U.S. Election! Trinidad Election!
August 19, 2000
By Joey Clarke
First of all, I think George W. Bush will be the next US president. I'm taking no bets though, and it really doesn't matter so much to me.
Whether it's a reformed alcoholic (and cokehead?) who next takes his family
into that inimitable famous house, or an all-believing, well-educated WT
from South US, it won't pave or unpave my Savannah.
Personally, having had issues with the ingestion of chemicals, I respect
George W. Bush's forthcoming approach: it happened, it's done. He's not
going to talk about it any more. That does take some maturity. Some
character. But to me, living on a relatively small and obscure landmass
among just one-point-something million others, I can't say I care whether he or Al Gore becomes the next international bigshot. It doesn't matter who
shakes hands with and forgets whoever happens to be our country's relatively small and obscure bigshot next year.
Al Gore seems a decent enough man, as white US politicians go. And he's what we call "a good politician". In other words, when he speaks, he usually says what a decent enough man would say when his livelihood depends on the opinions and prejudices of 300+ million folks of every stripe. I can't say I'd expect to enjoy liming with Al Gore though. And I'll bet George W. Bush can "gas it up" (or as we say, "ole talk") with the best of them. I doubt whether I'll ever lime with a US President. But that's not why it doesn't matter to me if Al Gore beats him at the poll.
Not so long ago, watching (US) tv, I saw a (white) comedian give the
following: "Bush and Gore? That doesn't sound like an election - it sounds
like a snuff film!" That showed me something: the US election is a joke -
even to those whose lives are supposed to be affected most by it.
But again: how much will their lives really be affected? Would either of
these gentlemen abolish the internet or legalize marijuana? Would G.W. Bush
sooner revise the Clintonian fiscal policy (whatever that is) sooner than Al Gore? Or suddenly embark on violence with China? CHINA!??
Here in the Caribbean, I can appreciate George W. Bush's blue-collar ways,
and his simple enthusiasm, even if they are at least partly a political
pose. And, while I despised his father as president, George senior seems now more like this rather sincere older guy, with some antiquated notions, and a great lady for a wife. I'd lime with the Bushes any time, if they'd have me.
For a Caribbean person, that's saying something.
When Clinton first came along, I, like a lot of us, loved him: what a
regular guy! what young, liberal policies! Unfortunately, as president, he
turned out to be the thing Caribbeans despise most: no pedigree, no manners, no moral courage, and worst of all, he got caught! All this with a classic bitch for a wife. No way could a man that comes off the way Al Gore does really be anything like him! Or ... could he?
But it doesn't really matter. The US President has nothing like the power
wielded by our Caribbean potentates, even if he does have a hand on the
world's strongest economy, most pervasive culture, and most daunting army.
Whichever guy wins, the US congress is not about to depart from the forms
and norms that have been working for twenty years. We may be seeing less
than formerly of what is called "aid" (read: bucks for local pols and their
pals), and the world has been shown a lot of American ugly: murderous
teenagers, abysmal disrespect for women, racism of such depth we despair of
removing it, and more. But don't kid yourself that the US presidential
election holds more change for us than a new photograph in Miami airport.
The only thing is that we also have an election here, coming soon, from all
accounts. Whatever happens with that, will anything of importance change?
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