It's official

It's official. Barrack Obama is the new president elect of the USA.

I have to admit, I was for Obama during the preliminaries. Not exactly a Clinton fan (sorry Roman!). Clinton was too cold and detached and was just plain creepy at times with those piercing blue eyes. Kinda reminded me of a principal or someone who was out to get you if you were bad. :D Obama had more charisma and an awesome speaker. This guy could grab your attention just like that. He had presence and he made himself known. Who could resist?

Change was him in more ways than one. An African American, a first for the USA. Imagine, looking back at the people who came before him. Namely, Martin Luther King. A couple of decades later, his speech has definitely become a reality. It says a lot about the US. From its history of slavery working its way to bringing a man of color to the highest office in the land. Even if I am not an American citizen, it is a moment in history. Looking forward to seeing bronze monuments of Obama in the future for sure. Whether he proves to be the president of change as he promised is still to be seen, but he is in every sense of the word, different and no one can ever take his place.

But if it weren't just for the color of his skin, I found myself leaning more towards McCain. For one, John McCain's principles were clearly rooted on his faith. Obama is a Christian as well, but somehow McCain and the story of his life, this guy is a hero not just in a military point of view, but as a brother in the faith. His story of that Christmas in the prison in Vietnam brought tears to my eyes. What a testimony!

I guess what really did it for McCain was the fact that he is in the same party as Bush. REgardless of whoever got to that point, as long as he represents the Republican party, already put them at a disadvantage. The war has finally took its toll and another person even remotely reminding them of Bush just turned them off. Poor John. He carried on a good fight and it was really close.

What really touched me the most was how he spoke yesterday when he finally conceeded. He did so in a way that I have never seen in a politician ever. It had heart and no one could doubt its sincerity. Again, tears in my eyes. Obama's speech was expected and he was, after all, the victor. Once more, my bias towards the underdog prevails. McCain's speech was just as much a milestone as Obama's I think. Here was a man who fought all his life for a country that he loved. No one who ever ran for president could ever have the same record of self-sacrifice as he has had. Keri was just a joke, I think. But even though he has been a tremendous fighter, he accepted defeat with such dignity. Hanga gid ko even more.

So ends another chapter in America's history. The rest still remains to be written. Here's to hoping for the best, not only for the US, but for the Philippines as well. How I wish we could have the same political scenario.