As we look back on a year fraught with uncertainty, it becomes increasingly clear that one event of 2008 held the attention of the free world more than any other. I am referring of course to that contest that gauges the world’s political leanings, provides controversy and disappointment to many, and will soon be bringing us a new leader. Can you guess what I’m talking about?

Joking aside, it is of course the U.S. election (although I’m fairly sure Obama could beat McCain in a singing contest any day; poor John only knows the words to one song, and not many people like it).

As a resident of the politically-irrelevant backwater that is the United Kingdom, I took a borderline-obsessive interest in the election. Was that because of the wide-ranging socio-economic effects of the result on the British economy and foreign policy? No, it’s because it was ten times more interesting than the pathetic excuses for elections that we get in this country. Really; everyone always knows who’s going to win a British election, the candidates tend to suffer from a chronic lack of charisma, and there’s about as much chance of Cameron or Brown doing this as there is of the next series of Strictly Come Dancing being hosted by Russell Brand. (And there, my friends, is cheap shot number one of this blog). So, gripped by election fever, I prepared myself in the American way (Budweiser in one hand, hot dog in the other, waving a NASCAR flag using my knees), turned the TV to any news channel that wasn’t Fox News, and began to fervently embed myself in the typical Democratic anxiety that Obama was going to throw it away at the last minute.

Somehow this didn’t happen, and the young and progressive Obama defeated the two-hundred year old oven chip namesake McCain. I immediately erupted into cheers of joy, mainly because I would never have to mention Palin again (and, accordingly, I won’t…). More importantly, the world was spun into a frenzy as the reality of the impending change dawned upon it. The press has been commenting non-stop on every aspect of Barack’s life, from crucial issues to pointless trivia.

And so, it is merely nineteen days until that glorious moment when the current establishment (and that’s cheap shot number two) departs and Barack begins his long-awaited reign. Will Obama deliver the change he has so often promised? Will he manage to navigate a global superpower through a time of financial crisis? Can he successfully pull off a less aggressive foreign policy? The answers to none of those questions will be found in the pages of this blog as we count down to the big day. Get learning the words.