London and Frankfurt hope to build a pan-European trading heavyweight and a 24-hour global market in new-economy stocks - both unthinkable prospects only a few years ago.

But Mr. Schundler describes his plan as an ingenious alternative to the unthinkable prospect of raising property taxes.

The almost unthinkable prospect of the cancellation of "The Sopranos" could have staggering repercussions for the network and Mr. Gandolfini.

To many, absorption of part of Sri Lanka into India is an almost unthinkable prospect, because of the repercussions in other nations in the region.

Nobody wants to face that unthinkable prospect.

And in another, oil prices plummeted - which was an unthinkable prospect at the time.

The previously unthinkable prospect of a non-academic career now began to be thought - with fear, dismay and bewilderment on Robyn's part.

What he found, though, was that some Britons at least have begun to question his leadership, entertaining the once unthinkable prospect of life without him.

He said the legislation was needed to thwart "the absolutely unthinkable prospect of the last remaining superpower on earth without ships flying its flag."

Faced with the unthinkable prospect of losing an important cultural resource, city and state officials scrambled to put together a rescue package.