Well done, America

[glenatron]

I was in the US for the last Democrat victory, back in 2000, and it's nice to see that in this case the election will be decided by popular mandate rather than by a single judge- that seemed to me a lot like taking one-man-one-vote a little far.

Hearing Obama's speech was much more moving than I expected and I am truly glad that he has won. A change was necessary and it seems that most americans knew that. As others have said, I wish we had such an interesting choice to be made next time we have an election but I know of nobody remotely as interesting anywhere in our parliament. Whether that is a result of the current state of british politics or my ignorance I don't know. Probably the latter.

I do worry that the system is too strong, that Obama won't be able to transcend the walls of resistance that have managed to stop most presidents from changing anything for much of the last century. I think his grassroots campaign funding may have helped though - he presumably owes a lot less to the great corruptors of world industry than most of his recent predecessor, but no doubt there remains a debt that they shall call in due course. It seems that he is probably as good a man for the job as anyone, so if the system can beat him then it has won absolutely and will have to be destroyed before the USA can be considered a meaningful democracy. Time will tell. But today the person with the most votes won the election and that, by recent standards, is a very hopeful start.

Comments

[ownedbyhorses.livejournal.com]

Democrats now control both the House and the Senate. Whatever changes Obama makes, will be supported by the this, our second branch of government.

I expect many changes, especially these next six months.

[penella22.livejournal.com]

Its an exciting time to be an American, and a hopeful time as well. Much remains to be seen, and as Obama said last night, his election is not victory, but has earned us all the chance to face these challenges with a chance of dealing with them successfully.

After the elections of 2000 and 2004, I was glued to the tv set last night, not wanting to see another election appear so hopeful and then somehow twist the other way by morning. It was refreshing to see Obama win by a landslide because I am reassured that the election was not rigged, that the most-voted-for man won.

It is indeed a hopeful start.

[glenatron.livejournal.com]

Exactly, you can channel where a few stones will fall, but you can't redirect a landslide. A tremendous popular mandate by any standards.

[life-of-tom.livejournal.com]

I wondered about all the vote-rigging stuff, and such. I remember reading a story about McCain trying to get a bunch of disqualified American servicemen's votes counted because they were more likely to vote for him, and I thought 'hmm, please no lawyers and recounts this time.' So that's good, then.

I'm wondering about what'll happen when he runs up against big business, too. II've been told by someone in the know that Obama's grassroots campaign was one of the most successful in recent years. That, to me, makes me hope that he's got a broad enough basis of support that he won't just be held to account by some gloating Texan oil baron.

[glenatron.livejournal.com]

I guess there's no point worrying about it for now. Might as well just enjoy the good guy winning for a change...

[shiva-matimbres.livejournal.com]

i just remember how we all cheered when blair got in in 1997. oh :(

[glenatron.livejournal.com]

Quite.

He was, however, a thousand times better than his predecessors. That first Blair term wasn't too bad. It was only after he became an extension of the texan chimp's wang that things got really out of hand.

If Al Gore had become president after winning that election I think he course of the last decade would have been amazingly different and amazingly better. We'd probably be living in some kind of utopia by now with flying cars and jet packs.