Was Barack Obama's election the greatest historical event in your lifetime?

SharpshooterTom

Remember that iconic moment back in november 2008 when Barack Obama got elected? The first African American president ever to hold office?

There's a good chance Obama will go down as American greatest ever president by the time he leaves office in 2016, not that I agree with that, but just the sense of how popular he is within the world and the media that many can't help but call him that probably I suspect.

Would you regard Obama's election the most historic event you've witnessed in yourlife time? For those old enough, was it greater than the fall of the Berlin wall or man on the moon?

Sleepless and Manic

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

The first African American ever to hold office?

Um. The first African American to be President.

Many have held office. Obama was a senator.

Killer Wench

Why would it be the greatest event in all y'all lifetime? Did you vote for him?

SterlingArcher

He did some good but em , but Guantanamo. Them kind of empty promises mean nothing to me or you. But some some poor guy that has spent years of his life wrongly imprisoned.

That is the most soul destroying thing for any human.

SharpshooterTom

Sleepless and Manic wrote: »

Um. The first African American to be President.

Many have held office. Obama was a senator.

Sorry that was my fault, I left that word out by mistake it wasn't intentional. *edits*

SterlingArcher

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

Sorry that was my fault, I left that word out by mistake it wasn't intentional. *edits*

Oh Sure sure. Ha fail.

Nino Brown

I once found 50 euro in an old pair of trousers. That was so far ahead of Barack Obama's election in my life that he's not even in the running.

I think as far as historic events go, so far it will be 9/11.

Sleepless and Manic

Fall of the eastern bloc was pretty huge.

Obama? I live in america so its pretty big.

Its certainly bringing the closet racists out into the open. The amount of flack he gets for no other reason than his skin colour is sickening.

THall04

Berlin Wall goin down was a much bigger event.........but nothing will beat Ireland beating Romania in Italia '90.

Hank Scorpio

The greatest event? I can't even recall the year he was elected nor do I care. America =/= Ireland

SterlingArcher

Sleepless and Manic wrote: »

Fall of the eastern bloc was pretty huge.

Obama? I live in america so its pretty big.

Its certainly bringing the closet racists out into the open. The amount of flack he gets for no other reason than his skin colour is sickening.

What? Really small thinking. He is a marketing dream. If ever there was a puppet. He is perfect. Takes all the flack . And leaves no discontent about why there had not been a black president. for the next few years It's cusy . I call him checkmate.

Amirani

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

There's a good chance Obama will go down as American greatest ever president by the time he leaves office in 2016

I think that's extremely unlikely.

creolebelle

Are you for real? As an African american I say no. Technically he isn't african american, he is biracial

Optimalprimerib

Tbh im not sure he made a great difference. Unless you were born in 2002, 9/11 wins this without a shadow of a doubt. Other huge events would be diana's death; for irish people, saipan; Pluto being demoted from being a planet; madeline mcanne; introduction of the Euro and depending on your age, the fall of the Berlin wall.

His election would still be on the list but really 9/11 and the implications that brought in terms of the wars, security increases and economic fallout cannot ever be surpassed.

SterlingArcher

Diego Simeone wrote: »

I think that's extremely unlikely.

I think it is safe to believe Tomas is a troll. No other explanation.

Jesus Wept

Do you mean the biggest historical event?
Cause that question would make some sense.

With the question as is, no him being elected did not feature whatsoever in the list of 'great events' of MY lifetime.

thomasj

the greatest event of my lifetime (and for most people I'd imagine) would be a personal level. wedding, graduation travel etc I would say would rank higher than any news event no matter how major.

with regards to historical it would have to be 9/11. I don't remember where I was for the fall of the Berlin Wall or Obamas election but I'll never forget where I was when the twin towers were hit and the events that followed. everything right down to the national day of mourning that followed where everywhere shut down for the day.

SterlingArcher

i heart chewy louie wrote: »

Do you mean the biggest historical event?
Cause that question would make some sense.

With the question as is, no him being elected did not feature whatsoever in the list of 'great events' of MY lifetime.

Ah see chewy read between the lines.the get out clause. Can guarantee it is not on anybody's great events list. He has been Just another joker in the house of cards.

SeantheMan

SterlingArcher wrote: »

I think it is safe to believe Tomas is a troll. No other explanation.

I agree, it's easily one of the most idiotic things I've ever come across on boards, it can be the only reason.

Obama is a puppet like all the rest, the president of the US holds no real power. He can't even get his own people into positions without it being blocked by repleblicans......and as mentioned above....Guantanamo..still open.

Personally I could name over 500 to 1000 events off the top of my head that were better than him becoming president.

Last week I won 100 quid on a World Cup bet, infinitely greater to me than someone I couldn't care less for becoming president of a foreign country.

SharpshooterTom

SterlingArcher wrote: »

I think it is safe to believe Tomas is a troll. No other explanation.

My name is Thomas.

creolebelle wrote:

Are you for real? As an African american I say no. Technically he isn't african american, he is biracial

Thats correct he is. The ironic thing is is that Obama himself identifies himself as African American only, or at least that is what he stated when filling out the 2010 US census. It is his african american heritage (which is only half), which makes him historic, so I decided refer that to him in my OP.

No Pants

Greater than FDR? You've got to be joking.

As for events, the fall of the Berlin Wall and Nelson Mandela's release were pretty big.

scudzilla

I had a fart in 1996 that i deemed to be greater

PirateShampoo

No, my daughters being born and losing my mum were.

SharpshooterTom

No Pants wrote: »

Greater than FDR? You've got to be joking.

Well I was thinking that, but the unemployment rate dropped in the US yesturday to 6.1%.

Of course with all the media hype of the "great recession" we're living through currently, if he lowers the US unemployment rate significantly to less than 5% by the time he leaves office, he certainly will be compared to FDR on economic terms.

Although the unemployment rate is largely meant to be falling because people have given up looking for work, if you give up looking for work you don't get counted as unemployed.

i heart chewy louie wrote:

Do you mean the biggest historical event?

You're right actually I'm going to change the thread title it doesn't make sense as implies that people are talking about personal events. This is what happens when you write a thread at 4 o'clock in the morning.

henryporter

Being born would probably be the greatest event of my lifetime

Adamantium

I can't believe nobody has mentioned this and it effects us all, the PC and the internet.

Seriously help us if we are ever hit by a huge solar flare to knock it most of it out, there'll be havoc than you could imagine. It'd be like 9/11 times 100.

Jesus, that's......, yes, that's 91,100.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZcZ6eJoxeE

http://www.wired.com/2012/02/massive-solar-flare/

tritium

Not even close!

The fall of the wall is probably tops for me. Other big ones include 9/11, Iraq war 1&2, advent of the AIDS virus, the wikileaks and Snowden stories (which have yet to find their full historical place)

As for greatest American president ever? No chance. His administration looks like it will be remembered for achieving very little either domestically or globally in spite of the cheer leaders who swoon whenever he opens his mouth.

jacksie66

This post has been deleted.

Adamantium

Galway being liberated from the Indians.

Adamantium

thomasj wrote: »

the greatest event of my lifetime (and for most people I'd imagine) would be a personal level. wedding, graduation travel etc I would say would rank higher than any news event no matter how major.

with regards to historical it would have to be 9/11. I don't remember where I was for the fall of the Berlin Wall or Obamas election but I'll never forget where I was when the twin towers were hit and the events that followed. everything right down to the national day of mourning that followed where everywhere shut down for the day.

This was the only time as an 10 year old, I legtimately thought WW3 had started, not the sparodic guerilla war we got, but international conflict was going to kick off conventional style, with thousands of troops of soldiers running at each other on open fields, and we were out to get the big bad akin to WW2. I was convinced one rouge country/government was behind it and it was only a matter of time before the USA and others would find out who.

The naiviety of thinking that was how all wars were fought. The notion of a suicide bomber was utterly bizarre and new.

People talk about TV of the 2000's , 24 was the zeitgeist

Zaph

Men landing on the moon is the greatest historical event in my lifetime. It's just a shame I was too young at the time for me to remember it. That said, I can think of several events that I'd rank ahead of Obama being elected. He's popular, although not with everyone, and is very much a people person, but it takes more than that to be considered the greatest US president ever.

comongethappy

Not even a better president than Taft.

Taft, you old dog.

Irish Guitarist

I've always thought it was demeaning to his mother to refer to him as 'African American' as if his fathers side of the family is the only one that matters.

Anyway; no, I couldn't give a crap about him.

mrkiscool2

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

Remember that iconic moment back in november 2008 when Barack Obama got elected? The first African American president ever to hold office?

There's a good chance Obama will go down as American greatest ever president by the time he leaves office in 2016, not that I agree with that, but just the sense of how popular he is within the world and the media that many can't help but call him that probably I suspect.

Would you regard Obama's election the most historic event you've witnessed in yourlife time? For those old enough, was it greater than the fall of the Berlin wall or man on the moon?

Are you an American with a massive hard-on for the democratics? I wasn't alive for either the fall of the Wall or the moon landing but I can guarantee you both were a 100 times better than Obama being elected. The only reason people in America talk about how significant it was that a non-white man was elected to the presidency is because America is a deeply troubled place where racism and sexism is rife. If a black person was elected to president or Taoiseach here it would not be such a massive deal.

Also, 9/11 is way more historically important than Obama's election was. And they are of the same vain as they are both political. 9/11 basically changed the way we go about security as a whole (especially America). It's also given rise to massive stereotyping and hatred of Arabs by the Americans, as well as an even deeper hatred for western cultural by radical Islamsits. Also, Obama will never be seen as the greatest president of all time. People like FDR and JFK were far better presidents than Obama ever will be.

circadian

The internet.

RFOLEY1990

Hasn't he just been voted worst president ever so dunno where you're getting that he'll go down as greatest president ever.

The biggest event, nothing great about it was probably 9/11 so far for me. Still can't believe that was live television. Madness.

Grayson

Optimalprimerib wrote: »

Tbh im not sure he made a great difference. Unless you were born in 2002, 9/11 wins this without a shadow of a doubt. Other huge events would be diana's death; for irish people, saipan; Pluto being demoted from being a planet; madeline mcanne; introduction of the Euro and depending on your age, the fall of the Berlin wall.

His election would still be on the list but really 9/11 and the implications that brought in terms of the wars, security increases and economic fallout cannot ever be surpassed.

Berlin wall, and 9/11 have changed the world more than anything else in the last 25 years.

tallus

Maybe if I was about five years old. Otherwise a lot of other more relevant stuff has happened.

RobertKK

Obama's presidency will go down as one of the worst in US history.

The fall of the Berlin Wall and freedom to the people of Eastern Europe was the greatest event I have been alive to see.

onedmc

Not even close to - band aid - 911 - chernobyl - the Berlin wall - DNA blueprint mapping

SEANoftheDEAD

What was so great about 9/11?

I wouldn't class that as a great event.

EyeSight

It was historical but there were way more important times.

He is not nearly the greatest president. He failed at many promises(although not having the congress majority didn't help) and lately he is being shady by bypassing congress a lot of the time. Sometimes it's bordering on illegal.
The latest 2 crisis that has hit him(the huge influx of illegal immigrants and the recent ISIS insurgency in Iraq) show that he is indecisive and a little weak, because he is still taking his sweet time to react to them properly.
I'm not so sure about his foreign policies. He failed to get better relations with Russia(In fact Russia are in a way stronger position in that relationship than they were before) and he has made the USA seem week. It'll take a long time before we see the true result of his foreign policies but i hope they do work - but i am dubious

That being said, i still rather him over McCain and Romney.

Frank Lee Midere

SEANoftheDEAD wrote: »

What was so great about 9/11?

I wouldn't class that as a great event.

Great as in important.

Saipanne

Fall of the Soviet Union. By a country mile.

Frank Lee Midere

He's a weak president. Obamacare is all he has done really.

To Americans electing a black man has historical resonance. Not so much to the rest of the world.

Nino Brown

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

Well I was thinking that, but the unemployment rate dropped in the US yesturday to 6.1%.

Not if you look at the real unemployment rate, the U-6 data. The US isn't doing much better than Europe on unemployment, they just report more favourable numbers numbers.

http://www.macrotrends.net/1377/u6-unemployment-rate

The One Doctor

Obama is just another US president and has nothing to do with us. We're not in the US the last time I checked. The falling of the Berlin wall was far, far more important to us.

thomasj

SEANoftheDEAD wrote: »

What was so great about 9/11?

I wouldn't class that as a great event.

It was historical though.

Philo Beddoe

The end of the Cold War was easily the most significant historical event in my lifetime.

UCDVet

I don't mean to sound racist - I'm all for an African American president. It's just, I don't see why people think of Obama as African American.

Politically correct labels aside....
White Mom
Black Dad

Does not equal black child.

He's half-black at best. If you want to really argue about it, I even think you get more genetic information from your Mother than from your Father, making him more white than he is black.

If my Dad was Japanese and my Mom was German - I wouldn't expect the world to view me as Japanese. In fact, I'd find it insulting to my German heritage.

Anyway, his race certainly doesn't impact my opinion of him or his choices at president; but I found the media misrepresentation of it to be awfully wrong.

the groutch

Optimalprimerib wrote: »

Other huge events would be diana's death; for irish people, saipan; Pluto being demoted from being a planet; madeline mcanne; introduction of the Euro and depending on your age, the fall of the Berlin wall.

That may be the dumbest sentence written in the history of the internet.