Election Euphoria

They keep talking about the astonishing amount of money being poured into the Iraq war. Well, the money that Senators Obama and Clinton are spending on their Democratic party primaries for the last one year is only adding to that. Never before have such obnoxious sums of money been spent for getting the nomination to stand for the national elections. Not to mention the tireless amount of energy and television time spent on covering each and every heave and sigh of their existence these days.

I neither understand the US electoral system nor the intricate policy details of the several candidates (nor do I want to). But I do have a pair of eyes and ears, and a functional brain to process bits of information on the internet and TV from the political campaigns. Today, the day of the Pennsylvania primary for the Democratic party, is crucial. Hillary Clinton must be on the edge of her seat waiting for the results that could make or break it for her.

Hillary Clinton probably suffered from the worst level of complacency, given that there was no other candidate close in competition to her up until recently, when things changed dramatically. I admire her commitment, her experience, her determination. I also feel the media has been unnecessarily biased against her lately, publicizing every single gaffe to death, interpreting leads and trails as it suits them, doing the exit polls to death. Bill Clinton would perhaps do better to take up some environmental cause to improve his chances of getting a Nobel prize, instead of helping Hillary win.

Barack Obama, like he claims to be, is like a breath of fresh air, aiming and claiming for a change. A magnetic personality, if you have listened to his speeches, he draws you to whatever he says like no one else has. What people say about his lacking experience is not without truth in it. 92% black voters vote for him. Yet, they want to deny the fact that race could play a role in electability. I really don't know if there is anything different in the policies of Clinton or Obama. Once we have a nominee, I think they would line up in tandem to voice the same proposals. It wouldn't matter then that Clinton supported the war in Iraq (some 6 years ago).

John McCain spent the least money, had the fewest debates, hugged and shook hands with strangers to the minimal extent possible. He is no accomplished orator. But remember that elections are never about oratorial skills. How else would you explain Bush winning against Kerry or Gore? But he is smart. Once the Clinton-Obama see-saw is over, he might just pick Condoleezza Rice to be his running mate, and get those undecided women and black votes in his kitty: play the race and gender card together!

So, who is going to be the most powerful person in the world, come January 2009? I have my preferences, but I don't get to vote. Something tells me a short-tempered white old man named McCain will lead US (I mean, United States) into the next decade.

Capitol Tour

That's the collage of the Capitols I have visited so far. The ones at Washington DC, Austin and Madison make it to the top 3 in terms of size.