Yes we can......and he did. What a great, great day.

Tonight as I sat down to watch the news, I realised after about five minutes that I had a big smile on my face. It’s not often that happens while watching the news and I can never recall smiling about anything to do with American politics.
For the first time, I felt hopeful about the world. Is that naive? It’s just so damn heartening that such an eloquent, articulate, intelligent man has mobilised so many people to get off their American bottoms and get out to vote. And that the majority of them voted for him. For change. For a more inclusive society. Even the way he mentioned ‘gay and straight’ in his acceptance speech, along with the disabled, native Americans, hispanics, Asian Americans….this is a president unlike any we have seen and I’m not even talking about his skin colour.

On the news I saw African Americans with their eyes sparkling, pointing to their toddlers and saying “Now, one of my kids could be the president!” It feels like a deeply important and momentous day, not just for America but for us too (and didn’t Kevin look….so…..white in comparison?).

Is it too much to hope for that this will be the dawning of a more tolerant example from arguably the most important Western country in the world? I think maybe it will……..