A New Era: The age of Barack - Harbinger of Change

Robert Kennedy was almost prophetic when in 1962 he said, "The Irish were not wanted here. Now an Irish Catholic is President of the United States. There is no question about it, in the next forty years a Negro can achieve the same position" Almost because he's 6 years off target!"

It's the most amazing thing to have happened in recent history. A black man is now President of the United States of America. A nation with a history of racial oppression targetted, for the most part, against people who can trace their roots back to Africa. To me, its like the culmination of their struggle. People like Martin Luther King Jr, Malcom X, Rosa Parks, Jesse Owens, Mohammed Ali and many many more led a people tired of being subjugated and discriminated against. They fought for a change and they got it.

Barack Obama is a harbinger of change. From everything America has known before. I'd go as far as to say, from everything the world has seen of America before.

"...change is a foreign policy that doesn't begin and end with a war that should've never been authorized and never been waged."

A far cry from the warmongering of the Bush administration.

However, some parts of Mr. Obama's victory speech left me a little anxious.

"It's time to refocus our efforts on al-Qaeda's leadership and Afghanistan, and rally the world against the common threats of the 21st century - terrorism and nuclear weapons; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease."

"That's what change is.

Change is realising that meeting today's threats requires not just our firepower, but the power of our diplomacy - tough, direct diplomacy where the president of the United States isn't afraid to let any petty dictator know where America stands and what we stand for."

The world doesn't need an intelligent watchdog! I'll admit taht its better than a rabid one but what roel does the UN play. What is the role of an independant global body, if it is controlled, like it has been all these years, by the United States? I just pray that the new US administration does not relate diplomacy to the swinging of a base ball bat.

I watched Obama's victory speech on youtube this afternoon, and what struck me most about the man was his intelligence. His poise and obvious character aside, the intelligence of the man was very evident. His speech was one of strength, courage and humility, one that inspired me (and i'm not even American). Most of all, it had power. To me, it looks like Obama is his own man and will be the change America and the world have been calling for.

At this time of economic uncertainity, we need somebody to steady the ship. The world's markets are inextricably (in the short term) tied to the US economy. So what they go through, we will too, to some extent!

Something about America in the last 5 years reminded me of "Atlas Shrugged" - People think that a liar gains a victory over his victim. What I've learned is that a lie is an act of self-abdication, because one surrenders one's reality to the person to whom one lies, making that person one's master, condemning oneself from then on to faking the sort of reality that person's view requires to be faked. And if one gains the immediate purpose of the lie - the price one pays is the destruction of that which was intended to serve. The man who lies to the world, is the world's slave from then on

The lies, the deceit, the subterfuge. We knew it all along. We let it happen. But who wants to reason with a rottweiller on the charge. It was down to who had the bigger gun, and we all know, in that battle there is going to be only one winner. It's strange therefore that the US has failed to win any of their post WWII attempts at war. Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iraq...My explanation for this is that you can only win a war if your cause is just. If your soldiers fighting the war believe in the cause enough to go that extra mile. A cause that makes every single citizen a soldier, ready to sacrifice their life and comfort for the greater common good.

Back to Mr. Obama. In one way it's really not that surprising. Think about it, with the evolution of hip hop and soul into mainstream culture, how many white people now want to be black? Right from the insipid antics of a certain Mr. Ice to Eminem. Who endorses soft drinks and sports equipment. "Times have changed, times are strange, here I come but I ain't the same" Maybe everythings gone topsy turvy. I think its for the best. Integrattion of that kind can only be brought about by culture, music and sport. And thats exactly what's happened.

This takes nothing away from Obama achievement. History will always remember the name of Barack Obama, i hope its for more than for just being the first african-american President. He has the opportunity to construct a real change. A change not just for America, but for the way the world sees America and in time, he could bring about global change. He could be the butterfly who's flapping wings create a storm on the other side of the world. It's possible. Bush did it! His vortex unfortunately for Americans created a black hole that's pushed them to the edge of another great depression.

I've never been the biggest fan of America or tehir foreign policy, but tehre's one thing I do admire. It's the voice of the public. The common man rises up to speak up against tyranny. The American public marched out to protest against the wars in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afganistan (i dont know the others). Black american marched into Washinton demanding equal rights. They stand up for what they believe in. Brash as they may be, it is admirable.

All said and done, it still remains to be seen, what Barack brings to the table in the Oval office. Whether, one of the best marketing and positioning campaigns in recent years (CHANGE) turns out to be just that! Marketing and Positioning speil! Lets hope that it's not. Let's hope taht this time's different. Let's hope for a change.

"So it has been for every generation that faced down the greatest challenges and the most improbable odds to leave their children a world that's better, and kinder, and more just."