I think that we live in one of the most exciting times the world has ever seen. Just look around at everything that has happened just in the last year!
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Governments around the globe have been oppressing their people for ages. We've seen protest groups fighting for freedom and fair treatment battered with various 'crowd control' weapons - from tear gas to rubber bullets - and actual deadly force. These protesters have been successful in some countries, overthrowing the corrupt regimes that had been in control for so long. Of course, it remains to be seen what they do now that they've earned the chance to change their lives.
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All over the world, there were terrible natural disasters - some the severity of which should have crippled the nations hit. Yet, people from around the world came to aid those in need; they left their homes and traveled far and wide simply to help in disaster relief efforts. Others gave money to help in their own way. The Red Cross raised in excess of $300 million for the Haiti disaster (credit: CNN Money) by asking regular people to give what they could, and people responded!
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In America, we saw huge changes in many aspects of our lives. Pres. Obama repeals the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy allowing for openly gay soldiers to serve without fear of being discharged for who they are. In fact, one of the hottest issues in the USA is the Gay Rights movement. California made gay marraige legal only for Prop 8 to be passed, making it illegal, and then the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to call Prop 8 unconstitutional. In another part of the country, New Yorkers started what became the Occupy movement. Occupy Wall Street went from just a few people to a national news story, to a huge national crusade with Occupy [insert major city here]. This issue is far from over.
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Extremist terrorists, a global cockroach-like plague, were dealt a huge blow when one of the most recognized major leaders was finally taken out by American special forces. Osama Bin Laden's death didn't end terrorism of course, but one of the biggest mascots for those ideals was removed.
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I look at the news and the social media sites and see people everywhere announcing their beliefs in ways like never before. People are starting to think for themselves instead of just believing that those in power know what's best. It's amazing that we, the people, are starting to take action to protect our beliefs.
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The future is so exciting to me. Will we continue to progress, or will something major happen to set back all of our potential progress? Can a single person really make a big difference on the world? I think so.
