Current mood:	excited and hopeful
Entry tags:	atlanta iii: the search for barack, travel

Sometimes, You Just Get a Feeling Like You Need Some Kind of Change
On November 7, 2000, I was staying in a Melbourne hostel, watching news reports about the US presidential election on a small television in a common room. When they called it for Bush, I groaned quite audibly, whilst the (mostly British) backpackers around me had very little reaction. "What's the difference?" said one of them nearby.

On November 2, 2004, I was at home with two TV's on and multiple browser tabs open, secretly sending exit poll results reported on the CBC before the polls closed to theorangegirl over AIM as she helped monitor a polling station in New Mexico. My brother and I shared a mutual groan when we saw how Ohio turned out.

On November 4, 2008, I will be visiting my good friends Kimberly and Scott, whom I haven't had a chance to see in over two years, in Georgia's beautiful 5th District (The Fighting 5th!)...and regardless of where in Atlanta or its environs we'll actually be as we watch the results come in, I really hope none of us have reason for such a disappointed groan this time around.

This is a watershed moment in American history and, even though any American citizens reading this shouldn't necessarily base their vote on the foreign reputation of the United States, you should realise (if you don't already) that the rest of the world is paying attention--and if the US votes in a neocon Republican yet again, even after everything that's happened in the past eight years, the world may very well simply write the country off as ideologically stagnant.

(Of course, Canadians don't exactly have reason to brag at the moment, as we recently failed this particular test all on our own...)

I'm really excited about being there to witness this moment, either way, even though I have (once again) had terrible luck with the currency exchange rate--the Canadian dollar went down by a record amount over the past month, only to go up by several cents right after I'd gotten a hold of some American money for the trip. :/

With a more wide-reaching pair of candidates than in the past (neither was born in the Lower 48, for one thing), this election suggests that the United States has a more open mind now about who can take a leadership role in government. My brother has expressed some concern about a potential Bradley Effect, but I'd like to believe I see some more encouraging signs from the American electorate.

Speaking of signs, the political junkie in me is going to love all the signage and frenzy of election activity in such a major city over the next few days, and I'd be curious to hear from the rest of you about the level of advertising for Obama/Biden versus McCain/Palin (or for Democratic vs Republican candidates generally) in your respective districts. Who's winning out in the visible advertising wars at the moment?

You already know how I feel about the importance of voting, so no matter how you feel, make sure you're out there on Tuesday if you haven't voted in advance.

On that note, I'll be back here in about a week with all the details (and a massive set of pictures, I'm sure) from the fabled lost city of Atlanta...