Foreign perceptions

Before we left America, we were advised by many friends to say we were "Canadian" when asked of our nationality. This is advice that we have, quite purposely, refused to take. We recognized that we would be faced with much criticism of our government abroad, but we also felt (and still feel) that people needed to meet and talk to real Americans - NOT American politicians. And we wanted to talk to foreigners about their countries, our country, and learn about their perceptions of America. This is what we have found.....

America is a massive force in the world, a super power that many countries look to for advice, leadership, and support. Because of this, what happens in America massively affects other countries. I think everyone reading our blog knows this, although not all Americans acknowledge this important fact. Perhaps some of you will be surprised to learn that almost every newspaper, in every country we have been to, runs 1-3 pages of coverage on OUR presidential election on a daily basis. People are not just remotely interested in what happens with our elections, they strike me as more interested and better educated than most complacent Americans!

Foreigners are basically fed up with and disgusted by our current foreign policies. Now, many Americans (half??) may argue the "who cares?" point. "It isn't their country, it's not their economy, it isn't their security under threat" right? Wrong. Points like this are naive at best because of how heavily America influences foreign politics and, thus, the livelihood of billions of people outside of our country. We need to elect a wise and knowledgeable leader. Someone who truly understands the importance of good foreign policy and the value of global diversity. And, without fail, every foreigner we have talked to (and in almost 11 months of travel you can imagine how many people we've talked to) believes that Barack Obama is this man. An Indonesian man once told us that electing Obama would be America's way of telling the rest of the world that we recognize our recent mistakes in foreign policy. Electing Obama would be a way of telling the world that we are now willing, as a nation, to try and better our relationship with other countries through diplomacy. Alienating the rest of the world only puts America at greater risk. Electing a well-educated, wise person that the world deems worthy of the American presidency would be the first step in decreasing this dangerous feeling of alienation.

Here is something else we have been quite frustrated and sad to learn. Foreigners judge American people and our country by the people we elect. I think quoting a Belgian woman I became friends with sums these thoughts up well. We were talking about places we have been travelling in and all the millions of places we still wanted to visit. She told me she had no desire to come to America. Fair enough because Jay and I don't have a huge desire to travel around some parts of Europe. But when I asked her why, her response was depressing at best. She said "because of the people." *sigh* After gulping down my sadness, I proceeded to tell her that it was true - there were a lot of close-minded, uneducated, and/or selfish people in our country who vote on ridiculous principles that have no place in politics (I also realize that you can find people like this in every country, but America seems to have more than our share). But then I launched into a long narrative about how WONDERFUL people can be in our country, how selfless, how giving, how smart (education doesn't have to mean a degree, but it has to mean interest in the nation and world). I understand how easy it can be to judge a country and its people by the politicians we elect, and she admitted this was her reasoning behind her statement. So I also took the opportunity to remind her that half of Americans did not vote for G.W. Bush, a point that she obviously knew...but an easy one to overlook in these times.

Many of the people we meet while we travel seem to think that clearly Americans will vote for Obama and he will win. As they see it, every American they meet on the road is an Obama fan, so obviously all Americans like Obama and he will win. Jay and I both collectively sigh at this type of statement while we proceed to bring the poor traveller back to the reality that is the great divide of America. We explain that most shoestring travellers are liberal folks, no statistical analysis necessary. The majority of the people who vote for conservatives either do not travel (only 21% of Americans have passports!!), or they travel in more extravagant ways that keep them in a safe bubbles (resorts, although super nice, are a lot like America) while in more exotic countries. Another major problem with America, we explain, is that we have a large number of uneducated people voting based on their military, social, or religious beliefs, when what we need is an educated population basing their votes on the needs of the nation and ultimately the world.

Finally - enough rambling from me - I will leave you with one final point. We, like most Americans at home, cannot escape the American election in the news in ANY country we visit. For example, just the other week we read a full page article in the Bangkok Post on Sarah Palin's lack of environmental awareness. Although I would only vote for a leader with the wisdom and experience I see in Barack Obama, I have (until recently) always felt that McCain would at least be better than G.W. Bush and that McCain had more to him that this brash new breed of Republicans. I do not think this of him anymore, not since he selected Sarah Palin as his running mate. Now Jay and I (somewhat sadly) have lumped McCain in with the rest of this new conservative class as unworthy of our respect and certainly our vote. I do not need to go into all the reasons why I am disgusted with Americans for gushing over Sarah Palin, this should be obvious to anyone who can read and do simple math. But I have to at least say this - her complete lack of credentials and experience are yet one more embarrassment that Jay and I will have to face as we continue on our travels. I love my country and I love many Americans, but I have not been proud of my country for many years. We come home on election day and I sincerely hope that I am finally given something to be proud about.