The Historical Meaning of the 2008 Election

Let’s be clear on this. The 2008 election is an absolutely historical election for both American and World History.

To realize the epochal significance of this election, we just need to pay attention to the possible outcomes and their historical significance.

If Obama wins the election, he will become the first black president of the United States.

If Mc Cain wins, he will be the first Latin American to become president of the United States (There are some technicalities here regarding the status of the Panama channel before the transference of sovereignty, but Latinos are already claiming Mc Cain for them)

If Mc Cain wins and dies, the first female president of the US will be Sarah Palin.

If Obama wins and dies, Joe Biden will become the first person crushed in a primary who will actually become president of the United States.

In this way, not only the historical meaning of this election is guaranteed, but also these four candidates will join a unique gallery of people who, as they were inaugurated as presidents, represented also first time achievements.

By way of example, let’s list


George Washington, the first president to become the first president of the United States.

John Adams, the first president with the name “John” to serve as president (not a minor achievement in the Anglo-Saxon protestan world)

Thomas Jefferson, the first president to be the third president of the United States.

James Monroe, the first president to have the same first name as the previous president. (James Monroe also holds the distinction of being the first president to share his last name with the alleged lover of a future president)

Van Buren, the first president to be confused with Von Braun and other names that sounds like appliances.

Woodrow Wilson, the first president to have identical name and last name initials. (Wilson’s achievement was so fantastic that pretty soon other presidents follow on his trail, like Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover whose names continue the tradition, first started by Van Buren, of sounding like commodities. Underwears and vacuum cleaners in this case).