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Why 2017 Was The Best Year In Human History Analysis

Decent Essays

In “ Why 2017 Was the Best Year in Human History,” Nicholas Kristof from New York Times describes the successes and achievements of 2017. More specifically, Kristoff argues that even with war threats heading our way and the troubles in the new presidency, 2017 was still considered the best year. He writes, “Now fewer than 15 percent are illiterate, and fewer than 10 percent live in extreme poverty. In another 15 years, illiteracy and extreme poverty will be mostly gone.” This indicates that the poverty levels are decreasing and education amongst the people are increasing. Additionally, in the 1950s, “the U.S. had segregation, polio and bans on interracial marriage, gay sex and birth control. Most of the world lived under dictatorships, two-thirds of parents had a child die before age 5.” As of now 100 million children have been saved due to advancements in medicine. Laws have been made that allow same-sex marriage as well as …show more content…

Birth control can now be accessed in local pharmacies as well as clinics. These advancements show that humanity is becoming more receptive as changes to cultural and social norms continue to happen. In this passage, Kristoff indicates that rather than dwelling on the negative, people should look at the progression were making as a society. In conclusion, Kristof’s belief is that 2017 was the best year in history regardless of it’s many failures. In my view, Kristof is wrong about 2017 being the greatest year in human history because comparing it to others, I believe that the negative outweighs the positives. More specifically, I believe that with in increase in taxes, dismantling healthcare, avoiding renewing immigration policies, and overall insignificant action by the government, 2017 can be considered the worst year. For example, “ One in 10 people

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