Here it is, the annual Top 10 best good news stories of the year. From this list, you get the sense that 2011 has been an amazing year! Here’s hoping we have an even better one in 2012.
From the heartwarming embers of the #10 story to the world-changing heroics of #1, share this with your friends and provide an uplifting holiday-end boost.)
10) Bystanders Lift Burning Car to Save Trapped Biker – Caught on Video
A 21-year old motorcyclist who collided with a BMW on the campus of Utah State University was lying unconscious beneath the burning wreckage when bystanders rushed to help. Workers at a nearby construction site tried to lift the car along with students, while a professor shot the scene on his camera phone from an upper floor window.
9) Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ Triumphant Recovery From Assassin’s Bullet
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, absent from the U.S. Capitol since she was shot through the brain 7 months ago, walked into the House chamber to hearty applause before she cast a vote as the dramatic debt ceiling debate came to a close in the House of Representatives in August. Her amazing recovery continued in November when she recorded a hopeful greeting for constituents and fans.
8) Thousands of Muslims Form “Human Shield” Protecting Christians
Following a devastating terrorist bombing at a Coptic Christian church in Egypt, thousands of Muslims, including the two sons of President Hosni Mubarak, arrived a week later to act as “human shields” protecting those attending mass from possible attack. Days later, Christians formed a circle around Muslim men who were praying, to defend them against retaliation, as pictured in this photo by Nevine Zaki who described the scene here.
7) U.S. Auto Industry Surges Back From Oblivion
Detroit is enjoying a renaissance this year, in part because the Big Three automakers have come roaring back from the brink of bankruptcy. Chrysler and GM, after receiving bailout loans, have mostly paid them back. All three manufacturers posted healthy profits in the third quarter and, in a stunning turnaround, Detroit went from making cars that no one wanted to creating vehicles that surpassed Japanese models, outperforming them in JD Power ratings for the first time ever. (PolicyMic)
6) Number of Starving People in Somalia Drops by Half Million
The crisis of famine in Somalia has been substantially mitigated, said the United Nations in November. The number of people facing imminent starvation dropped by two-thirds thanks to the onset of rainfall and increase of food aid deliveries. (NY Times)
5) Leukemia Breakthrough Cures 2 of 3, Could Target Other Cancers
A new leukemia treatment has experts buzzing over a possible cure that may one day change cancer treatment forever. The experimental treatment delivered extraordinary results to the three leukemia patients who received it. Two of the three are now cancer-free. Researchers genetically engineered white blood cells from the patients, making their T-cells kill the cancer. (CBS)
4) Tens of Thousands Honor 9 Year-old’s Memory, Giving $1.2 Million to her Charity
One month before she was fatally injured in a car crash in July, Rachel Beckwith had made it known that all she wanted for her 9th birthday was donations toward her goal of raising $300 to bring clean water to African villagers. After she died, the donations poured in beyond any expectation, topping a million dollars and inspiring a nation. (CharityWater)
3) End of the Iraq War Sends U.S. Soldiers Home
The last U.S. soldiers rolled out of Iraq across the border into neighboring Kuwait at daybreak last week — whooping, fist bumping and hugging each other in a burst of joy and relief. Their convoy’s exit marked the end of a bitterly divisive war that raged for nearly nine years.
2) U.S. Violent Crime Fell 6% Last Year, Extending a 4-Year Decline
Despite economic hardship in parts of the country, violent crime in the United States declined 6.5% last year, according to statistics released by the FBI in September. The 2010 figures showed a continued decline in violence that began decades ago and has been uninterrupted since 2006. Also notable, Canada’s murder rate reached a 44-year low. Gun crime in Scotland also fell to a 32-year low.
1) The Arab Spring Topples Dictators Like Dominos
“No one could have known that when a Tunisian fruit vendor in a town barely on the map set himself on fire in a public square, it would spark protests that would bring down dictators in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and rattle regimes in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain,” wrote Time editor Rick Stengel in naming ‘The Protestor’ as Time’s Person of the Year. Dubbed the Arab Spring, these demonstrations “embodied the idea that individual action can bring collective, colossal change.” The longing for democracy and freedom lit the spark in every mother, son and worker who joined the peaceful demonstrations in Cairo’s Tahrir Square and the guns taken up by farmers, students and shopkeepers who overthrew Gaddafi in Libya. (Time)
The Good News Network, in its 15th Year delivering “News to Enthuse,” is offering a holiday 2-for-1 Gift special: One-year subscriptions for $12 – that’s 50% off – when you buy 2 or more. (Expires Jan. 10)
RE: The crime rate: It’s also part of a broader, longer-term trend: Between 1991 and 2010, the homicide rate fell 51 percent and property crimes dropped 64 percent. Wow!