Every morning, six days a week, I write a Morning News Wrap. This is a summary of the top news stories of the last 24 hours generally with some comment, opinion or attitude inserted. These are normally posted directed to Social Media (and they will continue to be so in 2016) but I am also going to start blogging the Morning News Wrap, so you may want to subscribe to my blog to get the MNW directly emailed to your device. At the end of each year I like to sit and brainstorm (without Google), the stand out News stories of the year that immediately come to my mind. Here are the 43 that I came up with for 2015 with an image or two for each. Some of these images are confronting so just giving you the heads up. The stories aren’t in any order.
1) The severe decline in the oil price.
2) Abbot knighted Prince Philip.
3) The shooting at a San Bernardino Community Centre killed 14 people. It was the worse mass shooting in the US since the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting in 2012. The two shooters apparently were passionate followers of ISIL.
4) Volkswagon was caught lying about the emission reports that were given to the EPA on their cars.
5) Domestic Violence was in the headlines a lot in Australia throughout the year. In the week that the photo below was taken at Helensvale McDonalds where a woman was fatally shot in front of customers and staff, by her estranged husband, 4 other women and a child were killed by their partners or ex partners. Ultimately PM Turnbull announced a $100 million package to confront this horrendous issue.
6) The adultery promoting website Ashley Madison was hacked and the people who fell for the lie of Life is Short, Have an Affair, had their details released on the dark web leading to multiple suicides.
7) The world was outraged when an American Dentist killed a lion called Cecil. Hey did you notice that the world hardly batterd an eyelid when 2000 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean…..but wow kill a lion and its all on. #misplacedpassion.
8) ISIL continued its very graphic videos and pics of executions.
9) Leonard Nimroy (Dr Spock) died.
10) Horse Trainer Bart Cummings died.
11) Adam Goodes threw some imaginary spears which seemed to have fatally speared his AFL career (rightly or wrongly I am not saying).
12) The pain of Jonathan Thurston’s potentially NRL Grandfinal winning kick hitting the goal posts was written all over his face. Thankfully the football gods smiled on him when minutes later he scored a Golden Point and became the hero of Queensland (even though it was an all Queensland final). Not mentioning the State of Origin here.
13) The Melbourne Cup became a little more glamerous when Michelle Payne became the first female jockey to win the cup. She endeared herself into Australia’s heart when she openly displayed great love and support for her down syndrome brother Stevie.
14) Australia won the Cricket World Cup beating the Kiwis which in my world makes the win even sweeter.
15) The Socceroos won the Asian World Cup.
16) The Force Awakened
17) ISIL destroyed ancient artefacts while the world screamed about a lion being killed.
18) American Olympian Bruce Jenner became a woman called Caitlyn.
19) Charlie Sheen announced to the world he is HIV Positive…..and no one was surprised. (except possibly all the people he has slept with over the last decade).
20) Over 1500 people were killed during a stampede in Mecca at the annual Haji pilgrimage. Another 1000 were injured. Controversially, the Saudi officials used bulldozers to clear the bodies.
21) The co-pilot of a Germanwings flight locked the pilot out of the cockpit and flew the plane into the ground killing 144 passengers and 6 staff.
22) The Supreme Court in America legalised gay marriage.
23) Wall Street had more ups and down than a roller coaster.
24) And of course the Australian Stockmarket followed Wall Street’s lead.
25) Greece became the word as it’s debt crisis threatened the future of the EU and the Euro.
26) A reporter and her cameraman were fatally shot during a live cross. The shooter turned out to be a disgruntled former employee who then killed himself.
27) The Liberal party decided to stab a sitting PM in the back during his first term in office.
28) Mick Fanning was attacked by a Shark during a surfing competition in South Africa. He punched it in the back. I am also posting images here of some of the humour that went viral in the days after the attack.
29) Turkey shot down a Russian fighter.
30) Over 2000 migrants drowned in overcrowded boats in the Mediterranean as they tried to get to Europe.
31) As part of the refugee crisis this image of a little drowned boy grabbed the world’s attention. There was some speculation about the young boy’s nationality and also some controversial comments that the boy was placed there for the media shot. Regardless. A little boy drowned. Desperately sad.
Here the image was recreated as a sand sculpture.
32) Hundreds of thousands of mostly Syrian refugees flooded into Europe.
33) Racial tensions continued to reach boiling point in Ferguson, Missouri.
34) Nepal had a massive earthquake that killed 9,000 people and injured 23,000 others. The quake also triggered a deadly landslide on Mt Everest.
35) A massive explosion in Tianjin, China, killed over 100 people and left a massive crater. The explosion was so big it could be seen from space.
36) A young man walked into a South Carolina church mid week meeting. Stayed in the meeting for an hour and then opened fire killing 9 people including the Pastor. It was racially motivated and sparked a debate about the use of the Confederate Flag. NASCAR then cancelled a drive around a NASCAR track by the General Lee.
37) The French Satirical Magazine Charlie Hebdo was attacked by Muslims upset at the cartoonists depiction of the Prophet Mohammad. Extra images are of the gatherings that followed.
38) Paris was attacked again by terrorists in November. 132 people were killed. Iconic buildings around the world were bathed in the colours of the French Flag as a show of solidarity.
39) Princess Charlotte was born.
40) Donald Trump wanted to be President.
41) Sepp Blatter was showered in dollar notes after it was shown that FIFA is more corrupt than a Nigerian Election.
42) Cyclone Pam devastated the tiny island nation of Vanuatu.
43) Police Accountant Curtis Cheng was shot and killed as he left his Parramatta office, by a 15 year old radicalised teen.
What stories would you add as stand out stories of 2015?
I hope you enjoyed my selection.
Peter.
Categories: Australian, Current Affairs, Financial, Morning News Wrap.
peterpilt 
News Blog from NSW Future President from Nowra resigns for new Post in Qld . Rumors are He has been offered a Royal Appointment .
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Hi Peter Hope you don’t mind I forwarded your top selections to some of my friends here and overseas Have a Happy New Year looking forward to a great 2016 with Global Care Jan Ross Bribie Island
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Sounds great all round Jan.
Hi Peter, thank you for putting that up, it was very good. I would like to Pray God’s blessings on you and your family for 2016. Happy New Year !!!
Thank you and I pray the same for you guys.