It was an extraordinary, unpredictable outcome overlaid with fear that the worst could happen.

But the jitters are there for a good reason: default, or otherwise, will depend on the unpredictable outcome of a huge political fight that has only just begun.

Stories are four histories with the unpredictable outcome, four genres of cinema: absurdist comedy, social satire, thriller, melodrama.

But within that artificial world are myriad relations between pieces, which are manipulated by players subject to human frailties, and whose decisions have unpredictable outcomes.

But the generals also follow a long tyrannical tradition: throughout history dictators have tended to put their faith in the occult, with unpredictable outcomes.