2009 in retrospect

It is that time of the year when the media starts either a count down or reminiscising the year's incidents.I was thinking which are the main incidents / ideas / innovations or just about anything which stood out this year when I think back. Here is my list ( it is in no particular order).

Recession - Uncertainity and recession where the key words at the onset of the year 2009. This started some where in mid 2008 and was touted as the next Great depression after 1929. The financial sector was in doldrums and the stalwart companies where either getting closed down or declared themeselves bankrupt and were on government aid.The source of the recession is supposed to be the house mortgage / securitization tools originating in North America.I remember reading an article where the English Queen was trying to understand the underlying cause of recession and then she remarked " this is so simple, how come no one saw it coming ".

Swine Flu or Influenza H1NI - The most recent outbreak originated in Mexico and soon spread across the globe and threatened to be a global pandemic.The spread of the virus was rampant and quick mainly becuase of air travel. Soon the swine flu mask became a popular accesory especially amongst school students and travellers. The number of deaths estimated this year because of swine flue is 13000.

Micheal Jackson's death -  As in life, his death was also shrouded in controversy. I think in retrospect, MJ's life was sad and lonely , he had fame and wealth but his quest was to find "Neverland", he build his fantasy home and lost his life in drugs to satisfy his quest but dint achieve it.

Obama as President -  Obama became the American president early this year with the promise of hope and change. He has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on the grounds of " hope for change".  A brilliant orator, his acceptance speech has been much read and talked about. During the first quarter of the year everything about Obama made news, starting from the dress of  Michelle Obama to his blackberry. I think Obama stands for aspiration, youth, freshness and a certain aspect of the american way of life.

ZooZoo the Vodafone star -  There is a certain cuteness of Zoo-Zoo which caught the world's attention.The semi alien semi human beings became an instant hit during IPL - 2009. These ad's where targetted to advertsize the value ad services from Vodafone. Not many know that Zoo-Zoo's or egg head's are not animated character's but actuall human beings wearing body suits. 

Gold Rush -  Gold rallied to its highest price ever and is still going strong. Some analysts predict a similar rally in the next two years. The gold rush is because of a weak economy when the most safe asset becomes gold. The price of bullion is inversely propotional to the strength of the US dollar, hence a strong bullion prediction for next year indicates a weak dollar and weak economy

Indian cricket became numero uno -  India has emerged as the top test playing nation and has a chance to grab the ODI numero uno table after the Srilanka series win recently. In a land where cricket is religion, this year was a blessed year.

The DoCoMo revolution - India already has the cheapest mobile calling rates in the world, the entry of DoCoMo in the market has further revolutionized call rates.With the number portability policy coming into effect from Jan 2010, it is going to be a virtual price war to gain market share.

Chandrayaan - The launch of the Chandrayaan expedition was one of those moments which united the whole country on grounds of pride and patriotism. Although the space vehicle was lost couple of months later, it did gather various samples from moon which indicate signs of water on the moon

Satyam Fiasco - The Satyam accounting fiasco rocked the IT world and caused a bear run in the already bearish market outlook. The falsification of  account statements and the inability of a renowed accounting firm like PWC to understand the error caused a riot amongs the CA's.