Truly Historical

[Scott Peterson]

It doesn't matter if you are democrat or republican.

We have seen history made.

This has been a momentous election.

Some friends and I were talking today and we sat in silence after we discussed the significance of last night.

Men and women who stood up for justice during the civil rights movement were able, with tears in their eyes, to witness the election of Americas first black president.

Many men and women who fought hard to eliminate legalized racism in the mid 20th century never believed they would see a black president in their lifetimes.

Yet the world has seen a bright future in the USA beyond politics.

Beyond conservative and liberal...

A beautiful historical moment has been made.

[Mom of three]

Yes, yes, yes. I am praising God for this.

[Mark Van Steenwyk]

The election is indeed historic. I'm certainly glad that Obama won the election. But, to be honest, the profound sense of optimism and enthusiasm for the president-elect makes me nervous. Obama is going to be the head of the most powerful military in history and isn't afraid to use it. He may bring some healing to our nation's wounds, but he still needs to hear our prophetic voices. I'm not saying anything we all don't know, but I wanted to offer it as a reminder nonetheless.

This article captures my hopes, and concerns, about this new presidency:

http://empireremixed.wordpress.com/2008/11/05/barack-obama-a-post-i...

[Scott Peterson]

I agree fully with your comment. That is why I made sure in my post that I only praised the importance of the election, not the actual person. I think there should always be a measure caution in support of politicians. No one is perfect and the moment we raise politicians to idols, we lose our prophetic voice.

[Nathanael Snow]

I am happy for the election’s outcomes. There’s going to be a black man in the Oval Office. That’s nice.

I have a small concern, however:

When we see an injustice created by privilege, our temptation is to expand that franchise rather than replacing the privilege with voluntary interaction and competition. If you see Obama’s victory as expansion of the franchise, and are happy, then I am concerned. If you see his victory as the end of white male privilege, and expansion of liberty, then I celebrate with you.

[Dan]

Well... I don't know... historical, yes... beautiful... maybe. Or the beauty may be an illusion.

You see, American politics moved "[b]eyond conservative and liberal" quite some time ago. It seems to me that true power is in the hands of the major global economic powers, so it makes little difference to these powers if the United States has a Republican or a Democrat in the White House. Whether the president-to-be of America is white or black isn't of concern to the powers so long as that president-to-be makes it clear that he is placing himself in the service of those powers. Of course, simply by getting himself to the point of being a contender, Obama has demonstrated this.

Yes, Obama has become America's first black president, but he got there by betraying a good many things... like the fate of a good many black people (both in the USA and around the world). What is the result? A simulacra of beauty. A mirage that makes us miss what is really going on.

I think a better source for understanding the importance of this election is found in the conclusion of George Orwell's "Animal Farm".

Or, to take another example, recall Joseph's promotion to being the second highest official in Egypt -- a former slave, now put in charge of the kingdom! But how does Joseph get to, and maintain, this position? By creating a massive food-based monopoly that makes Pharaoh way more powerful and way more able to abuse others.

Regardless of the colour of Obama's skin, he still looks (to me) like a person in the service of death-dealing powers. Let's not allow the colour of his skin to blind us to this fact.

Of course, I write this as a Canadian and so perhaps my outsider perspective is blinding me to some of the greater beauty involved here (what Zizek might refer to as "the redemptive kernel").

[Magdalena Perks]

This is a major step forward in terms of discrimination in the US, but racism isn't over. Some of the things that were said by commentators, bloggers, writers, etc just show that attitudes haven't completely changed! Whether Mr. Obama is going to be a good president or just another puppet of the capitalist/military culture won't be apparent for a while. Am I right in thinking he may be the first president who is a child of an immigrant in many years?

[Jon Miller]

I've waited to comment on this....it's a bitter pill to me. I do think it is praise worthy that the attitude of this great nation has reached a point that we can elect a black man as our president. This is a huge step towards healing, but as for Mr Obama, I'm still not sold on. First is the fact that for 20 yrs his spiritual guidance was based on James Cones style liberation theology, and from listening to the sermons of Rev. Wright, I don't believe peace is his primary goal. It's just an ethnocentric movement vs the egocentric. How does this subvert empire....it's just a change for the same evil. Not to mention the stance on abortion, atleast US troops dying made their own choice to go to war. Someone please enlighten me because I'm stuggling with these thoughts.

[Andrew Cornelius]

extremely well said, and I say this as an american citizen :)

[Rod McCallum]

http://www.blackagendareport.com/index.php?option=com_content&t...

[dlw]

my thought, I hope and pray that Obama arrests the long-standing slide of the US into utter kleptocracy(where all decision-making is attributable to the influence of $peech and elections are at best charades). My dictum is that if you lower your expectations, occasionally you are bound to be surprised and that this dictum applies best to the weather in MN, social statistics and politicians.

I also hope Obama's openness on his faith will help w. missions throughout the world and even bring renewal among many caught up in the weedy quagmires of much of traditional USAmerican Christianity and its unhealthy idols(definitely including nationalism) and lax set of disciplines and general mean-spiritedness that hurts the witness of our shared faith.

I pray that Obama makes some good calls so that those now given hope don't go the way of the many Ukrainians whose hopes flickered briefly during the wake of their Orange Revolution in 2004.

dlw