2015 was a simpler time. We didn’t have to worry about walls being built between the US and Mexico, immigrants being forcibly deported, or the loss of our favorite jokes or memes. Here are eight things we were thankful for before 2016:
Having 11 gorillas in the Cincinnati Zoo – Harambe was tragically killed in 2016 and hundreds of thousands of people across the internet were outraged by his death. Slogans, T-shirts and memes were made all in support of Harambe so that his legacy will live on.
A stable political system and government – Obama, oh how we took you for granted. The United States has always had its ups and downs poltically, but it’s looking like we’re heading for one of those downs now that Donald Trump has been elected president. Before 2016, all we knew Trump for was Celebrity Apprentice and his brand of hotels. Now we’re just hoping he doesn’t ruin the country.
Star Wars movies owned by LucasFilms – I have nothing against Disney; however, no amount of Kylo Ren and Rey is going to be better than Star Wars I-VI. Not even close.
Britain was still in the EU – After Brexit, the EU lost a vital member. The loss could affect international relations and possibly the course of history.
Not having to worry about Ebola or Zika – Before 2016, if you talked about Ebola or Zika you would have been looked at like you had four eyes. Now they’re mentioned on every television news show and you are under the constant, yet rare, threat from these terrible diseases.
All of the “Cubs haven’t won a World Series in more than 100 years” jokes – In 2016, the Chicago Cubs managed to overcome a 108-year drought of not winning a World Series. With this milestone achievement, they have managed to put an end to all the jokes made about their inability to win. Cubs’ fans may have found these jokes to be in bad taste, but other sports fans all across the country sure seemed to like them.
All of the “Leonardo DiCaprio hasn’t won an Oscar ever” memes – Leonardo DiCaprio not winning an Oscar was quite possibly one of the best things that ever happened to the meme industry. Various meme creators made DiCaprio the subject of many jokes, generating tons of laughter from viewers. After Leo won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in The Revenant (which mostly involved grunting after being attacked by a bear), these hilarious memes became a thing of the past.
Vine – Vine, the short-form video sharing app owned by Twitter, was sadly shut down and removed from Apple’s app store and the Google Play store in 2016. Vine was a staple on almost all teenagers’ home screens, and students would check it regularly to watch their favorite “viners” do whatever crazy things were possible in a span of no more than six seconds.

Jason Silverman

Back Page Editor