Siri's January Blog

2011 Year in Review

1. The Arab Spring- Remember this? Protestors across northern Africa and the Middle East demonstrated against dictators. And guess what? It’s still happening (Google Syria). Make it the Arab Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.

2. Political Scandals- Think Representative Anthony Weiner and Representative Christopher Lee using Twitter for their own, um, purposes, and not for good.

3. Notable Deaths- From Elizabeth Taylor to Osama Bin Laden, the world lost some of its most recognizable people, including tech innovator Steve Jobs and fun-sized North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il.

4. High Profile Court Cases- 2011 saw its fair share of notable (and notorious) court cases. Think Dr. Conrad Murray (Michael Jackson’s personal physician), Dominque Strauss-Kahn (former head of the International Monetary Fund), and Casey Anthony, the woman accused of and found not guilty for the murder of her young daughter.

5. The World’s Newest Country- On July 9^th, South Sudan split from its northern counterpart for form its own, autonomous state, rendering all maps in the world at that time incorrect.

6. Natural Disasters- Mother Nature had no mercy on some regions of the world this year. From Pakistan and Thailand to Japan and the eastern coast of the United States, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, and tornados swept across the planet.

7. The Wall-Street Protests- For months now, “We are the 99%” demonstrators in New York and various cities across the U.S. have staged protests against America’s growing income disparity.

8. A New Royal Couple- Though some were excited by the marriage of William and Kate in the United Kingdom, more were concerned with the austere measures taken at the time of the pricey royal wedding.

9. The End of the Iraq War- This December, the last of U.S. combat troops pulled out of Iraq in time for Christmas.

10. The Republican Presidential Nomination Race- Though Herman Cain no longer joins them, the rest of the Republican candidates will battle it out for the nomination to take on President Barack Obama next November in the general election.

By Siri McGuire