle everyone in the White House. It will involve or affect the President, Vice President, or members of their immediate family or closest staffers. No one will be killed or seriously hurt, however.

16. The St. Louis Cardinals will disappoint me this year. (Of course, anything less than another World Championship will disappoint.)