Reflections of the first decade in the new millennia
As the first decade of my adult life comes to a close, I have to speculate the impact the new millennium will have on history.
The 2000s no doubt had a fair share of plights and failures. Time magazine recently declared this decade “The worst decade ever.” Is it, though?
Without a doubt, 9/11 set the tone for the rest of the decade. It brought about a new war that wasn’t against a country, but an ideology. It instilled fear in Americans and brought distant problems to the forefront of our country. Suddenly, the wars in the Middle East were on our turf. Time will only tell if our responses were the right ones.
From invading Iraq to bailing out Wall Street, the American taxpayer has had to pay for more mistakes than previous generations can remember. It’s still piling up, too, with more troops going to Afghanistan and American health care being reformed. With the current way of things, Time magazine may have been right in its declaration.
But if there’s one thing we can learn from American history, it’s that things have an ironic habit of turning around. The first world war in the 1910s gave way to the roaring ’20s. The Great Depression of the ’30s was followed by a second world war in the ’40s, leading into great economic stability in the ’50s. Starting to see a pattern here?
They say when you’re down, the only direction to go is up. America seems to fit the bill pretty well.
For all the negativity that happened in this past decade, it’s easy to overlook the good things that have happened. The Internet has boomed, bringing instantaneous communication between long lost friends. 9/11 has caused us to be more aware of the world around us. How many people knew where Afghanistan was before 9/11? The decade ended with a bang, too — we elected our first black president in Barack Obama, something no one thought America would ever be capable of.
The most exciting part of the next decade, though, is that the college students of today will become a dominate force in tomorrow’s workforce. The young people of today reflect the current times — always changing, thinking creatively and differently than previous generations. If the world is to become a better place, it will start with this generation choosing to improve things.
I graduate in May with no clear direction of where to go. Sometimes, it’s exciting but, mostly, it’s absolutely frightening.
The job market looks like it’s been in the ring with Mike Tyson — bruised, defeated, and all-around ugly. But every fighter has a comeback shot, and America’s has too be soon.
So here’s to the next decade, whose fate will be in our hands. All I can hope for is that we’ve learn from this decade’s mistakes, and that we make the effort needed to improve America.
