How can a double world champion who is still the most complete driver package in F1 have so few options for 2008? I'm assuming, of course, that Fernando won’t be able to stick another year at McLaren.
The answer's simple. F1 can stand all manner of evil machinations - its very foundations are built on such behaviour - but what it is most afraid of is a snitch. There is information known within F1 teams that the sport's 'great and good' want disseminated no further than the paddock itself. When Alonso threatened to blow the whistle on Ron during the Ferrari-gate scandal, he may have denied himself a future drive for anyone other than Renault. Being his personal manager and mentor, Flav still trusts him.
But it’s an indication of how important discretion is in F1. Although I doubt they would admit as much, I wouldn't be at all surprised to find out that, as a desirable quality in a driver, many teams value it above the ability to win races.