2009 History and Videos

Cost Of Living In 2009

How Much things cost in 2009 Average Cost of new house $232,880.00 
Average Income per year $39,423.00 
Average Monthly Rent $675.00 
Cost of a gallon of Gas $2.73 
US Postage Stamp 42 cents 
1 LB of Bacon $3.19 
Movie Ticket: $7.50 
Loaf of Bread $1.77 
In-state College Tuition $6,585.00 
Price Of Gold Per Ounce ( September 1st 2009 ) $958.00 
Price Barrel Of Oil $53.56 per barrel 

 

What Events Happened In 2009

World

  • Ongoing financial crisis and recession which began in late 2007 continues with many calling it the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s causing house prices to decline, and unemployment to increase. In 2009 governments in the US and around the world pumped trillions of dollars into the financial system and into the economies hoping to avert another Great Depression and by the end of 2009 although unemployment had continued to increase, markets had recovered and most thought the worst was over.
  • The World Health Organization declares H1N1 influenza strain, commonly referred to as "swine flu", as a global pandemic.

United States

  • Barack Obama is inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States
  • Michael Jackson dies in strange circumstances and brings worldwide outpouring of grief
  • US Airways Flight 1549 after being struck by a flock of Canada geese shortly after takeoff Piloted by Captain Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger makes a successful Crash landing In the Hudson River

Australia

  • The deadliest bushfires in Australian history ( Black Saturday bushfires ) in the Australian state of Victoria leave 173 people dead and more than 2000 homes destroyed.

European Union

  • Slovakia adopt the Euro joining 15 other European countries using the single currency

Europe

  • Russia shuts off all gas supplies to Europe through Ukraine.
More Information and Timeline for Gas Crisis 
Russia fully closes down gas supplies to Ukraine due to a dispute over a debt of $2.4 billion to Gazprom. Reduced supply had started on January 1st but due to negotiations breaking down all supplies were cut on January 7th. Most of the European Union relies of Gas from the Gas Fields of Russia so although the dispute was between Russia and the Ukraine the effects of it are felt in Western Europe with Bulgaria, Moldova and Slovakia the worst effected. The dispute lasted until a settlement was reached between Gazprom and the Ukraine on January 30th, 2009. (br />


Italy

  • 6.3 magnitude earthquake strikes near L'Aquila, Italy, killing nearly 300.

Nepal

  • Communist Protesters block Singha Durbar in Nepal.
More Information and Timeline for Maoist Protesters in Nepal 
On November 12, 2009 thousands of protesters from the Unified Communist Party of Nepal blocked entry points to Singha Durbar, which is the official seat of Nepalese government, as part of a two-day restoration of what they call “civilian supremacy”. They blocked eight access points to the principal government secretariat, and were led by the Maoist chairman and former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda,’ Mohan Vaidya ‘Kiran’ and Baburam Bhattarai. The Nepalese capital was badly disrupted by the Maoists, who chanted slogans against the government and blocked all of the roads that lead to Singha Durbar. 


Middle East

  • Israel and Hamas declare a unilateral ceasefire in the Gaza War.

Iceland

  • The Icelandic banking system collapse causing the collapse of the Icelandic government and resignation of the Prime Minister Geir Haarde

UK / U.S.A.

  • G-20 summit, involving state leaders rather than the usual finance ministers, meets in London and later in the year in Pittsburg to discuss the ongoing global financial crisis

Guinea-Bissau

  • The President of Guinea-Bissau, João Bernardo Vieira, is assassinated.

Fiji

  • President Josefa Iloilo suspends the nation's Constitution, dismisses all judges

Thailand

  • Thailand Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva again declares a state of emergency in Bangkok and surrounding areas ( September 2008 )

Pakistan

  • Gunmen, near the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, Pakistan fire on a bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team.

Madagascar

  • A coup d'état in Madagascar overthrows the President Marc Ravalomanana.

South America

  • The country of Paraguay is left with no power for a few hours and 60 million in Brazil also suffer power outage for up to 6 hours.

Greenland

  • Greenland the least densely populated country in the world ( 836,109 sq miles ) population less than 60,000 an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, gains control over its law enforcement, judicial affairs, and natural resources

NATO

  • Albania and Croatia join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Iran

  • Roxana Saberi, an Iranian-American journalist, is sentenced to eight years in prison for espionage by an Iranian court

Iran

  • Following the reelection of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on June 13th , there are a series of sustained protests which are stopped by Iranian Forces.

North Korea

  • North Korea launches the Kwangmyŏngsŏng-2 satellite, Later in the year announces it had conducted a second successful nuclear test in the province of North Hamgyong.

North Korea

  • Following former U.S. President Bill Clinton meeting with with Kim Jong-il in North Korea two American journalists, who had been arrested and imprisoned for illegal entry earlier in the year receives pardons.

Scotland

  • The convicted terrorist Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi is freed on compassionate grounds by the Scottish government.

Samoa and American Samoa

  • A tsunami triggered by An 8.3-magnitude earthquake near the Samoan Islands destroys communities and harbors in Samoa and American Samoa leaving nearly 200 deaths

Indonesia

  • A 7.6-magnitude earthquake strikes 28 miles west-northwest of Padang, Sumatra killing over 1,000 in Indonesia

Europe

  • The Treaty of Lisbon comes into force in European Union (EU) member states

 

Technology in 2009

  • An American and Russian satellites collide over Siberia, creating a number of Conspiracy theories. But the facts are as the number of satellites increase above the earth the chances of Space collisions increases.
  • NASA launches the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter/LCROSS probes to the Moon to search for water ice near the Moon's south pole. In November NASA announces they found 'significant' ammounts of water on moon
  • The longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, lasting up to 6 minutes and 38.8 seconds, occurs over parts of Asia and the Pacific Ocean.
  • Mobile Phone technology continues to grow with increased use of 3G networks and improvemnents in the Operating Systems that drives most moblile phones today.
  • The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) the world's largest and highest-energy particle accelerator resumes operations in February 2010

 

Major World Political Leaders In 2009

Australia Prime Minister Kevin Rudd 

Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva 

Canada Prime Minister Stephen Harper 

China Chairman of the People's Republic of China Hu Jintao 

France President Nicolas Sarkozy 

Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel 

India Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh 

Italy Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi 

Japan Prime Minister Taro Aso / Yukio Hatoyama 

Mexico President Felipe Calderón 

Russia / Soviet Union General Secretary of the CPSU Dmitry Medvedev 

South Africa State President Kgalema Petrus Motlanthe / Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma 

United States President George W. Bush / Barack Obama 

United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown

 

2009 Football Highlights