We are stunned.
We are amazed.
We are deeply, incredibly proud.
We are also hungover.
But enough about us. Have you ever seen a brand do a complete one-eighty faster than America's did last night?
Let's hear what the world – remember them, all those people who hated us yesterday? – has to say:
"Your victory has demonstrated that no person anywhere in the world
should not dare to dream of wanting to change the world for a better
place."
– Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first black president.
—
"This is the fall of the Berlin Wall times ten. America is rebecoming a
New World. … On this morning, we all want to be American so we can
take a bite of this dream unfolding before our eyes."
– Rama Yade,
France's black junior minister for human rights
—
"It's the beginning of a different era in the U.S. The United States is
a country to dream about, and for us black Brazilians, it is even
easier to do so now."
– Emmanuel Miranda, a 53-year-old police officer
in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
—
"No doubt that Obama will be better for the Americans and the whole
world, and being elected after the horrible policy of George Bush is
enough by itself. Whatever change he can bring to the world after this
catastrophic polices would be great."
– Hisham Abu Amer, 28, in the
West Bank town of Ramallah.
—
"Today, reality in America has superseded fantasy. … Americans have
struck a deadly blow to racism all over the world. Americans have
regained themselves and have regained the American dream. The picture
of the U.S. that was disfigured by the Republicans in the past eight
years fell from the wall today. The picture of the America we had in
our minds has taken its place."
– Prominent Saudi columnist Dawood
al-Shirian.
And our favorite:
"If it were possible for me to get to the United States on my bicycle,
I would."
– Joseph Ochieng, a 36-year-old carpenter who celebrated in
Nairobi's Kibera shantytown, one of Africa's largest slums.
Before yesterday, the only way a lot of these folks would have waved an American flag is if it were on fire. But that was before yesterday.
For a pretty neat snapshot of national and world opinion on this thing, check out this gallery of headlines we put together for you. Naturally, The Onion takes the prize.
Quotes from the AP via The Daily Dish.
