Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Obama wins, and other stories from Amsterdam

I wasn't able to stay awake for long last night. Shortly after 1am I saw the projection for a McCain win in Kentucky and an Obama win in Vermont. Neither was a surprise and I decided to switch off the tv rather than attempt to stay awake. I woke this morning to the news of an electoral college landslide, if not a vote landslide.

Back in the UK, both Brown and Cameron appear to be reading diametrically opposite meanings into the result. Cameron argues that people voted for change. Brown argues that the Americans voted for substance. What Cameron disregards is that the change people looked for in USA may not be the change they are after in the UK. And what Brown overlooks is that you don't have experience to have substance.

We don't know whether or not any of this will translate over to the UK. People may well be looking for a change here but may not regard Cameron as much of a change. Others may prefer devil-you-know.

I have a suspicion that uppermost in the minds of American voters was a desire to see change and to sweep out of office that they regarded as responsible for the present economic crisis. Labour take note.

And now for an Amsterdam update.

We had a canal trip this morning to get to the Anne Frank Museum. This was one of the main sites I wanted to see on this trip. We had lunch near the Victoria Hotel and we're now on the coach heading back to the ferry port. We should be back there in half an hour. I am pleased to say that the mist had cleared before we left the hotel this morning and so I was able to take a few photos (about 120) and a few minutes of video.
---
Sent via BlackBerry

No comments: