Today, Even My Croatian Neighbor is a Democrat!

Turns out that I'm not as cut off from the U.S political scene as I thought I would be, since we've realized that we can download podcasts of Countdown and listen to Keith Olbermann give us the full rundown every couple of days for just a few kuna.

It sure beats trying to get bits and pieces of news from Croatian radio or newspaper, although it does appear that many Croatians are quite tuned in to the Barack Obama phenomenon (Obamenon?) A friend on rhe mainland sent us a text message to see if we were celebrating shortly after Obama's presumptive nomination was announced.

So I know that Obama has declared victory, and that Hillary is still trying to get Appalachian hillbilly kids to sell their bikes and donate at W! W! W! Hillary Clinton! Dot! Com!

I was also pleased to hear, directly from a local resident of Zagreb, that during George W. Bush's recent visit, Croatians were respectful out of general appreciation for the official visit from the U.S., but that they despise the man as much as the growing majority of Americans do.

I had also hoped to monitor the reaction I got to wearing an "Obama 2008" sweatshirt during my travels, feeling perhaps for the first time in years, that I wouldn't mind being tagged as an American. Fortunately, I suppose, it does not appear that I'll have much of an opportunity, as the weather seems destined to preclude things like sweatshirts.

Before I put it away, however, I did get a "Hooray for your guy!" from the security screener at Charles DeGaulle Airport in Paris.

Now if we could just boost the dollar back to something surpassing the value of toilet paper over here, traveling as an American could be downright enjoyable again!