Million?

A friend sent me a link to the Obama administration's "transition team" website. On this website, you can ask for an application for a job within the administration.

Just for fun, I thought I'd fill it out and see what it said. Here is a sample question.

What is the largest budget you have ever had to preside over?
a) 0-2 million
b) 2-20 million
c) 20-100 million

Million? As in dollars? Or maybe... nope don't even have a million anything I've presided over. Except minutes of my own life. I've got about 13.5 million of those under my belt.

Let's try $300 or so when I was an assistant resident director at nwc.

When asked what position I thought I would be most qualified for, I said that I could help out with their Middle East foreign policy.

I mean, Sarah Palin said she had foreign policy experience because she lived near a foreign country.

Any one want to be a reference for me?

Why Obama Will Be a Good Thing

I rarely do this, but I am going to publicly reveal who I would have voted for. I would have voted for McCain (though I was leaning towards Obama for a very long time - up until the end [not related to McBama discussions, though. Sorry Lillibridge]). So, though I was ultimately a McCain supporter, I'd like to offer a few reasons why Barack Obama's election will be a good thing.

1) Obama has an element of class that Bush has never had. This is not a reflection on his (or Bush's) character, per se, but it does matter. People will approach him differently, and this will make an immense difference in how he handles foreign policy AND how foreign government officials see him. Living over seas the last few years has made me more sensitive to this aspect of the Presidency. Though I don't think the president should bend over backwards for every whim of world leader opinion, approaching their opinions at least with a measure of respect for their objectives and goals is something Bush hasn't done well. I also believe that Obama won't make sweeping changes to foreign policy goals and objectives anyway. Tactical differences maybe, but the same ultimate goals. (which is, obviously, destroying Iran... ).

2) Having a half-African American in the White house will have a positive effect on race relations. While race relations in the US are not at the low point of the 50's, 60's and 70's, this barrier has not been fully overcome. Having an African American man in the position will do two things, I believe. a) continue to 'normalize' perceptions of non-whites for whites who still have racial bias b) give a new perception to African American men and boys as to what is possible and what they are capable of. Personal perception is such a strong determinant and so often our self-perception is determined by what people around us - who are like us - have become or say they are able to become.

3) Obama brings to the Presidency an awareness of the poor that is rare for people in power. To be honest, some of his economic policies worry me. Some of his statements about "spreading the wealth" don't make me excited. However, he still needs to be reelected. So do the people who will vote (or not vote) for any legislation he puts forth. So what good is this? He will be a force pulling the opposite way of those who do not have any concern for the poor. If his policies are too radical, they will be pulled to the right - which is how the government is set up. And if the policies and legislation are too far right, I believe he will be a good check on that, as well.

As I said, I do have concerns about Obama's economic policy, and he is relatively untested, as the republican pundits like to point out. But to say that our country will be ruined by his being elected is alarmist and fails to recognize a) the separation of powers in the US constitution and b) the actual responsibilities of the President.

I'm done.

Oh, and according to the cnn projections, I almost nailed (see end of post) the electoral college vote numbers (only virginia was wrong) and I nailed McCain's percentage of popular vote: 46%.

What if Bahrain participated in the US Election?

According to the British business magazine The Economist, most people around the world would vote for Barack Obama. Even more interesting, in the Middle East and the Arabian Gulf in particularly, there is not less than a 95% support percentage for Obama (with the exception of Iraq, interestingly enough). For many people, John McCain = Bush's 3rd term.

In class at the beginning of the year, I asked students who they would vote for. Almost all responded with Obama. Of course, their votes are not counted, and neither are the votes of others around the world. But I think it worthwhile to try and understand why this is true.

1) Bush's policies in the beginning were very confrontational and 'lone ranger' (Even Fareed Zakaria, liberal leaning editor of Newsweek see's bush as changing his attitude later in his tenure as president). Whether or not waiting for everyone to agree with him was the right decision, the result of this attitude was a feeling of alienation of many people. There is a sense that Bush will do whatever he wants to without regard to how it will affect the rest of the world. Bush's confrontational attitude has made more enemies than he needed to make. Many people view Obama as someone who would be less confrontational and more willing to work with other countries.

2) Middle East: It is interesting to note that so many people here are so in favor of Obama when the cultures are so conservative by American standards. Most people would line up with the republican party on issues such as abortion, gay marriage, taxes, immigration and most other issues.

Cultural Lesson - there is an element of Brotherhood that is present in the middle east that goes beyond political affiliations and alliances. To put it one way - one Arab's shame is all Arabs' shame. Though they may not have liked Saddam Hussein, many Arabs did not like the fact that 'one of their own' was defeated so quickly. They do not like the fact that another group has come in and done 'whatever they please.'

Bush has, therefore, 'dishonored' the region. 'Honor' is a central concept to self-perception and one of the deepest elements of identity in this part of the world. When one is 'dishonored', everything possible must be done to regain the lost 'honor'. This is a somewhat alien concept in the west, but it is absolutely necessary in understanding people who are from this region.

With this in mind, many Arabs seem to believe that Barack Obama will be more honoring to them and will partner with them in achieving common foreign policy goals.

3) Two more, less substantive reasons that many people in the Middle East support Barack Obama. a) With a Name like Barack Hussein Obama, many people assume that he is Muslim, though Obama has been adamant about his Christian faith. b) He is black, and therefore assumed to have a very different perspective on life. I think many people think he comes 'from the hood.'

So there you have it. Bahrain has thrown its support in for Barack Obama. We'll see in just a few days what will come in the US.

My prediction: Barack Obama. Popular Vote: 49%-46% Electoral College vote: 349-189.

The land of... palms? traffic lights?

I surprised my students the other day. They walked into class and I assigned them a one minute speech on their passion in life.

Due immediately.

One student, who wants to be a civil engineer, came up with this quote on the fly. It has summed what I sometimes feel like is much of my life in Bahrain:

"Bahrain used to be called the 'land of a million palm trees'. Now it is called the 'land of a million traffic lights.' "

May God bless him on his quest.

My Own Financial Crisis

Forget Wall Street. Forget the Asian markets and the European Markets. I've got my own financial crisis to settle out!! (Where is the government when I need a bailout...)

1) My car needed brand spanking new tires. I talked them down to a 20% discount, but it was still $270. (however, it came at a good time as I went off-roading the next day).

2) My laptop broke. More accurately, it fell off the overhead projector in class. Even more accurately, it fell off when I tripped over the cord - in front of my 10A class. Looks of horror as they feared my wrath would be spewed in their direction. Feel my pain when you see the picture of a broken lcd screen below. Its what my screen looked like.

Alison's computer had broken so we sent it back to the states to get fixed a few weeks ago (it was still under warranty). Shipping was less expensive than having it fixed here. Amazing. This means we were computerless. How much we suffered!

$700 for a new laptop.

3) Oh yeah, remember that world financial crisis? Well Alison and I made a few investments this summer. Long term investments for when we retire someday (yeah, thinking ahead). Guess how much we've lost?

30%. See? Here. And here. Oh, and here, too.

I have been a firm believer in the business cycle. "Every 10 years", I say, "something like this happens! The markets will bounce back, and people will be happy until the next crash. Then fears of 'the end' will engross us again."

Hopefully my trust has not been misplaced. Of course, won't be making any more investments until the market bottoms out. Or Robin, our friend who has been helpful in assisting Alison and I figure out our investments, advises us.

I get dizzy thinking about all of this.