Europe loves Obama and I’m proud of all my American friends today. I say this without a shred of irony.

A few years ago, I saw a documentary about the US that went into the impossible divide between liberal thinkers on one side and born-again Christians on the other. During an interview with a protest singer who once performed at Woodstock (his name escapes me), the Dutch reporter pointed out this complete lack of a common ground in America’s political climate. The old hippie shrugged and said: “Yeah, well… THEY’re the ones who are wrong. The world is round and they say it’s flat. What are we to do, agree with them?”

To me, that quote pretty much summed up the biggest problem in the world today. And I remember thinking back then that there was no solution to such extreme polarization.

Not long after that, Obama made his famous “Red States, Blue States” speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. I’ve been a believer in him ever since.