Top National News Stories of 2007

"Top National News Stories" is a difficult subject to define. Are these the stories that the most people were interested in, or the events that made the most difference in the world? How should we judge them? I'm not even sure how I decided on my top stories for the year, but here, in no particular order, is my list.

The Writers Guild of America Strike

The Writers Guild strike started on November 5, 2007, and continues to date, but the effects haven't been felt for much of the general population. Most popular network series have continued to show new episodes that had already been written and/or taped prior to the strike. However, as of December 14, most scripted shows are expected to be shut down by the week of December 19 (UPI, December 14, 2007).

Most recently, reports say that the Writers Guild may begin negotiating with individual production companies, including David Letterman's Worldwide Pants, which means some writers may be heading back to work soon if those negotiations work out. (UPI, December 16, 2007)

The 2008 Presidential campaign

This campaign seems like it's been going on forever already. According to Wikipedia, seventeen Democratic debates and fourteen Republican debates have been held, beginning in April 2007. Candidates have criss-crossed the country, and have moved up and down in the various polls. The first primaries will be in January; no clear winners have emerged as yet.

The U.S. and Iran

Okay, this is also an international story, but since this directly affects U.S. citizens, I'm calling it a national news story. The December 3 National Intelligence Estimate (prepared through the collaboration of 16 intelligence agencies) says that Iran has had no nuclear weapons program since 2003. Shouldn't we be happy about that? President Bush says no. He says Iran could still start up a program if they wanted to, so we should still be worried. (press conference, December 4)

Bush still says that "all options are on the table," including possible military action against Iran, in order to stop Iran's uranium enrichment program. Iran says that the uranium enrichment is only for civilian, energy-generating purposes. Bush insists that we should be worried about Iran diverting nuclear material for weapons use.

On December 17, according to CNN.com, Russia confirmed that it is now delivering nuclear fuel to Iran for use in a nuclear power plant. President Bush sees this as a good thing, because if Russia is willing to supply Iran with fuel, Iran should not need to enrich its own uranium. The United Nations Security Council has been negotiating toward new sanctions on Iran.

The Southern California Fires

According to the California Office of Emergency Services, wildfires in October burned about 410,000 acres of land across Southern California. More than 2000 homes were destroyed in a seven-county area, with at least 1200 homes destroyed in San Diego County alone. Nearly one million people had to be evacuated from their homes, and President Bush signed a federal disaster declaration for California.

Residents are still recovering; many are still displaced and others need counseling to deal with the shock of their losses. Most rebuilding has yet to begin.

The Virginia Tech Massacre

On April 16, 2007, Seung-Hui Cho, a senior at Virginia Tech, killed 32 people in two separate shootings on campus, and then killed himself. The incident shocked many, and also prompted changes in Virginia law. Previously, due to differences between state and federal law, the state of Virginia had not reported Cho's legal status as a mentally ill person (declared by a Virginia special justice in 2005) to the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System, so he was allowed to buy firearms. Changes were made to prevent this from happening again. (Wikipedia)

Gas and Oil Prices Go Up...and Sometimes Down

The price of crude oil reached a high of $99.29 per barrel on November 21, 2007. Oil prices have now surpassed the high prices of the early 1980's, and some fear that this could foreshadow a new recession. Prices in December are down a bit, however, with gas in my hometown under $3 per gallon. (Wikipedia)

SOURCES

United Press International, "WGA strike shuts down most scripted shows", http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2007/12/14/wga_strike_shuts_down_most_scripted_shows/8516

United Press International, "Letterman company, writers to talk", http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2007/12/16/letterman_company_writers_to_talk/9857/

Wikipedia, "Democratic presidential debates, 2008", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_presidential_debates,_2008

Wikipedia, "Republican presidential debates, 2008", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_presidential_debates%2C_2008

Director of National Intelligence, "Iran: Nuclear Intelligence and Capabilities", http://www.dni.gov/press_releases/20071203_release.pdf

The Washington Post, "Bush Calls for Continued Pressure on Iran", http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/04/AR2007120400813.html

CNN, "Russia delivers nuclear fuel to Iran", http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/12/17/russia.iran/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular

Governor's Office of Emergency Services, "SoCal 2007 Fires", http://www.oes.ca.gov/Operational/OESHome.nsf/ALL/876C5DEE11FE66808825737C005B8754?OpenDocument

Wikipedia, "Virginia Tech massacre", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Tech_massacre

Wikipedia, "Oil price increases of 2004-2007", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_price_increases_of_2004-2006