The United States will not be too different than it is today. It will be better, a little bit better. Just as it became a little better on November 4, 2008.

Political satirists will have to work for a living. No more reading from transcripts.

There will be a basketball hoop at the White House.

Working with Our President Obama, we will be heading for a totally green economy: fuel- efficient cars, vastly englarged public transportation, rejuvenated infrastructure, and diverse energy sources.

In addition, education will be more afforadable and prison reform will unshackle the minds and hearts of our fellow human beings both during and after their incarceration.

Most important, as active citizens who engage in service to improve the lives of our neighbors here and abroad, we will be working toward embodying the best of democracy.

He will involve the people in governing and use government wisely to protect and assist our citizens. He will establish a Dept. of Peace. He will expand health coverage to all Americans. He will establish a works program to build a greener America and start repairing our infrastructure..

I believe we will see the passage of the the Uniting American Families Act, HR 2221, which will allow lesbians and gays to sponsor their same-sex partners for immigration purposes, as well as other measures which the federal government has jurisdiction over.

I believe this will happen because Obama has already expressed support for the strengthening of rights for lesbians and gays, and also has already expressed his support for the UAFA. I have the most faith in the prospect of the UAFA passing, as this would fit with Obama's opposition to gay marriage (which I don't agree with, as it stinks of 'separate but equal') while still being in support of the rights of lesbian and gay couples in general.

Passage of the UAFA would be an important milestone in the interpretation of gay rights on the federal level, something we have not seen in the eight years the republicans have left states to decide these issues exclusively.

I do not expect that great strides will be made in regard to the rights of lesbians and gays. The marriage issue is likely to still be left to the state and not the federal government, but with regard to areas where the federal government has exclusive jurisdiction (immigration rights, federal taxes, hate crime legislation) I would expect the Obama administration to have made some progress.

I was losing hope with my generation. I have often lamented that we have no Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa, Nelson Mandela to lead us out of injustice and inequality. Have we really progressed since these revolutionaries? My generation as I know it, is seeped in war, epidemics, religious intolerance, race and class divides, food and water shortages. Despite all the advances in science and technology, we have not come close to resolving what living in equanimity can be like.

But now, we have a leader. He won't make poor people rich, he won't stop the war between Israel and Palestine, he won't stop HIV/AIDS spreading through the world, but he will inspire us to become what we never dreamed we can be. Through his inspiration, good will come. Not from him. From just you and me.

By 2012, I think we should see a restoration of respect for America from our allies. I believe we will begin to take the lead on new technologies that will reinforce and improve the United States' position in the global economy. I also believe that we will see more regulation of financial markets (probably a good thing), the beginnings of an improved infrastructure, perhaps with a focus improved and more efficient national rail service.

I do not, nor have I ever believed that our new prosident will be able to see all these things through to completion even if he serves two terms; but I believe he is the man we need now to get the country pointed in the right direction again.

2012: Obama will be getting ready to hand over the keys to the White House to a woman!!!

I predict the one most significant impact Obama's presidency will have, beyond the issues, is a fundamental change to the nature of US politics. More direct involvement venues will be introduced through the Internet to transform our democracy into a much more participatory one. Organization and direct pressure forming on-the-fly citizen caucuses will be influencing law making much more. This president will create open forums accessing the white-hose and communicate with his consistuency directly, maybe even twitting.

I hope that president obama will have started to put in place sufficient measures to provide alternative energy to the US. i hope that he is able to get our troops out of iraq, at least in a military fashion. i also that he is able to establish correct relations with iran and proceed with diplomacy and not military measures.
above everything, i believe he will truly repair americas image among other countries and their citizens.
on the lighter side, he will have a head of white hair

There will be a dramatic decrease in criminal activity in age group 12-18 for black males. Obama's victory is proof that life offers options, if you work hard.

The Cosby show will return on air, and feature the Obamas as family friends.

In order to close GTMO, we need to be able to send the people incarcerated there somewhere. That's a little difficult when their own countries don't want them back.

At best, we'll find out what would've happened had Kennedy not been shot.

At worst, we'll experience the 60's all over again.

Lookout world, here come the Obama Hippies.

I think our citizens will hve more self-respect, better relationships with each other and the admiration of the rest of the world. I don't know if we'll have universal health care but we will have a more peaceful environment (at least out of Iraq) and a cleaner one. Most importantly it will not be worse than it is right now, particularly econmically and may be poised to ascend.

Tough to predict, but hopefully presidential term limits.....

How we fund education will change. Community school taxes will be found unconstitutional the same way Brown vs Board of Education was found inherently unequal.

Gay rights will be equated with all other civil rights.

We will no longer use gas cars and will have a mixture of flex-fuel, electric and battery.

I think that by 2012, President Obama will have signed a Civil Unions for all Americans bill, straight and gay, leaving religious institutions out of the civil marriage business. Couples could then choose to have a religious ceremony, or not.

Sorry. Those were not turnout %s, but actually % of the voters. (And compare them to the 22% of the population that this group represents.)

The monumental increase in voter turnout by the young -- it went from 17% to 18%!!! -- will not be maintained. The youth turnout will drop an astronomical 1%, and return to it's 2004 levels.

Obama has already brought up fox news' bias twice in a major public appearance. I think Fox will finally be seen as unfair and unbalanced

there will be increase in the corruption, which uptil now was only in the elites and now it will spread to the small workers in the governments across the country. i was talking with a worker in bloomberg administration, mta. he told me the story, that the MTA makes two books one for the public and one real cost and expenditure. in the past, 100,000 buses were purchased from Canada, paid but were left in Canada for one year. when they were brought to New York City, there was problem with the engine and transmission, so the buses were transported to Buffalo for repair on the no-bid contract to repair the new buses. the bidder was a good friend of Mayor Bloomberg, who gave the gratuity to Mayor Bloomberg and got paid for repair of these new buses. the public money is used to pay for the repair but the gratuity/ kick back goes to bank account of Mayor Bloomberg.

the richest entity is the public treasury at disposal of these crooked politicians and is for them to loot without repercussions.

the judges are same way crooks who are accepting guilty plea from innocents especially through the shady characters lawyers. one judge in particular is imposter new York State Supreme Court Judge in the Kings county named Neil Jon Firetog. just mention him my name and he will tremble only on hearing my name. he accepted the guilty plea from innocents dr. singla in 1993 for not granting me the hearing for 16 months, where as the case should have been dismissed on 30/30 motion.

He will go so out of his way to be a "unifier" and appease Republicans that most of his "changes" -- like Bill Clinton's -- will be dispensations to the right and almost nothing for the left. His own base will be disappointed, but he will have a landslide victory over Republican candidate Sarah Palin.

Please, lord, let it get that far. There are so many nut jobs in this country.

I sincerely hope as Commander in Chief he stops the air raids and bombings in Afghanistan which costs us ridiculous amounts of money and ridiculously more in innocent Afghani lives.

Obama will end our obvious wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, end our secret wars in Somalia and Congo, and end our unilateral attacks into 'bad' countries like Pakhistan, Syria and Iran... I hope

Obama by 2012:

1. Close Guantanomo Bay
2. Hold numerous meetings with Iran on the nuclear issue and cooperation with Iraq.
3. Establish new financial sector regulations.
4. Create an internet based 'conversation' with the American People.
5. Mobolize the citizens of other countries to demand Democracy.
6. Have another baby. (maybe)
7. Age gracefully.

in agreement with donald from Roosevelt Island & others, the baseline change would be to restore the rule of law--international and our own; stop torturing and kidnapping, restore habeas corpus; and CLOSE GUANTANAMO and Bagram & other black sites. But i won't hold my breath. But I WILL hope.

If he does nothing but change the way we pig out on energy, he will have done more to save humanity than most people have.

Four years from now, I believe that President Obama will have the foundation for universal health care in place, with bumps to be ironed out.

With a lot of luck, we will be close to resolving Iraq and Afghanistan, but I do not believe there will be mass withdrawal of troops. Terrorism will continue.

BY 2012 WE WILL STOP FLOUTING THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS, STOP TORTURING AND CLOSING QUANTANAMO.

QUESTION: WILL PERMANENT BASES BE CLOSED IN IRAQ?

I think that Barack Obama will reach out to the people like no other president has. His email sent out to supporters and volunteers prior to taking the stage Tuesday night said, "We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I'll be in touch soon about what comes next." I think he will use his internet army to encourage civic involvement, and we will truly be a government by the people.

Based on his record or careful partisanship and an unwillingness to take risks, I don't expect him to be a transformational leader. I do think the expectations of him are impossible. I also think that by his very prexence in the presidential seat he makes it more ordinary that people of all colors can occupy the highest offices. While I and my husband were giddy and disbelieving that this came to pass, our sons were somewhat less impressed, as if it were already ordinary in their minds. This is a good thing.

He will move the US forward into the 21st C. with clear, non-partisan thinking and consensus building. Hopefully he will give the ugly Right nothing new to talk about and they will melt away like the Wicked Witch of the West.

However, the first pracitical thing he needs to do is clean out the politicized Justice Department and restore our faith in our own government.

Something better change... according to ancient Myan belief, our world is "due" 12/12/2012... i personally don't think the world will end- but i know we'll see(as we see now) some major geopolitical shifts...

There will be a "kitchen garden" on the grounds of the White House, and the First Family will "eat by example."

With Rahm Emanuel and his ilk? Ouch!! Maybe not much. Did I make a mistake by not following my original instinct to write in my own candidate for president on Tuesda? Not much will change with the folks I hear the media dragging out as probably/possible Obama administration members.

This is such NONSENSE ! The American people are so provincial and naïve. No historical
perspective or understanding of the big picture. Obama is a radical socialist who does not deserve to be president. Mark my words: You will all regret his presidency. This is the end of the great American era.

By 2010, I believe that Barack Obama will appoint 2 and perhaps 3 Supreme Court Justices that will help secure a left-leaning bench, impacting issues such as same-sex marriage and gun control. In addition, I think there will be significant changes to our policies on healthcare, education, and foreign policy.

New York Times, January 15, 2012, Washington D.C. - Five days before the inauguration of the reelected president Barack Obama, the country celebrates the end of a ground-breaking summit between the leaders of the major political parties. The summit participants signed an agreement that will govern all future political campaigns. The document sets guidelines for future national and state political contests, and along with many other provisions, including the following: All candidates are required to use government funding in order to run for office; Party organizations and political action committees may not supply funds to any person running for national or state office; Campaign advertisements must contain statements about policies the candidate supports, and may not highlight perceived deficiencies of the opponent; Candidates found supporting advertisements containing false information about their opponent will be fined; Candidates will be required to attend true debates where their policy proposals will be fully discussed and argued; A national primary will be held six months before election day to decide candidates for President of the United States, with the actual campaign for president kicking off on Labor Day.

President Obama hailed the agreement, and it will be highlighted in his inaugural speech. Naturally the National Health Care Guarantee Act, which overwhelmingly passed both houses of Congress last spring, will also be a cornerstone of the speech.

There's plenty to do that requires no money :

-Complete election reform
-True campaign finance reform
-Lobby Reform
-Start the Iraq pullout
-Online database of budget,bills, and votes
-Electronic medical records
-Gay Rights
-Cut Defense spending
-Cut bureaucracy in schools by combining districts, and equalize urban and suburban schools.

Then in February he can....

President Obama will change perceptions. The Obama family will become America's First Family and that alone will change everything.

The biggest, and most difficult change President Obama will make is in US! He will lead US into being more active in making our world better. "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." will be an oft heard quote starting on Jan. 20.

By 2012, all young people will be required to serve for at least one year after high school or college either in the Peace Corps, or (more importantly) a similar domestic service program, working to rebuild and re-educate our country. Senior citizens will be asked to offer their skills and experience as well. Sen. John McCain will chair that portion of the program!

In a similar vein, President Obama will urge business to keep work in the U.S. on patriotic grounds. Plus, he will offer huge tax incentives for companies that retool their operations in this country, at the same time imposing tax increases on companies that choose to leave to find cheap labor.

Within four years will come the beginnings of a public transportation explosion and the creation of alternative energy, although it will take many more years to get these projects to yield all that they can.

Also, a U.S. President will actually attend the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in 2010, sit with all the other world leaders and understand what the hell is going on down there on the field!

Barack Obama will help send the Washington culture of "permanent campaigning" to an undignified death as he changes the landscape from blue and red states into a purple country. As a result the new breed of politicians will put their energy into governing as opposed to running for office.

Regarding our GULF- By ending the war, bringing the troops home, and thus freeing up resources and man-power Obama will ensure the recovery,and rebuilding of our devastated southern gulf coast. Obama will create programs which enable the right of return for those of us displaced due to Hurricane Katrina and Rita
He will influence the southern states qualification criteria for human resource programs. (example: In present day Louisiana, for a low income single woman to qualify for medicaid insurance she must be disabled, pregnant,have a child, or have ovarian cancer.) I hope!!!

If Modernism is the word that encapsulates the 20th century for Americans and perhaps the world, Awareness is the word that will encapsulate the 21st century, starting with Obama's Administration, bringing more decisions and actions performed by government, as well as the private sector into the light. With much credit to the internet such awareness has already started creating a new society of informed citizens here in the USA. The benefits of this Awareness is the ability for the masses to carry a higher accountability for those in office, raising the stakes closer to a newly-found-perfection thanks to a more solidified Democratic platform.

When Obama was selected as our president I felt as if we had finally entered the 21st century. Whereas Bush and company kept us in the 20th century, even dragging us back further to Neanderthal attitudes and acts, Obama has Already helped to unite this country and the rest of the world.

Obama will continue to give this country and the rest of the planet what it has lost during two terms of acrimony and fear mongering fostered by Bushco -- HOPE! -- the gift that keeps on giving.

If this is All that Obama accomplishes, it will be enough. Add to that Obama's call for sacrifice and community/national/worldwide service that will inspire countless people across the globe and it seems that we have selected the perfect person, someone who came along at the right time, with the right skills and empathy, to heal the wounds created by the reckless, shortsighted and selfish actions of the Bush badministration.

World peace? Certainly a bit more likely now, but HOPE is the word and the gift of this new administration.

I hope ; /

He'll end the Global Gag Rule.

I expect a caring,and competent federal government.

President Obama will restore the idea of America as the land of opportunity and will help win back the world's respect. And if he can also help heal the divide here, that would be cool too.

1) Federal Government Version 2.0 = Silicon Valley goes to Washington

2) Carbon emissions limited, although, much less so than needed due to economic headwinds and cheaper domestic energy sources

3) Total troop levels stay the about same in the Middle East, though some USA troops are replaced by UN peacekeepers

4) Banking and mortgage market reforms

The number of nuclear weapons in the world will be reduced to about 1000, with the US and Russia each lowering their arsenals to about 200, the same as all the other nuclear powers. The possibility of nuclear winter will be forever prevented. A global agreement on nuclear disarmament will be under consideration and on its way to implementation.

Mr. Obama has achieved something huge already by being elected president. He inspired and moved the American citizens out of the status quo. Stagnation of ideas and the complacent of the citizens were, for most part, the causes of the fall of many empires. I am proud again of the American people. They finally said “enough”!

President Elect Obama will make great strides in uniting our allies and our country. He has brought Patriotism back! People are excited to be Americans. He will set the tone of what the American people will expect from a President.

On the 5 big issues of the day:
Financial sytem: some more regulation
Iraq: gradual reduction in troop levels
Health care: some increase in CHIP and prescription drugs
Pakistan/Afghanistan: A significant change in overall strategy whose results would be uncertain
Energy: Some tax incentives for green technology.

Competent troubleshooting from a capable man.
But his pragmatism might disappoint those who have stars in their eyes right now.

He has already changed how the world sees the USA

Hopefully he'll be able to change how the USA sees the world

Viva Obama!

BHO will dispel the tragic misconceptions that ‘black’ is a genetic rather than socio-cultural identity and that African culture is preferable to American culture, misconceptions which have undermined so many African-American lives since the 1960s.

Yesterday was the first time, as an equally Brazilian and American person, I felt AMERICAN in so long. In Harlem, we sang Amazing Grace, there were drum circles, songs in Spanish, dancing of the ELECTRIC SLIDE!

Obama will change how foreigners see this country and its people. He will change how race is configured and thought about. He will change health care, and bring a spirit of service to education.

He will change it because he MUST.

Nothing will change in a major way. Health care will still be expensive and controlled by the insurance industry, the White House will still be in the pocket of Big Business (Obama didn’t amass all that money only from “small” contributions), the oil and coal industries (clean coal is a myth) will still be in charge of energy policy, and the Third World (not the Developing World, i.e. India and China) will still be getting ignored by “the West”. This guy is not the Messiah, he is a politician!

Improved national infrastructure, a shift toward greener jobs and a cleaner nation, increased hope, respect from other nations, increased peace and the beginning stages of implementing a sustainable plan to improve the government

Political language will change. Instead of divisive name calling, American's will actually talk about the issues.

There will be a newly trained community-based network of activists who will become the loyal challengers to try to keep the Democratic Party honest.

The Verrazano-Narrows will be completed with the two bicycle-pedestrian paths it was designed for. For the first time since the 69th St ferry closed in 1964, I can bicycle between Staten Island and Brooklyn at any time, any day, for work or travel.

Background:
VNB bike-ped path study completed by NYC Dept of City Planning found the paths can be installed for $26 million (est. @ $36 million in 2010) and the project is eligible for up to 80% federal funding. The cost to city would be about $7 million. Even in these tough financial times, this is chump change for a project this valuable.

All genetically engineered foods will be labeled as "gentically engineered" foods!

At the very least, Obama will have the U.S. on track to lead the world in alternative energy research and development.

First of all, congrats to Mr. Obama from Budapest. I'm sure not many of you know that the word 'Barack' means 'peach' in Hungarian.

So first and foremost, I hope he will not get impeached from his office before 2012.

But let's be realistic: Mr. Obama's presidency can at best be only the beginning, a shift in paradigm that may yield a better America. So no cure for AIDS or zero pollution or anything of that sort. I personally hope that this stupid and pointless 'war on terror' will be terminated before the end of his first (call me overly optimistic) term.

By 2012, there will be a more free and open society when it relates to inter-racial marriage. This may in fact be the greatest legacy of Barack's election in that there is a natural acceptance of intimacy between the races. It will therefore show it self with an overall increase in inter-racial marriages and possible gay marriage.

In the largest public works program since the New Deal, a National Energy Grid from will be completed, allowing American business to harness and distribute from coast to coast the abundant wind energy of the central plains.

One thing will change and has already changed: America will regain the respect of the rest of the world. Once again, America is a shining beacon of democracy--not the city on the hill of Reagan and Palin exceptional because we were chosen by god, but the perfectable grand experiment of democracy.

By 2012, President Obama will use his position as "Redistributionist in Chief" to retool the American economy so that the rich will get richer (because that will always happen) but the middle class and the poor will advance too. In short, poverty rolls will shrink as will the disparity between the rich and everyone else.

Don't know what he will change. But I hope he will change:

- the courts, get us out of the right-wing rut

- civil rights, restore those destroyed by Bush

- health care

- Wall Street, end the legally endorsed cult of greed

- restore confidence in public institutions

- Middle Eastern policy, especially pressure Israel grant independence to Palestine

My wish list of of what will change:
1. Move towards an energy policy that will end our need for foreign oil AND make the U.S. a leader in alternative energy policy.
2. Permanent end to our military presence in the Middle East.
3. Health care reform.
4. Return to reasonable regulations for the financial services industry - they are clearly unable to regulate themselves.

We have already seen change. Within a half hour of the announcement of Obama as President-elect, Tavis Smiley was on ABC saying things that I have never heard on major network TV including the acknowledgment that the Constitution was written as a pro-slavery document. Finally! We are already talking in mainstream media about the truth and the difficult realities of life in this country for people of color and the realities of a society based on white privilege. We have an opportunity to break open the American conversation about race and the stain of slavery. I am a white woman who didn't expect things to change right away, but I am grateful and delighted that we are in a new era of honesty, respect and communication among human people. It'll be a long road, but I hope we continue in the right direction.

I'm going to be modest in my expectations. We are heading into an incredibly difficult time economically. There will be no "extra" federal money to spend on important new initiatives.

But I expect by 2012 America's standing will be restored in the world to reasonable and thoughtful as opposed to cynical and self-serving, that we will see appointments of cabinet members and judges based on experience and talent rather than belief systems and pre-existing friendships, and some sort of new working relationship with a decent flow of ideas between the president and the Congress will exist. Anything else he can accomplish is gravy!

I HOPE that by 2012 Barack would change the way the outside world views United States of America - Not just an imperialist power ruled by ruthless buissnessmen and war mongrels, but a caring nation that accepts everybody because of their intrisic qualities. And when I say the outside world, I am including, specifically, the extremist islamist groups that, I am convinced did not give up in planning more attacks against american citizens. I hope they see their separatists views are sqewered and will try to join the new thinking that is just starting to emerge in the world : that we are all creatures of God (or nature, or universe, or whatever you want to call it)and we are all born with the "original goodness". We just need to bring it out by creating an enviroment of tolerance and peace and love around every baby that will one day become an adult !

Love trumped fear. An amazing moment.
Aside from the huge perceptual shift here and abroad, we may have to be realistic about the proposals that Obama has that would cost a lot of money (we don't have a lot of money, big surprise given the bush administration). Look for Obama to add incentives for green industry, to at least try and craft a national health care policy, and to push through some key legislative corrections on the erosion of civil liberties (he is a constitutional scholar after all). One can only hope he follows through on Guantanamo Bay.
I feel at home in my country again.

Jeremy is right. Close Gitmo! AND, get rid of those unconstitutional military tribunals for so called enemy combatants. Fighting terrorism is a matter of intelligence gathering and law enforcement. President Obama must enforce the law, and that must start with abiding by the law.

HIV/AIDS as a domestic issue will take a more prominent seat than what it has come to have. I believe we will see both treatment and prevention be addressed in more practical, realistic manners than what we have seen since the mid to late 1990s.

Close Gitmo! This can happen by February 2009, and will restore our international standing and restore the power of the rule of law.

Nada, goornisht, nothing.....he is a Harvard Puke and will recant the platform he ran on, and the left will paralyse him....even now he defends his inability to accomplish anything, warning us that he cannot do what he says he promised...I did not vote for him, and we will live to regret this election. Then if we find he is not a born US citizen, and so he will be removed from office due to this non compliance with the US Constitution wish ful tbink and with Pelosi Frand and Ried.....it is going to be an interesting ride, so says Bette.

President Obama will end the Bush horrorshow of government-sponsored torture and extrajudicial detention.

By 2012, the Obama presidency will have helped to renew the relationships with foreign nations -- relationships that 8 years of failed Bush policy damaged.

Yes we did!

President Obama will make sure to bring the voting system into the 21st century.

For the first time in 38 years, Amtrak will be taken seriously by both Houses of Congress under the stewardship of President Obama and Vice President Biden, and given the funds to provide
services beyond what is offered today,

Carbon caps will be enacted and that will set off an explsoive growth in alternative energy.

A universal health care program will be initiated.

An intensive diplomatic effort will be undertaken and we will come a long way to regaining our standing around the globe.

World Peace.

Healthcare for all Americans, including poor freelancing artists. Clean air and a healthier environment (one of the reasons I voted for him.

In 2012, women will continue to feel unsafe in their own neighborhoods, and there will be no more public conversation about rape culture than there is now. School performance will continue to be segregated and people will still torture their children -- Obama will not touch these things as policy. GLBT people will not have their dignity universally recognized. There will be wars. Barak Obama could even start one. AIDS will continue as endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, and Obama will do little about it.

This is a radical moment, to be sure. But it is first and ONLY a radical symbol. Radical change -- the kind envisioned by Dr. King, radical feminists like Andrea Dworkin -- is completely impossible within the current conversation.

I'm happy about something today, but I'm very sad about so much more.

His underwear, twice

president obama will create greater access to health care if not the beginnings of a national health care program.

He'll change us, the citizens.

Thousands of children of color, and especially boys, will become engaged in their education because they can now see the value of that education. This will lead to a stronger American work force and fewer prisons.

The Reid/Pelosi Congress will overreach with legislation like the Orwellian-named Employee Free Choice Act, and other paybacks pushed by the Kos/MoveOn left wing, leaving President Obama with the necessity of a forming a more centrist strategy after the 2010 elections.

By 2012 President Obama will have

Restored Habeas Corpus,Closed Guantanamo,
Signed on to the Kyoto protocols, explicitly prohibit US Military &
non-Military private contractors
from using torture when interrogating
foreign or domestic detainees by Executive Order; appointed a new female Supreme Court
Justice possibly of Hispanic or Asian heritage; started a domestic service program
similar to VISTA where young people can earn
money towards college by performing community
service.

I'll tell you what President Elect Obama has ALREADY accomplished. The next time I travel beyond our borders I won't need to blush and look at my shoes when admitting that I'm an American. I'll be able to say it with pride, and I expect that my "HOPE" for the future of all humankind will show in my now tearful eyes.

President Obama will inspire millions of kids, both here and around the world, that their dreams can come true with hard work, focus and dedication. He will have made significant progress (in a new, new deal) in re-tooling this economy towards sustainability.

We will see a prolonged recession exacerbated by Obama and Democratic Economic choices: strengthening of Unions, higher taxes on businesses, expansion of Government. By 2012 the Republicans will have regained the Senate, and possibly the House. Obama will not maintain his popularity. There will be a move towards isolationism. In other words, look to the late 1920’s through 1930’s to see where we are headed.

My prediction: He will change change enough hearts by 2012 to win a second term — by a higher margin.

The recruitment efforts of Al Qaeda and the Taliban will fizzle as a new feeling of interconnection and understanding spreads throughout the world. I hope!

By 2012 every town in America will have a bike path plan, ans a Safe Routes to School plan in place. I hope!

Andrea Bernstein's prediction: "More puppies(!) in the White House."

LOL! she's so cute.

By 2012 my health insurance premium will be lower; a significant number of troops in Iraq will be back; the stock market will have reached a healthier, steadier level.

I'm hoping that, thanks to Obama's community service as payment for college plan, by 2012, there will once again be more Americans in college than in prisons.

The cynic in me tells me that the system has again pulled a fast one on us. However refreshing and 'hopeful' is the election of Obama, let us not forget that our system is not about Democrats or Republicans but about the 'Haves' and the 'Have Nots'. Reform and Change can only come about when we understand and accept that we are are still a country divided by fear and ideology. I dare our leaders to straight talk all of us into realizing that in order to sustain a society it IS the responsibility of the government to educate our youth, keep our people healthy and reward our creativity and productivity not necessarily for individual enrichment but yes, dare I say.....'the common good'. A new paradigm for 2012!

Eight years won't be enough. I hope that by 2012 we will have changed the term limit law relating to the presidency. If it could be done for Bloomberg, we can do it for this once-in-a-generation phenom.

Barak Obama will reform our health care system, end the war in iraq, and fix economy and gas crisis. When he is done with that he will end world hunger and global warming, bring peace to all nations, invent time travel, win the world series, and fly, all while pursuing a unified theory of all existence. What an exciting time we live in! After January 20th we will all be united in a holy union as one nation under Obama. He is the Messiah. The alpha and the omega. Our own personal savior. He will change everything.

I hope president Obama will do 3 things ,close Guatanamo,close Guatanamo,close Guatanamo.

I think the actual change has already started; as a bicultural American who, subtly or not-so-subtly, at times had my Americanness questioned because of the way I looked, the color of my skin ... felt like last night, President-elect Obama represented the American Dream that my parents came to the U.S. for, that I am trying to continue to live out ... and for the first time in my adult life, I felt truly proud of my country.

This is my America; this I believe in a new way this morning. And by 2012, I hope to have done my best to make the change we can believe in into a reality, alongside with the rest my countrymen and women. God bless America.

Charles is "bitter" over gentrification of Fort Greene. Pathetic.

It feels this morning as if a great weight has been lifted off of the world. It is a great day for the human race.

My immediate personal hope would be, if Prop 8 in CA passes, that as a United States senator, as a scholar of constitutional law, and as the next leader of the supposed free world Obama would openly condemn this oppressive and backward legislation.

Thirdly, the constant image in my mind is of the Norman Rockwell painting called Moving Day:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.lewisbond.com/rckwellpgs/rockphotos/move_day.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.lewisbond.com/rckwellpgs/move_day.html&h=270&w=432&sz=27&hl=en&start=1&um=1&usg=__Aj1R_jNO_bAZh23V6C0CiSAUNB4=&tbnid=dLhFWPtd7DQniM:&tbnh=79&tbnw=126&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dnorman%2Brockwell%2Bmoving%2Bday%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG

I think that prisdent Obama well change many things infact he already changed some things like our standing in the world but I think the most important thing he will change is the way we view our comander in chief

What President Barack Hussein Obama will really change is how we look at each other.

Our global reputation of being Dumbf***istan/Jesusland will be repaired, and we again will be known as the last best hope of earth.

Intelligence and eloquence in those who lead us in America will finally be seen as an asset, and the association of stupidity with sincerity and genuineness will be gone.

Up until the last year, climate change and environmental issues generally have been the buzzwords. What now? Has the economic collapse and the campaign trail put a dent in the excellent momentum and progress we've made among those concerned about the planet that we all depend on for prosperity. Will Obama do more than just deal with climate change? I'm concerned that protecting all aspects of the environment will take a backseat to climbing out of a recessed economy. Obama needs to solve economic and environmental problems together.

We will see a reverence for intelligence, the increased weight of scientific and economic facts, and an inclusive future where we all do our part in creating a better society rather than taking more than our share.

A Supreme court will shift back to the center and the bill of rights upheld.

What I hope he will change is the negative image we have abroad and will show that the US foreign policy is not about cultural or economic imperialism but about acceptance and change where humanity is concerned. I also deeply believe that he has already and will continue to electrify the minority's voice in this country and what they feel about themselves. I am ecstatic and will remain so for the next 4 years and hope for another 4 after that!

President Obama will bring integrity back to the position of President. A trait that has been lost since Nixon with the exception of Carter.

I love that quote from Zoran in Ridgefield.Way to go!

I hope he tries to end the war and fix health care in this country during his first term. If he is able to do that, I will be overjoyed.

Barack Obama will change the face of leadership in this country. We will be INSPIRED to do what needs to be done to make this country one we are proud of again.

Obama will move the grid into the 21st century and set the groundwork to harness sustainable energy for the future.

I think we'll see the same funding for education that we saw in the Clinton era, lower student loan rates, more early childhood education, and a new, bigger, better education policy.

A a new, female, pro-choice, supreme court justice.

Barack Obama will fix the Health Care System and end the war. (one on the expense of the other)

At the very least credibility on the word stage, but flowing from there I see a new WPA being implemented in which deficit spending will create jobs to rebuild our aged infrastructure into a greener mode, military disengagement overseas, and a protected supreme court.

At the very least credibility on the world stage, but flowing from there I see a new WPA being implemented in which deficit spending will create jobs to rebuild our aged infrastructure into a greener mode, military disengagement overseas, and a protected supreme court.

By 2012, there will be greater transportation infrastructure and a form of universal healthcare.

The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) will become law and it will spur union renewal in the U.S.