Reactions

FIRST THOUGHT

As an American I am extremely excited at the reality of a Black American as president. 146 years ago President Abraham Lincoln issued the first part of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Civil Rights Act didn't come for another 102 years. It has been a full 221 years since the U.S. Constitution was ratified. It has been a long and painful struggle for Black Americans, and the election of Barack Obama should be celebrated across party lines. All Americans, no matter their vote yesterday, should be proud of that fact.

I am extremely desirous of a successful Obama Administration. I am hopeful that wounds can be healed, the economy can be resurrected, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan can be brought to a successful conclusion. Everyone one should be willing to give Obama respect as our president, and give him the benefit of the doubt as he selects men and women to fill posts in his administration. His presidency should begin with grace from both sides of the political aisle, which would enable him to freely pursue the policies he thinks best for the country without having to feel the pressure of people just salivating at the thought of him screwing up.

President-elect Obama starts with a clean slate. He should have the freedom to implement the economic policies of his choosing, and only be judged on the success or failure of his actions. Whether I believe his policies will eventually fail or not is of little consequence, because he hasn't done anything positive or negative at this time. The only way we'll find out whether his policies will work or not is to let him implement them and judge them on the results. And that is how it should be. Like Senator McCain, I wish Obama Godspeed and will be praying for his success, sanity, wisdom, and discernment.

ACCURATE PREDICTIONS? THE DAY AFTER

It looks as though my first prediction proved accurate. I predicted that the day after an Obama victory the stock market would drop 400-500 points as investors weighed the ramifications of Senator Obama's tax policies. Today, the day after Obama's historic victory, the stock market dropped 486 points, the largest percentage drop after an election in the history of the market.

My second prediction was that Obama wouldn't be able to impliment his entire tax policy. I'm not sure where is administration will start, but in Obama's acceptance speech he downplayed expectations, stating that the economy might not rebound even in the next four years.

Another one of my predictions was the escalation of Russian aggression, and today Russia announced the placement of missiles near the Poland border. Russia has always been against the missile shield the U.S. is placing in Europe, so it would be difficult to blame this move directly on the election of Senator Obama. But it also would seem mighty suspect that they would pull a move like that the day after Obama's election.