The Real Top Stories of 2007

The AP has selected the Virginia Tech massacre as the top story of 2007. While the story was indeed one of the bigger stories of the year, I don't believe it was the biggest story of the year.

Here's my list of stories of the year:

1. The Turning Tide of the War in Iraq:

Believe me, if the war in Iraq were going as badly as it was in previous years, it would have headed the list. Since the surge has worked by all accounts and the Petraeus plan has calmed the nation, it's a given the AP would move it down the list to third because to put it first would mean that they endorse a story they wished to never report.

Petraeus was snubbed as Time's Person of the Year and in a way gets snubbed here as well. The war in Iraq was going badly and no one--me included--saw a way in which to settle the nation down. Petraeus has done just that and should be noted as one of the greatest military leaders this nation has ever produced.

2. The Hillary Crash:

Hillary Clinton was the inevitable candidate for the Dems going into the 2008 election year. But then something interesting happened, the electorate decided that they really don't like Hillary and her constant weaving and dodging. The media looked at this election as a coronation and a continuation of Bill Clinton's leadership, the people of the country say that they'll do the voting and have eschewed the media exultation of both Hill and Bill. She still could win the nomination but it's not even remotely as assured as it was twelve months ago.

But what about Giuliani you say? He was not quite the front-runner as Hillary was. The GOP campaign was always a horse race between Romney and Giuliani, the rise of Huckabee and the signs of life from Fred Thompson and McCain shows that it will continue to be.

3. Killing Sprees and Gun Control:

The Virginia Tech murders and the myriad other cases of mass murder this year will inevitably revive the calls for gun control and that's exactly why the AP made it the number one story. However, the media has not reported the facts of this as unbiased as they should have (big shocker). The fact that many of the murderous rampages occurred in "gun free zones" shows that gun control may in fact have led to more people dying. If one person had a concealed weapons permit and was carrying a weapon at VT, the deranged gunman may well have been taken out quickly.

The actions of one heroic woman at the New Life Church in Colorado shows the effect of a trained, gun carrying citizen can have when it comes to saving lives.

4. Immigration:

I contemplated placing this higher as it was indeed a paradigm-shifting event when the blogosphere and talk radio put the heat on the President, the Senate and the House to squash a bill that would have effectively granted amnesty to millions of illegal aliens.

President Bush lost a ton of support from his base, John McCain was nearly forced out of the race for 2008 and Lindsey Graham came across as a buffoon. It was great theater and it showed the pure power that alternate media has amassed. Immigration went from a second tier issue to possibly the most pressing issue of the 2008 campaign. Americans want comprehensive immigration reform but have said repeatedly that they want the border secured first. The remaining GOP candidates who comes across as the most steadfast on this issue will use it to pummel the Dem opponent come the general election.

5. The Continuing War on Terror

It has not been front and center of late, but the War on Terror is on this list because it's working. Quite simply, we have not been attacked since 9/11 and that in itself is big news. Think back to late 2001 and imagine if I had said to you that as of Christmas week of 2007, we had not been attacked again, you'd have called me insane.

The wider issues associated with the WOT such as upheaval in Pakistan, Gitmo, Afghanistan and the inability of the government to win cases against terror suspects makes this one of the top five stories of the year.

Other top stories:

• The continuing meltdown of celebrities including Hilton, Lohan, Spears (both) and others has been like watching a train wreck. The dumbing down and tarting up of our culture will be an issue come next year.
• The rise of conservative politicians in France, South Korea, and elsewhere is a story the media doesn't want you to read. The trumpeted the Howard loss but have largely ignored the monumental steps taken by Sarkozy in France and the rebuke suffered by Hugo Chavez.
• The MLB steroid scandal grabbed headlines for a few days but largely had no real effect. Clemens and Bonds will now be joint poster boys of the era but the bigger issue is how baseball handles the controversial subject from here on out.
• The Chinese toy and pet food scandal is not going away. I'm curious to see the sales numbers of Chinese goods for the Christmas season. I'm hoping that they plummeted and we take a good, hard look at other nations--preferably in our hemisphere--to supply cheap, quality goods. China's been gearing up both politically and militarily to supplant Japan as the regional power and Beijing have an serious score to settle with Tokyo. US consumers were only helping them to that end and one would hope that the lead-tainted toy and contaminated dog food will cut off much-needed capital to the Red Chinese.
• The complete and utter failure of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid has been a joy to watch. They've passed numerous non-binding resolutions but have caved on every single substantial battle against Bush. We have not as ineffectual a Congress in possibly decades and based on the way the GOP-controlled Congress acted earlier this decade, that's saying something.