Not to beat a dead horse (or in this case donkey) back to life, but here’s a prediction of things to come:

Within six months Anthony Weiner will be a frequent guest on Rachel Maddow’s show and gagging it up (to audience applause) on Jon Stewart’s Daily Show; within nine months he’ll be filling in as guest host when Maddow takes time off and making the rounds on the night-show circuit (to audience applause); within a year he’ll be a featured commentator for MSNBC’s 2012 election coverage, following which (like Eliot Spitzer on CNN), he’ll get his own show.

Oh, did I forget the book contract? The college lecture tour? The Vanity Fair Comeback Kid cover? The Jockey underwear ads?