YES WE CAN - History in the making

A friend of mine was up all yesterday night to see the outcome of the United States presidential election 2008. She text me in the early hours with the results. Thanks Rookie. Barack Obama is the new president of America. A small step for him, a giant leap for the rest of us. And ever since I've had this of feeling of elation and of hope. I feel like anything is possible. To walk around in ignorance and pretend that what happens on the other side of the world doesn't affect us is not only wrong morally but just plain stupid. With impending problems such as global warming, global financial crisis and even the possibility of world wars I think it's high time we all came out of our insulated cardboard boxes. You should know by now a butterfly flaps its wings in some remote forest and the repercussions can be felt on your cardboard box.

I've seen and read his acceptance speech in full, which can be found here http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/nov/05/uselections2008-barackobama.

Needless to say it 'moved' me. Me who is far too young to be this cynical; me who never thought it possible that America would vote for a Black president; me who is cautious of people who talk as nicely as Barack Obama does.

There's lots I don't understand or know about. I'm not familiar with all his policies. I'm not sure what his future plans are and if there will be a disparity between his plans and reality. I don't know if his plans for American will impact us here in Britain or even the rest of the world. I don't know if I will still be rooting for him at the end of his first term.

What I do know exactly this minute on 5th November 2008 at 1.10 p.m and what I've written in bold on my facebook profile is that whatever the outcome in the future I'm glad I've seen history made, I'm glad America has risen above all its prejudice and I'm glad we have someone in Obama who is not willing to follow Bush-policies. Whatever he does or doesn't do, it can't be as bad as the last eight years. And yes, I've read Chekhov's Champagne so I can say it with confidence.

I am slightly worried that I've never been this excited about any British elections. I've never been 'moved' by any speech by a British politician. But British elections lack the charm, the wit, and the endearment that American elections possess. I've never felt empowered by British politicians. Perhaps our stiff upper lip needs to be slightly more limb and our British wit slightly more foreign.

In short, we need to be a bit more like Obama. Better dressed and groomed; more eloquent and charming; more honest and caring with a final sprinkle of charisma.

In Obama I find a rare honesty in his appearance and speech that has been missing in politicians for as long as I can remember. In Obama I see he is not only thinking about the life expectancy of his cardboard box. In Obama I see that he cares, genuinely and passionately, and that he won't sit in the white house and make decisions with an olympian detachment, decisions which affect not just people of America but people throughout the world. In Obama I see a change for the better. Or perhaps I am fooling myself and hoping too much. After all, when you take those pretty snow globes by the hand and you give it a good mighty shake the snow flakes still fall back in the same place as before, more or less.

I just hope he doesn't crack under the pressure or fail to live up to all our high expectations.

Barack Obama, can we fix it? YES WE CAN.