The Noughties, for most of us, has been the decade which has shaped our lives the most. For many it

will be the decade of disappointment, of anger, and of disaster. There have been wars, recession and

reality TV. We have seen the rise and fall of Bush and Blair, lost a planet, found Myface, searched for

Google, hunted Osama, and believed in Obama. It's been a long, tough and costly decade. So let’s

look at what defined it:

1. 9/11

The worst domestic terrorist attack in American history, over 3000 lives lost. The outpouring

of emotion and solidarity with America was global. Few could have seen the events it

preceded and the paradigm shift in the security agenda of the world it caused. 9/11, from

every perspective is arguably the most significant world event since the fall of Communism.

Through striking conspiracy theories to the deck of cards, 9/11 has been the most significant

event of this decade, and likely the coming century.

2. Bush and Blair

Two men are responsible for the decade being one of the most violent, intolerant and angry in

recent history. The transatlantic Alliance hasn’t been stronger since WWII but this allegiance

produced such hate, war, and death, that many of us will remember as defining our

generation. This deceptive duo were architects of the War on Terror, Guantanamo bay, Iraq &

Afghanistan. For 8 years this decade was cursed by Bush and Blair’s “special relationship”;

and the end result is a decade and generation united in mutual hate for them both.

3. Rise of the EU, India and China

While the decade has been dominated by North Atlantic foreign policy, this economic decade

has been far more hopeful outside the states. The past ten years have seen the fall of the

American dream and the rise of an Euro-Asiatic future. The EU is now the world’s largest

economic actor with China and India booming even in the midst of recession. These powers

will continue to grow in prominence as the Lisbon treaty reshapes Europe and the Asian

markets continue to boom. The arrival of 3 major players in the world defined the last decade

and will shape the next.

4. War, Terror, Lies and Death

The 60’s had Vietnam and in the Noughties we have the War on Terror. The wars in Iraq and

Afghanistan have generated controversy for so many reasons that it has politicised our

generation. These wars built on lies and deception from those already mentioned created the

pain, anger and hatred from which the deaths of the hundreds of soldiers fighting in the

Middle Eastern crusade of the war on terror were caused. Death and deception are all that

surrounds the illegal wars of this decade, wars which are still killing our soldiers with no end

in sight, wars our leaders still support against our will.

5. Boom and Bust – from the Richest the world has ever been to the Credit crunch

This decade has seen the world rise to the richest it has ever been, with boom in the west,

rapid development in the east, property bubbles and consumerism gone mad. But sandwiched

between the .com, Boom/bust and the Credit Crunch those golden years seem so far away.

The collapse of the US Subprime mortgage market, bad bankers, and the property bubble

popping has left the world in a depression so deep that it may take to the middle of the next

decade before the golden years return. Three words sum up this economic decade: Boom,

Bust and Bankers.

6. GoogleWik / TweeBoMyFace

In the Noughties we discovered Google, and through Google we discovered everything else.

Everything else includes Wikipedia, a site that has transformed our discovery of knowledge

and has become a bible for the digital age. It's one part of an even larger and more important

development. Web 2.0, which is the social networking and user generated online spaces

joined by millions this decade, has been a revolution of all fronts, and a threat to everything

that preceded it.

Social networking has been an interesting journey, from bebo and MySpace in the early years

of this decade to the hyper-site that is Facebook. At some point we have all been hooked and

most of us still are. Our entire decade is online, personal but not private, we have signed up

our lives to web and the fine print was only 140 characters long.

The Internet has in this decade been more influential than all other mediums combined, it has

elected presidents, toppled the charts, organised massive protests and undermined the

monopolies of retail, print, music and film. EBay, blogs and Torrents; the memoirs for our

decade can be found in only one place, cyberspace.

7. Fantasy and Reality

One of the most positive aspects of this decade is in the entertainment field, the triumph of

Sci-fi and Fantasy. From Dr Who’s return, to Lost and Lord of the Rings, not forgetting

Heroes, Halo, and Harry Potter. Every major book, TV series, video game and nearly all of

the biggest blockbusters of the decade have been of these two genres. As a fan we have had

the richest and most successful decade possible. It's simply been fantastic.

....and on the other hand, we have X factor, Big brother and I'm a Celeb. Reality TV has been

a buzzword for the Noughties and when the papers are looked at 50 years from now they will

detail every moment of our obsession with it. X factor has topped the charts, Big Brother held

hostage a generation, created (and killed?) Jade Goody, and heralded the rise and fall of

Jordan.

8. Global Warming, Global failure, Tsunamis and Katrina

The Naughties has seen the environmental consciousness rise to the top of the political and

social agenda. From the millions who felt the Heat in 2003, to those who suffered at the hands

of Katrina. This decade has seen many attempts to save and warn the world against its greed,

the inconvenient truth being that all attempts have failed to incur action from those

responsible. The Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004 caused such catastrophic damage that for the

first time it showed we’re not asking our children to inherit the Earth. We’re also asking them

to save it because we are unable to do so.

9. Civil partnerships gained, Civil Liberties Lost

Anti discrimination laws, age of consent, section 28 gone, civil partnerships legal, it's been an

important decade in the progress of some civil rights. But for many this decade will be seen as

the most intrusive and intolerant in recent memory. Our civil liberties in the wake of the war

on terror, here and around the world have diminished. In Britain we are in a big brother

society, with cameras and systems of surveillance, detention without charge, stop and search,

ASBO’s and the nanny state eroding our civil liberties throughout this decade. To hope this

can be reversed or halted in our future is worth imagining.

10. Obama & Jackson

In the last two years two events seem to define and capture the end of this decade and provide

hope for the future. While sad, the death of Michael Jackson caused an outpouring of emotion

and respectful remembering of a star who in death defied the convention and controversies

that surrounded him in life; his death was a moment to capture from this decade.

“Yes we can”, a sentiment of hope and the chorus for a new generation. For many the election

of Barack Obama and the incredible campaign which encompassed so much that has defined

this decade, was a journey of hope that could heal much of what had divided us in the past

and make the next decade a better place to live in. Obama and Jackson were important not

just because of colour or achievement but of their capacity to transcend, to unite and inspire

the world in grief, hardship and in triumph. These are qualities we should look to emulate and

remember in the coming decade.

Robert Richardson