But that said, watching the American election process and the Democratic side in particular - in the Hillary Clinton v Obama part - I have the overwhelming feeling that if America chooses McCain and Palin over Obama, they will deserve them.
I'm not that into politics normally but, as I've said before on this blog, I have found myself really sucked into this contest - much to the annoyance of Cath who turns to flip channels if US election stuff comes on.
I think it's because only very so often does a politician come along who actually inspires. Someone who talks sense, someone who is articulate and clearly well-educated (I know that should be a given when you're talking about president, but one only needs to think of George W, the situation in SA and Bertie Ahern over here to realise this isn't so).
The American canvassing process is frankly, disheartening. I suppose it's because, like Cath and I used to think of Ireland, one tends to think of America as the top of civilised society.
This is a mistake.
When you see people saying 'Barack Obama is a friend of a terrorist', or 'he's a muslim' or 'he isn't patriotic enough because he doesn't wear an American flag lapel' or 'he actually wants to sit down and talk to our enemies (God forbid)', you think 'Shame, they'll really scrape the bottom of the barrel here. But when you see these tactics work, when you see that a large percentage have decided 'Yep, that American flag lapel thing - I ai'nt votin for no-one that don't wear one of those', then you realise that the so-called civilised society must be made up of a lot of really thick people.
The weekend newspaper refers to chants of 'Kill Obama' at recent Palin rallies. That's pretty third-world too. Normally that type of in-breeder behaviour is only associated with middle-eastern suicide-bomber wannabes or Mugabe thugs. Sadly, they have them in America too. To his credit, it seems McCain wants nothing to do with this type of nonsense himself, telling a lady at one of him rallies who said 'Obama is a muslim' simply 'No, no, no' and apparently trying to distance himself from the gutter politics that often accompany American elections.
Hearing McCain talk about the war, you can't help but feel sorry for the chap. He so clearly doesn't want to lose the war in Iraq, his whole argument is 'blah, blah blah - we must not come home in shame this time' - in ref to losing the wars in Korea and Vietnam, for eg. But that's the line he's using to try and get him elected: 'If you don't want the embarassment of us losing another war, vote for me'.
I don't think that's the best case for the defence. If that's your argument, then I'd be more likely to vote for someone that didn't want to go into that war to begin with. Then he talks about 'the surge' a lot (they like these one word terms that mask the real meaning of things). "Obama opposed the surge," he says. "But I voted for it." The surge refers to sending a crap load more soldiers to Iraq. No call me simplistic, but surely if you're struggling to win a war, then you need more soldiers. You can call it the surge, the squash, the squeeze, whatever - but don't pretend it was some sort of master strategy cause you gave it a silly one-word title. "But Obama didn't support it," he says. Well yes, but then he didn't support going into the war in the first palce, so that's not really surprising is it.
I'd be more willing to give him the benefit if he suggested invading Zimbabwe and deposing Mugabe for example. America has just as much a case for invading Zimbabwe as they do for Iraq. But like his peers, he's not interested in going against the UN for the case of a country that doesn't have oil interests.
Obama on the other hand does not seem as trigger happy as his opposition, and that must be a good thing. Although you can't help but feeling that should he become president, that the next attack on America will only lead to cries of 'We told you he isn't qualified for this', as if ANY president could be ready for what happened on September 11, for example.
I'm glad to see Obama's ahead in the polls at the moment but I for no second think he's a shoe-in. The way so many American voters put having someone willing and ready to go to war so near the top of their necessary qualifications for an applicant, all it takes is another bomb to go off somewhere in America and McCain will suddenly become the front-runner again.
Clearly I like Barack. I feel that he is someone that would undo some of the harm America's past presidents have done. There's been 8 years of George 'blunder' Bush, Before that it was horny Clinton (I did not have sexual relations with that woman) for another 8 years. That's 16 years of the world looking at America and going 'tsk, tsk'. With Obama, the world would actually respect him. America might not be the power it once was, but it still plays a vital role in the world. Having someone intelligent there would help us all.
For a CNN story on pathetic attempts at mudslinging in the presidential race, read:
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/08/campbell.brown.that.one/index.html
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