What America was like in 2008
You were born in…
2008
This is where your story begins.
You’ve been here for
18
years
That’s about 6,600 days of history.
A first-class stamp in 2008 cost
42¢
Today the same stamp costs 82¢.
A dollar from 2008 would be worth
$1.56
today
Measured by the government’s Consumer Price Index.
The federal minimum wage in 2008 was
$5.85
an hour
Today it’s $7.25.
The president in 2008
George W. Bush
Since then you’ve lived under 4 presidents.
The 2010 census counted
309 million
Americans
By 2020 there were 331 million of us.
You’ve been around for
18
Super Bowls
From Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 to Super Bowl LX in 2026.
You’re older than…
- The iPad went on sale2010. You were 2.
So yes,
you’ve seen the worldchange a lot.
And you remember it.
Your 2008 story
That was 2008.
Share it with someone who remembers it too.
A little 2008 in your inbox
Our free daily email: one story, one quiz and something you'll remember. Unsubscribe anytime.
Make one for someone you love
Where these numbers come from
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. city average, all items, 1982-84=100
- U.S. Postal Service, Rates for Domestic Letters Since 1863
- U.S. Department of Labor, history of federal minimum wage rates
- U.S. Census Bureau, decennial census resident population
- Presidents and milestones: widely documented public records.