The World Responds

In Kenya there are wildly exhilarated celebrations that one of their own now leads the free world, an inspiration and a hope to all Kenyans who aspire to become whatever they may. Peru's president exults that he has lived long enough to see a U.S. president of colour. In that he echoes the considered opinion, actually the unbelieving delight, of the world at large. Good on America, his home sweet home.

Even Hugo Chavez may relent and become slightly less obnoxious, prepared to establish a new kind of civil relation with the United States. In Indonesia students at the school Barack Obama attended revel in the unbelievable revelations that they are being schooled where a fabled personality once learned his basics. University students in New Delhi adore the audacity of his vision.

Cuba and Bolivia finally see some hope for normalized relations; Cuba specifically hoping for an end to the almost-five-decade long trade embargo. From Iran comes word that "the radicals aren't happy about Obama's victory", but President Ahmadinajad, has taken the cautionary step of avowing they might be able to do business together; at the very least converse.

Former Canadian ambassador to the UN hopes and trusts that President Obama will overturn some of the assaults on universal hope brought about by the Bush administration; to re-sign the Test Ban Treaty, sign on to Kyoto, pull back from Iraq, re-invent itself as a friend of international relations. President Stephen Harper is eager to form a personal relationship with his country's largest trading partner.

The world is inspired by the prospect of a new America, propelled into a more benign and graceful stance by an ideologically, socially-advanced president. From Great Britain to France, Saudi Arabia to China. "We wish him all the best in bringing America out of the present financial quagmire as soon as possible, and re-energize the world's largest economy with his brand-new ideas and vision" - ChinaDaily.com.

And then, there's that !HELLO! from Russia with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev advising that his country is in the process of basing missiles to "neutralize" the U.S. missile defence system in Eastern Europe.