Last year I posted my personal wish list for 2023. I promised to let you know which of my wishes came true and to write another wish list for 2024.
Here's how my 2023 wish list turned out:
In my 2023 wish list, I hoped for an end to the horrible conflict in Ukraine, which has caused untold suffering and destruction. That hasn't happened, and the war may drag on for a long time. However, it's still h my hope that the war will end sooner rather than later.
Unfortunately, another bitter conflict began in the Middle East in October. Terrorists and extremists are responsible for the atrocities committed and the deaths of innocent civilians, among them women and children. The majority of Israelis and Palestinians want to live in peace. Both Jews and Muslims are children of Abraham. They desire an end to the suffering and they support a two-state solution. The terrorists and extremists want war and a continuation of suffering.
I hoped Premier Danielle Smith's United Conservative Party (UCP) would be defeated in the provincial election in Alberta of May 29, 2023. I am opposed to Smith's policies and I don't like her Alberta Sovereignty Act. However, the UCP, under Premier Danielle Smith was re-elected to government, albeit with a reduced majority.
As regular readers of Number 16 are well aware, I am a homer all the way when it comes to sports. I hoped that the Toronto Maple Leafs would advance further than the first round of the playoffs in 2023. Well, they did win their first playoff round against the Tampa Bay Rays, but they were eliminated in the second round by the Florida Panthers. The Leafs need to break up the Core Four of John Tavares, Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander. They should trade Nylander for a top-of-the-line defenceman. They need a stronger defence to win the Stanley Cup.
As for the Blue Jays, I opined that they must go deeper into post-season in 2023. Nothing less would be acceptable. It didn't happen and the team's playoff performance was very unacceptable and very unsatisfactory. The decision to remove Jose Berrios after 4 1/2 good innings (during the second game of their playoff series against the Minnesota Twins) was boneheaded, as was the decision to trade Gabriel Moreno. GM Ross Atkins should have accepted responsibility, but he didn't. He just passed the buck.
The defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts had a terrific regular season, led by quarterback Chad Kelly. The Boatmen recorded 16 wins and only two losses in 18 games. However, they were defeated in the Eastern playoff final by the Montreal Alouettes, who went on to win the Grey Cup.
Back in 2021, I wished that Benjamin Netanyahu would be ousted from power in Israel. That wish came true, but only temporarily. After continual political deadlock in Israel, Netanyahu was returned to power in 2022. On December 29, 2022, he was again sworn in as Prime Minister, leading a hardline right-wing coalition.
Netanyahu, 74, has been charged with one count of bribery and three counts of breach of trust in three long-running corruption casers. Of course, he denies any wrongdoing and claims that he is the victim of a politically orchestrated "witch hunt." Where have we heard that before? Kind of sounds like his old friend, a former president who likes cheese burgers and diet coke.
On a happier note, Netanyahu's other friend, Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, was voted out of office in an election held on October 30, 2022. He left office on January 1, 2023. During his presidency, Bolsonaro rolled back protections for Indigenous groups in the Amazon rainforest.
I hoped the world would take stronger measures to protect our environment. Some progress has been made, but far more has to be done. There should be less talk and more action. People have so many day-to-day concerts, but the environment is of paramount importance. It can't be relegated to the background. According to the United Nations, 2023 was the warmest year on record.
Here is my 2024 wish list:
The American presidential election of 2024 will probably be the most crucial and consequential election in the history of the United States, if Donald Trump manages to evade justice and becomes the Republican nominee for president. Should Trump win the election, the United States will never be the same. Sadly, it will be transformed into an authoritarian regime. One of my greatest wishes for 20234 is that Trump is not allowed to run for president under the 14th Amendment, or that he is found guilty under the law and sentenced to prison time. If he is the Republican nominee in November, he must be soundly defeated by the American people. It will be a disaster and a nightmare if he should become president again. He must be held accountable for his actions and for his assault on democracy on January 6, 2021. No one is above the law. No one should have immunity from prosecution for serous crimes and misdeaeanours, not a reigning monarch or a sitting president.(never mind an ex-president).
Trump, Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu are an unholy trio. They are all Alpha males in their 70s and they have caused an enormous amount suffering, death and destruction. All three pose a threat to world peace.
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| Putin |
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| Netanyahu |
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| Trump |
I wish for better leadership around the world and I hope that the popularity of the far-right will decline in 2024.
The 2024 Summer Olympics will be held in Paris France and I hope they are a great success.
I wish the Leafs, the Blue Jays, the Argos the Raptors and all the other Toronto teams the best of fortune in 2024.
COVID is still around and is not going disappear. We know more about it, but it is still around. I hope that more will be done to combat it.
My final wish is that there will be more civility in the world in 2024, and less political and social polarization. If Donald Trump does not become president again, there will be less animosity and political strife. He has set the tone for much of this hatred and ill-feeling. In 2024, I hope that there will be a greater connection between people and less isolation.
All the best to you and yours in 2024. I wish you happiness and good health. In January of, 2025, I will write another wish list and I will let you know if any of my 2024 wishes came true.
Happy New Year!
- Joanne