Obama

So, every blogger in the land has made a bog about the inauguration so I feel it's best if I do the same.

Now, clearly, I am not American. And yet the emotional response I had to Obama's speech as well as the whole occasion was far more than I have ever felt at any British general election (although I can see myself getting teary about voting for the first time). For one thing, he said all the things the world has been waiting for him to say. That things will get bad. It takes time for change. That he understands the sanctity of the office he now holds.

He said things I was very pleased to hear him say, not least his nod to non-believers and to the advancement of science. His knocks at the Bush administration's loss of morals in their war against terror. But he mentioned things that he knew the American people needed to hear: that they will be back on top, rule the world once again. And while the whole world watched his speech, it was clearly written for the American people.

I think it is commendable that he did not sugar-coat anything, pretend things would be easy or quick or cheap. But rather, tell the truth about the struggle he and the American people are undertaking, setting a standard of honesty for his campaign. And inspire, something he proved he is very good at during his campaign, to be a part of the process in order to feel the greatest achievement when America reaches it's goal as one.

From a more personal perspective, Obama will in my mind always be the first American President who I understood and believed in. I was far too young when Clinton was President to truly understand the office or his place within it. And, while my political understanding has grown while Bush has been in government, I have never felt he was someone I trusted with that level of power, nor did I agree with many of his policies.

So Obama for me is important in restoring my faith in America, and politics as a whole, because he is the first campaign I have hoped for and been a part of in any small way I could be. And so many people feel the same. Because it is not only what he represents in terms of his race which is so important, but what he represents in terms of the momentum behind him. Of the people who look to him to make the change they believe he can make; people who will not give up on him for as long as he leads.

Good luck, President Obama. You changed things before you even took the oath: let's hope you can continue the trend!