If Oprah gives Barak Obama her imprimatur that's good enough for me.

Let's hope the American public has more sense than to vote for someone recommended by Oprah! The mind boggles when one thinks of the possibility of the American commander-in-Chief being someone who spent four years at a madrassa in Indonesia, probably funded by Saudi Arabia which espouses Wahhabi fundamentalism, with non-Muslims having no rights.
Mr Obama no doubt found it expedient to be a "Christian" in America. He attends a church but is not a regular attender. That of course may be due to the fact that as a Senator he moves around quite a lot. It would be interesting to know if he attends other churches at those times and if he has a genuine Christian commitment.
He is pro-choice which puts him in Hilary Clinton's camp, but will be a negative factor with a lot of voters. He has a number of questions to answer.

Fairgo?! now theres a contradiction in terms.....i suggest you get a new pseudonym!

I for one would much rather see President Obama than President H. Clinton! For the record Fairgo, Obama spent his years growing up between Boston, Hawaii, Africa and Indonesia. He's about as fundamentalist as you and I- lately known for getting irritated with reporters for snapping him in board shorts and nothing else.

He's perhaps the best hope America has of quelling some of the hatred that the third world espouses for the U.S (rightly or wrongly)

Fairgo. Evidently you see his time in Indonesia as a negative - some kind of taint.
I see it as the exact opposite. The mistakes made by the current administration have often been due to a lack of understanding - of trying to apply simple solutions to complex problems.
Perhaps the fact that Obama has spent some time overseas, living amongst different people will mean he has a stronger understanding of a wider range of people.
Put simply, Obama is a worldly individual - I personally don't believe this can be said of Bush. On a personal level, I suspect his understanding of other cultures is somewhat lacking.

I can't help but wonder what exactly would be the problem with Obama spending time in Indonesia and having experience of the Islam faith.
It isn't as if he would be able to proselytise the American public, and if he tried to make decisions along those lines he would be castigated with a vengeance. What exactly is the issue? Can you actually see him trying to institute wahabbism in America?

I would love nothing more than to see Obama in the white house, though I doubt it will happen... He's perceived as inexperienced. That is what will cost him.
I just hope Clinton takes him on as Vice President. Now there'd be an interesting combination.

Perhaps it would be preferable if Obama ran for Indonesian presidency, it appears he would be just as suitable as the next.
But the Americans are so used to voting for who ever has the prettiest face, that nothing would surprise me. "If Oprah says so, so must it be"

It's of no consequence, Hillary will be the next prez.

Fairgo you might consider some of the things Obama mentions in The Audacity of Hope (I know it's highly unfashionable but this guy actually has some nous). Or his responses during interviews on US TV.

Unfortunately Mickijo is probably right regards American voters. The whole friggin' nation has ADD.

there seems to be some thing of a fuss over the prospect of young Osama's possible ascension to higher office - it may happen - remember this is the country that gave us R Reagan and G W Bush - you gotta aks yo'sef does it really matter who is president when many of the decisions seem to happen well away from the Oval Office

" ... Evidently you see his time in Indonesia as a negative - some kind of taint. I see it as the exact opposite. The mistakes made by the current administration have often been due to a lack of understanding. ... "

Indeed!
I to see *Obama's* time in Indo as a BIG +.
..
I spend most of my time in Indo & believe that my understanding of the staunch Muslims with whom I live has deepened a bit over a period of 9mths. Additionally, my tolerance 2wards difference may have expanded a tad also and my overall sense of HOPE increases when viewing a candidate such as *Obama*
..
Contrast this 2 cashed up *Hillary* who mayhaps b just a stereotypical american candidate thrown 2 the top of the heap by the established artisans of american style $ democracy.
..
My view is that America requires something new - a LEADER with genuine "Humane Compassion," for if all they ever go on about is the death & hardship of their own, then packing a "Benevolent Heart" they are not.
..
In response to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of babies in Iraq, the clinton sec of state said something like:
" ... We think the price is worth it. ... "
& in response to the U235Enrichment.Waste.Munitions. issue said something like:
" ... Well that is what U get! ... "
..
There needs 2 b some additional levels of definition applied 2 the *Hillary* character, I believe, as it would appear 2 me that some of her supporters do not have the best interests of *Humanity* as a whole @ Heart.
..
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2165470.ece
The battle to save Iraq's children

: ... They are backed by a group of international lawyers, who say the conditions in hospitals revealed in their letter amount to a breach of the Geneva conventions that require Britain and the US as occupying forces to protect human life. ... "

This guy has two fatal flaws;

(1)He epitomises the San Francisco school of far left"small L" liberal Democrats,who float on Cloud 9 in Cuckoo Land and have the realpolitik maturity of a five year old.
What this school is good at is populist catchphrases which realistically have no chance of ever succeeding.
Trust me-my cousin is one and hasnt a clue.

(2) He may still be a Moslem,even though he professes to have Christian beliefs.
Knowing how the Yanks and most of the Western world fell about Moslems,this is like suggesting that the Pope should be the next King of Saudi Arabia.
.

Comeone guys-get real!

Barack Obama is further proof of America media creating news. Obama has been pressured from day one to enter this Pre-election news fest promoted by the American media to fill the dead space between events in Iraq and bashing GW on his way out the presidential door. The American media now has the next election up and running a year and more before the contestants who may run are actually prepared to commit to the expense and effort necessary to be a viable contender.
Those who were complaining about GW's election numbers best hang on to something. If the number of Democrats who have officially stated today that they are running remain. Their electorial numbers are going to be low indeed. The next President of the U.S.A. may only represent an even smaller percentage of the popular vote.
I doubt Kerry and Clinton are going to go away. And that's not even speaking of the Republic side of events.

mik, I don't know who you're comparing Barrack Obama to, but here are a couple of classic quotes from the current resident of the Oval Office:

"I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma because there is -- my point is, there's a strong will for democracy."

"And truth of the matter is, a lot of reports in Washington are never read by anybody. To show you how important this one is, I read it, and our guest read it."

"This business about graceful exit just simply has no realism to it at all."

Much, much more is available at http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/blbushisms.htm . Bush would seem to be a speaker who cannot even deliver a cliche without muddling it up.

Regarding your second point, perhaps you might get back to us if you find a shred of evidence that Obama is a Muslim fifth columnist. "Get real" indeed.

Finally, I must take exception to your exhortation to "comeone guys". What do you think we are, deviated preverts?

Young non-Caucasian handsome male-should one speak out more of American inspiration with things beautiful?

I'm curious as to what his position on Israel would be?

Also- you say he attends church but he went to a madrassah school (what age did he do that btw?)... so which is he? Christian with Muslim heritage? Or Muslim, attending church (because American churches have become so watered down, and Muslims believe Jesus is a prophet anyway)?

Its possible his name could actually help with relations with Muslim countries, but then if the Muslim countries find out that he "smoked pot and drunk" in his younger years, they might just see him as worse than an infidel- an apostate- and that would make matters worse.

I love his views on race- there is only one united states of america- and the idea that "positive discrimination" should be based on socioeconomic status, not race. Love his views on universal healthcare. Am really disappointed about his voting against the trade agreement that would help poor countries out of poverty.

Are you people serious?

Barack Obama represents the racism present in America.

Think about it.

That this man, simply because of his colour, is guaranteed, as all the electoral experts in the U.S agree, the BLACK vote, is nothing less than extreme racism.

In my opinion, this is mabye worse than a nuclear bomb going off.

It brings back the ugly days of the OJ Simpson trial, where blacks, although most knew he was guilty as hell, supported him because he's a "brother".

Outrageous.

Why are ethnic minorities like this? Why are they stackable, like how it is for Muslims here? Where they all vote ALP because they're mafia boss, the oliveneck (not redneck) Sheik Hilali, tells them to?

OJ's lawyer Johnny Cochrane, a black racist, is behind wanting to get reparations for the descendents of slaves.

Do the descendents of convicts get to sue England because we were transported across the planet? Of course not, we just play them in cricket and laugh it off.

How many blacks know that the U.S, and Britain, were the two nations to STOP slavery, a practice common the whole world over, that they forced Arab and African nations to stop it.

How many know that the western world comprised 2% of all slave trade, with the rest mostly Muslim Arab states doing it?

Barack Obama represents an ugly side to America, of race politics. I wouldn't be surprised (as he looks very sly, as opposed to the openess of Condoleeza Rice or Colin Powell) if he was even in the redneck movement the BLACK PANTHERS, a black supremacist group, which is insanely bizarre when you think about it.

As I’d already noticed in this forum, I feel your posts provocative rather than stupid, Benjamin.

”Ethnic minorities are like this” because Anglo-majority in Australia does not allow them work somewhere not in cleaning if those lucky at all employed are

Barack Obama - a man to inspire America? Let's hope so. The hardened side of me says, as the article suggests, that a man of Obama's character will be charred and trampled by the attack campaigns that go with politics. But that little optimistic vein somewhere in me hopes that Americans will choose substance over pretence - and that Obama is a case of the former.

Obama [is it pronounced to rhyme with Osama?] certainly has a background that would make for a more broad-minded and broad-visioned head of state, which the rest of the world would surely hope for at the helm of the most powerful nation. From what I have seen of the others announcing their intention to run for the office, Obama is the one to barrack for. (That was bad, I know. He won't want me on his campaign committee.)

The really big worry is that the Democrats will retreat into an isolated state.That will spell instability for the Middle East and thus the supply of oil to the rest of the world will be threatened.

Stability must come to Iraq,because the consequences of chaos spreading to the rest of the Middle East,are too dire to contemplate.Barak Obama in my opinion will be a disaster.Someone has to have the balls to clean up Iraq and it won't be the Democrats.

TurnRightThenLeft,
The only postive post here. Reality is the problem, I of course speak of my reality.
In the USA money makes one president, in this Clinton is probably a shoe-in as prospective Dem. candidate.
Obama, his name is a disaster in gaining votes in a USA so scared of anything vaguely Moslem. Even if the "sky is falling" without a concilitary approach we are nowhere. His understanding is needed, I hope he's not mufti mole?

A small step for mankind is appropriate and your idea of him becoming a running mate to Clinton is just that "appropriate" for this time and place. What power, influence or other, can he wield? who is vice President today?
The tort is, to be elected he must be at least christian, if he is to take his place and do Condelisa Rice out of the job of taming international relations, is not being a convert from Islam to get fatwa passed on you by someone?
fluff

We would have to change a lot to see that all happen, being an optimist is not enough

Obama has as much chances as Liberman had got because a former pupil of a Muslim school in Jakarta is equally unelectable in a country leading anti-islamist resistance.

Lets get over the bull/s about Barack going to such a school.
He went to a private CHRISTIAN school in Indonesia.
catch up fellow posters.
What a democracy is USA allowing such rubish to be circulated for political ends.
fluff

So, an American-born Muslim attended a private CHRISTIAN school in Jakarta.

Well, let one tell it to American newspapers providing recently some more updates on Indonesia evenryally (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4387604.stm) .

Yeah, I know BBC is a British news agency.

" Three Indonesian girls beheaded
By Tim Johnston
BBC News, Jakarta


Three girls have been beheaded and another badly injured as they walked to a Christian school in Indonesia.

They were walking through a cocoa plantation near the city of Poso in central Sulawesi province when they were attacked.

This is an area that has a long history of religious violence between Muslims and Christians.

A government-brokered truce has only partially succeeded in reducing the number of incidents in recent years.

Police say the heads were found some distance from the bodies.

It is unclear what was behind the attack, but the girls attended a private Christian school and one of the heads was left outside a church leading to speculation that it might have had a religious motive. ..."



"