Written by Jacob Callus
At the turn of a new decade, it would be expected that it’s the start of a new beginning. Bound to usher in a series of changes that won’t just leave an impact on the country in which you live, but on the whole of the world.
With everything that happened in the 2000s and 2010s, people looked at the 2020s with optimism, as perhaps the start of something different. Little did we know of course, that three months into the new year, it would feel like more than just a few months have gone by.
To begin with, the events which have characterised 2020 so far are certainly far from similar to the period in time it has been so commonly associated with, this being the 1920s. Historically described as ‘The Roaring Twenties’, this decade is remembered as being dominated by vast cultural and societal changes relating to the performing arts and the cinematic industry, unprecedented economic prosperity in the United States and Europe, and widespread political reforms, the most pivotal considered to be women being granted the right to vote in several countries across the world. At the decade’s start, US President Warren G. Harding declared that he wanted to oversee ‘a return to normalcy’ during his presidential election campaign in 1920, in light of the immediate aftermath of the First World War.
Now, that certainly feels like quite a lot to take in doesn’t it? The amount of tumultuous events which were spread over 10 years sound so trivial in comparison to what’s already happened throughout this year so far. Up until now, the events which made the headlines undoubtedly were the bushfires raging across Australia, concerns over World War 3 starting as a result of growing tensions between the US and Iran, Brexit finally taking place after almost a four-year wait and Malta getting a new prime minister.
And the greatest impact of them all…
What has definitely had the most profound impact is what’s on everyone’s mind so far: the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. The consequences of the virus are being felt socially in terms of self-quarantine taking place on a global level, in political terms when it comes to seeing how world leaders have chosen to respond to the outbreak of the virus, and economically in relation to the fallout which is expected to occur as a result of the coronavirus leading to businesses having to close and whole countries coming to a halt. The geopolitical repercussions which this pandemic is bound to have with regards to the already strained relations between the United States and China warrant an article of its own judging by its magnitude.
These are at the very least, what seems like the most likely outcomes of this crisis, since the broader effects may be too difficult to predict. Despite all the hardship being associated with the coronavirus, some people seem to have found a silver lining amidst all the mayhem. So, to conclude on a positive note, some may be getting their hopes up after the news that this year’s Eurovision Song Contest was canceled, the same can’t be said however for the US presidential election this November.