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View Full Version : Why Obama's Presidency matters - Cheers world wide!



Cruality
11-05-2008, 03:02 AM
America is on the right path, america is on a good path. The world will love us, the world still loves us. They cheer for us, they hope for us. They look to us, they feel for us. The world may love again, the world loves u.s. again.

Today i'm proud to be an American.



TOKYO – In concert halls and ballrooms, in plazas and at beach parties, people across the globe hailed Barack Obama's election as a stroke for racial equality and voiced hopes his presidency would herald a balanced, less confrontational America.

Throngs crowded before TVs or listened to blaring radios for the latest updates. In Sydney, Australians filled a hotel ballroom; in Rio, Brazilians partied on the beach. In the town of Obama in Japan, dancers cheered in delight when their namesake's victory was declared.

Observers — many in countries where the idea of a minority being elected leader is unthinkable — expressed amazement and satisfaction that the United States could overcome centuries of racial strife an elect an African-American as president.

"It shows that America truly is a diverse, multicultural society where the color of your skin really does not matter," said Jason Ge, an international relations student at Peking University in China.

In an interconnected world where people in its farthest reaches could monitor the presidential race blow-by-blow, many observers echoed Obama's own mantra as they struggled to put into words their sense that his election marked an important turning point.

"I really think this is going to change the world," said Akihiko Mukohama, 34, the lead singer of a band that traveled to Obama, Japan, to perform at a promotional event for the president-elect. He wore an "I Love Obama" T-shirt _

Many acknowledged that — for better or worse — America's economic, military and cultural might made the election globally important.

Australian Phil Keeling was plastered head-to-toe in a red, white and blue outfit with both Obama and McCain buttons as he crowded into a hotel ballroom in downtown Sydney, Australia to watch election results on two giant TV screens.

"There's a chance the image of the U.S. may change dramatically, and it's nice to be part of it," he said. He refused to say which candidate he preferred. Around him, Australians and Americans stood under a cloud of red, white and blue balloons and snacked on American treats like mini hamburgers and hot dogs.

Hopes were also high among many critical of President Bush's policies that an Obama victory would herald a more inclusive, internationally cooperative U.S. approach. Many cited the Iraq war as the type of blunder Obama was unlikely to repeat.

At a party in Rio de Janeiro, where Brazilians and Americans watched the returns, a 33-year-old music producer said an Obama win would show that "Americans have learned something from the bad experiences of the Bush administration.

"Choosing Obama is a great opportunity for Americans to show the world they can change, be humble and learn from their mistakes, which were not small," said Zanna, who uses only one name.

Umang Khosla, a senior marketing manager in Mumbai, India, with a multinational shipping company, said Obama would be widely welcomed after Bush, who he said "was hated the world over."

"With Obama, the world will see the Americans as having more sense, being more receptive to change," Khosla said on his way to work. "If Obama even remotely changes things, perceptions will change."

Obama's victory capped a campaign that many millions around the world had watched with rapt attention.

In Germany, where more than 200,000 people flocked to see Obama this summer as he burnished his foreign policy credentials during a trip to the Middle East and Europe, the election dominated television ticker crawls, newspaper headlines and Web sites.

Obama-mania was evident not only across Europe but also in much of the Islamic world, where Muslims expressed hope that the Democrat would seek compromise rather than confrontation.

The Bush administration alienated Muslims by mistreating prisoners at its detention center for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison — human rights violations also condemned worldwide.

Nizar al-Kortas, a columnist for Kuwait's Al-Anbaa newspaper, saw an Obama victory as "a historic step to change the image of the arrogant American administration."

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I have strong political views that are not popular with the left or right wing camps. I belive the US presidential election is not a super bowl where we should root for our team. Yet a great many vote Republican because and only because their dad did. Left and Right wing are on the same damn bird.

Case in point:
In Clinton's last year in office he introduced a bill to congress that would have had sweeping changes to law enforcement on federal levels. The republicans were up in arms. This was on outrage. The bill failed. Every bit of it made it into the patriot act. If people read more and watched their favorite spin zone a little less they would easily see that what a republican can not get into law, a democrat can. It happens every year and no one ever says a thing. Why? Because no one reads the bills. They watch the pretty news woman who tells them what her editor decided they needed to know. The editor BTW makes his choices based on ratings and cooperate sponsors (commercials).

Those who say Republicans are evil or Democrats can't be trusted have voluntarily blinded themselves to almost half of the total info on an matter. I say almost half because once you grasp this concept, then you have to realize there are more views than left and right on any issue. To assume from jump street there will only be 2 solutions to any problem, well most children see the flaw in that logic.

Just my 2 cents. I am happy for Obama and his family, but I do not expect change. Not any good change anyway. I expect a full economic collapse late this year. I expect the middle class will be taking a step back for a while. I expect the wars to continue. I would expect it all with McCain too. You just do not get to that level without making deals with the powers that be.