2012: Democracy spread; Europe teetered; climate worsened; Obama frittered

To begin on a happy note, the world didn’t end last 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 examine the.