The cost of the end of the world

2012 is by no means the most ridiculous end of the world prediction, though it's unique in that it has its own exotic appeal.  This one is not based on Abrahamic religions, which have built into them the basis for Apocalyptic fan-fic.  It's from deep in the jungle, where astronomers battled with the forest canopy to gaze at the night sky, and mathematicians created knot-based counting systems complex calendars.

It's the ending of their calendar that has caused all of this end of the world speculation.  And baseless speculation is what can hurt people.

This article touches on the continuing saga of people predicting the coming of Christ over the years, and how those predictions affected the decisions of many people, many to their ruin.  Harold Camping ruined the lives of many of his followers after his failed prediction of the Rapture and the Apocalypse.  It wasn't even his first failed prediction!

Other doom and gloom predictions have caused people to do horrible things to themselves, like suicide from the misguided belief the the Large Hadron Collider would end the world.  That was in no small part due to the irresponsibility of the non-skeptical news media hyping the event and inflaming the irrational fears of a non-skeptical audience.

So, are end of the world predictions something that should be ignored?  Absolutely not.  They should be questioned, investigated, and when necessary, mocked.  Mockery, I believe, is the best antidote to silly ideas.  Silly ideas are only dangerous if taken seriously, and it's hard to take something seriously when it's being mocked and satirized.

Introduction to the Doom

I can't say how this blog will end up, and I can't say what the end result will be, except that I intend to make fun of 2012 Doomsday prophets along the way.  In the interest of full disclosure, I don't believe a word of it.  December 21, 2012 will be another ordinary deep winter day.  Still, it's fun to pretend, right?


There are a pile of kooky 2012 books lying on my desk right now.  I've skimmed and read some of them, but I may need your recommendations for others that I may miss in the course of this blog.  For example, I have:

• The Mystery of 2012 - Predictions, Prophecies & Possibilities by Gregg Braden, et al.
• How to Survive 2012 - Tactics and Survival Places for the Coming Pole Shift by Patrick Geryl
• The Great Shift - Co-creating a New World for 2012 and Beyond by Lee Carroll, et al.

There are a wide variety of ideas out there, all devoid of any research, citations, or evidence whatsoever (except for citations to their own previous work).  All of these ideas revolve around one thing:  In 2012, something is going to happen that will change everything.  That is what all of them can agree on.  How it changes, on the other hand, nobody can seem to agree on.


That's why I'm leaving it up to you.  You get to decide your doom.  They are all equally plausible.  They are all equally backed by evidence.  And as a bonus, I will fictionalize each of the 2012 scenarios as if they were completely true!


I will attempt to update this blog with a largish post about once a week, with smaller, off-the-cuff posts whenever I think about them.


I look forward to the next year of blogging.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!