I Love the 2000s...Part 1

The decade of the 2000s had its ups and downs and brought the world truly into the 21st century. The build up in 1999 was probably nothing close to the developments that would occur. The major attention as many can remember was "Y2K" and if everything would crash at midnight as the year turned from "1999" to "2000". However, that would be the least of the worries of many ten years later as we prepare to embark on the next decade. For everyone who has lived through the entire decade, they have experienced the worst terrorist attack on American soil and the birth of what we know today as terrorism. As the decade continued, things did not seem like they were getting any better. We embarked on the Afghanistan War shortly after September 11, 2001. And less than two years later, America was involved in a second war in Iraq and another fight against a dictator and cruel leader. There would be an anthrax scare and disputed elections. And before the decade came to an end, we would see an economic collapse almost as bad as a Great Depression. There is roughly 1 in 10 people without a job and that doesn't include those with part-time jobs and those who have given up. The decade as a whole started pretty bleak and ended in possibly a worse fashion.

Throughout the decade, we lost some nationally recognized individuals and those who left us with their impact. Not to make this too long; I will mention some who left us over the last decade. In 2000, we lost famed cartoonist, Charles Schultz. Known for the "Peanuts" strip; Schultz gave us Charlie Brown and Snoopy. Before there was Jay Leno or Conan O'Brien or even Johnny Carson, there was Steve Allen, who helped launch the Tonight Show over 50 years ago. In 2001, the NASCAR and racing world was shocked when at the Daytona 500 Dale Earnhardt crashed and would die from the injuries. His death would give NASCAR the incentive to want to see what safety measures needed to be looked into to avoid another death on the track. Earnhardt was one of the most popular drivers in a sport cherished many of the southern states. Timothy McVeigh, one of the masterminds of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, was put to death for his part. After treatment and fighting throat cancer, one of the Beatles, George Harrison, passed away. He was not only a trend setter as part of the Beatles, but also in his solo work and projects away from music. In 2002, the baseball world lost one of its biggest legends, Ted Williams. His death would set off a dispute between his kids over what to do with the remains of his body. And almost fitting, the football world one of its biggest stars of yester year with the death of Johnny Unitas. Both Williams and Unitas are still revered in their respective sports even though neither has played in a game in a very long time. Lastly in 2002, Stephen Ambrose, a noted historian and biographer passed away. He gave us detailed histories of World War II through his "Band of Brothers"; among his works.

In 2003, we saw quite a few noteworthy people leave us. In May, June Carter Cash passed away to only be Johnny Cash only a few months later. David Brinkley was a noted television reporter and after Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby was the second black man to play major league baseball. Often Doby is overshadowed and overlooked by the impact of Robinson; even though Robinson deserves all the recognition and respect he receives. One of the longest serving and most notable members of Congress, Strom Thurmond passed away at the impressive age of 100. He had served in the Senate for 47 years and has the distinction of being the oldest member of Congress at 100. He retired less than year before his death. In the world of 2003, news of deaths in the Middle East became part of the regular as the war and targeted individuals became daily stories. In July of 2003, two of Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay, were killed. The man who entertained many of the troops during several of American conflicts in Europe, Asia, and abroad; Bob Hope left us at 100 as well. His comedy seemed to bridge generations and left an impact with USO shows and ways to give back to the troops who serve this country. Some more major names in sports left us in 2003 as tennis player, Althea Gibson, and swimmer, Gertrude Ederle left us.

In 2004, former NFL player, Pat Tillman, was killed in friendly fire in Afghanistan after turning away millions in the NFL to serve his country in the wake of 9/11. His death brought with it a controversy around how he died. In June, America lost one of its living ex-presidents in Ronald Reagan. Reagan had Alzheimer's Disease for over a decade and was and is still reversed my many Americans especially conservatives. Famed singer/musician, Ray Charles; popular chef, Julia Child, and actor/activist, Christopher Reeve all left us. Yasser Arafat, Palestinian leader and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, also passed away. In 2005, one of most popular voices on television, Johnny Carson died. He was the man who a lot of people think revolutionized late night. Famed political figures, Shirley Chisholm and George F. Kennan, passed too. The former was one of the first serious woman candidates for president and the latter was a major figure in writings on the Cold War. The famed lawyer in the O.J. Simpson case, Johnnie Cochran, and the pope, Pope John Paul II also left in 2005. Terri Schiavo, who was on life support for many years, was finally taken off it and we saw the missing case in Aruba of Natalee Holloway. The Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, William Rehnquist, suddenly passed away leaving a big hole in the highest court. And one of the biggest members of the civil rights movement, Rosa Parks, left us and was given an exit thoroughly deserving of her impact including rest in state at the U.S. Capitol.

Early in 2006, another civil rights activist, Coretta Scott King, joined her husband and was given a just exit for all of her work over the years. When it came to woman's rights, few were so important during the 20th century then Betty Friedan through her voice and words. In a bit of a novelty, the last American survivor of the Titanic sinking, Lillian Asplund, passed away. Steve Irwin was one of the most popular and quirky individuals on television in 2006 when suddenly he was pierced by the barb of a stingray killing him. Many of his fans were shocked and saddened by his sudden lost. Later in 2006, the basketball world lost one of its famed coaches and contributors when Red Auerbach passed away. Shortly after, Milton Friedman, who was a well-known American economist and Nobel Prize laureate, left us as did famed singer and entertainer James Brown. Two presidential deaths closed out 2006 as former U.S. President, Gerald Ford, passed away not long after becoming the oldest living ex-president. He given similar honors and prestige as Reagan received about 2 and a half years earlier. And before the year ended, former president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein was executed for his crimes in the past by being hung.

In the early part of 2007, we lost one of the major historical and political commentators and contributors in Arthur M. Schlesinger. His work and influence spans well over half a century. One of the biggest influences in the black football world, Eddie Robinson, passed away leaving behind a legacy of molding several hundred young men over several years of coaching. Boris Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation and helped attempt the transition from communist Russia to a slightly more democratic nation. Also lost in 2007 was former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson. And TV personality, Merv Griffin, and daredevil, Evel Knievel, passed away in 2007. In 2008, famed explorer, Edmund Hillary passed away. Hillary was one of the first men to climb to the peak of Mount Everest. Famed actor, Charleston Heston, also left us in 2008. Shockingly in the summer, Tim Russert passed away and left a major hole in the news journalist community. W. Mark Felt or "Deep Throat" passed away near the end of the year.

In 2009, we saw a bunch of celebrity losses. Johnny Carson's sidekick, Ed McMahon, passed away and many view him as big a part of the Tonight's Show's success as Carson. Right after in one day, both Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson passed away. Fawcett fought cancer before succumbing while Jackson's death was a complete to so many. The man who became the King of Pop was poised to make another concert run when he collapsed and died shortly after. It was almost as if the country truly came to a standstill with many mourning his loss due to the impact he had had on their lives. And Jackson would receive a farewell ceremony as big as his life and career. Later in the summer, pioneers like Les Paul and Walter Cronkite passed away. Cronkite can be said to have been the one of the last from the golden age of reporting. He was there for many of the major developments of the 1960s and 1970s. And within a few weeks, two of the Kennedys left us. Eunice, who was a champion for the Special Olympics, and Ted, the man who had to carry the mantle for the family after the deaths of his older brothers, John and Robert. Ted Kennedy had served for nearly half a century in the Senate overcoming heartbreak and turmoil to champion causes for the "every man". Ten years and the loss of many influential figures, trendsetters, and members of popular culture and the fabric of America.

However, the decade as stated had a lot going on. The millennium and decade started without a hitch. Then we would see the Elian Gonzalez saga unfold before our eyes. Gonzalez was hiding with relatives in Miami, but would eventually be returned to his father and they would return to Cuba. In the summer of 2000, a new phenomenon was born with Survivor and its first winner Richard Hatch helped establish the show and primetime reality television. In November of 2000, the presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore was too close to call and the Florida results were held in dispute. Florida's 25 electoral votes; enough to give either candidate the presidency; were dangling by "hanging chads". The election went to Supreme Court, where George W. Bush claimed the presidency over Al Gore in the Supreme Court decision that stated that a statewide recount was unconstitutional. On January 20, 2001; George W. Bush was sworn in as the 43rd President of the United States. Before the end of 2000, Enron filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Less than 8 months into the Bush Presidency terror would strike with 9/11. Two planes explode into the World Trade Center towers in New York City. A third jet would hit the Pentagon while a fourth and final plane would crash into a filed in Skanksville, PA after it was commandeered by passengers on board. Roughly 3,000 people would perish on this horrific day. From that day forward, America was in the midst of a War on Terror.

Shortly after 9/11, an anthrax scare took over the country as residue was found on pieces of mail. The scare affected members of Congress and average Americans. The main suspect turned out to be Bruce Ivins. Ivins committed suicide in 2008. In early 2002, Guantanamo Bay would open for detainees and over the last 8 years roughly over 700 detainees have been held at the detention center. As the War on Terror was heating up, journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped in Pakistan and shortly thereafter was murdered. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and 3 others were charged with the murder. A little bit later that year, the SARS breakout occurred in Asia. The summer of 2002 gave us another big hit for primetime when Kelly Clarkson won the first American Idol. Also that summer, nine miners were trapped iin a mine shaft in Somerset, PA. After 3 days of being trapped, all men were rescued. Later in 2002, terror struck the nation again as John Lee Malvo and John Allen Muhammed went on a deadly three week killing spree in the Washington D.C. area. The two would be called the D.C. snipers. Ten people were killed while three others were injured. Muhammed was put to death last month. To end the year, Senate Majority Leader, Trent Lott, put his foot in his mouth at a 100th birthday party for long serving Senator Strom Thurmond. Lott's racial comments regarding having a racist Thurmond elected President in 1948 would have been good for the U.S. Lott would resign shortly after.

In February of 2003, the space program experienced its worst accident since the Challenger explosion in 1986. Space shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it was reentering the atmosphere over Texas killing all seven astronauts aboard. 2003 was also the year that the Iraq War was started. Then Secretary of State Colin Powell made a case for Iraq having weapons programs to the UN Security Council. Powell's argument was made to make a strong case for an invasion of Iraq. In March, the U.S. hits Baghdad. And shortly after the city fell to the U.S. as U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians took over the city. These events led to President Bush announcing "Mission Accomplished" after just six weeks. Also that year, there was a recall and removal of California Governor Gray Davis. The open election led to several celebrity candidates including the winner, Arnold Schwarzenegger. To add to what would seem like a successful war effort, former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is caught in a hole.

Much of the attention in 2004 would be on the presidential election in November. One time Democratic hopeful, Howard Dean, finished third in Iowa and he proclaimed his finish with his now infamous "YEAHHHH!" rant. At that year's Super Bowl, we saw the also infamous "wardrobe malfunction" with Janet Jackson. Also, Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard student, along with a couple friends would start up the popular Facebook site. In March of 2004, Madrid was the latest target of terrorists as there were multiple train bombings that killed close to 200 and injured well over 1,500. We would also see images of the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad and the scandal involved with the treatment of detainees. Martha Stewart was sentenced to 5 months in prison for lying about insider trading. In the sporting world, there wasn't too many things largest than the Curse of the Bambino that hung over the Boston Red Sox. Finally in 2004 they broke through the curse doing so by coming back from an 0-3 deficit to beat the Yankees before sweeping the Cardinals to win their first World Series since 1918. At the end of 2004, a tsunami engulfed Indonesia. It was produced by a 9.1 magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean and left roughly 230,000 dead or missing. In the spring of 2005, baseball after years of suspicious activity was put on trial for steroids as several players and executives faced Congressional hearings. Former MLB player, Jose Canseco, and his book about steroid use in baseball prompted the hearings and the Mitchell report, which compiled a list of players linked the steroid use.

In the spring of 2005, a short video would launch the YouTube sensation. During the summer, London would become the next site of an explosion with bombs. Three bombs on three separate trains went off within minutes of each other while a fourth bomb went off on a bus. The bombings left 52 dead and close to 700 injured. In what looked like his last competitive race, Lance Armstrong won his 7th straight Tour de France; all after beating cancer. Also that summer Hurricane Katrina would hit the Gulf Coast and affect much of Louisiana including New Orleans and much of the Gulf region from Texas to Florida. Many lives were lost and a lot of damage was caused...some of which can still be seen to this day. With the death of Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, John Roberts was selected and appointed to succeed him. Roberts was originally selected to replace retiring justice Sandra Day O'Conner. In May of 2006, al-Qaeda operative, Zacarias Moussaoui, was spared from being executed for the 9/11 attacks and given life in prison instead. Charles Roberts opened fire at a Georgetown, PA Amish school killing five girls before killing himself. The summer of 2006 brought about another major technological breakthrough: Twitter.

History was made in January 2007 as California representative, Nancy Pelosi, became the first female Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. That spring former White House aide, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby", was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the case involving the CIA leak that involved releasing the name of operative Valerie Plame. In April, the deadliest school shooting took place at Virginia Tech when Seung Hui Cho opened five killing 27 students and 5 faculty members before killing himself. In one of the worst infrastructure accidents probably since the Bay Bridge in 1989, Interstate 35W, an 8 lane bridge in Minneapolis collapsed and killed 13 people and injured close to 150. That same summer, Barry Bonds took a pitch deep and put himself in the record books as the new home run king. In the fall of 2007, many shows and movies came to a halt as a writers strike ensued for 14 weeks. Early the next year, the nearly 50 year reign of Fidel Castro came to end as he retired as the head of state and passed the power to his brother, Raul. Shockingly, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer resigns in the wake of a prostitution scandal. Roughly 5 years after the beginning of the Iraq War, the death toll reached 4,000. An earthquake struck China in May 2008 killing at least 90,000 and leaving 5 million homeless from the 7.9 magnitude earthquake's destruction.

After dropping out of the Democratic race for President, John Edwards found himself engulfed in a scandal involving an affair with a former worker and denied being the father of her small child. Both denials he made turned out to be lies for a once prominent presidential candidate. In Beijing in the summer of 2008 Michael Phelps won 8 gold medals. In what could be a sign of things to come, the Dow fell 778, which about 7%, after the House of Representatives voted against a $700 million bank bailout plan. In November, a historic presidential election came to a close when Senator Barack Obama defeated Senator John McCain to become the 44th President of the United States; the first African-American one. Later that month, Mumbai, India was struck by ten armed Pakistani militants, whom killed 166 people and wounded hundreds more over two days. Bernie Madoff, the scam artist who stole billions in a Ponzi scheme, was sentenced to 150 years in prison for his criminal behavior. A major airline crisis was avoided in early 2009 when Captain Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger was able to successfully land a plane on the Hudson River and safe all 155 lives on board. During this past summer, the early signs of what would become a national pandemic known as the H1N1 virus were found and the sickness would affect 1 in 6 Americans. Later this summer, another groundbreaking event took place as Sonia Sotomayor was selected and appointed as the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice. She also became the highest court's third female member ever. To conclude the summer, two big shockers occurred as Michael Jackson and Edward Kennedy both left us. The big news of the last few months has centered around the ongoing health care debate and the town halls and all the congressional wars over passing or not passing legislation. The bill could be through the Senate by year's end.

Without question, much took place this past decade; some groundbreaking achievements as well as some scary events that have changed many's mindsets. To talk about them all would take forever, but to close the decade of the 2000s; I will give you my top 10 moments. Each and every one has shaped the last ten years; some more than others. Let the journey begin...