Election Views for the South

So Barack Obama is the next President of the United States. Ecuador is a little worried about this, but this is a little strange since Obama is relatively popular here. I guess it more accurate to say that Obama is popular and folks down here really want to like him, but they just don´t always know why. Ecuadorians have several rather odd concerns about an Obama administration that they like to talk about incessantly.

1) He is Black. Ecuadorians like Obama, but are a little concerned about him being black. When you really push, a few people will mention issues like race relations in the US, but none of them have any really understanding of what that means. In truth, their concern about race is mostly a reflections of the lingering racial issues here in Ecuador between indigenous groups, Latinos, and decedents of escaped slaves from the Caribbean.
2) He is a Muslim. Ecuadorians are really hung up on this issue. Numerous Ecuadorians tell me how shocked they are that America would let a Muslim run for the Presidency. Then I have to explain that he is Protestant, not Muslim. All that earns me is a blank look and then a wink and a nod. Then they launch right back into the Muslim thing. Somehow I am missing the joke.
3) The Neo-Nazi Assassination Plot. Seriously, Ecuadorians are really concerned about this. The papers down here have run several articles about various neo-nazi groups that are all arming against Obama.
4) The New Great Depression that is Destroying America. Ecuadorians seems to be really interested in the Great Depression and seem to think that they US has toppled over the abyss and finds itself right back in 1929. They average Ecuadorian doesn`t really know what caused the Depression or much about the US economic woes currently, but they are convinced that the US is on the verge of bankruptcy.

In the end, Ecuadorians are worried about stability. As one Ecuadorian mentioned to me, "When the US has problems, they rest of the world has them too." Most Ecuadorians that I speak with about politics just want a stable America.

As for Drew and I, we joined the ranks of expats and a smattering of Europeans who watched the election coverage from a small BBQ joint here in Quito. The beer was cheap, the cheers and boos were loud, and we got the distinct pleasure of explaining the Electoral College system over and over again.