2013 / 2017

“I am an unofficial green card holder without my consent. We all are, on different terms.”

I was actually supposed to write an entry about the US Presidential Elections about a month ago, when I saw John McCain and Barack Obama battle it out in one of the debates televised worldwide. It made me wonder how come the Philippines never had any of those presidential debates. It could have at least given us a more enlightening outlook to how the candidates think, better than how the media portrayed them. But then again that’s another story.I was virtually there when Obama won the US Presidency in the election held two weeks ago. I was following the news in CNN and in the Internet. I silently wished for an Obaman America as the voting day closed in. I slept with the TV open on election day, wishing that when I open my eyes the first black US president is waving at the world, including me. True enough.I’ve never been an avid fan of US electoral system before, although I actually chose to study a couple of courses on American democracy and political philosophy. I guess on the next four or eight years, I will be one of those who will follow the turn of events in US domestic and foreign policy. Suddenly I became a political animal again, in the macro sense; a cynical spectator who fears for what lies ahead.

I wonder what will happen to American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, or how NoKor and the old Persia will be viewed by the US under Obama. How about healthcare, and taxes, and Wall Street. How about globalization, counter-terrorism and world peace. How about the US government meddling with Philippine governance and economy. How about business process outsourcing. How about my job.

Perhaps that is the reason why all of a sudden I get too concerned about what Obama will bring into the table. With almost all my relatives living in their turf and with my job catching a flu when their economy sneezes, I will be affected by their policies. I am an unofficial green card holder without my consent. We all are, on different terms.

Talk about globalization. Talk about a ‘world without strangers’, and talk about that being strange.