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By Lesile Dias
It is easy to be at Bentley and be consumed by the “Bentley bubble.”It can appear as though the world outside of the intersection of Forest Street and Beaver Street does not exist, and we go about our merry way up the Smith stairs and to the classes, people and drama that have become the norm for us.
However, there are many news highlights that capture even the attention of the most oblivious audiences, and those images are plastered on this week’s front page. In a tribute to a year with good, bad and everything in between, like the rest, 2011 was a year for the books.
So, if you’ve been living under a rock for the past year, here are some of the highlights. For starters, we all faced the “Snowpocalypse” this past January and February, with a snowfall of 35 inches after just one storm in some areas of Massachusetts, and snow storms after snow storms hitting states all over the country.
Concurrently, the world got their first look at the Middle East uprisings, starting in Egypt and Tunisia. Protesters fought gruesome battles for democracy against long standing dictatorships. The uprisings continue in several other Middle Eastern countries, including Libya, Syria, Bahrain and Yemen.
In March, Japan was hit simultaneously with a tsunami and an earthquake. Coming in as the sixth largest earthquake since 1900, the earthquake set off the deadly tsunami that swept the shores of Northern Japan. With death counts in the thousands and an estimated cost of $300 billion, it was one of the costliest disasters of all time.
Mother Nature continued her disaster reign in the U.S. in May with the Joplin, Missouri tornado causing Missouri’s largest insurance payout in the state’s history from the storm’s damage.
May began with the announcement that on May 1, 2011, Osama Bin Laden had indeed been found and killed by U.S. Navy Seals. With triumphant outbursts happening all over the country, Bentley University made its appearance on CNN’s top university celebrations for Bin Laden’s death.
June brought much jubilation in Boston when the Boston Bruins took home the Stanley Cup, being the last of the four Boston sport teams to win a championship in the past seven years.
The LGBTQ community made strides this summer with gay marriage being legalized in the state of New York in June, and in July, a group of U.S. service members marched in the gay pride parade in San Diego, leading an unprecedented step for gay and lesbian personnel in the U.S. military.
On July 22, 2011, Norway experienced two terrorist attacks in the same day, one happening at the government headquarters and the other at a summer camp supported by Norway’s Labour Party. The attack killed over 70 civilians.
The beginning of what has now been labeled the European Debt Crisis ignited this summer in July with a new round of bailouts failing to calm the markets in Europe. The economic condition of Europe has not gained its momentum yet and is still currently facing issues in its banking sectors.
Also in July, the music world mourned the death of Amy Winehouse, British singer-songwriter, after she was found dead in her home in London, England.
Contrary to what some may believe with the confusion surrounding the riots in England, Amy Winehouse’s death was not the cause. Although the riots seem to have begun in relation to a police shooting of a London man in August, reasons for the riots are contributed to several political, social and economic factors faced by the English citizens.
Hurricane Irene touched down on the East Coast of the U.S. in late August, causing widespread destruction, an estimated damage of $10-15 billion and 56 deaths.
September 11, 2011 marked the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11/2001 terrorist attacks. With the announcement of Bin Laden’s death earlier in the year, Americans could finally gather some kind of justice from the monumental attacks.
September was also marked by beginning of the Occupy movement which started on New York City’s Wall Street. With demonstrations springing up in cities and university campuses all over the United States, the movement is against social and economic inequalities and unemployment. They use the tagline, “We are the 99 percent” to bring attention to the growing financial disparity between the rich and the poor in the U.S.
The death of Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple, Inc. and one of the foremost leaders in innovation, has ended the year on a more somber note. The business world looks for others to follow in Jobs’ very large footsteps.
And how can we forget those interesting discussions that took place mid-2011 claiming that the world was in fact ending on May 21? The discussion led by American Christian radio host, Harold Camping, was backed by religious evidence that predicted the world would come to an end. Luckily, we can wait until next year’s last edition of The Vanguard in December 2012. Have fun with that recap, Sindhu.
