The inevitable 2009 top ten stories column

You knew it was coming, I’m sure. Every Tom, Dick and Harriet with a pencil or a keyboard is probably assembling their own list of the political news stories which shaped the news in 2009. Never being one to shy away from running with the herd, I’ve assembled my own and you can find it this morning at Pajamas Media. But when you’re finished with that, I thought it might be fun to take a moment here at TMV and pick over some of the tidbits which didn’t make the cut.

One name which does not appear is Tiger Woods. Is it news? Of course. But it’s not political news. Tiger was always intensely private about his life outside of golf. He wasn’t one of those people who preaches about conservative values and morals but then gets caught with his pants down. In the end, this was a story about a talented kid with hundreds of millions of dollars showering down upon him and legions of women throwing themselves at him. Shocking? I don’t think so.

Another person not on my list is Michael Jackson. I could easily write a couple thousand words on the King of Pop, most of which would have his adoring fans calling for my head on a platter, but much like Tiger, he’s just not a source of political fodder for me.

I also didn’t include David Letterman’s personal scandal, though he was on the short list until the end. Yes, he’s an entertainer, but he made his living – in part – by making fun of politicos who got in trouble over their dalliances with women. Irony is a cruel mistress, but sorry, Dave… you just missed the varsity team.

Roman Polanski also does not appear in my column. I really never tire of ranting about this scumbag and I think his story carries a lot of meat which touches on both political and social questions of import. But there were bigger fish to fry, and I really didn’t think that this particular criminal deserves to be at the top of anything but an impaling spike.

I left off the 2009 gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey. This was not because they weren’t political stories, but more because the results seemed inevitable in retrospect. The 2010 election cycle will prove far more meaty.

Blago, Roland Burris, Carolyn Kennedy and Client Number Nine also failed to make the cut. Good stories one and all, but there’s only so much room at the top guys, sorry.

Please feel free to add your own or reorganize the order of my selections. What were the big stories of the year which we’ll remember well into the future? Was 2009 an historic, game changing year or just a prolonged hangover we’d all rather forget? For me, this year was a dud on the political front. Here’s hoping for better days to come.