Here is a summary of the top stories of 2020:
- The Australian wildfires (which started in 2019) continued into 2020 before being contained, but not before causing much damage in that country.
- Iranian aggression: in response to an Iranian-backed militia launching an attack on an Iraqi base hosting American personnel (in which one American was killed), the United States launched a series of airstrikes against militia targets in Iraq and Syria. The Iranian-backed militia (Kata’ib Hezbollah) then responded by launching an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. The United States then retaliated by launching a drone strike, which killed General Qasem Soleimani of the Quds Force (which is part of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps). Iran vowed revenge, and in the process accidentally Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, which resulted in the deaths of 176 people.
- President Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate took place and resulted in his acquittal.
- The Covid-19 Pandemic originated in China in 2019, and spread throughout the World this year, infecting over 80 million people worldwide, with over 1.7 million deaths. The pandemic has resulted in various shutdowns across the globe, thus having an impact on the global economy. Various protests have taken place in response to the restrictions imposed by the authorities in several countries. Vaccines developed to combat the pandemic are currently being distributed.
- The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and several other African-Americans at the hands of police resulted in a series of protests and riots, not only in the United States, but across the globe. Such protests and riots took place despite the Covid-19 restrictions in some places, and have impacted the economy. The riots and protests have also lead to the promotion of the cancel culture, in which various statues of individuals considered to be racist have been vandalized, burned, or torn down. In addition, names, pictures, etc. considered to be politically incorrect have been removed or changed. Such examples include the following: Butterworths, Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben’s, Cream of Wheat, Lady Antebellum, the Dixie Chicks, and the Washington Redskins. There have also been calls for defunding the police in several cities- some of which have done so, which in turn has resulted in an increase in crime in those cities.
- The 2020 Presidential Election: Joe Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 Presidential Election. But President Trump has refused to concede the election due to voter fraud. Investigations into these allegations are still continuing.
- An RV exploded in Nashville on Christmas morning in an apparent terrorist attack. There were three injuries and extensive damage, and the only fatality was the bomber himself- Anthony Quinn Warner. The motive for the bombing is unknown at this time.
- The following people died in 2020: David Stern, Buck Henry, Terry Jones, Kobe Bryant, Mary Higgins Clark, Kirk Douglas, Jack Welch, James Lipton, Max von Sydow, Kenny Rogers, Honor Blackman, Brian Dennehy, Mike “Mad Dog” Curtis, Little Richard, Jerry Stiller, Fred Willard, Joel Schumacher, Johnny Mandel, Carl Reiner, Charlie Daniels, Naya Rivera, Kelly Preston, John Lewis, Olivia de Havilland, Wilford Brimley, Diana Rigg, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Michael Lonsdale, Gale Sayers, Eddie Van Halen, Sean Connery, Alex Trebek, Pat Patterson, and Jonathan Huber (a.k.a. Brodie Lee, a.k.a. Luke Harper).
This year has been a tough one. Hopefully 2021 will be a better year.
Happy New Year.
