In Continuum.

It concerns me because whatever goes on on that side of the Pacific is related to what goes on here as well, the whole world is related in this giant cobweb in every possible way, that one movement is going to trigger a ripple of effects throughout the web. That is the way it works around the world, in this "global village" thing they love to call, and things are about to change over there in America, a giant rock is about to fall into the pond. I believe that things are going to change over there for the better, and hopefully it will be the case for the rest of the world as well. We, the rest of the world, are praying from our homes and watching through our televisions. It isn't difficult for us to see who is the better candidate for the presidency, and we all know who has the ability to truly change the country, as well as the world as a whole. You cannot deny the fact that we are deeply affected by America, and what goes on there affects us in every possible way. It is kind of like a neighbor upstairs doing renovation works with those accursed electric drills right above your head, and all the neighbors downstairs suffer from the noise. Though some get it worse while others not so, we are all affected one way or another. 

I don't remember being this involved in a presidential race, and it frustrates me a little that I cannot vote in this election because I am not a citizen over there. I still vehemently believe that the presidency of America should be voted by the world, and not just the citizens of America alone. Of course, that is merely a dream that is both unrealistic and biblical in proportions, but it does make some sense if you think about it. I'd like to be an American for a day, and make that man the president of the country, simply because he has inspired more than just the people that hold the same passports as he. He has inspired humans, ordinary people like you and I, from all around the world, to hope. There isn't any harm in hoping, and I suppose it is the purest form of all emotions out there. Everybody wants something to change for the better, and this man represents that possibility. On the other side of the spectrum, we have a campaign that subtly spreads hate, fear, and racism. On that end of things, it isn't about what they are going to do, how much better their candidate is, but more about how much worse the other candidate is. Too much emphasis has been given to comparing two rotten apples, so much that I wonder what'd happen if Mr. Obama actually does win. 

At twenty-two years old, I am eligible to vote - but I refuse. The reason is simple enough in Singapore, and you only need to wait till the election period comes around the corner. In Singapore, we actually have cases whereby there is only one candidate running for the parliament, and you only have one choice and no other. It isn't even a choice between cake or death now, it's just "death" and no other. So much for democracy, and it is funny how they threaten you with ridding you of the right to vote - as if most of us care about it. When one single party owns about ninety-percent of the seats in the parliament, you know that your vote practically counts for nothing. They decide what to do with the government, they decide what to do with you, and you don't even have another party to voice out the opposing voices. People in America are complaining about the rigidity of a two-party system. Let's see them live in a country with just one. I know, we have the opposition party in place, but do they exist - really? I cannot care less about voting in Taiwan either, because every candidate sucks in Taiwan. No matter who you choose, they are all going to mess up the country one way or another. That is why I looked the other way, I looked a little further. 

If you watch his speeches often enough, you start to hear someone you've been wanting to hear for a very long time. It isn't because he uses more fancy words, or because a repeated viewing of his videos online has caused me to grow fonder. You think about the other politicians you have seen, you remember how they were like behind the podium in the past. They were always the ones saying the same things and then doing something else altogether. They speak in a generic way that has become so generic, so predictable, that it has become easy to predict their next move. Politicians never keep their promises, they are never who you want them to be. It'd be a long shot to hope for a perfect president but, the past politicians have never been very close. When I was young, I saw politicians going into office and disappointing the world over and over again. In my lifetime, I have never actually seen a politician who truly inspired people. I mean, there have been people in the music business, in the movie business, in every field that I can think of, but not politics. The political field has been a dead zone for a very long time, and I gave up hope on it a long time ago. 

Going back to my initial point, Mr. Obama is a completely different voice. He inspires, he truly does. He speaks in a way that I have never heard of before in the past. Gone are the boring politicians behind podiums, yelling out empty promises for robots below cheering on, only to be disappointed later on. But humans never learn, most of us don't. They elected the same idiotic president twice in the past eight years, and a healthy forty-odd percent of the Americans now still want another four years of the same. I watch Mr. Obama, I listen to his words, and though most of them do not affect me directly, they move me. He speaks of what I have been wanting politicians to say, he reminds me of those inspiring speeches in black and white documentaries from long ago, people we read about in textbooks. Most of them are dead by now, assassinated or died from natural causes, but all of them left a mark in history because they were pure in their intentions, because they moved people, because they were born to be leaders. You see the shadows of all those great leaders in this man, and nothing seems to be able to stop him. Not the childish jests from his opponent, not the racial slurs or the death threats. At last, we have a man who can stand up to the crowd and become who we've always wanted him to be. 

Of course, he isn't going to be a perfect president, as he is not a perfect man. He is not going to be pleasing everybody in the country, but he is going to change things. In fact, he has already changed things in a way that we have never seen before, and that is his way of calling for unity all across the country. Now, it doesn't matter if you are a Democrat, or a Republican, or if you are not affiliated to any party in America. People are all coming together because they've been wanting a change, and this man is change on legs. He asks not the riches of being a president, or the power that comes along with it. He asks not to be trusted to make every single decision on his own, but he asks the people to hope for a better day, and a better day is indeed coming. I look forward to next week when America casts the vote without me, I look forward to the day when he is going to win the presidency for sure. I trust him, all the way from this side of the world, because the video below convinced me whole-heartedly. Still, I must emphasize, that I am not a deeply political person by nature. Yet, his words have moved me in ways that not a lot has, and this video is the testimony for that. I teared a little when I watched this thirty-minute long video he released a few days ago, and yet I am proud. Because really, this is the man. He really is.