That a woman is for the first time a serious contender for the US presidency, actually the frontrunner, is a happy fact. But in this case, it unfortunately says less about the country's newly opened mind than it does about the strengthening grip of dynastic succession on US political power.

If Hillary Clinton is on the Democratic ticket in 2008, it will mark the eighth consecutive time that a Clinton or a Bush achieves that feat. If she gets elected and completes two terms, it will mean that a Clinton or a Bush will have been President or Vice President for 36 consecutive years. Anyone born after 1979 will not have known a White House without a member of either dynasty.