2016 the end of a roller coaster ride

     There are many reviews published at the end of each year and this is yet another, hopefully this will be slightly different but probably not.

Many will say that 2016 was a horrible year with the loss of so many celebrities etc whilst others will say its fantastic because of unlikely events like Leicester winning the premiership and the medal haul brought back from Rio. What I think is 2016 changed the world and will have an impact for many years to come.

just touching on some of the year's events,

Brexit - the people of the United Kingdom voted for a myriad of reasons to leave the EU, for some it was about sovereignty of decisions, for some it was immigration, for some it was about spending on services to be honest now the reasons for people voting are somewhat irrelevant as we will be leaving the EU. 2017 will be the year that Great Britain starts the leaving process and the media will be full of "We don't want a Hard Brexit" as if we are on both sides of the negotiating table..
 Despite all that this single event will change the way we all live in the Uk and has began a new epoch of excitement and adventure.

USA Election - Well if you want to be schooled in electioneering there are a few people in recent history to look at, there's Ken Livingstone who showed us how to galvanise the minority voters and now there's a new kid on the block, Donald Trump. Now that was a lesson in electioneering, As I've said before he appealed to every insecurity possible in almost the complete opposite way to Obama who went along the Livingston method when elected.
    Donald Trump has some interesting things going on, he has a different approach and is even friends with Putin, Farage and Piers Morgan. Trump is the one to watch for excitement and more change, link this with Brexit and we have a recipe that will certainly herald changes.

Both of the 2 above events showed a shift in public desire and can be passed off by a number of excuses but the one thing that Farage and Trump managed to achieve was to send a message to all politicians that its time to reconnect with the populace. I think this message may need to be spread wider with the financial sector and media often writing the narrative whilst the normal person wanders round nervous.

Rio Olympics - another Olympic games that started with speculation as to whether the venues will be ready and health scares, then of course there was the the Russian Doping scandal. For Team GB this games and paralympics was a fantastic success and will build of the 2012 legacy.
  The opportunity that sporting success brings us is to make our sport hero's not only household names but true inspirations and for me there have been a few events that 2016 has brought us which show our athletes need care a nurturing outside the training and performance in their events. here I refer to use of social media as well as supporting grass routes and remembering the journey they have been on and support others in theirs. many athletes are simply not media savvy and they must be helped to not only achieve their sporting best but also the inspirational pedestal that others will aim for.

Who will win the F1 championship this year ? New Cars, no Nico, hm mm... I'm still saying a red bull shock may be worth a bet.

New Pound Coin - wow 12 sided coin with a hologram, this is an exciting prospect for 2017, I remember the pound note going and the pound coin coming in. One of the soap powder companies ran a promotion in which you could get a framed £1 note, I wonder how many people with still have that?

so to conclude. all of the above have given exciting opportunities for 2017 so what should we do. My thoughts are simple, lets try to be nice. I have a rant stored about prejudice but that can wait until another day for now but we should all take the first day of the year and think what do my actions thoughts and comments mean and where did they come from?

enjoy 2017 go out a grab it with both hands and make it happen.