Some 2004 highlights for the nostalgic:

- MySpace was surging, Facebook was launched.

- Iraq counterinsurgency. Eventually Iraq fared better than Syria, while Afghanistan fared worse. No one in 2004 would have guessed this.

- WoW was released.

- Paris Hilton, Russell Brand, The Da Vinci Code, The Wardrobe Malfunction. Maybe not a year for culture.