To begin on a happy note, the world didn't end this year. Dec. 21 came and went without a sign of the Four Horsemen, leaving the Mayans (or rather their ancestors) with egg all over their faces.
It just goes to show the perils of prediction — but why would we let that deter us? Nobody is keeping score.
So, instead of the usual trek through the events of the past year, why don't we use this yearender to examine the entrails of recent events for portents of the future?