BRITAIN

BRITAIN
The Daily Telegraph, London, Nov. 2: On either side of the Atlantic, pundits have been pronouncing that the (election's) result -- whichever way it turns -- will somehow be illegitimate.
According to this dubious analysis, America is "deeply divided," which sounds like a bad thing, when actually this is just another way of saying the election has proved to be keenly fought and very close. Republican and Democratic activists are working to ensure voters get out of the house and to the polls.
Political apathy
It is strange, at a time of growing political apathy and falling voter turn-out in this country, that many in Britain should regard this as sinister. If only we had the "problem" of voters joining others in heated political debate and volunteering for grassroots political activism.
Those who see the seeds of American decline in desperately fought contests in the swing states today should answer this: how much would the framers of the new E.U. constitution give to see this level of political interest in the next round of European elections?
UGANDA
The New Vision, Oct. 30: The severe illness that has befallen Yasser Arafat has opened the Palestine question yet again.
Even if he recovers, it is unlikely that he will resume the same energetic leadership that he has given to Palestine over four decades. Arafat has been the most levelheaded Palestinian leader -- one capable of working out a settlement that takes care of both the Palestinians and Israel. Now that he is ailing, the extremists will be positioning themselves to take authority.
Great losers
If that happens, the irony is that Israel, who would be great losers, would have been partly to blame. By forcefully marginalizing Arafat over three or so years, the government of Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon silenced the moderate Palestinian leader, giving the opportunity for ascendancy to the more extreme elements who do not believe in Israel's right to exist. ...
ITALY
Corriere della Sera, Milan, Nov. 2: The greatest world power is dramatically divided into two opposing fields. On Sept. 12, 2001, Bush had a wounded and frightened country with him, but it was extraordinarily united.
The situation began to change in the second half of 2003 when Americans realized that Afghanistan has not been stabilized, that Iraq has not been defeated, that the weapons of mass destruction do not exist, that Osama bin Laden has not been captured and that many suspects imprisoned after Sept. 11 are innocent.
Great democracy
This is the moment in which America is proving to be a great democracy. The press is beginning to talk about Iraq as it did about Vietnam 25 years ago. Congress is bringing to light the lies of the administration.
The united country of Sept. 12 is now divided. The new president cannot dedicate himself only to the war in Iraq and economic crisis. He should also work to rebuild the unity of the nation.
EGYPT
The Egyptian Gazette, Cairo, Nov. 2: The 2004 U.S. presidential election may be among the rarest events in which the Arabs find it hard to favor one contender over the other.
The close links with Bush, his Iraq policy and craven bias toward Israel have earned his nation unbridled feelings of hostility in this strategic region. The Bush administration has abysmally failed to heed the sensitivities of the Arabs by behaving so arrogantly toward their countries. Bush did not heed Arab leaders' warnings that his military rush into Iraq would trigger bloody chaos, which has become a grim reality none, including the United States, knows how to tackle.
Blatant bias
Though pro-Israel bias has been a major part of Washington's foreign policy, never has it been so blatant as it has become with the Bush administration.
Arabs are not amenable toward Kerry either. His positions on Israel and Iraq generally echo his Republican challenger's.