Make fun of me if it pleases you. I take this stance now like the position I took before the election. I risked my reputation, such as it was, that Barack Obama would get 314 electoral votes or more. I added that he would get more popular votes than Bush in 2000 and again in 2004. I am now going to venture out into some very deep and shark infested water and state that I believe President-elect Obama will serve not only the people of the United States but those of the world as did Alexander the Great.

Alexander never followed Aristotle's advice that he should treat the Greeks differently than the non-Greeks. By respecting the traditions of the people he conquered, eliminating discrimination and prejudice between conquerors and conquered, Alexander the Great elevated the peoples he conquered from an economic, social and political point of view to a higher echelon. That is the reason why Alexander, still today, is loved and respected by a multitude of nations in the East and West and why various legends of different nationalities claim Alexander as their own. Montesquieu, the great French political philosopher, wrote, "When Alexander was gone, nations became orphans."

Jews throughout the centuries have been using the name Alexander. This has been in accordance with their high priest's decision that "Alexander's name should remain for eternity." The decision was taken because, when Alexander visited Jerusalem, he exhibited respect towards the high priest and for the Jewish way of worshiping.

The mighty Romans were the first people to name Alexander "Great." They deified him and not only considered him a role model, but also embraced his life, as well as the arts and sciences that he spread in the East. It was through the Romans that Greek civilization and culture were transferred and established in the West. Thus western civilization was paved and took roots in the western world. Chateaubriand wrote "If someone was compared to a god, that was Alexander." The preceding quotation is not a casual comment.

Sui Generis/Bob Miller