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Somehow, the jubilation on the nation's main streets failed to lift the mood on Wall Street.

What led the sharp decline were banking shares. Bank of America dropped 28 per cent, JP Morgan 20.7 per cent, and Citigroup 20 per cent. The fall in New York came hard on the heels of the dive in London as shares of the Royal Bank of Scotland went down another 11 per cent after the 67-per cent decline the day before. And this after Gordon Brown had practically nationalised the failed bank and extended a gigantic rescuing hand to the British banking sector in the neighbourhood of 290 million British pounds.(Bt14 billion)

Leaving behind the making of history and the majesty of democracy - which hundreds of millions of people around the world joined Americans in relishing - cruel economic news pulled us back to earth from cloud nine. It forced us to ponder the most humdrum question against the backdrop of the lofty dreams and feel-good inspiration of a new dawn in the American era: What's next?

To date, about US$30 trillion of equity has disappeared from the world economy, and the pit still seems bottomless. It has also become a shared perception of those in the know that very few American and European banks can survive without further government intervention. Can "the man for his time", President Obama, come up with a potent magic pill to cure this global economic malady that has gone beyond our grimmest imagination?

The expectations that rest on President Obama's shoulders are gargantuan. The man is widely perceived as a "phenom" that comes along perhaps once in a lifetime. They called him "the man with the ball when there are five seconds left in the basketball game". He is cool, calm and collected, and possesses such a rare quality of equanimity - and this has given rise to unprecedented confidence among people of all nations. He has overcome all the odds in life and has made his way to the highest office of his land, an office that never before has been opened to a man of his skin. If he can beat these obstacles that otherwise seemed unbeatable, logic tends to lead us to conclude that, "yes, he can" meet the expectations and overcome yet more odds.

During his first few months in office he should be able to push the legislation needed to achieve some of his goals and objectives. His honeymoon period is likely to last longer than that of his predecessors. This is partly due to the realisation of the American public that the problems are much graver than anything this generation has seen before. Partly, it is due to President Bush's disastrous record - which will make almost everything else smell like roses. The US is willing to cut him a little more slack.

President Obama has given indications time and again that he is well aware of these challenges. In response, he challenges the American people to use their mettle and turn challenges into opportunities. He calls on his nation and its people to rise up to the occasion after being knocked down so badly, and to bounce back proudly. He has said excellence is a mandate, not an option, and urged the American people to take seriously their individual responsibilities in helping their communities.

Despite the call for an expanded role for the government, he reminds the public that the job of the administration is only to do the things that cannot be done at the citizen level, and it must be held accountable. To err is to be human, he said, and therefore err he will. If his much-anticipated inauguration remarks gave us any clue, they will provide a sense of sobering caution to many, and be a let-down to some; they may turn out to be the trademark of his presidency.

America is a country that loves to feel good; that is why most American movies have a happy ending. It was natural that in the days leading up to the Inauguration, an overwhelming majority of Americans believed the country would be better off four years from now. Polls show that there seems to be widespread confidence that Obama will be an exceptional president - one who can unify the divided country and work with Congress to get things done. But as economic indicators worsen and point to the likelihood that the country may not be out of the woods, even in 2011, a rude awakening looms.

Unlike Bush, who worked to spread democracy around the world but failed to achieve a consensus at home, Obama has been working to perfect his grassroots outreach machine. That means he goes directly to his people to garner support for his programmes. The depth and complexity of his intelligence and emotional quotient can match the complexity of the problems at hand. But no amount of intelligence can guarantee success.

On Tuesday, Barack Obama wrote history. From hereon after, he goes to work, and history will begin judging the man. For all of our sakes, may the wind be at his back and the road rise to meet him.