The Cosmopolitan Blog

The day Joe the Plumber came on the scene, was the day i gave up on Americans and American politics. Obama wants to help the underprivileged. If in your book, that’s un-American, then you have bigger issues. Yes, Joe the Plumber, the American Dream IS about earning all you can earn, but it’s not about stepping on the little person to do so.

Obama “spreading the wealth” does NOT mean he will steal from the rich to give to the poor, it just means that he’s giving tax breaks to those who are not earning as much. Since when is this wrong? This does not make him a socialist. Not in the way republicans are using the word. It’s fear-mongering, plain and simple, they want the word socialist to trigger thoughts of communism.

Socialism is NOT equal to communism. It’s not evil. It doesn’t mean the Russians are coming. Get over it already!

Oh, and speaking of socialism. If Barack Obama is a socialist because he wants to bail out the under-privileged, then um, didn’t McCain encourage a $700 billion bailout? I’d say that’s socialism on steroids, isn’t it?

Americans respond to keywords that send shivers down their spines: terrorism, islam, socialism, communism… Americans like it when things are black and white in front of them, they like to be told who the good guys are and who the bad guys are. 50 years ago, Russians were bad. Now, the bad guys are… well, the axis of evil. Until the president decides that one country is no longer on this axis. Do you realize how simplistic this is?

The American public is always being talked down to. The world used to look from afar and smile condescendingly. Now we look and we’re scared, cuz you’re about to make the biggest mistake of your life.

I’m done people. I quit politics. Let’s wake up, November 5th, and see what mess you’ve put us in, America.

I’m tired. I’ve tuned out. It’s official. We’re acting like it’s politics as usual. We have parties that spin stuff so that they can get ahead. But this is not just about electing a president of the US anymore, why can’t anyone get this?

The world awaits, holding our breath, because the US has such a presence on the world stage, so the result of this election will affect the entire world. But the entire world’s fate rests on a bunch of people who think that helping the poor is a bad thing and that Sarah Palin is a role model. If you knew how ridiculous this looked, from the other side of the looking glass, you’d be shocked. Americans are so caught up with the politics and the spinning, they have no idea how serious this issue is.

I’m so fed up today that i’m angry. I don’t think America deserves Obama. If you can’t see that he’s the only viable solution, beyond the lies, beyond the bull, that the only solution is electing Obama, then seriously, you don’t deserve him. This will be your downfall America!

I was watching CNN’s videos this morning, and listening to what the world’s reaction is to Obama becoming the presumptive nominee of the Democratic party. Interestingly, in places like Lebanon, it was more important to them for a woman to have won. I think that the impact of a woman winning would have been greater around the world, because women’s struggle is a concept universally understood, which touches everyone in some way. On the other hand, the fact that a black man won a victory in the US is probably harder to understand for those who don’t follow US history as we do, and who don’t understand the African-American struggle.

Other reactions around the world: Germans are delighted, seeing Obama in a similar light as they did John F. Kennedy 50 years ago. In Japan, a group of female fans dream of meeting Obama. And in China, they seem happy with the fact that Clinton did not win, seeing her as a old-style hardliner who would perpetuate the impression Americans have of China. …and it India, they just want to see a president who will push India further up on the world map. Maybe they think the US government should outsource to India like the rest of us!

I work in Marketing, so finding one’s niche is extremely important. And I applaud Al Gore for finding his. He found the right mix of serious and “hip” (waow, that dates me, right?) to appeal to as large an audience as possible. He mixed the in-depth understanding and reading (books, presentations…) with the entertainment aspect (concerts), and i do feel that global warming has reached an aweresness level that wasn’t there a couple years ago. Granted, this is my impression, living in North America, maybe, in Europe, things are still unchanged.

And he’s been smart. I think he has good advisors. The success didn’t go to his head, he didn’t suddenly imagine that he could conquer the country and win an election. Many people encouraged him to run, especially since this seems to be a race where everyone and their dog is interested in running, no one would criticize a man with an actual cause for running.

But he knews that his passion and his niche is elsewhere. I don’t think he will run, and good for him, he can do better as the main advocate for a cause than as a “could have been… twice!” president. But i was a little surprised actually, to find how low his ratings were as a potential candidate. Goes to show, you can be successfully pegged at one thing, but unsuccessful at others. I think Al Gore, with all his wisdom, knowledge, experience and tact, makes a great expert, but not necessarily a great president. You’d think a country would want a president that has MORE knowledge than the average Joe, more education, and more experience… But it seems, at least from the past 2 presidential terms, that the US wants a president they can relate to, someone who speaks at their level, who makes mistakes they would make, who acts like he’d be happier on a ranch or playing with toy soldiers… and giving credit were credit is due, maybe through luck, maybe through some really smart planning, George W. has achieved that, giving the average Joe a option that the Democrats hadn’t given for a long, long time.  Anyway, let me digress no further…

I want to congratulate Al Gore on winning the Nobel Peace Prize …and on finding his niche.