On Reflecting

Dear 2013,

It’s that time of year, again.  You’ve been great.  You gave us 17 days without a federal government, a Red Sox World Series Championship, and Orlando Bloom dodging arrows and spitting game while balancing on top of dwarves heads.  For that, I thank you.

So much happened in 2013 and it’s hard to determine what really mattered.  So before I go, let’s break down a few of the year’s most memorable statistics and events:

1.  We learned that life expectancy of a Sierra Leone citizen is 47 years and the life expectancy of an American citizen is 79 years.

2.  The global life expectancy is 70 years.

3.  The most common factors of death among children under 5 years old include:  HIV/AIDS, diarrhea and other preventable diseases such as measles, malaria and pneumonia.

4.  The percentage of women who hold top-earning jobs in the country rose to 8%.  Peachy.

5.  Of the 2 million CEOs nationwide, 92% make between $100,000-$3,000,000 annually.  Only 2% possess Ph.Ds and 50% of them are worth almost $5 million.

6.  Despite the civil war in Syria, political uprising in Ukraine and internal fighting in South Sudan and Central African Republic, international humanitarian response fell by 8%.  Not to mention 2013 also brought you the Super Typhoon Haiyan that hit the Philippines, the al-Shabaab terrorist attack in a Kenyan mall, the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh, and the Boston Marathon bombings.

7.  But not to worry, because Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” broke the record for the highest radio audience ever recorded, reaching more than 242.65 million listeners,  Kim Kardashian has almost 19,000,000 twitter followers, and Justin Beiber spent 180 minutes in a Brazilian brothel.

So much happened in 2013…  It really is hard to determine what really mattered.