Say Something Nice About 2014.

Where I am at least the giant clock has ticked over from 23:59:59 to 00:00:00 meaning that the old year has ended and the new one has begun.

2014 began with scenes of almost medieval warfare in the streets of Ukraine's capital Kiev as neo-Nazi and Nazi thugs battled with the police. Eventually this rioting became so severe that the Ukrainian government was overthrown and the fascists took control of large parts of the country. This plunged the nation into civil war as the fascists tried to purge the country of ethnic Russians and the ethnic Russians fought back. That war continues as I write and has left at least 5,000 people dead and forced more the 1 million people to flee their homes, often into Russia.

Within two weeks of the collapse of the Ukrainian government Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared on a flight between Malaysia and China. To this day the plane and the 239 people on board remain missing. Malaysia Airlines suffered another unfortunate accident in July when flight MH17 veered off course over Ukraine's civil war and was shot down either by a missile fired from the ground or by a missile fired by a Ukrainian air force jet. Whatever the cause 298 people lost their lives that day.

By the time MH17 crashed Israel and Palestine were already engaged in a 50 day war in Gaza. Those 50 days of war claimed the lives of 2,127 Palestinians and 66 Israelis although that figure rises to 76 if you include the soldiers who committed suicide after the war had officially ended.

Just across the border from Israel in Syria the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) continued their genocidal rampage and expanded it to include much of Iraq. Through suicide bombings, executions and massacre ISIL have so far killed in excess of 9,000 people in Iraq alone and almost succeeded in wiping out the entire Yezidi religion and the wider Kurdish ethnic group before the US was begrudgingly forced to intervene. Despite almost 5 months of bombing that US-led coalition has barely succeeded in halting ISIL's advance let alone defeated them.

The rise of ISIL was nearly matched by the expansion of Boko Haram in Nigeria and Cameroon and Al-Shabaab in Somalia who have also began mounting attacks in neighbouring Kenya. Pakistan which is long used to Islamist violence also saw the worst terror attack in its history when the Pakistani Taliban attacked a school in Peshawar killing at least 132 people - the majority of them children.

While all this has been going on the Ebola virus has ravaged the west African nations of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea destroying pretty much everything it touches and killing at least 7,890 people so far.

So if I had to raise a toast to send 2014 on it's way I would say simply; "Good f*cking riddance."

If I had to pick a highlight the year though it would obviously be the summer World Cup in Brazil. If I had to choose a cultural highlight it would be the ceremonies of the Olympic and Para-Olympic games in Sochi, Russia because it was nice to work with something of quality for a change.

(Originally Posted) 01:30 on 1/1/15 (UK date).