5 Reasons the World Wants Obama

Americans may be divided over the presidential election, but the world clearly prefers Barack Obama, Melinda Brouwer writes on AlterNet. Here's why:

1. Other nations share Obama’s desire for change in US policy, "and want him to make good on it."
2. Unlike John McCain, Obama "represents the antithesis of the current president. That part doesn't get lost in translation."
3. Electing an African American shows the US is tolerant and mature—qualities it claims to possess and "that people abroad want it to possess."

4. An Obama election would show that Americans can reason and correct their mistakes—like electing President Bush a second time and going to war for "all the wrong reasons."
5. Obama's international roots appeal to people all over the world: "Foreign publics can pick and choose with which 'Obama' they identify most -- the perceived Muslim, Asian, or African Obama."

(More Barack Obama stories.)