May contain traces of... NUTS.

The other day, keyed up with the US elections, James brazenly told his boss he won't be reporting to work til he knows for sure who won while I made sure we have enough stock of Swedish crisps and a big box of Vaniljdrör (cookies) to keep us munching and wide awake throughout the overnight election coverage.

But today, all that excitement has withered only Gloom and a sense of Foreboding permeate through the walls of the Jennings household. Kerry finally delivered his graceful concession speech after a wrestle at the presidential polls. Such a blowing defeat. James and I are finding it very difficult to cope. America has spoken... and we are astounded by the idiocy of this great world super power.

It begs the question who is the bigger imbecile, the idiot president who uses the rhetoric GUNs, GAYs & GOD as his platform, or the greater collective who chose this arseclown to lead their country into the " right way ". Quite a number of political pundits have already expressed that what tipped the votes to Bush is his ' impeccable moral values'. Fact is, the biggest chunk of voters, the top 22%, have put on their discerning morality goggles inside the polling booths and voted according to what they think God told them .

So you are an American redneck. You believe that those damn " faggots " shouldn't be allowed to marry in your neighbourhood because it offends your god, and women should not have the right to their own bodies... So what do you do? You choose a president with morals of an alley cat, who have sent thousands upon thousands of your own citizens to their deaths (and will continue to do so), to a war that cannot be justified other than they are the " axis of evil "? Is it just me or there s something terribly perverse here??? In the first place, since when did morality became just ONE fundamentalist religious dogma? This narrow mindset resonates Pastor Richards from GTA-Vice City, " Morality is what I say is right, and immorality is what I say is wrong!" And you'd think this only happens in video games! Please, there's more to the Bible than ' Hate Gays', 'Abortion is Murder' and 'Vote the self appointed servant of God, Bush' . If you think doing these divine works will save your soul, go buy yourself some common sense and maybe you can get some discount on a real conscience too!

Okay, before those bible bashers raise all sorts of inferno and crucify my impudent lil heretic ass, I would just like to point out that I was raised as a Catholic. I still do not believe in abortion, but I do believe that women should be given the choice. Let them be accountable to their own faith, to their own God, if they believe in one. Unfortunately, that's democracy and freedom for you. But going to war, and forcing troops to plunge to their deaths or to slaughter even more people in another country (lest they face court martial) ...where is the freedom of choice here??? And the Iraqi people, do they have a say in all these? How about social justice? Have those 57 million Bush voters just conveniently forgotten about that?

Some people might say I'm going overboard and sticking my nose where it shouldn't be. After all, this is an American election--- which isn't just about foreign policy, rather its also about healthcare, tax, economy, or whatever domestic issue that have little or no impact on the rest of the world. Unfortunately, that view is not short of delirium. Far from it, the world we have today is a globalised, interconnected place. The USA is not exactly some obscure, redneck speck on the world map. They are a superpower that have a decisive input on organisations such as G8 and United Nations. They have been an influential key player in the peace process in the Middle East. They have instigated 2 major wars in the recent years. It is through their backing that bully states like Israel continue to exist unchallenged despite their illegitimate occupation of another country. The US retain the biggest, most advanced navy in the world, with military satellite bases far and wide, esp across Asia. The USA is a SUPERPOWER. And whoever will lead this country will have major clout on key international policies affecting the world order. This is about billions of lives, and not just those residing within US. Besides, its not as if Bush had an impressive mark on the world so far. If Americans still think that foreigners should keep their limey hands off their electoral politics, then they should first tell their president to keep his covetous hands off the world !

A New Zealander friend have texted this message while he was in South Africa yesterday: " Cape town is crawling with yanks and I'm finding it very hard not ask leading questions on politics and then respond with overwhelming force if any pro-Bush sentiments are uttered. Signs here saying Beware of the 'baboons' suddenly have a new irony. Fuckers."

Of course this is just intended to be a pun. I, for one, will try my up most not to be judgemental to every American who will share my breathing space... but c'mon, 57 million idiots is not just a handful minority. I guess the simplest way of going about it is asking every American I meet who they voted before shaking their hands. And if its that bastard-you-know-who, then I'll make sure I express my gratitude:

"Thank you for electing the most powerful thug on earth while you get yourselves a fat tax break Thank you for legitimising the murder of thousands of Iraqis and an All-American imperialistic aggression on the rest of the world just so you can have your false sense of national security. Thank you, FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY OUTSTRETCHED MIDDLE FINGER. Thank you! "