Opinion: Why I'm happy with the US election result

President-elect Donald Trump. Photo/AP

I watched the screen with amazement and a growing fascination at the groundswell of opinion; I felt uneasy to say the least and wondered why I seemed to be at odds with popular opinion.

Mass hysteria and uninformed opinion never make for good bedfellows and as the night wore on and the growing sense of panic deepened, I sat back and distanced myself from the rambling masses.

This wasn't the American elections I was watching mind, it was my Facebook feed and I marvelled at how we now live in a world where everyone with an internet connection is now an expert.

Trump was winning and Hillary was losing and for some reason, Kiwis were angry and upset to a degree seldom seen and it seemed to be the done thing to abuse, run down and vilify not just Trump himself but the people who voted for him.

I don't like Trump and I don't like Hillary as political figures (I expect they are both quite nice people in real life) and I am not here to defend or support either of them, however, I do like the American people and this is where I fundamentally part company with the great unwashed' s opinion on Facebook.

Can I just say that I think it is the height of arrogance, stupidity and narrowmindedness to think that we, who live in a different country with a different culture and political system, know who the American people can and should vote for.

Pain causes change and if the emphatic Trump victory shows anything at all, it shows that many of Americans have been feeling left out and left behind and no amount of spin from the normal political establishment was going to sway what they thought.

The majority of the people are never quite right but they are also never quite wrong and whether you like it or not, Americans, who are very much like you and me; just trying to get through life, bring their kids up and maybe leave the world slightly better than they found it, have voted for Trump and that my friends, with all its faults, is democracy in action.

The changing of leaders has been going on since Adam was a cowboy, in the past it was by a general uprising or cutting off the head of a king, now, at least in some countries, it is by a popular vote.

Personally, I am happy with the result.

Every American, regardless of what the media and the spin-doctors told them they should do, got to cast their one vote and regardless of their race, gender, financial or social situation, they cast their one vote and that one vote is a beautiful thing.

They voted, and good or bad, they have got what they voted for and I for one am happy for them.

Time will move on and the sun will come up tomorrow and Joe Public will go to work and try, as he always has, to get through life as best he can.

The hysteria will die down and Trump will very possibly end up being nowhere near as good as his supporters had hoped and nowhere near as bad as his haters had thought and in that respect he is probably not going to be a lot different to most other political leaders.

Like it or not, that's is democracy and I wish Trump and the American people all the best.

Wayne Perkins is a blogger and author of the forthcoming book Simple Thoughts In A Complex World.