Ten Reasons I Will Not Miss 2008

10. Large Hadron Collider - The good news: It didn't suck the world into a black hole. But it did break. After only 9 days of functioning.

9. Big Name Deaths - Namely Tim Russert- journalist for MSNBC, Heath Ledger- actor, Benazir Bhutto - president of Pakistan was assassinated by al-Qaeda to be succeeded by her husband (technically 4 days before 2008), Mark Felt - aka Deepthroat and others

8. Russia v. Georgia - A small yet very real war broke out between Russian and Georgia this year in early August. The troops have been called off now, but tensions remain as the two countries squabble over oil, civilian deaths and their conflicted history.

7. Sara Palin - I never want to hear her talk again. Unfortunantly she's still one of the most popular republicans, despite arguably cementing John McCain's loss.

6. Hackers - One of the most under-reported stories of the year, foreign hackers cracked the CERN computer system, both presidential campaigns, the White House and the Defense Department this year.

5. Torture - We did it. Dick Cheney has admitted to supporting water-boarding. Investigations are currently being called for about possible/probable war crimes commited by the United States involving torture of prisoners.

4. Oh Fuck, The Economy - In case you didn't notice, the economy tanked. After a creeping recession had already taken root before summer, and the federal takeover of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, September brought the failure, sale or crisis of several large banks including Washington Mutual, Morgan Stanely and Wachovia. An emergency bailout was organized for the banking industry and rushed through congress. The auto industry was soon to follow.

3. Oh Fuck, The Economy Local Edition - People are getting laid off everywhere. National unemployment was 6.7% in November with rates even higher in vulnerable areas including 8.4% in California and South Carolina, 7.9% in North Carolina and a whopping 9.6 in Michigan and 9.3 in Rhode Island (thats nearly one in 10 people if you're doing the math)

2. Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai - In November terrorists attacked the Indian city, killed at least 164 people and eventually held hostages in landmark luxury hotels. The attacks not only resulted in loss of life, but have helped stir up animosity between India and Pakistan. Things are still tense, and some fear conflict. Update(12/26/08): Pakistani troops have been positioned near the border in preparation for a possible invasion.


1. Prop 8 - A proposition put on the ballot in California and largely funded by conservative religious groups like the Morman Church passed on election day, Nov. 4. The proposition took away the right for gay couples to marry in the state and struck a severe blow to the gay rights movement. Protests and the occasional riot have been springing up all over the country.