Welcome to the Carnival of the Liberals, and an edition that is special for two reasons. Firstly, this marks the carnival's entry into the fourth year of its long and illustrious life, making it about ninety-six in carnival years. And secondly, it's the first edition to take place after an historic election. Yes, Labour won the Glenrothes by-election.

Apparently there was an election in America too, and a particularly significant one at that. After 43 European-American presidents, the nation has finally elected an African-American. Perhaps one day they'll elect an actual American, but I wouldn't hold your breathe.

More on that later. This edition of CotL is in two sections. Firstly I'll present the top ten posts I received prior to the election, and then in a "reaction special" I'll present the top five of your post-election responses, along with some commentary from me, a British outsider.

Pre-Election posts:

The multisquillion dollar OHP was a surprising topic of discussion during the presidential debates, and more than anything else seemed to epitomize the anti-science attitude prevalent among the Republican campaigners. Greg Laden presents An Open Letter to John McCain regarding Planetaria and Science Education posted at A Vote For Science.

There is a reason why we send our kids to school, but increasing numbers of Americans are choosing to homeschool, often citing differences in ideology or religious views as a reason. Barry Leiba presents Teach your children well posted at Staring At Empty Pages.

The next article is about a story I hadn't heard of here in England, and describes possibly the most ridiculous abuse of the law I've seen outside of the Beijing Olympics. Mike Billy presents Teen Girl Charged With Sex Offense For Sending Nude Pictures of Herself posted at Reflections From A Rotting Nation.

I love a good bit of analysis. Although the point is temporarily mute now, Jeffrey Stingerstein worked on an excellent analysis of McCain's tax policies which I think deserves some exposure. Jeffrey Stingerstein presents A Reality Check For the Wall Street Journal About the Bush-McCain Tax Cuts posted at Disillusioned Words.

In this election more than any other, the internet has played a huge and vital role in the campaigns, to the extent that both sides employed consultants specializing in blogging. There have been some excellent blogging moments in 2008, and this piece gives a nice summary of them. Jon Swift presents Great Moments in Election-Year Blogging posted at Jon Swift.

In the past I've touched on the fact that supporters of right-wing policies on family and child-rearing are somewhat undermined by the evidence from the states in which those policies are implemented. Which has the higher divorce rate, California or Arkansas? Dr. AlanSinger presents FamilyThinking.com: Lifestyles, Child Rearing Differ Based on Politics by Dr. Alan Singer posted at FamilyThinking.com.

Obama spoke out to all minorities in his victory speech, and ethnic minorities turned out in record numbers. Other groups are still lagging behind though. Kara Sheridan presents Disaboom | KaraSwims | Rock the disabled vote posted at Kara Sheridan.

The entries for this edition have been very US-centric, so this next one is a nice refreshing change, looking at the struggle to give Maori's a fair say in New Zealand's democratic system. Deborah presents Are the Maori seats undemocratic? posted at In a strange land

Another analytical post now, this time looking at the likely effect of the outcome of the election on market trading. Sarah Scrafford presents Obama vs. McCain: What the Next President Will Mean for Day Traders

And finally, I give you my new favourite blogger, the Hip Hop Democrat, who makes the point that terrorism begins at home, but precious little seems to be being done about it. The Hip Hop Democrat presents Real AmeriKKKan Terrorists: Failed Obama Assassination posted at The Hip Hop DEMOCRAT.

US Election Response:

So here we are, back at the election. Most of Europe is considerably to the left of the United States, and so it's hard to see this outcome as anything other than an opportunity for Britain and America to move closer together after years of watching Bush with a mixture of bemusement and horror.

Other than that, the first big challenges Obama will face beyond his borders will come with the withdrawal from Iraq, and his ability to work with the coalition of nations still fighting in the eighth year of the forgotten war in Afghanistan. Or I should say the 5th forgotten war in Afghanistan, since this is now the fifth time that we British have invaded that particular nation.

Energy and the economy are the other two elephants in his in-tray, and much has been said about these. The idea that the U.S. will cease to be dependent on foreign oil any time soon is simply nonsense, but an immediate drive to new technology needs to begin, and needs to be executed with the pace and vigour of the Apollo project. The economy is perhaps less of an issue - every bust precedes a boom, and if anything Obama may be perfectly placed to benefit from the inevitable bounce in 2009/10.

Of course Obama represents more than this for many people. He is a symbol of hope and change, but for this he needs to actually do something. Simply existing as president is enough for now, but come January he will be expected to implement radical policy, and right now the shift is going in the other direction. Even as American liberals celebrated, gay rights were pushed back in three states. It is a potent reminder that the United States on November 7th is fundamentally no different from October 7th, and conservatives are still winning battles. The election of Obama does not represent change, but rather the opportunity for change.

Neither is Obama a quick fix. It's easy to get carried away, and to forget that this is a man who said in his first debate that he would be willing to illegally invade a nuclear-armed country (Pakistan) in pursuit of the War on Terror. A man who responded to concern about his energy policy by performing a U-turn on offshore drilling, and who may be about to bring Arnold Schwarzeneggar in to the White House as an Energy "Tsar". A million miles better than McCain/Palin he may be, but he is not flawless.

As Churchill once said, this is not the end, nor is it the beginning of the end, but it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. Now the job of all American liberals is to continue to fight as hard as you fought under Bush, because no one man can change the nation, change has to swell from the ground upwards.

Of course, some aren't taking it very well at all, like the good folks at Rapture Ready: "I think we all had that knot in our stomachs knowing that Obama was going to win. Bible prophecy does come to pass and we all know he's going to help usher it in. I prayed Lord it's your will and this is what's come to pass. Now we pray for our family and friends feverently and know that Jesus is coming to get us soon."

As hilariously dumb as that may be the truth is that America today remains extremely divided, and that will be perhaps the biggest challenge Obama faces in his first four years.

So on to the responses of others. Common wisdom suggests that the McCain campaign made a number of strategic blunders. Yoo presents Where McCain went wrong posted at Stochastic Scribbles.

Meanwhile Montag warns us of a new threat to Americanism... Teh Evil Socialism!!!1!!!!1111. Seriously, as a Brit, I don't understand why it's a swear word to Americans, but there you go. Montag presents USSSA WATCH posted at I Miss Fafblog, Spot.

Submitted to a Candid World is one of the best liberal blogs on the internet right now, and I strongly recommend you go there and just browse around. This particular entry looks at McCain's concession speech, and wonders why he couldn't have been this good for the rest of the campaign. Ames presents Mac is Back posted at Submitted to a Candid World.

Mike Haubrich is one of a special breed of people, political campaigners who walk the streets in wind, rain, snow and occasionally sunshine to get democracy working. Here he describes his favourite moment of the campaign. Mike Haubrich presents I Have Been to the Mountaintop posted at Tangled Up in Blue Guy.

And finally, a really special post. Sometimes a picture tells a thousand words. Barry Leiba shows us 24 photographs in chronological order, spanning two hundred years of history from the slave traders to Obama at the White House in a post that is more moving than any amount of words could be. Barry Leiba presents History posted at Staring At Empty Pages.

And so with that I bid you farewell. Thank you for visiting, and I'll be writing another piece about the election tonight so you be sure to add me to your feeds! The next host will be Greg Laden on November 19th, so get your posts to him.

Keep up the good work America.