It looks like we’ve all got another big reason to be thankful this year … it’s almost the end of the 00′s decade which, according to Time magazine, has been The Decade from Hell. The new issue of Time chronicles THE worst things that have happened in the last 10 years which, in sum, add up to probably the worst decade our country has ever experienced — and to be honest, I kinda have to agree with Time magazine on this one:
As the first decade of the 21st Century draws to a close, Time has taken a look back and concluded that it is the “worst decade ever”: Bookended by 9/11 at the start and a financial wipeout at the end, the first 10 years of this century will very likely go down as the most dispiriting and disillusioning decade Americans have lived through in the post-World War II era. We’re still weeks away from the end of ’09, but it’s not too early to pass judgment. Call it the Decade from Hell, or the Reckoning, or the Decade of Broken Dreams, or the Lost Decade. Call it whatever you want — just give thanks that it is nearly over.
If you so desire, you can read the online version of Time‘s coverstory HERE. The more I think about the events that occurred in the last 10 years, the more I have to agree that it really was the Decade from Hell … consider, the 00′s started with the stupid Y2K bug (which seemed to be a harbinger of doom) and immediately went into the stolen election of GWB (arguably our worst president ever presiding over, again arguably, the most EVIL administration that our nation ever suffered under) complete with “hanging chads” and all … then came 9/11 and the subsequent TWO wars (one in Afghanistan, one in Iraq). Natural disasters like the Tsunami in 2004 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 made sure to mar the decade with far too much death and destruction. The end of the decade saw our economic collapse which, in turn, threatened (and still threatens) the collapse of our nation’s automobile industry in Detroit … it just seems like it’s been on hit after another. Yes, there have been some amazing things to happen to our country in the past 10 years but, really, they will be primarily overshadowed by all of the bad stuff. As a student of History, I can assure you that when this decade is studied in hindsight, it really will look like prolly the worst decade of our nation’s history … especially if you consider how varied all of these disasters were (from technological, to political, to natural disasters, wars, terrorism, economic, etc.), well, it’s hard to argue otherwise. I have hope that the next 10 years will be much more prosperous and happy … after all, they couldn’t be any worse … right?
@Tom: “Take my shit elsewhere? I will, actually.”
And yet six hours after you posted that, you were still arguing with other people. You have your opinion, which is yours, such being the beauty of a free country. Now that you’ve shared it at great length, kindly follow your own advice.
@Trent: It’s interesting that Time came up with this take on a “miserable” decade that was. In retrospect, I wonder if we will remember the 00s in such a negative light, or will we be find a different time to be upset about? To our parents, I’m sure the Vietnam Era (and the late 60s with the assassinations of JFK, MLK, RFK; the Cold War) was equally as terrifying in many ways, with even less control than we might be perceived as having now. It’s possible for someone to opt out of military service, whereas for the Vietnam generation, the draft certainly was a fact of life. Could they anymore stop a nuclear warhead from being launched by an unfriendly power than we were able to thwart terrorism? The US had its economic and social fiascoes, and yet came out with considerable strength and some great advances in many areas. I would hope to think that the 10s will be better, especially for human rights (be it gays/lesbians, divorced parents, returning rights that the Patriot Act overturned, etc).
whoa. whatever happened to freedom of speech and expressing one’s opinions without being attacked for it?
I may not be well informed enough since i am a non-us citizen but i respect trent for his opinion. if to him, it was the worst decade ever, hey why does that bother you so much? it’s just his opinion.
Wow, I feel like I’ve just stepped into a forum on foxnews.com. Scary.
I completely agree with you, Trent.
Can you even picture how much better this decade would have been had GWB not cheated his way into Office? None of this ‘No Child Left Behind’ bullsh*t, no war in Iraq, no Dick Cheney behind the scenes puppeteering Bush’s every move.
Honestly, the number of people who honestly believe George W. Bush was a good president astounds me.
And the worst part? We have one of his f*ck buddies as our leader in Canada. I am hoping for a federal election SOON.
And @Tom: Could you be more ignorant? I actually don’t think it’s possible.
I have to say that I think the 1930s was the worst decade in our country’s history, followed by the 1960s, and THEN followed by 2000s.
Just thought we should acknowledge that this was Trent summarizing a TIME magazine article? Go complain to them!
Thank you Trent for all you do.
Trent, thanks for this post, and your responses to any detractors. Throughout history, and around the world, there have obviously been many devastating occurrences, many of them far more costly and painful than any one of the things that have happened in the past 10 years that have affected the US and its citizens. HOWEVER, that doesn’t make the events highlighted by Time less valid. And taken altogether, it’s a lot. So people, stop judging.
It has been a crummy decade, but we’ve got a lot of good out of this decade, too. Like Dolly Parton says, “If you want the rainbow, you gotta learn to like the rain”. I love the bawling baby on the cover. Does that mean it was really that bad, or we just whine too much?
“It can’t be any worse?” I wonder if the people who went into the 1930s to the 1940s thought that? Europe was already mired in WW2 but the US still wasn’t. Yes, this was a crummy decade and last year was a crummy year but I am afraid to ask if it can be any worse because I know it can be. WW3 anyone?