Continued from a previous post.

No one feels the effects of what happens in the U.S. as much as Mexico. It’s as if the fault line we share were a conductor of not just seismic energy but also shared grief. And when things get bad in the U.S., they get worse in Mexico. Issues such as border control, the economy — which affects jobs done by Mexicans and subsequently remesas sent back home (one of Mexico’s top economic drivers) — and trade have Mexican analysts, politicians and journalists waiting with baited breath. The cover of today’s El Universal (Mexico City) newspaper could easily be mistaken for a U.S. newspaper. Under the masthead, prime page space is 100% occupied by poll information, predictions, photographs of the candidates.

And the ripple effect of the continues even further south. Buenos Aires’ Clarin proclaims, jubilantly, “Obama- McCain: an election that puts an end to the Bush era.” In the ranking of most popular news stories according to readers, a story about the death of Barack Obama’s grandmother is second only to news about soccer legend Diego Maradona.

And the same story in papers throughout the region and the world. Expectations are high in Latin America, perhaps as high as they are in the U.S., and the disappointment of 4 more years of failed Bush policy will be the same should McCain surprise us all with a victory tonight.

If you know a shaman, give him a call.