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Biggest news stories of your lifetime

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Dick Whitman, Dec 19, 2012.

  1. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Well-Known Member

    Newtown is ranked highly for me, in particular, for a couple of reasons. First, it's what you noted - the build-up. One mass shooting after one mass shooting and it, eventually, led to this. We were, to a degree, desensitized. And then, "Wham!" Newtown. Another reason is that my wife is an elementary school teacher. Second grade. Also, this is the first tragedy of this type in which I have my own children. I didn't have them at the time of Oklahoma City. In fact, I was a snot-nosed college kid who thought the world revolved around my interpretation of Dylan's lyrics on "Blonde on Blonde." I knew of Oklahoma City, particularly as a journalism major and active school newspaper editor. But I'd say that the impact of a murder of a single student during my time there had a far greater impact on me, at the time, than Oklahoma City, which seemed so distant.
     
  2. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    1. 9/11
    2. Challenger
    3-5. Columbine/Newtown/Oklahoma City
    6. Reagan getting shot
    7. 2000 recount
    8. Princess Diana dying in a car accident
     
  3. Azrael

    Azrael Well-Known Member

    JFK, 9/11, Moon landing, MLK/RFK, Kent State, Manson thrill killings, Fall of Saigon, Watergate, End of Apartheid, Fall of Iron Curtain
     
  4. I Should Coco

    I Should Coco Well-Known Member

    Funny you started this thread ... at work, I get the "honor" of voting in AP's top 10 news stories of the year poll. They had us redo it after the Connecticut shootings.

    I didn't even vote for the Newtown tragedy as the biggest story of 2012. Obama's re-election was No. 1 for me.

    Newtown is a big deal, and hopefully it will prompt action to increase safety in schools and society ... but as others have noted, it's part of the unfortunate "mass shootings" trend that started with Columbine.
     
  5. Huggy

    Huggy Well-Known Member

    John Lennon's murder would be on my list.
     
  6. Stoney

    Stoney Well-Known Member

    If body count is the criteria, then perhaps we should be looking abroad.

    Around 800,000 people were killed in a brief outburst of ungodly madness known as the Rwanda Genocide. Around 240,000 were killed by the Asian Tsunami. And the early 90s wars and genocide in Yugoslavia certainly warrant substantial mention as well.
     
  7. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    Again, I don't think anyone is trying to say that one school shooting was any more or less tragic than another one, but there are some that just for whatever reason are more memorable than others... Until last week, Columbine was that one...
     
  8. JackReacher

    JackReacher Well-Known Member

    April 26, 2012

    "With the second pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins select....."
     
  9. doctorquant

    doctorquant Well-Known Member

    I have a hard time separating "Biggest stories" from 'Most consequential events" ... For the former category, I have to at least consider the deaths of Elvis Presley and John Lennon. As regards the latter, here's my Top 5 ...

    1a) Breakup of the Soviet Union and its dominion over Eastern Europe AND 1b) Rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Iran and Afghanistatn

    2) Mass computerization and the Internet

    3) LBJ's War on Poverty

    4) Watergate

    5) China's rise as a global economic power
     
  10. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    OK, that made me laugh out loud... Well done...
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 1, 2015
  11. JRoyal

    JRoyal Well-Known Member

    It's always interesting to me when people make these lists and Oklahoma City isn't even in their top 10. It's No. 2 on my list, hands down, right behind 9-11. Heck, from a personal standpoint they might as well be 1A and 1B. Of course, I'm and Okie, born and raised, but this was a terrorist attack on our own soil. I can't believe it doesn't resonate more. I guess it's because people just couldn't connect with Oklahoma, but the idea of anything sports or entertainment related ranking ahead of this is just strange to me.
     
  12. JRoyal

    JRoyal Well-Known Member

    That said, man, some of you are old.
     
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