We're a few days away from 2020, and the news for the last few years has just been a tailspin of tragic. That doesn't mean the world is all bad, though.
As we enter a new decade, we wanted to remind you of some of the year's better moments.
Reddit user SuspiciousCustomer asked:
With the decade ending, what is a positive development since 2010 that everyone should know about?
So consider this highlights reel our New Years gift to you. 2019 punched us all pretty hard in our figurative faces, and 2020 may not be any kinder if we're all honest with ourselves. So it's important to look for the good. Allow us to shed some light on some positivity for you.
Here ya go fam, have some happy thoughts!
Amazing Animal Awesomeness
GiphyRhino populations have had a 41 percent increase in this decade.
- LexusVII
After a near extinction the humpback whale population has increased to 25,000 which is pre-whaling numbers!
Polar bears are doing really well.
- rjdim
Pandas are no longer considered as endangered species
Lots of Greyhound Racing industries are on the brink of closing down. I think this is good news, of course there is a lot to pick up after and to stop them from selling those dogs to other countries for racing or other horrible stuff.
Peace Out, Polio
Polio was eradicated over this decade, the last wild strain earlier this year! This makes it the second disease eradicated by humans. Smallpox was the first.
Print It
3D Printing has saved countless lives and pushed the boundaries for new technology in the future. From personalized bone implant techniques, to the ability to print hearts from stem cells, the sheer addition to modern medicine will be greatly remembered for the overwhelming popularity and advancement of this technology.
K9 Companions
It's not big and life changing or anything but, K9 officers, who have to develop intense emotional bonds with their dogs, now get the option to immediately adopt the dog after its retired. Previously the dog was auctioned off, and the officer either had to fight and pay way too much money, or give up a member of the family.
Helpful And Happy
The world just seems a lot more accepting nowadays and less judge-mental overall. People find it easier to come out as gay or bi or trans. Hobbies aren't looked down on. Having a hobby nowadays is cooler than whatever the hobby itself may be, because the world likes seeing uniqueness and differences.
There will always be that vocal minority, especially with the Internet making it easier to project their voices but day to day life just seems so much more positive than when I was growing up.
Bullying isn't cool anymore. Helping others is.
A Triumph Of Good
I think gay marriage and families with same sex parents here in the US is a triumph of good. I was brought up in the 70s and we had family friends, a couple, named Bob and Robert. They loved each other very much and my family just treated them like every other couple, which was with kindness. I remember my mom saying to me when I was a child how much they cared for our family and how sad it was that they couldn't have their own children.
These days they could raise kids. They would have made great parents! They passed away during the AIDS epidemic and never got to see that at least a good part of the US population saw them as equals. Back then nobody had to apologize for being anti gay. Still plenty of people now who don't feel the need. But the bar had shifted dramatically. That is a good thing, and it mostly happened in the last decade.
Thanks Obama
GiphyObama leaving office. Trump getting into office.
I like this one! It certainly has wakened us up to the threat of executive corruption. Hopefully Trump's legacy will be that we strengthen the systems and never again have a traitor crook like him in office again.
I think it could also renew the Republican Party so that they need to rely less on voter suppression and disinformation to win elections, which HAS to be good for our democracy.
The Youth Lead
More younger people are in office in the US now than there were at the beginning of the decade. Regardless of political persuasion, I see that as a good thing because young people are the ones who will have to live in the world long after the older generations die out.
Falling For Foreskin
Circumcision is falling in the US, and more people are becoming aware of how immoral it is.
- Tyler630
The fight against Male Genital Mutilation is finally getting some attention. Lot of push back from... anti-male interest groups, but people are starting to wake up to the fact that cutting anything off of a baby for cosmetic or religious reasons is barbaric.
We can stop both FGM and MGM in the US if we all try.
Extreme Poverty
Between 2010-2020, extreme poverty has dropped between 1/3 and 1/2, and less than 10% of the world lives on less than US$1.90/day, a number than was as high as 40% as late as 1981. Extreme poverty will likely be a thing of the past in the next few decades.
"What piece of information did you learn, that feels illegal to know?
Contraband Music!
"Sometimes you can play around with URLs and find clean copies of watermarked previews."
"Helps a lot when trying to learn a song that you don’t have sheet music for."- funkycat75
Sheet Music Animation GIFGiphyNot Illegal To Know, But Possibly Illegal To Use
"You can order maintenance keys on Amazon for most models of coin op laundry machines."- Reddit
"You can buy many keys online."
"Among them are:"
"There's the Ford fleet keys, which can get you into cops cars."
"There's firefighter and maintenance elevator keys which let you control elevators."
"You can turn them off, or turn it to fire evacuation mode (it just goes to main floor and is then unusable) and even firefighter/maintenance mode which the elevator will only go where you want it to go.''
"It won't stop at other floors to pick up other people."
"Keys for bulldozers, backhoes, and other heavy equipment."
"Often one key will open many models from the same manufacturer."
"There's also something called a Lishi Tool."
"It can be used to pick locks, but it's also set you to tell you the position of each pin in the lock."
"That allows you to have another key cut from code (useful if you lose your keys and don't want to replace the whole lock.)"
"And of course, handcuff keys."
"I've used a real handcuff keys in toy cuffs, so I'd imagine toy keys could work in real handcuffs."
"Generally these would all be legal to own (except the Lishi which is a type of lockpick and has various legalities around the US.)"
"All you need is an internet connection, a credit card to pay for it and an address to send it to."- David2022Wallace
diy colour GIFGiphyI Mean, They Weren't Going To Use Them...
'If you go to the plant section of a store and walk around, you will likely find a few clippings on the ground."
"You can pick those up and take them home with you and stick them in some dirt and illegally download a plant for free."- periyyas
Can Delete The File, Not The Info
"One time I received an email from my boss with an attachment that he clearly didn’t mean to send."
"It was an Excel file showing the compensation of everyone in my extended department."
"I gawked at it for a few minutes before he showed up at my desk."
"He made me delete it while he watched.'
"He couldn’t delete it from my brain though."- DWright_5
shift gmail GIF by Product HuntGiphyGood To Know, I Guess?
"If you use a natural gas then fire fighters will think it was a gas leak whereas if you use something like gasoline, it leaves identifiable burn marks."- Crash_Junior-
A Helpful Glitch
"Doesn't seem to work anymore, but there was a restaurant chain app that I realized that after I had used rewards points that gave me $6 off one of my orders."
"My usual order was about $12, so about half off."
"I then noticed next time if I selected re-order previous order it would still include that $6 off every time, even though I had nowhere near the rewards points to keep getting that amount off, it just copied all the specifics of the previous order."- turkeysandwich1982
Chess GIF by NETFLIXAlways Look For The Loophole
"In Australia, no electrical apprentice can work within 600mm of green domes ( where houses are connected to underground power) but you can work as close as you want if you don't have any electrical license."- thorpie88
When You're Dealing With Something Bigger Than The Law...
"Jury nullification is something every U.S. citizen should know about."
"Disseminating information about it could actually lead to charges being pressed in certain circumstances, so it kinda is illegal at times."- Mrgoodtrips64
When You Don't Feel Like Paying
"You can just create a new email and extend your trial limit."- HolyFire-
Giphy...Make Friends With A Gardener?...
'In Brazil, it's not illegal to consume and grow hallucinogens mushrooms though it's illegal to sell them."- MuriloJCD
It's always exciting to hold on to secrets or privileged information.
And all the trouble it has the potential to get you into might make it only more exciting.
