2017 was quite the year

Well wasn’t that was a bit of a rough year? Let’s not have a repeat of that this year.

For those who thought that 2016 was rough, 2017 more then showed up it’s previous year with how many ups and downs it took us through. Let’s take a look at a few of the highlights:

Our neighbours to the south elected a new president, Donald Trump, who, regardless of your politics, has some very distinct opinions on trade that don’t bond well for Canada. After slapping soft-wood lumber tariffs on us early this year, The U.S., Canada and Mexico began the lengthy negotiations of NAFTA, but Trump’s semi-regular tweets to do way with the free-trade deal don’t bond well for it’s survival.

On this side of the border, the federal Conservatives have a new leader in Andrew Scheer, who was the last person standing after a what seemed to be at times to be a 100 person race. Not to be undone, the NDP also found a new leader in Jagmeet Singh, after a much smaller leadership race. Both seem confident that their party will take on the Liberals come the next federal election, and given our prime minister’s string of problems — the small business tax, ethics breachment — they could have a chance unless the liberals get it together before then. However, they are still snapping up byelection victories, so we can’t count them out yet.

Closer to home, Alberta’s conservatives united under one banner as the United Conservative Party — no pun intended — and voted Jason Kenney as their leader. Although Alberta is normally a traditionally conservative blue province, we did vote NDP a majority government in the 2015 election, which is about as far from conservative as you can get. So until the ballets are counted in 2019, it’s all up in the air.

Meanwhile on the other side of the pacific, North Korea is ramping up its missile tests, with Trump’s tweets not helping matters at all. In the opposite direction on the other side of the Atlantic, Trump’s decision to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem has ignited tensions in an already tense region, with the UN condemning the move.

A beloved Canadian icon, Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie passed away after a battle with cancer. Although we all knew it was coming, it still hurts.

Montreal voted in a new mayor, Valérie Plante, kicking out Denis Coderre. Plante is the first female mayor of Montreal, but she also ran with the platform of abolishing the inhumane pitbull ban bylaw, which she did. Pitbull lovers can now breathe a sigh of belief in the city.

The #metoo movement incited a seemingly watershed moment, starting with disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein and toppling actors such as Kevin Spacey, as people began adding their voices to the conversation and finally feeling secure enough to tell their stories. While it’s great that we are finally having this conversation on sexual assault, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg voiced worry over a possible backlash.

The Star Wars franchise wasn’t even safe from the rollercoaster of 2017. The latest installment, The Last Jedi, has critics and fans going back and forth over whether it was a great chapter or pure garbage. As the wise Yoda would probably say: Good or not good, there is no in between.

These are just some of the more impactful moments of the past year. Yes, 2017 made a statement — several loud statements — but never could we call it boring.

Let’s see what 2018 has in store for us. Here’s to a much calmer 2018, and hopefully it won’t be as wild of a ride.

Get More Sunny South News →