Obama's Revelation: Yes, We Must Change

Obama's Revelation: Yes, We Must Change
China Times editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
November 6, 2008

The outcome of the United States presidential election was no surprise. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama won by a landslide. Moreover, his party found itself far ahead in the House of Representatives by-election. In a stunning victory, the Democratic Party swept the Republican Party away like leaves before the autumn wind. The results of the election were a repudiation of the Bush administration's dismal eight year record. They mark the beginning of a new era -- the arrival of new candidates and a new political climate. The Obama whirlwind has only just begun. The new president faces difficult challenges in the years ahead. When the need arises, the hero appears. Only such trying times could give rise to someone like Obama.

Obama's election as President of the United States has several implications. First of course is that America has taken a big step towards racial equality. The Civil War ended over a century ago. But genuine equality between black and white has required a long period of evolution and adaptation. It could not be achieved overnight. Over 40 years ago, during President John F. Kennedy's administration, the National Guard had to escort students to school to overcome Jim Crow. Twenty years ago, during the California state elections, the so-called Bradley Effect revealed the racial prejudice hidden in people's hearts underneath the universal lip service to racial equality. Right up til the eve of the vote, many people dared not believe Obama's lead in the polls. For the first time in history, an African-American was elected President of the United States. This shows how far America has come in terms of racial equality and racial tolerance.

Obama was able to win despite his status as an ethnic minority, in part because of the global economic crisis. Leave aside the ideologies of America's two major parties for the moment. This presidential election was about one thing, the economy. The Democratic and Republican parties have "big government" vs. "small government" philosophical differences. Obama and McCain have different prescriptions for current economic problems. But when people have difficulty determining the merits of the candidates' arguments, they naturally ask "Who is responsible for the current mess?" For the past eight years, the Bush administration has favored the wealthy. It has increased the deficit. It has expanded credit. Naturally it became the target of public criticism. McCain had trouble distancing himself from Bush. As a result, the largest financial crisis in a century became the Obama campaign's biggest booster.

The Democratic Party has a different attitude toward disadvantaged groups than the Republican Party. The Democratic Party advocates increased welfare. The Republican Party advocates respect for market mechanisms. This difference in attitude between the two parties is not limited to domestic affairs. Under Bush administration rule, it extended to the international arena. Basically, the international community sees Iraq and Afghanistan as a weak Third World countries. And when Bush could not find "weapons of mass destruction," he resorted to force against Iraq. Despite claims he was engaged in "anti-terrorism," he gave other countries around the world the impression that the strong were bullying the weak, the many were bullying the few. During the election campaign, McCain's foreign policy remained persuasive. But Obama's political views evinced greater respect for disadvantaged groups. That is why most countries around the world lean toward the Democratic Party. How Obama changes US policy toward the Middle East and Europe will affect the rise and fall of the United States. It will also affect the economic prospects of the world. This is something worth watching and anticipating.

Even with the US economy in the doldrums, the US military mired in foreign quagmires, and racial discrimination on the wane, it was no easy matter for an African-American to win the presidential election. Obama is young and inexperienced. He was a long shot all the way. Yet he defeated an old hand like Hillary. He swept aside McCain and the Republican Party. He revealed extraordinarly ability and charisma. Obama is probably the world's most adept user of internet marketing. He is the politician who best understands the Internet era. He used small scale fund-raising methods. He used YouTube to broadcast his personal speeches. Traditional politicians are not familiar with these "new-generation weapons." These weapons have proven to be invincible. They certainly are effective against traditional politicians. Obama's charisma has been demonstrated during his numerous speeches. From his classic "Yes we can!" speech, to the emotional appeal of his Berlin speech declaring himself a citizen of the world, to his speech clarifying his relationship with his church pastor. Time and again, Obama has been able to turn crises into opportunities, and losses into wins. If such charisma can be maintained after he assumes office, it will provide a much-needed boost to consumers, and will be of great help for investor confidence,

In short, Obama's election represents the advent of a new era of racial equality. It means the international situation will change. It means the world financial and economic order will enjoy new opportunities. Obama's election is not merely his individual victory or the Democratic Party's victory. Many citizens of the world are looking forward to the beginning of "change."

中時電子報
中國時報 　2008.11.06
歐巴馬啟示錄：是的，我們要改變
中時社論

美 國總統大選的投票結果，一如預期，民主黨候選人歐巴馬獲得大勝。不只如此，該黨在參眾兩院的補選亦遙遙領先，使得民主黨以秋風掃落葉之勢獲得全面性的勝 利。這樣的選舉結果，固然是對布希政府八年慘澹執政的否定，但也凸顯出新時代、新人選、新氣象的來臨。簡單地說，歐巴馬旋風才正要開始。雖然美國新總統未 來數年面對的挑戰極其艱困，但所謂「時代考驗人才，人才創造時代」，也唯有在這種劇變艱難時代，才能有歐巴馬這麼一號人物冒出頭來。

歐氏 當選美國總統的第一重意義，當然是美國社會往種族平等方向跨了一大步。雖然美國南北戰爭已經結束一百多年，但黑白種族之間的真正平等，還是要經過長時間的 演進與磨合，絕非一蹴可幾。在四十多年前甘迺迪總統時代，都還要動用國民兵護送學生上學，才能避免種族隔離的民間措施。在廿年前加州選舉，都還有所謂布萊 德雷效應，顯示即使族群平等已成為人人口中的目標，但歧視卻仍是不少人心底的祕密。直到此次投票前夕，許多人都還不敢盡信歐巴馬民調的領先。這次美國總統 首次選出非裔美國總統，足見美國社會族群平等的包容力確實有長足的進步。

此次歐巴馬以少數族群的背景能夠勝出，當然也與世界經濟情勢等客 觀環境有關。拋開美國兩黨些微的意識形態不談，此次美國大選的關鍵話題就只有「經濟」二字。民主黨與共和黨當然有大政府與小政府的哲學辯論，而歐巴馬與麥 肯亦對解決當前經濟問題有不同藥方。但是，當人民無從分辨孰優孰劣時，很自然會問：「現在的爛攤子是誰造成的？」問到這裡，布希政府八年來一路偏袒富人、 大幅擴張赤字、放任信用擴張的政策，當然就成為眾矢之的。由於麥肯難以與布希切割，因此這百年來難得一見的金融海嘯與超大經濟蕭條，當然就成為歐巴馬助選 的最大功臣。

此外，民主黨與共和黨原本對「弱勢」團體的態度即有不同─民主黨主張較多較廣的福利政策，但共和黨則主張尊重市場機能。這兩 黨的態度差異原本只是針對國內事務，但在布希執政之下，卻又延伸到國際舞台。基本上，國際間普遍將伊拉克、阿富汗視為第三世界的弱勢國家，而布希在尋不著 「大規模毀滅性武器」的情況下，強勢地對伊拉克動武，即使以「反恐」為號召，也給全世界其他國家一種大欺小、強凌弱、眾暴寡的惡劣印象。在競選期間，麥肯 的外交政策大抵仍然強勢，但歐巴馬的政見則較貼近對弱勢群體的尊重。這也是為什麼全世界大多數國家都傾向挺民主黨的原因。未來歐巴馬政權會如何調整其中東 與歐洲政策，不但影響到美國的興衰，也與世界前景息息相關，值得關注與期待。

最後，縱使美國有經濟景氣不佳、國際戰事泥淖、種族歧視淡化 等客觀環境，一位非裔美國人要贏得總統大選還是極為不易。歐巴馬能夠以這麼年輕、這麼資淺、這麼不被看好的情況下一路過關斬將，撂倒希拉蕊等老政客，橫掃 共和黨麥肯，絕對也展現出他超級的能力與魅力。首先，歐氏恐怕是全世界最能善用網路行銷，最了解網路時代特性的政治人物。他積沙成塔的小額募款方式，他用 YOUTUBE廣為宣傳的個人演講，都是傳統政客所不熟悉的「新世代兵器」。這些兵器現在已經被證明是無堅不摧，至少對傳統政客幾乎是有摧枯拉朽的威力。 此外，歐氏的個人魅力也在歷次演講中展露無遺。從「YES WE CAN」的經典演說，到柏林演講中感性訴求自己是世界公民，到澄清自己與教會牧師之間的關係，歐氏都能一次次化危機為轉機，變失分為得分。這樣的領袖魅力 若能延續到執政之後，應該是對於亟需提振的消費者、投資信心，會有極大的助益。

總之，歐巴馬當選，代表一個族群平等新時代的來臨，代表國際情勢將會有所改變，也代表世界金融與經濟秩序將有嶄新的契機。歐氏當選，不只是他個人與民主黨的勝利，更是許多世界公民期待「改變」的開始。