The week that was 7-11 November 2016
Trump.
‘Merica voted this week. They elected Donald Trump as their new President of the United States.
The vote was 50/50 pretty much. People want change. They want difference. People aren’t happy with the status quo. Hillary Clinton wasn’t a strong enough candidate. Red beat Blue in a large portion of the United States. Will things change? A bit but not that much.
Almost 90% of blacks voted Clinton. They don’t want to see big-mouth Trump in charge.
Many Hispanics are also fearful of Trump and it was the majority white population that voted him in.
Protests and unrest occurred the next day in New York outside Trump’s own Tower block and the disapproving feelings of his stewardship will likely keep up pace in the coming weeks. America must come to terms with their new President, though; he was fairly and squarely voted into place and his election is as much a problem of the other leaders in America being weak as opposed to Trump being a strong candidate.
The financial markets reacted as they would to such big news but things will balance themselves out again. Much like the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom, early panic will pave the way to longer-term settlement and even growth.
Trump himself is a builder so we could see the USA actually grow its industry and make corporate America into an even stronger place, looking to compete with Asia.
Trump will also try and patch up relations with Russia as they look to take seriously the threat that ISIS or so-called Islamic State poses on Russia, Europe, USA and the Far East.
The pound falls
The pound has taken a beating recently and hit record lows but it should recover.
The dollar is so strong that even news as big as Trump won’t really affect it over the long or short-term.
Trump promised the Americans he’d build a wall to keep out Mexican immigrants. Let’s see if he keeps to his word.
What else has been going on this week?
Tram disaster in London
A tram going too fast de-railed in Croydon, killing 7 men and 1 women. The tram was just a mere 200 yards from its stop when it derailed and killed several passengers.
Not a great start to people’s mornings as the tram keeled over just after 6:00am as people most likely made their way to work and other places.
The driver was arrested and will face charges, most probably for negligence as he was speeding and his actions caused the derailment.
Horse racing lost the great jumper, Vautour
A huge loss on Sunday occurred when it was revealed that top Cheltenham jumper Vautour sadly died at just 7 years old. It was described as a ‘freak’ accident; the horse supposedly breaking one of his legs whilst playing around in the paddock and the injury was too severe so the horse was put down.
Vautour was a 3-time winner around the Cheltenham course and was all set to appear at the same race track again this year but the huge shock news came as a devastating blow to the Willie Mullins yard as they lost one of their top stars to horse racing heaven.
Vautour was widely regarded as one of the best jumpers in the British Isles and he will be sorely missed but very fondly remembered by many.
Sport keeps us all going
Amidst the uncertainty and all the natural disasters and deaths, sport always gives us much joy and some certainty in a world that is uncertain.
People’s love for watching ball sports and horse racing will not cease as although it is unpredictable it gives people a level of certainty. They know the ball will be going in the net at some point, or the horses will make it round the track and provide us with excitement.
It’s a safe haven where there are no outside influences to spoil the view.
That was the week that was 7-11 November 2016.
A Writer 