The Decade in Review
2009 start’s coming to an end, and with it, the 00′s. So with this, I proudly present… Jean’s DIR (part 2):
Note: For 2000-2004, click here
2005:
In the US/World:
Kryg…stan joins the color revolutions. Bush get’s sworn in for the second time. Iraq is still a mess. China pisses off Taiwan with its “anti-secession law”. Bali burns. Dems begin to plot their 2006 takeover. Bush has “political capital, and he’s gonna spend it”. He does, and he fails to pass the social security overhaul. The IRA declares it will dump all their arms. Rumsfeld leaves office. Facebook grows even more. Justice John Roberts gets sworn in.
En la isla del Encanto:
Rossello gets sworn into the Senate and begins his Coup D’etat against McClintock. McClintock holds steady with the help of a few more senators and defeat Rossello’s attempt. This makes for even more gridlock in an already locked government. Anibal dice “Basta ya” and promises an unity government (he fails). Our recession gets worse. The FBI surrounds Filiberto Ojeda’s house and executes engages in a fire fight which leaves Filiberto dead. PNP, PPD and PIP condemn. FBI could care less.
For me:
Second year of law school rolls by. Begin working at a firm. Yep, I like being a lawyer. My ballet with el Independentismo ends with me joining their side. I ditch my non-smartphone and get a Palm Treo 650. Broadband is the default, landlines are optional and Kodak Advantix is in the past. Ipods keep getting better and better. Itunes is more relevant each day. Youtube is way popular. I begin to hear more of this “blog/blogger/blogosphere” crap, still sounds like a weird airborne disease.
2006:
In the US/World:
Dems take back the House and Senate! Google buys Youtube. Chavez wins again. Bush is still incompetent and making the US look bad. Republicans dont care. Ipod Video comes out. Blue Ray emerges, the battle with HD-DVD begins. Saddam gets hanged. ETA goes off. North Korea has the bomb. PS3 vs. Wii begins. Chile has a female Prez and Castro (F) bows out. Lula wins again. Gerald Ford dies (and the SNL skit becomes even more epic). Ortega wins, Latin America keeps going left. The US has huge immigration rallies (by brown people) which end up freaking out the right (white people).
En la Isla del Encanto:
Our clusterfuckness is in utter high gear. Supreme Court goes down one judge. No replacement. Recession gets worse. Gridlock gets worse. The Government shuts down. El “IVU” gets approved. Los “Autenticos” del PNP get kicked out, drama ensues.
For me:
I backpack Europe for 2 months. World Cup 2006, I see Germany v. Argentina in Berlin at the Fan Mile, whoa. Law school goes into its third year. Visit Argentina, overeating ensues. Still Independentista but have some sympathy for Anibal (this too, will not last long). Have a small existencial crisis about my future, but that goes away with a second beer in Croatia. My Mac suffers a sudden accident which renders it useless. Crap. Back to PC’s while I save up for a new mac. Facebook begins exploding through PR. MySpace is somewhat relevant still.
2007:
In the US/World:
Iraq is still a mess. Nepal’s King Abdicates. Writers go on strike and 24 gets delayed. The EU grows. US Primary rumblings begin. The US Minute Men step up. Bush begins laying low. The Iphone cometh.
En la Isla del Encanto:
Things are not getting better, at all. PNP is still divided and Fortuño launches his bid for the governorship (but has to go to Primaries against Rossello). Gridlock, gridlock, gridlock. Senate hearings continue to look like a Jerry Springer taping. Crime keeps going higher. Rumors about federal charges against Anibal start to rumble. Quien dijo corrupto?! Willie Miranda and Alejandro Padilla start mumbling about possible aspirations. Government claims Paseo Caribe is on public land, revokes permits. Lawsuit ensues.
For me:
Graduate from law school (yay), study for the bar (ugh), pass the bar (super yay), break my pinkie toe (ugh). I buy my first game console since the SuperNes (got an xbox). Go to Thailand and Laos for 3 weeks, want to stay 8 more but I can’t. Grew a beard during the summer. Looked like an arab. Shaved it before I flew. Facebook has exploded all over PR. Gmail has also taken over most accounts. I discover Blackberries, a love affair ensues. A few friends begin to get engaged/married.
2008:
In the US/World:
Primaries go into full gear. Both parties have multiple candidates. Romney looks good, falls flat. Ron Paul is crazy, but raises millions. Guili-911? Hucka-boom!! And then went bust. McCain gets the nod, and then picks Palin (wtf?). The Dems begin with Edwards, Clinton, Obama and Biden (that matter). Fast forward, Obama vs. Clinton and every single minute primary counts. Obama wins, and then WINS. Dems win a “supermajority”. The world rejoices. America rejoices. The Internet and social networks rejoice in their role during the elections. Ireland rejects the Lisbon. Russia invades Georgia. Zimbabwe elections go to the shitter. Tibet riots. Betancourt is freed by Columbian troops. Twitter (kinda) explodes. Economy goes into the utter shit hole, with a vengeance.
En la Isla del Encanto:
The Democratic Primaries come to PR. Obama loses (by a lot). Anibal gets over a dozen federal charges. He does not back down and he reminds you, daily, of his not backing down. Fortuño beats Rossello, and then ends up beating Anibal. PNP take over the entire government. Economy gets worse. People keep going to Plaza. The PPD take a turn to the independence side (but in name only). Crime keeps going up. PIP goes for a brilliant *cough* slogan “La Opcion Radical”. Good luck with that.
For me:
Attorney Oath: Check. 35 resumes later, a job lands. LL.M apps get sent, GWU vs. Cardozo: GWU wins. DC in Fall. Lead Generation Obama during the PR Primaries. We lose but a fantastic campaign and time. My passport does not get stamped this year, sadly. Life in DC brings new friends and amazing experiences… and cold weather. I finally get a Mac again, all is good. I change my Blackberry for an Iphone (this does not last). A lot more friends get engaged/married.
2009:
In the US/World:
Barry becomes President Barry. Law firms begin laying off in the thousands. Republicans go postal with their tea parties. Tea Bags flood DC. Al Franken goes to the Senate. Republicans do not shut up about the birth certificate. Dems stall on the Health Care bill, it’s still not passed. Economy keeps sinking, unemployment hits 10%. Detroit goes bankrupt. Government buys AIG, GM and parts of Citi. Socialism!! (Not really). Iran tries to raise hell after the election gets robbed, it doesn’t work. Twitter is key, really takes off. Iraq is better, still messy, but better. Troops are still there. Gitmo is still open. Economy stabilizes but doesn’t improve. Latinos get nominated everywhere, even the Supreme Court! Swine Flu goes global. Some dude tries to blow up a plane on Christmas, only blows up his legs. Google gobbles up every other start up and releases Wave to a confused limited public.
En la Isla del Encanto:
PNP finds out the deficit isn’t 1 billion, it’s 3. Government fires over 20,000 public employees. The left strikes, no one cares. PPD whines, no one listens. PNP hammers through their agenda. Economy gets even worse. Crime gets worse. Such is life. Fortuño names 3 Supreme Court Justices. The TSPR goes blue for the first time. Colegio de Abogado loses their compulsory affiliation. Sagardia calls L. Vega Ramos “un pichon de abogado”. He resigns at the end of the year. CAPECO explodes. PPD calls this the worst year ever, PNP calls this the first good year in a decade. Most of us know we are getting screwed either way. People get offended when a PNP dude calls them “crapulas” even though 80% of the island has no idea what that word means. Mobsters/thugs with nicknames get arrested. Cotto fights but loses. New Adoption law.
For me:
Finished my LL.M. Took the California Bar (and passed). DC vs. Cali vs. PR: PR wins, but only after a visit in August. Moved back to PR. Looked for jobs, found one (yay). Visited Ireland, drank too many Guinness’s. Grew a beard again, lasted for a while. Grew my hair back after a 5 year hiatus. Became a blogger. I ditch my Iphone and go back to the Blackberry. The majority of my age group is getting engaged/married.
