A New York Times contributing op-ed writer, Mark Bittman, kicked in the year 2014 with
"A Guide to Years Ending in 4." Bittman took a look back and summarized events that mostly were or went wrong, for example: Ike's foreign policy found the domino theory and the first American advisers went to Vietnam; Nelson Mandela went to prison for life in '64 (in '94 he was elected President of South Africa); in '74 Nixon resigned in disgrace and oil hit $10 a barrel (it is now about $98). You get the idea; the complete essay is available at the link above. All in all, however, this reader suspects Bittman's piece is somewhat tongue-in-cheek. The 4 years were not all that bad.
I got married in '54 and the marriage lasted 56 years; our first daughter (4th child) was born in '64;
in '74 I quit smoking; in '84 I was re-elected to S.C. House of Representatives; in '94 I went to China for six months with the lady I married in'54. So the years ending in 4 hold memorable thoughts for me. Other years, well, there are some I would like to do over, and I would let Bittman have fun with those. For the rest of us:
Happy New Year and may this ending-in-4-year be one of the best in your life.
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