... And I can’t add too much to whatever Jon Stewart or
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bedsitter23 will have to say about it. But I can add a little international perspective. Which is this:
People here in Hong Kong (and indeed, Asia and the rest of the world) generally tend to follow the US presidential races somewhat closely, but this particular campaign has been getting a lot of local coverage here ever since Iowa – which, by no coincidence, is when the race suddenly looked as though it might be someone other than Rudy vs Hillary. Which is one reason it’s news here, of course – between the wide open fields, McCain’s comeback of the century and Obama and Hillary’s neck-and-neck marathon, this is easily one of the most dramatic presidential races ever. And we likes us some drama out here.
The other reason, of course, is that people round these parts have a stake in the outcome. As does everyone else outside of the US. And why not? America is the self-declared Leader Of The Free World®, so it only makes sense that the rest of the world would have an interest in who’s in charge of the planet, so to speak.
And while I don’t have any official polls to back this up – apart from
this web monitor site from Eco-Research – my anecdotal research leads me to conclude that many HK locals would really like the next President to be someone who’s NOT the old white guy.
Not too surprising, since many people here tend to favor Democrats over Republicans, if only because recent Republican presidents have tended to be a lot more antagonistic towards non-Americans. Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, by contrast, were people you felt like you could reason with. And frankly, after eight years of Bush, who NOBODY out here likes except card-carrying Republican expats, war profiteers and stock market greedheads, most people this way would be happy to never see a Repub in charge again – not until they’ve learned to behave like decent people.
So basically, the buzz is all about Obama and Hillary, and yeah, part of it is the novelty value of seeing Americans elect a woman or a black man to the White House. On the other hand, there’s more to it than novelty – an Obama or Hillary presidency would be a watershed moment for America as Leader Of The Free World®, as it shows the rest of the planet that it’s finally ready for someone besides old white dudes to lead the country. If nothing else, most non-Americans agree that Bush has been a complete disaster (and they
figured that one out long before most Americans, Jim), and are hungry for change. I don’t think it’s a left-wing/right-wing thing – it’s just that an Obama or Hillary victory would be the ultimate symbol of real change in American attitudes and leadership.
Again, this is just my impression from talking to people and seeing local media coverage. I’m sure you can find people here who would be okay with a McCain presidency, or who at least don’t expect much from Obama or Hillary. Or maybe I'm wrong and Asia is praying for a
Ron Paul victory. But overall, I think people here want a US president who will work with them instead of a president whose idea of diplomacy is (to steal from a
Tom Waits song) the equivalent of a preacher waving a gun around shouting “Yr either with me or against me, fuckers!”
Put another way, if America is going to continue to be the most powerful nation on Earth, the rest of the world would like very much for its leader to actually give a rat’s ass about them instead of treating them like expendable props in a game of Risk. I reckon they’ve got a point.
On with the show,
This is dF
