Editorial Hints Of Good Year Ahead For Illawarra

Illawarra Mercury

Thursday January 1, 2009

THERE was an almost palpable sense of relief as the world said goodbye to 2008 - a year which exposed serious cracks in a global financial system that will largely define the shape of the new year and beyond.

It was a year all of us in this region would rather forget in the wake of the damaging Independent Commission Against Corruption public inquiry and the subsequent loss of grassroots democracy through the sacking of Wollongong and Shellharbour councils.

But we lost more than councils during 2008.

As we look forward to a new year, our community still struggles to come to terms with the death, just a few short weeks ago, of marathon mum Kerryn McCann.

However with a new year comes renewed hope that the world will be a better place.

Yes, the shadow of global financial uncertainty remains, but there are plenty of signs that our nation can weather the storm.

Closer to home, our region will again show its resilience in 2009 and continue to bounce back from the corruption scandal that threatened to undo years of hard work to change our image and show the world the Illawarra is a wonderful place to live and work.

And who knows? With master coach Wayne Bennett at the helm, 2009 might just be the year the St George Illawarra Dragons win their first NRL grand final.

© 2009 Illawarra Mercury

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