Barak Obama's success has stimulated conversation on board Cleone as much
as anywhere else.
But unlike most places, we've a resident (and captive) expert to talk us
through the subtleties of American Politics and of American Life itself.
As well as politics, we have also taken time out to deal with other, perhaps
more important, aspects of US culture. The Rules (such as they are) of
American Football are no longer a mystery to us, but sad to report, try as we
might, Alex will never understand cricket, let alone Rugby.
We
have touched on Cycling (come clean, Lance, we know all about you) and Baseball
(do you know the difference between a curved ball and seam bowling?), and the
difference between Ivy League and non-Ivy League and the Ozarks (separate
subject; we now know that they are a mysterious part of Missouri and Arkansas
(and why is it pronounced 'Arkansaw' when it's spelt 'Arkansas'?). I
am now only kidding when I question Alex which letter of the alphabet is 'zee',
and I almost know the difference between a Senator and a Congressman.
Believe me, this is a hot-house of learning and we've not just concentrated on
the short-comings of Bill from Arkansas (remember Monica?) or how many Americans
did not vote for George Dubya. (I mean, have you ever met an American who
did vote for Dubya, let alone admit to it?). I won't go into
details of our most important specialist subject. Suffice it to say
that the Skipper's written thesis will be on the subject of
Cheerleaders, focusing on why the Dallas Cowboys' Troupe are the best, and
Norfy's will be a historical one on the Use of Pigskin in the Manufacture of the
American Football (yes, this will be a particularly succinct, but no doubt
very exciting piece of work).
Putting all this aside, unlike the crew of Cleone, the BBC World Service,
which fades in and out as we listen and has a satisfyingly old fashioned dose of
static, has talked about little else since Obama's victory. It is
obviously a very exciting time for America and thus for the rest of
us. It is no surprise that MaCain (and if the spelling is wrong,
then Ask Alex) never came near being elected. He's too old
(believe me, ageism is rampant in UK, too), and since when did retired (or not
so retired) generals (after Ike) make good political leaders in the
modern world?
After the short-comings of the current Administration, Obama
represents the great hope (no, I can't use the traditional adjective) for the
future. As well as trying to repair America's tarnished image
abroad, he will have a lot of house-keeping to do, and no doubt he will
introduce some exciting new policies. None of these will affect us at
the moment as we worry about the weather in the middle of the Indian
Ocean. But it would be nice if, at the end of it, Americans could
refer to themselves as just Americans (or United Statesians - the
Canadians, Mexicans, Cubans etc seem to think they are some kind
of Americans as well), rather than carrying a pre-defining handle.
Mind you, us Britons are just as bad - the Skipper think's he's an Indo-Scotsman
married to a Cornishwoman, and, tha knows, Norfy's a Yorkshireman.
No wind this morning, so we are motoring in an awkward leftover swell and
trying to fathom out the current. We are still pondering Bruce's
forecast. The first spell of bad weather ahead should slide northwards in
front of us, but the second needs either to speed up or slow down, or at our
present rate we will go straight through it as we approach Richards
Bay.
All is well with us, and
best wishes to everyone. And sincere good luck to President Barak Obama as
well.
James, Norfy (Chris) and Alex
Yacht Cleone
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