10 years later

How the world has changed in ten years.  Ten years ago one could go to an airport gate and watch loved ones arrive and depart.  Today dropping or picking someone up at the airport amounts to little more than a drive through.  Ten years ago terms such as TSA, Homeland Security, and threat level did not exist in the minds of the majority of the population.  Today these words affect everyone who travels anywhere by plane.  Ten years ago we the major effect on the global economy was the technology bubble bursting.  Today the technology bubble is but a figment of our imagination as the real estate bubble burst, the banking crisis, the European debt crisis, the American debt crisis, and the general economic decline all dominate the conversation.  Ten years ago the last war of memory was a short lived one in the early 90s, Desert Storm, brought by Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.  Today a whole generation has grown up in the shadow of the War on Terrorism, the War in Afghanistan, and the War in Iraq.  Ten years ago if your skin was brown it wasn't of much distinction.  Today if your skin is brown you might hear comments such as, "are you one of those Iraqis?"  Or, "do you know any terrorists?"  Ten years ago families lost loved ones, friends lost each other, and a generation lost it's innocence.  Today many have moved on and many are trying to move on.