Lina Ejailat featured by Al Jazeera

Disappointed, they turn to the next person approaching, and I go on my way feeling that there's some kind of unfairness in the fact that I cannot vote.

I'm anxious about tomorrow, and so are many of my non-American friends.

We're all following the election coverage very closely, and we all want Obama to win, even though technically, it doesn't affect us so much.

The truth is that I don't think Obama will really achieve the radical change he keeps talking about once he's elected.

But he embodies an idea and him winning the presidency is not so much a means to an end but an end in, and of, itself.

He is different. He brings in a very fresh perspective.

He has the ability to mobilise and to inspire and that's something that is not very common these days.

I attended a meeting for young Republicans in Brooklyn recently, and one of the main points they raised was the fact that Republicans all over the country are having a very hard time recruiting volunteers.

On the other hand, Obama has sparked such passion among young people who were never before involved in politics.

It would be very interesting to see what he will do about that if elected president.

His campaign used the internet and multimedia in ways no other political candidate has, so imagine what it would be like if he continued as a president to be so connected and so innovative in ways of communicating with young people.

That is the part I'm most curious about - not so much what his policies and decisions as president would be, but rather his approach and how he would do things.

It's often disconcerting when leadership centres around the personality of the leader, when it revolves around him; when he becomes the subject, the idea.

When people idolise a leader, the flip side is that they are more likely than not to be let down, and that turns them bitter and jaded.

I can rationalise more and come up with arguments as to why I shouldn't be so excited over Obama, but I don't want to. I am excited about him.

His entire story and campaign continue to be interesting, and even though "interesting" can be a mysteriously loaded adjective, in my dictionary it's something good.

Obama aside, I have so many reasons to be disturbed by McCain winning, but it's enough to look at the latest episode of the defamation of professor Rashid Khalidi [a Palestinian history professor at a university criticised by Sarah Palin] to cringe at the idea of John McCain leading this country.

I was doing some interviews close to Wall Street when a man started rambling to me the other day - not knowing that I am an Arab - about "that pro-Palestinian professor Khalidi" and about "the threats" to America's security if Obama wins.

I had to exercise some self-discipline to avoid a pointless argument, dismissing the whole thing as an episode of ignorance.

There are plenty of people like that. I guess it's just fair to hope that they don't end up in power.

Way to go Lina and Jordanian bloggeretts