What a night!

Canucks win, Leafs lose (albeit in OT), and Americans voted for CHANGE!

What a difference from eight years ago. The 2000 election was great timing for the American Government and Politics course I took that fall, and when it kept going, and going, all the way to the course’s final exam. More than anything, that course, and that election, got me interested in that wacky and weird world of American politics, good and bad. It’s amazing what’s happened in just eight years. At what can be considered a truly low point in the USA’s standing in the world, one man mobilized millions to hope for better, to make a difference, to effect change. Now, Barack Obama is President-elect, but the work is just beginning. I watched his victory speech, and despite myself, yelled “Yes we can!” at the end, in sync with the hundreds of thousands in Chicago.

I did mention this election campaign was miles ahead in the interesting factor, compared to the Canadian version three weeks ago. And Obama made it so. Watching his speech, and many others before that, you could see how he connected with many Americans disenchanted amid financial crises and unpopular wars. He has a certain quality that separates him from past presidents. He is the messenger of the new voice in America, and its citizens have confirmed it tonight.

Of course, once the celebrations die down, the work has just begun. We shall soon see if Obama can bring about the change he has talked about for almost two years.