Oh Bama!

We are surprised and happy to hear the news that Barrack Obama has won the Democratic nomination in the US. Whether you like him or not it is a historic moment for America. Even the fact that the two top contenders for this nomination was a black man and a white woman was in it’s self historic, who knows maybe America is growing up. Unfortunately I don’t give him much of a chance against the Republicans, though. It will be an interesting race.

Here in Kenya you would think Obama was running for president of Kenya instead of the US. Everyday since he won there’s been front page news and many pages of stories about him in the papers. I've been thinking how people are going to be really disappointed when/if he becomes president because nothing will really change here. But when I talk about it with my Kenyan friends they tell me it’s mostly a pride thing, like JFK and the Irish. Although there is another component. Obama’s Kenyan tribe is called the Luo’s. And a myth since colonial times that Luo’s were unable to govern has marginalized them. That is until the most recent election here and now there is a Luo Prime Minister in Kenya and a Luo almost Pres of the US. So whether Mr Obama knows it or not he has done good for Kenya and Kenyans.