The honeymoon goes on

The sleep deprivation is just starting to win out over the Election Day high, but with headlines like this from Friday's New York Times, even late night election viewing/problem set doing/computer coding can't keep a spring out of my step.

Obama Victory Alters the Tenor of Iraqi Politics

Iraqi Shiite politicians are indicating that they will move faster toward a new security agreement about American troops, and a Bush administration official said he believed that Iraqis could ratify the agreement as early as the middle of this month.

“Before, the Iraqis were thinking that if they sign the pact, there will be no respect for the schedule of troop withdrawal by Dec. 31, 2011,” said Hadi al-Ameri, a powerful member of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, a major Shiite party. “If Republicans were still there, there would be no respect for this timetable. This is a positive step to have the same theory about the timetable as Mr. Obama.”

In Rare Turn, Iran’s Leader Sends Letter to Obama

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran sent an unusual letter congratulating President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday for his victory in the American presidential race, even though the two nations have had no diplomatic ties for nearly 30 years... this is the first time an Iranian leader has congratulated the winner of an American election, at least since the Iranian revolution.

None of these developments represent magical fixes, and it's important to remember that President-elect Obama will be coming into the White House facing an economic crisis and two wars. But it's just so heartening to see how this change is making it easier for other countries to engage with us, so that there exists at least a hope for progress.