The Angry Hedgehog

Image by ~jjjohn~ via Flickr

Barack Obama will win by the skin of his teeth.

In a year where the world has changed dramatically in terms of economy, intellectual and political outputs, the world needs a change that doesn’t destroy it completely. Instead, the need to recognise the challenges of the new millennium and moves it forward at a pace that benefits the whole human race, not just the United States of America.

It is not often I make a call on elections. I may have my predictions but I generally keep them to myself. I have no real motive in making this call other than a self-interested desire to have made a declaration of record for pointing to at a future date to be decided! Having followed this campaign since the end of the mid-terms in 2006, I have to say it has been filled with more ups, downs, ins, outs and whatever you are having yourself than anything I have ever seen, and possibly will not see again in my lifetime. Politics may be a fickle game but it tends not to repeat itself too much.

With the Democratic party wrenching control of Congress with Nancy Peloszi at the helm in 2006, it seemed that perhaps after a 6 year low, the Democrats were beginning on that road back to the being the dominant Party in the United States.  We shall see how the House returns this time around, but I suspect it will be a Democratic majority in any case. The burning question in 2006, was less about the success of the party but on when Hilary Clinton would declare her intention to run. I personally thought she would have stalled until 2012, but she did declare her intentions to run. The rest I guess, as they say, is history.

Barack Obama emerged out of nowhere. The little upstart Senator from Illonis. The man who would be King. The Pretender. Yet Obama’s claim to the Democratic Party’s nomination has been hard won, and welll and truly won. People may have doubted the ability of the man to be elected back in May of this year. Personally at that point, the choice between a President “Change” Obama and a President John “the War Hero” McCain was an easy decision to make. I would have voted McCain.

I have respected McCain as a politician for many years now, espicially with his ‘independent voice’ within the Republican party. A man who pushed through reform of Party donations in 2003 – granted it may have been limited impact given the force of the spend in this election. However, a series of events changed my opinion of McCain. A lack of clarity with the financial ‘crises’ in the last month; Confusion over their response; and starting the negative campaigning back in June. The icing on the cake personally was the decision to choose Mrs. Sarah Palin as his Vice-Presidential running mate. A women whom he has ,allegedly, only met twice. Brash decision making on an important call such as the president designate is a cause for concern. It begs the question how would he react differently to GWB in the years to come with instantous problems in the three I’s – Iran, Iraq or Israel – or whereever they arise.

That, however is not enough to change a vote to the ‘opposing’ side. The Obama campaign in the last couple of months, has proven to be organised, effective, able and compassionate-he took 2 days off for christ sake to visit his now deceased grandmother. In light of this, millions of people who have a vote in the United States have wavered towards the Obama campaign and supported it both financially – some $1bn in September alone – but more importantly they personally have supported the campaign physically.Barack Obama may not have the ‘war hero’ mentality of John McCain. He may not have the connections of the Clintons. However, he has taken on both of these American institutions. He has outspent, outspoken, and come out the better for it. He may not have the executive experience, but he sure as hell has had the baptism of fire from hell to, hopefully, get the top job.

Whoever wins, it is questionable if this can really be called a victory. The incoming President will need to resovle the issues surrounding Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, the fall-out from AIG, Leyman Brothers among other institutions. He will be facing a tough crowd as he takes their trust and trys to bring about some reform in order to bring some stability to the public finances. Is Barack Obama the right man for the job? Yes. Can he bring about the change needed to restore some respect towards the United States? I hope so.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Eggs and votes: Tomorrow’s U.S. election coverage
• Brian Ross: What Happens If Obama Wins Tonight?