Hunt is a junior business major and can be reached at [email protected]
December 21, 2012. June 6, 2006. Y2K. These are just three of the hundreds of possible doomsdays available to the planet and its inhabitants. Although there were other instances where various individuals thought the world would end due to the Rapture, or the planets aligning or because Jesus Christ would return again, these three instances are the most popular.
Some people believe that the world will truly end on Dec. 21, because it is the end of the Mayan calendar. The Mayans were known for being extremely accurate. Whether it’s a polar shift, a black hole alignment or a giant meteor hitting the Earth that causes the end of the world — it is impossible to guess at this time. There are also massive critics on the situation, including NASA, just like there were with the other two popular dates that were supposed to be the apocalypse. Then, there’s my simple common sense thought: the Mayans did not include leap days on their calendar. Following this logic, with the leap days we’ve had since they existed, the world would have ended several months ago. Yet, here we stand still freaking out over what a bunch of dead people said thousands of years ago.
June 6, 2006, 6/6/6 or the “Number of the Beast,” as it had been named, was supposed to be the day when one of two things were to happen. First, the Rapture was supposed to occur. The Rapture is a Biblical idea where millions of people are to disappear within a blink of an eye without leaving a trace. Those left behind will be condemned to die. Or, second, the Anti-Christ (another religious concept) was supposed to reveal his or her self on this day. The anti-Christ is to bring the end of the world by bringing everyone together, but silently murdering all who resist. There is still no official anti-Christ today, yet in recent years, it has been rumored that anyone from President Barack Obama to Justin Bieber could be the anti-Christ. Again, it’s hypothetical with no proof whatsoever.
The year 2000, or Y2K was not a religious apocalypse at all. Instead, it was a technology scare. Many people thought the world would collapse due to technology failure. The failure would have come from the numerical dating systems crashing, because earlier programming only had two-digit numbering (98 for 1998, etc.). Once the year 2000 would start, the numbers couldn’t go back to 00, because that was 1900. The government asked everyone to stock up on supplies just to be safe. Instead of celebrating for the New Year, people were bunkering down in shelters expecting the Terminator to reenact itself on Earth. However, it was a complete hoax. It was an exceptionally easy fix on all programming.
If going out and buying supplies to have ready on Dec. 21, eases the mind, then do it. However, don’t be surprised if the world is still completely normal on Dec. 22. That means for students everywhere: don’t expect your professors to accept the excuse “I thought the world was going to end.” Other dates have come and gone that were supposed to be the end of the world, what’s so special about 2012?
barathiraja • Sep 17, 2012 at 10:46 pm
some indian people said the world will be end by lord vishnu. The baghavat gita said the world will be end by lord kalki.
barathiraja • Sep 17, 2012 at 10:42 pm
some indian people said the will be end by lord vishnu.
fern gully • Sep 17, 2012 at 6:22 pm
i think you all are a bunch of worrying ass suckaz that worry about shit that u could never stop. ur just human so live and dont worry..jesus said dont worry and thats what ur doin…stfu
tena • Sep 17, 2012 at 9:42 am
the only person that knows when the world will end is jesus his self when he knows the world will end it will end there has been so many people that keep saying that the world is gonna end this year 2012 but they dont know because the are not jesus christ the metero was supposed to hit the earth a year ago but it didnt happen so people just need to calm down and face the fact that the world most likely will not end this year
Janice • Sep 14, 2012 at 6:27 pm
Poorly researched, badly written article: Y2K was resolved largely due to corporations spending large amounts of money fixing their computer systems which had years coded as 97, 98, 99 and did arithmetic with those numbers but could not cope with 00 – your calculator is the same – cannot divide by zero.
But why does this writer discuss Y2K in the same article as 21/12/12 ? nothing whatever to do with each other. So more ignorant b..s but no new facts.
Elizabeth • Sep 14, 2012 at 1:25 pm
Are you an amateur writer or a professional? You have no clue what you’re talking about here. You didn’t even do your research did you? Yes, some theories of the ‘End Of The World’ are just theories. But don’t be confusing Christianity and Eschatology with these stupid Doomsday claims. The Rapture and the Anti-Christ are very real events. The Rapture will take place when Jesus returns to collect his obedient followers and right after, something called the Tribulation occurs. That is when the Anti-Christ (a political figure) will arise making people think ‘Peace On Earth’ is possible now that the Christians are gone. And everything around the world will seem peaceful (except for the meteors hitting the earth, the plagues, the food shortages, earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions going on). Then after 3 1/2 years, the Anti-Christ will proclaim he is God and he will sit in the Temple in Jerusalem and demand that all peoples left on the earth should worship him and only him. Those who don’t, yes, they will surely die if they are found. Then, 3 1/2 years after that when most people are dead and gone from this earth, those who remain will fight the final battle of Armageddon (in Megiddo) and Jesus, along with the Saints, will return and kill off all who remain on the earth so that we can set up the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Make no mistake, this will happen and it’s coming soon. If you’re not ready, you’d better get ready (and not by stockpiling supplies either). The Earth will not come to an end but those who dwell on it will.