OBAMA

Much has been said all ready, both profound and profuse, about the sea-change in American politics and society. It is hard to imagine that it is scarce forty years since blacks were denied basic human rights in the southern US; that they faced segregation in schools and public areas such as buses and even washrooms. It is hoped that African-Americans as well as all Americans, have indeed reached that “mountaintop” of which Martin Luther King spoke, and that what they see in the distance is in fact their “New Jerusalem”.

I fear that the extraordinary expectations of the people will meet with disappointment down the road and the incredible challenges that will confront President Obama will be more than any human being can overcome, even though he surrounds himself with the best of helpers and advisers. Solving the economic mess alone will take tremendous efforts, requiring hard choices and difficult decisions, and take longer than most people realize. And, that’s only the beginning.

But I have another fear, of something much more sinister; that some home-breed crackpot will kill him. It happened to the Kennedy brothers, and it almost happened to Regan; and of course, it happened to Martin Luther King. In an open democracy such as America, it is hard to protect even a President from a really determined maniac.

Let’s hope, for everyone’s sake –America as well as the rest of the world – that in this case, at least, history does not repeat itself.