While the possibility of Prince's companies taking part seemed plausible, Prince denied it ever happened.

CNN: Excerpt: Inside Blackwater's mission in Afghanistan

There you have it: What seemed absurd to the point of parody a decade ago is now so plausible that no one but me even thinks to question it.

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And because even in my malaise I could hear the agony of the French energy giant, EDF, in its standoff with the Treasury over what rewards it should get for building a new nuclear plant at Hinkley Point in Somerset, that seemed a plausible re-entry point for me.

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