2014 In A Nut Shell

For many, 2014 has been an eventful year. Besides shallow celebrity twitter wars *ahem* Azealia Banks *ahem* and worst movie of all time (I, Frankenstein) 2014 has perhaps been one of the most eventful years in media.

If 2014 were a buffet, then news corporations and companies would be obese with headlines, from the sudden deaths of major Hollywood icons such as Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robin Williams to the Ebola outbreak in Africa. But have the major headlines of 2014 taught us anything? Will next year bring a host of cheerful headlines because each disaster, death, and disease of 2014 resonated with us all so much that we all get our shit together and start to make the world a better place? Or will 2015 be a repeat of doomsday headlines?

Things We Can Learn From 2014:

The death of Robin Williams

Robin Williams’ death was a shock to many who grew up with Mrs. Doubtfire and Mork and Mindy repeats. The ridiculously funny and extremely talented man carried a burden that all too many carry: depression. For most, Williams’ death was a wake up call to acknowledge the importance of mental health. Here was a man who made so many people happy but suffered from depression so severely that he hung himself. What is there to learn? Talking about mental health is important. Sure we have ‘Are You Ok?’ Day and Mental Health week, but it doesn’t feel like enough. Society needs a shift in perspective in regards to mental health. It is not a taboo subject or something that only ‘weak’ people suffer from and in many instances is treated like a disease or a symptom of laziness. Many employees feel that they cannot tell their employer about their mental illness for fear of redundancy.

Farmers in Drought

Don’t water your garden in the middle of the night when you think no one is looking!

Africa’s White Rhino

With the Black Rhino being officially declared extinct in 2013 it was expected that perhaps humanity would start to take better care of its animals. Apparently this will not be the case. In 2014 one of the last few White Rhinos died. This makes the species on the precipice of extinction.

Brisbane G20

If you live in a city hosting the G20 it sucks. Stock up on coffee because all the coffee shops will be closed (they do not realize that for some us, without our daily coffee, we’re like a hungover angsty teenager).

MH370 and MH17

These two flight numbers have dominated news headlines this year more than anything else, and yet MH370 still has not been found. Recently another flight has also gone missing; Air Asia’s QZ851.

Taylor-Jayne Wilkshire

Image: foter.com

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