Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

President-elect Obama throughout his life has overcome amazing odds and obstacles to achieve what he has done on November 4th, 2008. He has won the presidency in a historic and difficult race, but the real test of his fortitude and capacity as a leader has yet to come. Unfortunately he is going to inherit a large mess domestically and will his start his first term as a wartime president. He must decisively steer America away from the disaster that she is heading towards to both domestically and internationally. Quite a few issues, however, standout. In the international arena, Iranian acquisition of a nuclear bomb would completely change the way international relations work, and so it is pivotal that our president does everything in his power to prevent that from happening. Also, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan are sources of huge controversy, and the mishandling of those conflicts can perpetually drain our economy and potentially lead to catastrophic ends. Internally, the collapse of Lehman Brothers has marked the worst financial situation in recent history, and America is halfway on its path to a full-blown recession. Let's hope that Obama truly wants to rise above partisan politics as he says and not worry about reelection so that he can completely devote himself to the issues at hand.

Although the situation seems exceedingly bleak, he has a solid foundation to work from. Even though the democrats in senate were just 4 seats short of obtaining a filibuster proof majority, this will still be a significant boost in helping Democratic legislation pass amid Republican dissent. He also enjoys global support as indicated by the response he received from the hundreds of thousands of Germans that greeted him in Berlin.

President-elect Obama has the ability to inspire people in this time of crisis and instill hope in them that things will be alright in the end. His catchword was change throughout the election and he came to symbolize a departure from the Bush presidency that we've had for the past 8 years. Sound familiar? President Roosevelt back in the 1930's and 1940's brought America back up on her feet when she had fallen down in the Great Depression and also stood in the face of evil during Hitler's conquest of Europe. Although the current situation isn't nearly as bad, there are still many similarities: the banking system is on the edge of collapsing, the economy in general is going downhill, and there is the looming problem of terrorism overseas. If Mr. Obama is anything like Roosevelt, he will address America one-on-one and let her know that everyone is in this together. He has revived America with his words and promises just as FDR did back then; now it's President Obama's turn to show America that he too can pick her up in times of trouble just like his great American predecessor.