We are now on the precipice of a galactic-sized change in our democracy, and not necessarily for the better for at least half of the population of the United States of America (however long we remain that), thanks to the misguided votes by the other half of the population of this country, who saw fit to elect an unhinged dictator-wanna-be into the highest position in the land. God help us all!
Before that regretful time is thrust upon us, though, it’s time to look back at the events that took place in 2024.
The following are just some of the top stories for this year, broken down by month:
January
Tsunami warnings in Japan after powerful 7.6 earthquake
Earthquake in Long Beach, California on New Years Day
1.7 earthquake hit New York
Teenager killed a 6th grader and injured several others before killing himself in an Iowa school
Trump received millions from foreign governments as President (the very “crime” the GOP had been trying to pin on President Biden)
Trump rebuked the judge in his court case, but his lawyers were told to “control your client”
2023 Emmys tie record for most winning actors of color
First active-duty military member Madison Marsh crowned Miss America
Elton John becomes 19th person to become an EGOT (winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony)
Trump was ordered to pay E. Jean Carroll over $83 million for defamation after she accused him of rape
February
King Charles III was diagnosed with cancer
36-year-old Genesse Ivonne Moreno opened fire in Joel Osteen’s megachurch; she was killed by off-duty officers and her son was critically injured in the gunfire.
Major winter storm hit the Northeast
Senate Republicans block bipartisan border deal (primarily because Donald Trump told them to)
Ex-FBI Informant charged with lying about President Biden and his son Hunter
Trump order to pay over $350 million and barred from running a business in New York for 3 years
Senator Mitch McConnell to step down as GOP leader at end of 2024
People in Gaza killed in horrible Aid Convoy accident
Tornado warnings in Illinois, Ohio and Indiana
Massive fire in Texas
March
France makes world history, becoming first country to explicitly enshrine abortion rights in their Constitution
Alabama lawmakers pass bill to protect IVF
Hannah Gutierrez Reed found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in Rust movie set accidental shooting
Alabama Senator Katie Britt’s creepy State of the Union GOP rebuttal
Terrifying subway shooting in New York despite National Guard being stationed at subway system
Kamala Harris was first Vice President to visit a women’s health clinic
Picture controversy of the Royal family with fingers being pointed at Princess Kate
Trump spurned by 30 companies as he sought bond in $454 million judgment
Princess Kate revealed cancer diagnosis
Gunmen killed 40 people and injured more than 100 people at Moscow Concert Hall
Members of Ghost Army, after decades of being classified, receive Congressional Gold Medal
Federal Agents raid home of Sean “Diddy” Combs
Francis Scott Key Bridge hit by massive cargo ship, killing six city workers
Gag order imposed on Trump during Manhattan Criminal Trial
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison for orchestrating fraud
April
Major earthquakes in Taiwan
Kanye West accused of anti-black racism in lawsuit filed by ex-employee
Country singer Morgan Wallen arrested in Nashville after throwing chair from rooftop
Jennifer and James Crumbley, parents of teenage Ethan Crumbley, the Michigan school shooter, were sentenced to prison for manslaughter
A man lit himself on fire, caught on camera by CNN during live coverage of Trump’s NYC trial
Massive college protests over Israel-Palestine crisis, some turning violent
New York Appeals Court overturned Harry Weinstein’s rape case
May
David DePape, the man who bludgeoned Nancy Pelosi’s husband receives 30-year prison sentence
Hard-line President of Iran and numerous of his right-hand men killed in helicopter crash
Disturbing 2016 hotel video of Sean “Diddy” Combs beating his former girlfriend released
Severe plane turbulence on Boeing plane
(Corrupt) Supreme Court sides with Republicans over South Carolina voting map
Flag controversy connected to United States Supreme Court Judge Samuel Alito
Trump CONVICTED of all 34 felony counts in hush money trial
June
Mexico elects first female President, Claudia Sheinbaum
Singer Syndie Christmas (yes, that’s her real last name), won Britain’s Got Talent
Georgia Appeals Court stays (basically freezes) Trump’s election case in Georgia at least through the presidential election in November
80th Anniversary of Normandy Invasion celebrated with three surviving World War II vets
Long-time Trump advisor Steve Bannon ordered to surrender for his prison term
Pat Sajak bids farewell to Wheel of Fortune after 41 years as the game show host
Four Israeli hostages freed
Hunter Biden found guilty in gun case
Arkansas grocery store shooting
July
Disastrous Biden-Trump debate
Middle school students in Pennsylvania posted racist and homophobic video on TikTok, first known mass attack of its kind in the United States
Tropical Storm Beryl hit Houston, Texas
A Russian missile destroyed Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital in Kyiv
Massive heat wave hits all throughout the United States
Alec Baldwin’s Rust movie set case dismissed
Attempted assassination of Donald Trump at Pennsylvania Rally
(Corrupt) Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed Trump’s classified documents case
Trump chose Ohio Senator and “Hillbilly Elegy” author J.D. Vance as his running mate
Worldwide tech outage that ground business to a massive halt at airlines, hospitals, banks, transit companies and the 9-1-1 system
President Joe Biden dropped out of the Presidential election and endorsed VP Kamala Harris
New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez set to resign after corruption conviction
Secret Service Director, Kimberley Cheatle, resigned after Trump assassination attempt
Arson attack caused travel chaos ahead of Olympics opening ceremony in Paris
Venezuela authoritarian leader, Nicolas Maduro, declared winner in tainted election
Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and U.S. Team reclaim throne with gold medals at Paris Olympics
14 people arrested at San Diego Comic Con in anti-human trafficking case
9-11 plotter and accomplices plead guilty to conspiracy charges in exchange for life sentences
August
Multi-country prisoner swap freed Russian prisoners Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan (among others)
Historic storms and flooding in Florida, Georgia and other southern states
Pakistani man charged in alleged plot to kill U.S. leaders
Vice President Kamala Harris named Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her Vice-Presidential running mate
Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna canceled after two men arrested in ISIS-connected terrorist plot
Utah banned books, including works by Judy Blume and Margaret Atwood
62 passengers killed in plane crash in Brazil
Capitol riot assaulter David Dempsey sentenced to 20 years in federal prison
4.4 earthquake hit Los Angeles, California
Personal assistant and doctors charged in actor Matthew Perry’s accidental drug overdose death
Republican Congressman George Santos plead guilty to wire fraud and identity theft
Two American astronauts on the International Space Station stuck there until 2025
Israel launched airstrikes in Lebanon
Brazil blocked social media site X after owner Elon Musk ignored court order
September
Israeli citizens flood streets in protest to demand a deal after bodies of 6 hostages in Gaza were discovered
Another school shooting in Georgia High School
Colin Gray, father of teenage shooter at Georgia High School, arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter
Hunter Biden entered surprise plea in tax case
Manhattan judge delayed Trump’s sentencing until after election day
SpaceX civilians perform historic first spacewalk with Polaris crew
Second failed “attempted assassination” of Trump at Florida Golf Course
Sean “Diddy” Combs arrested in New York
New York City Mayor Eric Adams indicted on federal charges
Long-time Today co-anchor Hoda Kotb announced she’ll be leaving news show in early 2025
October
Both Hurricane Helene and Hurrican Milton hit southern states, causing massive destruction and countless deaths
Iran launched over 100 ballistic missiles against Israel
Former President Jimmy Carter turned 100 years old, becoming the longest-living President in U.S. history
Dockworkers on East and Gulf Coasts went on strike
Judge unsealed new evidence in January 6 case against Trump
Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, killed in Gaza fighting
Former Abercrombie CEO, Michael Jeffries, arrested in sex-trafficking case
Federal Judge ordered Rudy Giuliani to forfeit millions in assets to election workers he defamed
Chinese hackers targeted phones used by Trump and Vance campaign
Two people, both heavily weaponized, attacked Turkish defense firm
Comic Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally
E. coli outbreak with onions used in McDonald’s Quarter Pounder beef patties
Los Angeles Dodgers win World Series
November
Spain flooding caused the death of over 200 people
Election night disaster with Donald Trump being announced as winner
Jewish soccer fans were assaulted in Amsterdam
Wildfires raging in New Jersey, Massachusetts and New York with an 18-year-old parks worker losing his life in the struggle
Another big wildfire hit California
Over 40 monkeys used at a South Carolina research center escaped with about half captured in the middle of the month
Shooting at Tuskegee University, killing one and injuring at least 16 others
John Krasinski was named People’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2024
Republicans won the Senate, the House and the White House, a disappointing trifecta to the other side hoping for a future of joy and prosperity
Matt Gaetz, selected as United States Attorney General, withdrew his candidacy
Disgraced actor Jussie Smollett had his 2021 conviction overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel and Yoav Gallant, the former Defense Minister
It’s the time of “Glicked” with moviegoers hitting theatres in droves to watch Wicked and Gladiator II (think about Barbenheimer from last year when people were doing double features of Barbie and Oppenheimer)
Three Americans held as prisoners in China were finally released thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration
A US-brokered cease-fire agreement was made between Israel and Hezbollah
December
President Biden pardoned his son Hunter Biden of his conviction much to the consternation of the Republican Party and MAGA
South Korean Leader, Yoon Suk Yeol, declared martial law, but due to immediate protests by the South Korean people and its Parliament, that order was rescinded and Yeol narrowly diverted an impeachment
United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot to death in New York by MIA gunman
A 7.0 magnitude earthquake rattled Northern California
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s brutal reign over the country came crashing down after 13 years when rebel fighters stormed the capital of Damascus, claiming victory and sending Assad off to Russia where he claimed asylum
Wildfire in Malibu, California prompting mass evacuations
Current FBI Director Christopher Wray to step down
President Biden pardons nearly 1,500 Americans, a record for one day; many of them placed in home confinement during the Pandemic
Another school shooting this time in Madison, Wisconsin by a 15-year-old girl
New York judge denied Trump’s big to throw out his 34-felony convictions over immunity ruling
Matt Gaetz ethics report was to be released after House Panel’s secret vote
Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in Kazakhstan
Jeju Air jet from Thailand crashed in South Korea
That is quite the list of just some of the top news items throughout the year, wouldn’t you say?!
I hope that you will join me through the end of this year, as I focus on the best and the worst of 2024 in the worlds of TV and movies, TV ratings and so much more.
NOTE: I apologize in advance for any omissions, spelling errors or oversights I might have made, but I definitely don’t apologize for any choices I made.
TOMORROW: Hit and Misses on TV
Rueben's Ramblings 