Reasons to be cheerful amid gloom and doom
IT was not a good year. That’s the general verdict on 2016. But is it fair?
David Bowie, Prince, Leonard Cohen, Muhammad Ali and Caroline Aherne were snatched away in a year that seemed determined to smash icons. George Michael’s death was a last spiteful act before the curtain went down.
It was politically destructive too. The UK voted to leave the European Union – and the fallout is predicted to cost Scotland 80,000 jobs unless we find a way to stay in the single market.
The EU campaign was characterised by lies and racism. The most frightening death of 2016 was that of the MP Jo Cox, a young mother who spoke up for refugees.
Her murderer yelled “Britain First”, a far right organisation who are active on social media. If there is any justice, they will be silenced in 2017.
Across the Atlantic, a president was chosen who most voters rejected, following a crude, aggressive campaign that glorified ignorance. And President Trump hasn’t happened yet. The world can only wait and wince.
In Europe, terrorists turned lorries into weapons of mass murder in Nice and Berlin.
In Aleppo, the faces of traumatised children, too shocked to weep, touched the conscience of the world – but not enough to end the carnage that Syria has become. Meanwhile, the malignancy known as Isis continued to scar the Middle East and poison minds around the world.
Yet for all that, there were some grounds for optimism. So perhaps a more balanced assessment is needed.
The rise of the far right was halted
AS A child I longed to visit Yellowstone Park, home of Yogi Bear and much geothermal activity. The spouting geysers looked amazing. But a picture from the isle of Mull last weekend suggests I may not need to travel quite so far to witness the spectacle. The wind blew so hard that the waterfalls shot skywards. It’s a reversal of nature worthy of a Yogi Bear cartoon and proves what we already knew – Scottish weather can be stranger than fiction.
in Austria when an independent green candidate won the presidential election.
In Nigeria, the schoolgirls kidnapped by extremist fighters two years ago were returned home. And in Columbia a peace deal between the government and armed rebels was agreed that could end decades of conflict.
In health, there were some significant breakthroughs in cancer treatment. One genetically-targeted drug method was hailed by Cancer Research UK as the most important advance since chemotherapy.
Obviously I believe that the success of the SNP in Scotland this May was encouraging – not least because Nicola Sturgeon continued to campaign for a country that was fairer to its own citizens and welcoming to outsiders.
Even those who are not SNP have praised the First Minister’s absolute condemnation of any intolerance towards minorities.
Her efforts to reassure EU citizens living in our country that they are welcome in the wake of the Brexit vote ensured there was no rise in hate crime in Scotland after June 23.
Andy Murray gave lots of people reasons to be cheerful with his incredible winning streak. Yet his was not the only sporting accomplishment. Rio 2016 saw the Paralympics come into their own.
It was a record year for Scottish paralympians, with a haul of 17 medals including gold for Gordon Reid in the wheelchair tennis singles, Libby Clegg and Jo Butterfield in athletics and Karen Darke, for cycling.
Their success follows significant increases in parasport in Scotland. Largs in Ayrshire will soon get a £9million facility specially designed for athletes with disabilities – the first of its kind in the UK.
Scotland can also be proud of its record as a world leader in clean energy. Figures published this month showed that renewables now generate almost 60 per cent of the electricity we use. On some days that reaches 100 per cent. Renewables contribute more every year to electricity generation, ahead of nuclear energy, coal and gas.
There was some good news for wildlife in 2016. OK, it was mixed. While the cheetah is in danger, tiger and giant panda numbers are recovering and conservationists say they are no longer in imminent danger of extinction. The prosect of more baby pandas has to be good, even if they’re not born in Edinburgh.
There was good and bad this last 12 months but most will ring out 2016 with few tears for its passing … and a hope that we can do better in 2017.