What did Saddam Hussein's Iraq have in common with George W. Bush's America? According to Robert Cooper, both are what he calls "modern" states. This means, in Cooper's eyes, pre-war Iraq and America aren't quite as highly evolved as is the "post-modern" European Union.

You see, Cooper believes there are three types of states in our world today: "Pre-modern, defined by chaos and lack of state control, such as pre-war Afghanistan; the modern state with in clear boundaries, such as Saddam' Hussein's Iraq; and post-modern, in which the nation state is collapsing into a bigger order -- the Europen Union for example" (Read about it here).

But, Cooper isn't just another limp-wristed intellectual type. In fact, Cooper is an advocate of what he calls "new imperialism." With the availability of weapons of mass destruction becoming easier all the time, Cooper believes the chaos in the pre-modern world could soon destroy his post-modern European utopia.

So, why should it matter to us what Cooper thinks? It matters because Cooper is now the EU's High Representative, Javier Solana's, right hand man. And, this knowledge may help us understand some of the thinking behind certain recent events in the news.

For example, Cooper's fear of pre-modern states might explain France's sudden change in nuclear strategy to allow a first strike against rogue states (Read about it here). And, Cooper's dislike of America's global dominance may help explain why Solana is pushing so hard for an independent EU military command outside NATO.

Besides, we already suspect where this is all going. If  I've understood the Bible prophecies correctly, it's going to a 10-nation led revival of the old Roman Empire. (Please remember, I always allow for the fact I could end up being wrong on this.)

Actually, I think this news about Cooper being an advisor to Solana is a bit funny. Here we have an important advisor to the foreign policy chief of the more advanced, post-modern EU, advocating a course of imperialism.

I'd hate to see what Cooper's advice would be to a less advanced society.

Stay tuned.