Now, remember this is not an American view, it’s the view of an Australian, and a european-based one at that, but think about it – just by getting elected Obama completely changed the direction of the world’s sole superpower. From our perspective (the world, not America’s) the last 8 years has seen the US turn from a force of good in the world into one of, well, not evil, but certainly not good. It was a country that was using and endorsing torture. It was a country that was supporting imprisonment without right to a trial. It was a country that had invaded a country under false pretenses and re-ignited the cold war with Russia. It was a country that was attempting to “lead” not through leadership, but fear.

All of that has now changed. America is once again the most admired country in the world. Instead of picking fights, the world’s sole superpower is now working to prevent fights.

How could you contribute more to world peace than that?

News outlets are abuzz with reports that CNN medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has been picked by Barack Obama to be Surgeon General of the United States.

At first I was a little mortified at the news – a media personality for one of the top positions in public health in the world? But after that initial reaction I’ve decided the move is brilliant.

I spent almost a decade in Public Health, working for the University of Queensland researching, designing, implementing, and evaluating public heath interventions – primarily in the fields of teenage alcohol use and adult drink driving. Unlike much of modern medicine, Public Health is really about prevention not about responding to disease or other conditions. Prevention requires affecting individuals choices – what they chose to eat, whether they chose to smoke or exercise, whether they chose to drink drive etc etc. These types of issues are at the top of concern in health throughout the western world.

What has the most influence on the world today? The mass media, including the internet. Dr. Gupta is an accomplished neurosurgeon and clearly a very capable and intelligent man. In addition he’s photogenic (an unfortunate necessity, in today’s world) and a great communicator.

Who better to get out the message of public health?