The Aftermath: More Reflections...

I am finally sitting down with my cherished cup of tea and enjoying solitude with my faithful canine at my feet. It has been a wonderful day of pure joy and wonder at the immense strides the nation has taken with the election of Barack Obama, undoubtedly a phenomenon who has swept away the last racial barrier in the American socio-political setup. I sincerely believe that.

While on a more mundane level, I am feeling tremendous sense of relief that the election is finally over and that my mailbox is not full of so much junk mail,that my voicemail is empty of those annoying robotic messages and that I can now unashamedly resink into the mindless pleasure of watching shows like Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives, I am still in awe of the fact that I have been a part of a cathartic moment in this country - the magnitude of which cannot be elaborated enough.

My black friends have run the gamut of emotions from pure joy, to painful memories but most of all euphoria at seeing one of their own achieve such stupendous success. The barrier has been broken forever... As someone originally from India which witnessed naked racism under British imperialistic rule and which is still battling certain dysfunctional social mindsets, I can totally relate to the raw emotion that I witnessed today and frankly felt myself. In fact, I was taken aback at the unexpected surge of emotion that overwhelmed me when I heard the news of the Obama win. But now the time has come for everyone to deliver. The mantra of "change" cannot be relegated to mere election rhetoric, but real work has to begin and begin immediately. No question about that.

Now that the excitement has died down, the reality of the monumental challenges before the new President-elect is hitting everyone. It will not be a cake-walk for Obama, our 44th President. Bipartisanship will be key to moving the country forward. The economic crisis, promotion of energy independence, war against Iraq and terrorism and healthcare are all huge policy items that are not partisan issues but American issues. Cliched but so true. While he will be able to accomplish more due to increased number of Democrats in both the Senate and the House, the key to Obama's success will be in his ability to compromise and constantly perform the balancing act. In other words, he will have to govern from the middle.

The election campaign has also demonstrated that the US social fabric has changed and there are many ethnicities that are playing pivotal role in the socio-political setup and that the political messages have to be tailored accordingly. The new generation of voters, the middle class and the emerging minority of nonwhite voters have to be taken into account. Undoubtedly, the GOP has to start revisiting and reevaluating its approach on many levels. In other words, diversity is a reality in the US and the sooner that fact is accepted, the sooner we can have real progress.

The role of the youth in this election and the innovative use of internet in motivating masses have taken the art of campaigning to another level. The internet is being looked at further by the transition team as a leadership tool for the new President-beyond the innovative campaign technology. Needless to say, the success of the 21st century technologies will now be emulated by the world which has been watching this entire process for months. Globalization is certainly real.

There are many lessons and insights to be gleaned from this election saga and one could write a tome on the never-ending analytical post-mortem. So I will stop now because I want to further digest this indisputably transcendent moment not only in the history of US, but worldwide because it has the potential to motivate and energize folks through the message that with hardwork, intelligence, and steadfast faith and vision, they can overcome similar odds in their own socio-political environments. For the American child, the historic significance of Obama's victory cannot be overstated. It sends a message, loud and clear, to think big and to aspire for the American dream which is now certainly within his or her reach... The sky is the limit now!