History

Is this how it felt to be a young American in 1960?

I don't believe one politician can make a difference. I believe in the power of belief - that if enough people believe in a leader, they make the difference. I believe that we might be about to see that difference.

Most of history is a process. It's rare to be able to point to a day and say, "This is history happening now". When it happens, it's usually bad. I remember the Great Storm of 1987. I remember September 11 2001. I remember July 7 2005 - I was in London that day. I will remember November 5 2008, for far more pleasant reasons.

Forty years is not a long time. Forty years ago my parents were old enough to have been married a year. Forty years ago Martin Luther King was assassinated for his dream. Forty years later, America elects an African-American President, and around the world people rejoice. Where will we be in forty years' time?

I'm sad and angry about Proposition 8, and all the other less publicised attacks on the ability of humans to live and love as other humans do. But most of all, I'm still crying tears of joy, as I did at half past five this morning when I crawled out of bed and turned the television on, to hear John McCain's generosity in defeat, and slowly realise that the impossible had happened. Thank you, America.