Europeans Cheer Obama Now but May Complain Later On

Europeans Sentiment for Obama

I think Thomas Grose is right.

I think someone forgot to tell the Europeans that they didn't vote for Obama, Americans did. Before they pat themselves on the back over Obama's election, they'll have to realize that Obama is an American and will act according to American interests. Sure, he may see our interests in a way that Europeans may favor in some cases, but he's not going to pander to them. He may even end up angering them, causing them to question, "Why is a black man so pro-American."

Well, I've never met any black Americans who weren't pro-American. With all the problems they've faced in the US, they're still not fleeing to Europe. They'll defend the US at the drop of the hat. Just look at our military.

Change We Need = A Return to Pragmatism/Realism

I voted for McCain-Palin because I do not trust the liberals in Congress and an untested Obama with an already distressed fiscal state, but do see a lot of promise on the foreign policy front. Hopefully, there are no Neocons lurking in any of Obama's corridors. They took control of Bush's Administration, they did inappropriate and harmful things, and then Karl Rove fired up the fiscal and social conservative bases during 2000 and 2004 with empty rhetoric and broken promises. As a Conservative, it is almost heart-breaking that these radicals and opportunists like Rumsfield, Wolfowitz, and Cheney maligned the Republican party and made it into the party of David Horowitz and others who essentially believe anyone disagreeing with the criminal and unconstitutional activities of this spendthrift administration is "anti-American" and others who didn’t allow for adequate debate time over the passage of the PATRIOT Act and the creation of the inefficient Homeland Security department that contributed to the Katrina disaster.

The euphoria of our Western European and farther left wing American friends may be a bit of overkill in considering what President-elect Obama must deal with. There is no way that he will make everyone happy all at once. We will get through the financial crisis and work internationally to stop its spread. Decisive action with other Treasury ministers and Central bankers will prove to be a great start for the Obama Administration. We will withdraw honorably from Iraq and recognize that we cannot just up and leave the mess that Bush’s empire builders left us; the surge worked, but the situation is reversible and it is not in the interests of world peace to leave immediately. We must see if we can try a more diplomatic approach with Iran – obviously there would have to be a few major pre-conditions. We must also re-evaluate our Afghanistan/Pakistan strategy – President elect Obama must find a way to quell the violence and bring terrorists operating there – options range from reopening talks to escalating forces. On trade, America must remain committed to free trade and the benefits of economic growth and peace that it brings to the world – though, it may not be unreasonable to close tax loopholes on companies that offshore.

If we escalate in Afghanistan, I believe that the EU must stand up to the plate. The terrorists hiding out in Afghanistan and Pakistan and elsewhere are determined to shake up world peace and attack any nation. While I see a continuation of some Bush policies, the War on Terror as we know it ought to change. In making the commitment to invade two hostile countries, the Bush Administration hamstringed us in dealing with any non-Islamic terror emerging threats to world peace and other crises.

Being leader of the free world is a daunting task, even if you keep ideologues in your Administration under control!

Outsoourcing

For those outside the automotive industry, outsourcing is difficult to understand. However, for the domestic automakers to remain competitve, outsourcing must and will continue to grow until our parts can be purchased at the same cost. The pressure on the supply base in the USA for cost reduction is unbelievable. The new world order for a parts supplier is to be competitive on the world stage or die. We now have a glogal economy relative to the automotive industry. Limiting the automakers to purchasing parts from only US suppliers at this point is absurd and will only hasten the end of the big three. If we have trade we must embrace NAFTA. NAFTA while a hard pill to swallow now, is aboslutely neccessary for the long term survival of US industry. The USA will prevail.