A view from Europe, that became a speech while writing it down.
This year, I am facing 2 elections that affect my person.
The first is on November 28th where we Austrians vote for our new governement because our existing government simply quit (and this happened not for the first time). They again stopped working together and during the time they worked together they where not able to change anything into positive. So now we officially do not have a government and as we had it they did not work for our country.
The second one is on November 4th where the United States of America vote for their next president. Let me tell you the big difference on these elections:
In Austria we vote for or against political parties that act in the exact same way. They promise everything, but we already know that there will be no change. They will not keep their promise. There will be no change after the election. They don't even care what the people want. I think we are one of very few countries in the world where it happened that the winning party did not build the government because the 2nd and the 3rd placed party formed an alliance led by the 3rd placed party. This is how people are treated here. No wonder that people do no longer believe in our politics are in this country. That is the sad truth. So I do not have any idea whom to vote on this election. In any case they will do what they want, and there will me no change at all.
Now lets have a look at the second election. I am affected by this because this is not just an election that takes place somewhere in the US. This election will set the furure also for the world. Everyone is looking at you and hopes that you decide to vote for a future that is based on working together as one world. And I am affected becaue I am married to a US citizen. We live here in Austria right now and we discover more and more how hopeless the people are here compared to the US.
YOU can make a difference. You have the chance to vote for change. No matter if you are democrats, republicans or independents. You have a chance that we do not have. You can use this election to vote for your nation. You can vote for change and you can vote for hope. You can work on a future that people over here no longer believe in. We have universal healthcare for everyone. This is something that you have the chance to vote for now. We have a lot of things that makes life a bit easier than it maybe is for you in the US. But we have lost a very important thing. We have lost HOPE and the power to fight for change. People here simply gave up their hopes.
And this is the big difference between these elections. If I could choose I would immediately give up my Austrian citizenship and become a US citizen to vote for this change, to work for this change and to hope again.
This is why we are planning to move to the US, to live there and to use our power and our abillity to work hard to be a part of this change. Sure we will face tough times also in the US and we will have to work hard. But I rather work hard for a future that I can influence than live in a country where my efforts end up nowhere.
I am insipred by Obama and his vision. I believe that if all people work together, change will happen. I am willing to do all I can to make this change happen. You have now the chance to vote for change and hope, and I pray to God that you will. It may take time until I can say I am American. It may take time until I am able to vote in the US. I am not able to vote this time and maye I will be not able to vote in 4 years. But I can, as soon as I am in the US, work for and support Obama to make this change happen. I can and will be a part of the USA and I will be proud of it. I will have my hopes again and I will work hard to make them become truth. With all of you and as a part of your Nation.
Take the chance you have now to vote for change. Act as the world expects you to act. Act as a Nation, willing to become again what people all over the world expect you to be: an strong an leading nation with a vision and the UNITED States of America.