What went

right in 2018

The brain focuses on the bad in order to keep you alive.

The Mainstream media focuses on the bad in order to keep you

buying their crap.

And, sell crap they do. From grossly overstating events to

twisting facts to out-and-out lying, the Press isn’t doing us any favors. We’re

not looking at that today. We’re looking at what went right in 2018.

These stories are in no particular order. There are many big

ones and a few sweet ones thrown in for good measure

I DON’T CARE WHO YOU BLAME; US IS

DOING SWELL

In the United States, the economy continued to grow, wages

increased, and unemployment fell to its lowest level (3.7%) since 1969.

Unemployment among black Americans hit the lowest it has been since the

government started tracking it in 1972.

The share of black men in poverty in the US has fallen from

41% in 1960 to 18% today, and the share in the middle class has risen from 38%

to 57% in the same time. Black business ownership jumped 400%

Youth unemployment (among those 16 and 24 years old actively

looking for work) hit a 52 year low this summer

* USMCA trade agreement replacing NAFTA* Food Stamp usage has declined for 8 straight

months* First Step Act criminal justice reform is now

law — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the law would give

thousands of people in prison a “second chance”* We’re going to host the 2026 World Cup

CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, VIOLENCE

IS DOWN ALL OVER THE WORLD

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0022343318784101#articleShareContainer

This is according to reports on trends in organized violence

from data collected by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP). With almost

90,000 deaths recorded by UCDP last year, 2017 saw a decrease for the third

consecutive year to a level 32% lower than the latest peak in 2014. The data is

not fully in, but the trend continued through 2018.

SUICIDE RATES ARE DECLINING

https://www.economist.com/international/2018/11/24/suicide-is-declining-almost-everywhere

Globally, the rate has fallen by 38% from its peak in 1994.

As a result, over 4m lives have been saved—more than four times as many people

as were killed in combat over the period.

HALF THE WORLD IS NOW MIDDLE CLASS

OR WEALTHIER

A global tipping point: Half the world is now middle class or wealthier

For the first time since agriculture-based civilization

began 10,000 years ago, the majority of humankind is no longer poor or

vulnerable to falling into poverty.

MALAYSIA SAYS IT WILL END DEATH

PENALTY FOR ALL CRIMES

https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/malaysia-says-it-will-end-death-penalty-for-all-crimes-20181012-p509aa.html

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia’s new government said it would

abolish the death penalty for all crimes and halt...