May sanity prevail!
By: TABBY MOYOTODAY, as many as 120 million Americans are expected to turn out to vote in an election that has in the past months dominated the media.
The interest that the American elections generate bear testimony to
the power that the US yields in the world and of course the
emotions that have been sparked by Bush's global policies.
While it seems too late now to sway those voters who have
decided to maintain the status quo, some of us watching the events
from afar believe that the sooner George W Bush vacates office the
safer this world will become.
While John Kerry's reputation does raise some questions, polls
from around the world have indicated that if it was up to other
countries to decide who should lead the US government for the next
four years, Kerry would win hands down.
The world's opinion of the US has deteriorated rapidly under the
Bush regime.
With Iraq falling apart and several other domestic issues such
as health care, abortion and gay marriage and the economy raising
serious questions, there could be no more opportune time than this
for American citizens to opt for sanity this time around.
As the Democrats have said, if Bush wins today's election the
world will have to deal with "more of the same" for the next four
years.
A victory for Kerry, on the other hand, would give Americans and
the world a "second chance".
Kerry has indicated in his campaign messages that he plans to
turn the US around and set it on the straight course.
Bush, who sees himself as the master of the universe, has
created more chaos than order - not only in his country but in the
world as a whole.
For instance, far more casualties ae being recorded in Iraq
today than before Bush and his allies invaded the country.
A recent survey of deaths in Iraqi households estimates that as
many as 100 000 more people have died throughout the country in the
18 months since the Bush-led invasion than would be expected based
on the death rate before the war.
But in today's election one cannot help but fear a repeat of the
controversy that dogged the 2000 elections which pitted Bush
against Al Gore.
With Bush and Kerry neck and neck in major battleground states
according to latest polls, the election result could be decided in
the courts.
This could prove detrimental for Kerry.
American voters have been split in half in probably the nastiest
run-up to an election in modern history.
The campaign has seen heated rhetoric and shock television
commercials from both camps.
But hours before the polls open confusion still reigns over
which candidate offers the best prospects for national
security.
Further chaos was created by Osama bin Laden's entry into the
fray at the weekend.
In a message broadcast by al Jazeera television, Bin Laden
warned of a possible repeat of the September 11 2001 terrorist
attacks and said the election would have no bearing on al Qaeda
operations, whether it was won by Bush or Kerry.
However, Osama's threat and other factors withstanding, one
hopes that the American electorate will not reduce the occasion to
simply "voting for an idiot you know rather than for an idiot you
don't know".
* Tabby Moyo is the Deputy News Editor at The Namibian.
While it seems too late now to sway those voters who have decided
to maintain the status quo, some of us watching the events from
afar believe that the sooner George W Bush vacates office the safer
this world will become.While John Kerry's reputation does raise
some questions, polls from around the world have indicated that if
it was up to other countries to decide who should lead the US
government for the next four years, Kerry would win hands down.The
world's opinion of the US has deteriorated rapidly under the Bush
regime.With Iraq falling apart and several other domestic issues
such as health care, abortion and gay marriage and the economy
raising serious questions, there could be no more opportune time
than this for American citizens to opt for sanity this time
around.As the Democrats have said, if Bush wins today's election
the world will have to deal with "more of the same" for the next
four years.A victory for Kerry, on the other hand, would give
Americans and the world a "second chance".Kerry has indicated in
his campaign messages that he plans to turn the US around and set
it on the straight course.Bush, who sees himself as the master of
the universe, has created more chaos than order - not only in his
country but in the world as a whole.For instance, far more
casualties ae being recorded in Iraq today than before Bush and his
allies invaded the country.A recent survey of deaths in Iraqi
households estimates that as many as 100 000 more people have died
throughout the country in the 18 months since the Bush-led invasion
than would be expected based on the death rate before the war.But
in today's election one cannot help but fear a repeat of the
controversy that dogged the 2000 elections which pitted Bush
against Al Gore.With Bush and Kerry neck and neck in major
battleground states according to latest polls, the election result
could be decided in the courts.This could prove detrimental for
Kerry.American voters have been split in half in probably the
nastiest run-up to an election in modern history.The campaign has
seen heated rhetoric and shock television commercials from both
camps.But hours before the polls open confusion still reigns over
which candidate offers the best prospects for national
security.Further chaos was created by Osama bin Laden's entry into
the fray at the weekend.In a message broadcast by al Jazeera
television, Bin Laden warned of a possible repeat of the September
11 2001 terrorist attacks and said the election would have no
bearing on al Qaeda operations, whether it was won by Bush or
Kerry.However, Osama's threat and other factors withstanding, one
hopes that the American electorate will not reduce the occasion to
simply "voting for an idiot you know rather than for an idiot you
don't know".* Tabby Moyo is the Deputy News Editor at The Namibian.