You should really read New York Times correspondent Barry Bearak's humbling tale of being imprisoned in Zimbabwe for the crime of "committing journalism" as he covered the country's completely screwed-up elections in recent weeks. But if you can't get through it, consider this passage:

But [Beatrice Mtetwa, Zimbabwe's top human rights lawyer] also explained the sinister realities of a woebegone place: “Ultimately, there is no law in Zimbabwe. Your governments can’t apply pressure; the British and the Americans have negative influence here. The police will hold you as long as they want.” She was president of the nation’s law society. The police had beaten her with truncheons the year before.

There's a lot been said and thought about whether or not such reactions to American pressure are a Bush administration problem, or an America problem?.A lot of people hold up the hope that if Senator Obama gets elected president, the rest of the world would be happier if the visage of American power was a black man's face. They'd be more amenable to our leadership.

But with China and India rising and the end of American empire in Iraq and Afghanistan difficult to imagine, I question that. Zimbabwe is not a giant country, but it's creating tremendous problems in its environment, and it's awful government is leaning on countries like China to make it through this crisis. Just because Obama gets elected doesn't mean China is going to go away.

So, the question is not whether the next administration is going to look better to the best of the world; the substance is going to be really important.  Senator Obama is only really going to represent change in the way we're seen by the world if he changes the way we deal with big problems.  That means not just sending minor envoys to southern Africa the way the Bush administration has to nip at the heels of Mugabe's terrible regime, but really putting the full power of the White House behind diplomatic initiatives.  That's what's been missing in most of the past seven years, and if it isn't forthcoming in the future, America's "negative influence" is likely to grow.