*The Debatewise Blog
The world awaits
There are less than twenty-four hours until the American election starts in earnest, though tens of millions of people have already voted and, to a Brit, the four hour long lines seems both shocking and admirable. Why can’t the richest country in the world afford more voting booths? And blimey but people must care a lot to wait that long.I know I care and he’s not even my president. The world is in desperate need of a leader and I can’t imagine one better than Obama. I don’t believe he can possibly deliver on all his promises, I think the weight of expectation will mean he’ll inevitably disappoint. But despite this, I think he’ll do wonders for the world.
Firstly, he’ll bring with him a surge of goodwill. The problems we face are global ones: issues of the environment, terrorism and the financial crisis cannot be solved by one country alone. An America the world admires will be one we want to work with.
What’s more, you get the sense he’ll listen to what the world wants too. One of the things Americans often misunderstand is that anger towards them is not born from jealousy of their freedom but resentment of their tactics. Clearly Obama will still put American interests first, but I think he realises America can’t be as isolationist as it was, and that American interests are more closely aligned with world interests than other presidents have understood.
Then there’s the effect he has on individuals. He has inspired optimism and hope, two qualities we’re in pretty short supply of right now. He’s shown the value of grass-roots activism and has got huge numbers of people interested in politics and trying to effect change. You can be sure that these models will be repeated by politicians throughout the world.
A McCain presidency would not galvanise us the way an Obama presidency would. It would not bring people together, it would not enthuse or encourage them. Obama has his faults (he must do, right?) but he stands head and shoulders above McCain when it comes to being the American president the world needs.