Obama inspires people across the world

Usually when I look out of my window I see playing fields and Wembley Stadium, but today the first thing I noticed was that the room opposite mine has a 'Yes We Can' poster.

I hadn't seen this until today but I have to say it's exiting when you see that people who are living thousands of miles from America, have been so inspired by the new President. I think this says a lot about him.

And now I am beginning to think that my blog should have been called something like "Obama's Girl in London" as I seem to write about him all the time.

Obama's 100 days

I was meant to write a blog on the day of Obama's inauguration, but to tell you the truth I spent most of the day plonked it front of the TV, watching the celebrations and waiting for his speech (wishing that I was there!)

His speech was absolutely spot on.

Prior to it, there was huge media speculation into what exactly he would say with bets being made as to how many times we would hear "Yes we can!" and "Change has come!".

Obama proved that these slogans were for the presidential campaign only.

No longer will there be cheesy slogans, it's time to get to work and you could tell he could not wait a minute longer.

Although I only remember two presidential elections in my lifetime, I really do believe that Obama will be different to any other president that has been in office.

He is polite and genuine, yet does not hesitate to get straight to the point.

Within a few minutes of his speech, he told the world that his way of working would be very different to that of the last administration.

Amnesty International has given Obama a 100 days to bring what is believes to be crucial changes to the United States of America.

To close Guantanamo Bay, end torture and ill-treatment, and to ensure an independent commission into US 'war on terror' abuses.

The U.S. has, since September 11th, justified human rights violations and has used forms of degrading treatments in Guantanamo, which has been completely unacceptable.

I believe it will take less than a 100 days for Obama to achieve what Amnesty has put forward.

After less than 48 hours in office, he signed to end interrogation and torture in Guantanamo.

He has so far proved that he means business and that he will not allow what George W. Bush did - a serious abuse of human rights.

"This is a race war...being waged against white people."

If you log on to http://www.kkk.bz/ there is an article worth reading titled The Disgrace of it All.

This is an article of hatred and warning by the Ku Klux Klan to the whites of America, that they have made the wrong decision in voting for a black man.

"...white people who foolishly rejected the future security of their children only heard the sound of the piper".

With only ten days until Barack Obama will become the 44th President of the United States, the Klan is urgently trying to convince whites that their children will not be safe whilst an African-American rules the country.

Whites will have to watch the news and see "little black children playing in the rose garden" and apparently this will be part of Obama's betrayal to whites in America.

It says that now is the opportunity for us to "begin the process of sticking together."

According to Klan statistics, 39% of white women and 41% of white men voted for Obama in the 2008 election.

The 'white Anglo-Saxon protestant' group is clearly angered by this.

They go on to argue that this was an election based on race:-

"This has not been a battle between Republicans or Democrats. This was not a battle between liberals and conservatives. This is a race war - a culture war - being waged against white people."

Why can't they understand that this was not an election based on race - this was White, Black, First Americans, Latinos and others, all rooting together for this exiting change in America.

The highest number of young people turned up to vote in this election because Obama managed to get them excited about politics.

The KKK website assures us that:-

"We are a legally recognized, white rights political organization working to promote western Christian civilization - This means LAW and ORDER! We do not offer gun training. We do not promote violence - EVER! We do not have secret rituals - EVER!"

This hatred it promotes towards Barack Obama is in my view urging whites to feel hostility and anger towards him and everyone that voted for him.

At the bottom of their main page it reads:-

"Have YOU considered what your children learn at school? Are they learning that homosexuality and lesbianism are cool? Are they learning that interracial dating and marriage is acceptable? Have they been told that the white race has been the scourge of the earth - destroying everything in its path?"

History speaks for itself and this homophobic -racist propaganda is in no way promoting peace and non-violence.

Barack Obama is willing to do what other African Americans have done before him.

It is no secret that he already has and will put his life in danger by becoming President of the United States.

It is a shame that these ignorant people will do anything to threaten the Obama presidency based purely on the colour of his skin.

Has the world gone mad...

BBC News Online has become, since starting my journalism course, part of a daily routine.

When a day goes by and I haven't actually been on the website, I feel deprived of the instant news that it provides.

Bit sad really, but it is the best way to keep updated on both local and international news.

There is always a story that saddens or surprises me but like most people, I read it and then click to see the next one.

If you go to the link below, you can take a look at one of the headlines in the Americas today.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7810192.stm

The reason it really caught my eye is because I have previously blogged on the issue of gun ownership in the US and am very certain of my views on this issue.

The story above briefly is that a 12-year-old boy in the state of Arizona shot and murdered his own mother, because she had asked him to do some household chores.

He had got the pistol from a bedroom cupboard and shot his mother eight times; it turns out that his mothers live-in boyfriend had taught the boy how to use a gun in self-defence.

A number of questions arise from this story.

Why did a 12-year-old need to know how to use a weapon? Why was there need for a weapon in the family home? Is there not a serious issue of concern when children are using guns to kill their own parents?

All I can say is roll on the Obama presidency...

Obama announces Guantanamo closure

Barack Obama has announced that he plans to close Guantanamo bay within two years of his presidency, and put an end to the use of torture.

After becoming Time magazines Person Of The Year, he told them that he wants to come to a balance between the "US security needs and the Constitution."

His views on Guantanamo have caused some criticism, particularly from the Bush administration who feel that methods of torture are justifiable when necessary.

Vice-president Dick Chaney is in favour of using water-boarding as a technique, even though Amnesty International have brought up serious issues of concern over the prison.

If Bush and his team were to stay in office, they would keep Guantanamo open until the war on terror is over.

Barack Obama has seen that this prison is a serious breach of human rights and that it is unsuccessful in tackling terrorism.

He will offer new ways in which to deal with the issue.

Although Mr Obama has yet become President of the United States, I am already anxious for him to start his first term in office.

I remain convinced that he will bring the change to America that is so desperately needed at this moment.

Time Magazine's Person of the Year

I have not blogged about Mr Obama for a few weeks now, mainly due to the fact that I felt that there wasn't much more to say until after the New Year when he will be become 44th president of the United States.

This will be a hugely exiting moment in history for the American people.

But today, Obama was voted by Time magazine as the Person of the Year.

The US magazine has praised Obama "for having the confidence to sketch an ambitious future in a gloomy hour".

Time has selected a Person of the Year since 1927. Although they choose from a man, woman or a group of people, they have said that Obama was inevitably going to be the favourite this year.

Obama's success has genuinely been visible in London. For me, he has given hope to black men that they can achieve anything that they want.

He will be by January 2009 one of the most powerful men in the world, proving to us all that anything is possible.

New era for the USA

I was pleasantly surprised in the late hours of Wednesday morning when it was announced that Barack Obama would become the new President of the United States. In fact I was ecstatic.

For once I was pleased that I had made a bad judgement. Although the polls were in favour of Obama, I still had my doubts as to when it came down to it, would people vote McCain over Obama.

I have to be honest, it was the 'race issue' that I thought would be the decider of the election.

My faith in the American people was close to nothing and I had expected that some would vote Republican rather than having to vote for an African-American.

Turns out that this was an incredibly bad judgment that not only I, but many others outside the U.S. had made.

It is clear that during this time of economic downfall, the people knew that Barack Obama could offer what McCain could not. The latter wanted to introduce tax-cuts which would have been of great benefit for rich America but not so great for the poor.

Obama has been clear from the start what his policies will be and why.

I believe that his promise to withdraw troops from Iraq and sort out the health care system as well as reaching out to the poor was what won him the election.

After seeing images across the news of all kinds of voters turning out in epic numbers, Obama has made history by becoming the first black president of the United States.

He is without doubt what the U.S. needs at this time of complete crisis, both economically and socially.

Increased gun control is urgent

Following the deaths of Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson's' mother, brother and nephew, I can't seem to wonder whether it's just me who's been thinking about this huge issue of gun crime in the States.

Of course rare incidents like these happen worldwide and often cannot be stopped but it seems to me that this has become far too common in American society.

A string of shootings have taken place over the last few years, but Hudson's case is one of the most recent and was most covered in the media.

Prior to this I believe it was the Virginia Tech shooting that received huge speculation worldwide and caused concern for parents and students in the U.S. for their safety.

When Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people at Virginia Tech using two semi-automatic handguns, the first thought that came to me was how did this person get access to these weapons.

It turned out that he was sold them at a local store on two separate occasions. The law in Virginia states that those with mental illnesses are prohibited from buying guns.

Pro-guns activists argued that if the other university students had been allowed weapons on campus, they would have been able to protect themselves and others from the killer.

As a student myself, I can comfortably say that I would feel much safer on campus knowing that nobody had been able to buy weapons legally rather than knowing that everyone around me had them.

These pro-guns Americans are living in the past and need to realise that the need for carrying a weapon is not a fair argument anymore. With students, families and young children being killed far too often, this should be enough to make them realise that something needs to be done.

We will find out in around ten hours who will become 44th President of the United States. Those in favour of gun-control can be confident that Obama will tackle this issue without sitting on the fence.

He attended the memorial service last week for Jennifer Hudson's family, who had supported him throughout his campaign. Let's hope the Americans make the right decision because at this moment in time, tightening gun laws will be one of his priorities.