This weekend I head to London for several days, then to Central England, and then to Dublin. I have work to do, meeting with geneticists and neuroscientists in some of the U.K.'s and Ireland's best research facilities. We will be talking about the links between dementias, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and even PTSD--what genes and markers are shared, near each other, or implicated in some of the common symptoms and features of each disease. But, I am going to do some Margaret Mead type research while traveling. When I am not on official business in clinics--where I will be asking about family histories and disease patterns--but rather in pubs or hotel lobbies, I am going to ask people what they think about this American election.
I already have the advantage of two perspectives. I have family in Ireland, which has a booming economy, and they are very nervous about the American economy. If we crash, they take no delight and are not far behind. During the primary they leaned Hillary, because of Bill. They thought his administration was strong on the economy, and they figured Hillary would be as well. But they liked Obama's message and his promise of a break from the American politics of the past four years.
The other perspective I get is from my oldest son, who has been a student in London this summer. He wisely placed his Obama button front and center on his backpack, and has been received with open arms by younger people in the world's most ravishing city (I love London!) He reports that college-age and younger professionals in London are captivated by Obama. They, too, are tired of racial divides, conservative politics, anti-environmentalism, and have grown up in a city and country that has seem huge immigration and cultural change in the past 20 years. They are fascinated by Obama's story and are incredulous that the country of George W. Bush nominated Obama as their Democratic candidate. They love America now as much as their parents did after WWII. Just a year ago, they despised us.
So, I head off with great excitement and hope that I will learn a lot on my travels about how the world views us. If anyone is interested I will report back. But, I would be interested if anyone else has been abroad recently, and what they have found. Please let me know about your experiences.
Until then, Slán