Election Euphoria
Once in a lifetime…
This photo was taken by photographer Daphne Johnson as we entered the Kurhaus Hotel along with my friend Lisa for the “Who’s the President?” Breakfast just before 5:00 a.m. CET.
At that moment, it felt like a dream. Unfortunately, once inside, the mixed crowd’ s level of enthusiasm was a buzz kill; mild, not wild. I had expected more from the crowd of over 1,000 extremely early risers. We were among the last to leave, unsure what to do next? What to do with yourself when your dream has come true? When the world has changed? When everyone else is going on about their business, to work, to school, etc.?
I would have given anything to experience this momentous occasion at Grant Park. (I had been sulking in the office the day before when Barack didn’t call to invite me). The big screens in the hotel showed people filling the streets in cities across the US. It was a movement and I longed to be part of it. Unable to assemble enough people for a street parade in Scheveningen, despite having some big decorations from the event in our possession, we proceeded to our office for a Champagne toast. Even with a nice bottle of Gossett, it was difficult to entice people away from their Wednesday morning work routine.
Going through the day in a daze, I ended up spending a lot of time in the car. Wanting to be in motion, I called the babysitter to say I’d pick up my son from school and offered my husband a lift to the airport. Proudly sporting my Obama Gear and tireless grin, I encountered the change on the streets. People were making eye contact and even smiling. This is not done in the Netherlands! (Maybe it was my cheesy plastic stars and stripes hat that made them smile?)
The biggest and most surprising response came from the parents at the French school. As a group they are not overtly friendly, but there were cheers and congratulations all around from people I’ve never met before! It was electric and it seemed that just by seeing me (a token American) there at that moment, they felt connected to the day.
One mother told me that she had watched the election results that morning before school with her son instead of cartoons. She was explaining about Barack Obama during his speech when the boy suddenly got very excited and said, “Mama, look he smiled at me!” When a five year old French boy who doesn’t even speak English, sees Barack Obama for the first time and believes that Barack Obama is speaking directly to him, it makes perfect sense. Barack Obama has broken through the noise and reached people of all races and nationalities in a way that no one else has ever done, not in my lifetime!
The Ballot Box & Election Predictions
Signed, Sealed and Delivered?
Today is the day we have all been waiting for…nearly 150 million Americans will cast their ballots to elect their next President while the world watches and waits. If you were to ask more than 50 Americans living here in the Netherlands how the voting process works, you could easily get more than 50 different answers; depending on the state in which they are registered to vote and how confused they are about the process. Each state holds its own election and makes its own rules; which can lead to absurdities (Florida) that you would never expect in a developed country.
It is estimated that 2 million Americans living abroad have already voted in this election. My vote counts! As a former resident of Missouri, I am registered there and it is one of the critical swing states. As you can see from the photo, I have cast my absentee ballot with the assistance of my 4 year old son. He asked if he could write Barack Obama’s name on the ballot, but was less interested in the various propositions on the ballot covering everything from gambling, alternative energy and sales tax. There were also candidates for MO state officials and the re-election of 18 judges. It is a challenge to get voters to the polls, so they are bombarded once in the voting booth with issues they often are not prepared to decide. Imagine the famously undecided voters we hear about every day; if they are still undecided at this point about their vote for president after a historic two and a half year campaign, they couldn’t possibly make twenty or thirty additional choices on the same day! This is one of the factors leading to extremely long lines. Luckily, early voting has been legalized in 35 states, with an estimated 24 million voters participating.
Many people are simply anxious for the election to be done and over with. My French husband may fall into this category. He is extremely interested in the election and very supportive, but he will undoubtedly be relieved when I stop dressing the entire family in Obama gear, take the campaign signs out of the windows (we live on a high visibility street) and stop pulling all-nighters to catch the convention and debate coverage. He used to refer to me as a Europeanized American, but has been a little surprised how publicly I have “come out” during this campaign. I know that I am not alone among Americans Abroad in my excitement about the prospect of being represented by a leader we can be proud of instead of ashamed of. My husband may also be concerned that I am overly optimistic, but I hope he has not made an appointment on my behalf at the French Consulate for a passport just yet, because I believe that Barack Obama has connected with Americans in a way that will not only deliver the votes, but inspire the nation beyond the election.
P.S. Every day the pollsters call Missouri a different shade of pink or lavender, but I even believe that Missouri will go Blue!! I am extremely proud of my Mom who has been volunteering and working hard going door to door for Obama in St. Louis- Shirley Faust is a true Obama Mama!!
Poverty- Where do we draw the line?
Today is Blog Action Day 2008 and the blogging world has united to take on poverty. Click here for a compilation of Heartbreaking statistics on poverty. As a mother of two kids under 5, seeing the statistics of the +10 million children under age five that are dying each year due to poverty is incomprehensible.
Here are three comments I’d like to add to the global discussion of Poverty;
1. The number of people existing on $10 or even $1 per day are always shocking. Equally shocking is the number of people living beyond their means (especially in North America) that can’t seem to get by on $1,000+ per week.
2. In the context of the ongoing financial crisis, many people are feeling poor or poorer lately that don’t meet the standard definition. Sadly, with job cuts and bank closures rates running neck and neck, many who were previously living comfortably face a dismal financial future.
3. Poverty exists in your own backyard. Even here in the Netherlands, the government sets targets for the financial independence of women and recently announced great news that more than 40% women are financially independent. Where did they draw the line? 10.030 euros!
I was determined to participate in this discussion, yet feel extremely guilty, as I rush through this post to jet off in a few hours to a Holiday in Crete…How do you reconcile your own role in the poverty gap? Do you know people that thrive while living below the line? What if we could all learn to not only survive but thrive with less?
Filed under Blogging, Social Issues, Women | Comment (1)The Tranquility of Swimming in the Sea of Socialism
My conservative brother accuses me of being a “Liberal”. He pronounces the word in a disgusted manner that can only be mastered through intensive training; consisting of prolonged exposure to Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly on Fox News. He recently went a step further and blamed my continued residence in a socialist country (the Netherlands) for completely destroying my sensibilities. If he was familiar with the French political system, he would be horrified to realize that my husband was raised a little to the left of the socialist party! Yes, my world view has definitely been altered since I moved away from the Midwest of the US, and broadened.
Now, as we wake up to find the US and global financial markets plunging deeper into crisis each morning, I would like to point out a distinct difference in experiencing this financial crisis while living in the Netherlands. Yes, my personal financial future is impacted;my savings and investment accounts are in US banks and my husband’s retirement fund dwindles each day along with the CAC 40 in Paris. Our mortgage is held by one of the Dutch banks, which are also in trouble and soon likely to consolidate into few survivors. Yet, we have not been checking our portfolios obsessively and instead have a surprising sense of calm.
While the chaos continues, the state of the global financial markets is followed closely and widely discussed here in the Netherlands, but there is not the same sense of panic. This morning I watched yet another U.S. news broadcast online presenting a working couple with an empty refrigerator; saying that food had become a luxury and that they were unable to visit their children or elderly mother due to the road tolls and price of gas. In contrast to the horrors of the situation in the U.S., I do not worry that my neighbors will lose their homes and end up on the street, or wonder if the old woman sitting next to me on the tram can afford food or medicine. Here, students will not be denied higher education for financial reasons or go to school without food in their stomachs or lunch boxes, and people nearing retirement will still have a pension, regardless of the Dow Jones or Nasdaq.
No system is perfect. I admit that often at times, I do complain about the side effects of socialism; the sense of entitlement and the lack of ambition that can result from social policies. But there is something profoundly humane about ensuring that the basic needs of all people are met. The tranquility of swimming in the sea of socialism is a refuge from the volatility of the storm.
Filed under Politics, Social Issues | Comment (0)
Grab my feed...
