As hard as I try to keep up to the minute in this column, I’m aware what a futile battle I’m fighting. It might be here and now in Sydney as I write, but it’s three hours earlier in Malaysia, and in any case it’ll be at least 48 hours before it goes up on Malaysiakini for a few days before being consigned to history in the virtual archives.

So this week, for a change, instead of commenting at length on anything timely, like the outrageous arrest of Paula Khoo at the Georgetown anti-ISA vigil, or the 12 ridiculous conditions on which the police issued a permit for the PJ anti-ISA vigil, or Zorro’s "outing" of RockyBru as an agent of Mahathirism, I thought I’d hark back to my recent trip to London.

On Tuesday November 4th, 2008, America became, in the words of comedian Jon Stewart, more of a "show" nation and less of a "tell" one. In electing Barack Obama, America shows the world that it is now closer to being that "more perfect Union," to quote the preamble to its constitution.

Nations are like people; it matters not where you have been, more important is where you are headed.

The execution of the Bali Bombers - Imam Samudra, Amrozi Nurhasyim and Mukhlas Nurhasyim alias Ali Ghufron, has certainly stirred-up the debate for and against the death penalty.

Most predictably on the ‘pro’ side were those who believe that punishment should fit the crime. This stance has been taken by a great many people, especially relatives and friends of the victims, in statements I’ve seen ranging from the quite reasonable, "I am very, very happy but a bit disappointed that it took so long", to the rabid "Dig them up and shoot them again."

"Change we can," said Barrack Obama. Change they can, and, I believe, change they will. He also said, "We are the change we want." And change they did, for only the second time in more than 200 years, Americans have taken the risk again in electing a young and unfamiliar non-pedigree for a president.

The first was John F Kennedy. But, my real question is can we, Malaysians who root for the American system to change, can we change? The US of A is truly a land of opportunities and a land of immigrants and therefore a melting pot of ethnicities and cultures.

Writing this a day before the US presidential election, I’m pretty certain that Barack Obama will win it. Not that I have much confidence in America’s voters – or at least the majority that gave the Bush regime two terms in office.

Despite seeing a trillion of their hard-earned dollars thrown away on the idiotic Iraq adventure, and another trillion or so squandered on desperate attempts to fix their own plundered economy, millions are apparently happy to bank on more of the same from John McCain.

The Conference of Rulers has assured all Malaysians a rightful place under the Malaysian sun. Therefore, it is only right and proper that the Hindraf case be now referred to them because the government sees their arguments and actions as against the integrity of the nation.

They remain non-integrated with integrity. Whereas, most Malaysians see their case as that of their rights and privileges as ordinary Malaysians being unprotected under the very same constitution and the historic social contract which the rulers too are seeking to uphold.