Spring Break
Cautious Optimism in the World Arena
Paul Yacoubian
Issue date: 11/12/08 Section: Opinion
President-elect Barack Obama may have a lot on his plate, but winning over positive world opinion will not be one of them. On the world scene Obama is adored. That is because he is seen as a radical change from the unilateralist approach that President Bush has practiced since 2002. The two's approaches to the international community could not be seen as more different. He brings a fresh desire for rejuvenating the relationship between the United States and its allies. The leaders of those states see Obama as a man they can work with and who will not ignore them as Bush did. They see him as a person who will work with the international community, and within the UN, to solve world problems. This simple change in perspective by foreign leaders radically changes what the United States can do on the international stage.
The people of these states see the same. They had viewed the United States as arrogant and uncaring. Now they must view it in a different light. The man that the people of the world overwhelmingly wanted to be President of the United States was elected, and they will be more forgiving of him and the United States than they were under Bush. But Obama brings more than hope to the international community; he also brings a revitalization of the American ideal. All people in the United States can accomplish anything, regardless of race or lineage, as long as they work hard and commit themselves to their dream. It is what has elevated the United States above the world for so long. Those from developing countries now see that even the top job in the United States government is available to the son of a Kenyan goat herder. This serves as an inspiration to those who either wish to emulate the American ideal, or immigrate to the United States.
But Obama brings another change in world opinion of the United States. To put it simply, it will be much more difficult for Hugo Chavez or Iran's President Ahmadinejad, to criticize the United States as the evil empire or anti-Islamic when it has the son of Muslim at its head. People from the Middle East will definitely be less likely to believe that his decisions are based out of hatred of Islam as they did of Bush (however unfairly). He has promised to talk directly with Iran, which means that it is now on the Iranians to answer this call or be further isolated in the international community.
The people of these states see the same. They had viewed the United States as arrogant and uncaring. Now they must view it in a different light. The man that the people of the world overwhelmingly wanted to be President of the United States was elected, and they will be more forgiving of him and the United States than they were under Bush. But Obama brings more than hope to the international community; he also brings a revitalization of the American ideal. All people in the United States can accomplish anything, regardless of race or lineage, as long as they work hard and commit themselves to their dream. It is what has elevated the United States above the world for so long. Those from developing countries now see that even the top job in the United States government is available to the son of a Kenyan goat herder. This serves as an inspiration to those who either wish to emulate the American ideal, or immigrate to the United States.
But Obama brings another change in world opinion of the United States. To put it simply, it will be much more difficult for Hugo Chavez or Iran's President Ahmadinejad, to criticize the United States as the evil empire or anti-Islamic when it has the son of Muslim at its head. People from the Middle East will definitely be less likely to believe that his decisions are based out of hatred of Islam as they did of Bush (however unfairly). He has promised to talk directly with Iran, which means that it is now on the Iranians to answer this call or be further isolated in the international community.
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