Election DAY!

If the presidential candidates were women, who would you vote for?

President Georgetta Wilhelmina Bush

OR Juanita Kerry

JAJAJAJA

OK, so, for some reason I feel the need to comment on all this, if anything, to remind myself later of what I am going through. THis may be boring to some of yall so, sorry!

If I have changed at all thus far, in the month and a half that I have been in Spain, it regards this very day.

It is very simple.  I never, fully, realized the power and influence of the United States until I moved here. But, frankly, you cannot go anywhere without seeing it. First, you turn the TV on and you have primarily American shows..the OC (which I am sadly obsessed with), Will and Grace, ER, Everwood, Law and Order, I could go on...oh yeah, the Friends phenomena is not only limited to the US, I have seen this show now in Italian, French, German, and Spanish.  Aside from entertainment programming, you cannot watch one news program without seeing some report on the US, elections, corporate America, etc.. 

OK, let´s say I get tired of watching TV and decide to turn the radio on. Every other song is in English, by American singers, talking about America.  Turn to a news talk show, what are they talking about...the US.

OK, enough, so I meander on outside....there is a Mary Kay downstairs, along with a McDonalds, Burger King, KFC....a car drives by with some hip hop song blaring...I look up and there is a huge billboard advertising the latest Hollywood movie. I go to school and use an IBM Intel pentium computer, proffesors spend a large amount of classtime in Worldwide Economy and Audiovisual Marketing, and Audiovisual Design class talking about the US. My reading material for classes is little and far between, but when we do have it, all the articles are in English, by american researchers and writers. 

It is no wonder Europeans hate us...they can´t get away from us! A true dichotemy.  It truly is a love-hate relationship. They look down on corporate American capitalistic practices for extorting the poor, making money, and reaping the power that comes with that....yet they want the product we produce and they teach the way we do it.

I am not sure if by writing this I am conforming to the American stereotype of the obnoxious, proud American, because believe you me, I am not the banner waving patriot.  What I am trying to show, is that I NEVER understood the "why"  nor the scope concerning our power, influence, and general resentment towards us.

So anywyas, all this is basically to state that it has been a tough couple of weeks, these leading up to the elections. I have done dozens of interviews for radio, TV, and newspapers (that´s what happens when you´re one of the few Americans at a journalism school). In each, I have attempted to represent a bi-partisan view of what is going on...although in each and every interview they have attempted to extract from me my view on the war and Bush.

I have primarily taken the argument, throughout the interviews, that the real issue is how European media has mis-represented the elections and struggle that is taking place in the US. I mean, you ask any Spanish student, and they would tell you that Kerry was going to win by a landslide. I will say that if Bush wins, the people here in Spain, at least, will be astounded. For all that has been presented to them, is the protests, rally´s, documentaries, shows, speeches, etc.. of Kerry.

I sent in my absentee ballot about a month ago. It is my first presidential election in which I can vote, and also I am registered to vote in Missouri, a swing state, so needless to say I feel special!

On the American side of things, as a student at a journalism school in a swing state, I receive TONS of emails a day concerning the elections and how the US media is handling the coverage. It is really fascinating. I am so jealous of my beautiful sister Mandi, who at Wellesley, in the outskirts of Boston, has the opportunity to see everything up close and personal!

Ok, well, I gotta go to class, I just wanted to reflect a little! By the way, the New York Times website (election guide link) has INCREDIBLE interactive graphics, where you can learn A LOT about the elections dealing with each individual state stats, etc... . You can even set up your own senarios of who wins what, etc..Plus, it´s free to register yourself.   OK, so I am a MAJOR journalism dork! But anyways. Love yall. Chau.

By the way, if you are bored and need some laughs check out this GREAT FUN website: Muffin Films. My favorite is the Muffin Tree..don´t ask...