The last week on Earth, or maybe not?

[Monique]

My dad thinks it's the last week on Earth, he's taken the day off so that he can be with my mom when it all ends. I don't know, that just not right.

Any tips to convince him the world is not coming to an end? Apparently he's convinced because two independent cultures (that couldn't have communicated with each other) predicted the end of the calendar at that date. It was probably in a Discovery channel documentary.

Good thing is that the end of the world is followed by a weekend, to recover from the fact everybody needs to get back to work :)

 

[jtbell]

everybody needs to get back to work :)

At the college where I work, everybody (including administration and staff) gets a long Christmas / New Year's break which begins on... Friday 12/21!

 

[Pengwuino]

At the college where I work, everybody (including administration and staff) gets a long Christmas / New Year's break which begins on... Friday 12/21!

It's going to be a VERY long break indeed.

Any tips to convince him the world is not coming to an end?

No but start taking monetary bets with people. $50 if the world doesn't end

 

[trollcast]

At the college where I work, everybody (including administration and staff) gets a long Christmas / New Year's break which begins on... Friday 12/21!

Same, my school even gave us a half day so we could enjoy our Doomsday.

 

[leroyjenkens]

A definition of "end" would be great. The world just poofs into non-existence? The world explodes? Implodes?

 

[Monique]

A definition of "end" would be great. The world just poofs into non-existence? The world explodes? Implodes?

Massive flooding of the continents with water.

 

[jedishrfu]

Buy your Dad a lottery ticket, if the ticket doesn't win the world didn't end.

 

[Evo]

My dad thinks it's the last week on Earth, he's taken the day off so that he can be with my mom when it all ends. I don't know, that just not right.

Monique, that's frightening, you don't think he'd be driven to do anything to himself or your mother, do you?

 

[Monique]

Monique, that's frightening, you don't think he'd be driven to do anything to himself or your mother, do you?

No, not really. But still, he believes it and that is disconcerting. The counter evidence is a conspiracy to let people believe it's not going to happen. I'll visit tomorrow, so hopefully it will be more of a "can't wait to see what'll happen" than something more weighty.

 

[Abstr7ct]

A good reason to take that day off. Tell him that he will wake up on Saturday with a surprise!

Funny enough, my instructor announced today the third midterm exam, saying the following:


It will be on the last week!

I think that I've just realized that he purposely announced it that way to play on the whole end of the world pop culture. It's kind of an implicit joke. However, we still have two weeks until the final exams and the third midterm will happen in the last week, after the promised Friday.

 

[jedishrfu]

Monique, that's frightening, you don't think he'd be driven to do anything to himself or your mother, do you?

Good comment, I didn't think of that scenario (war of the worlds radio show scare).

 

[Borek]

he believes it and that is disconcerting

I can feel your pain

 

[Monique]

Thanks Borek.

And to top that off I'm also worried about my sister, who has to make a serious decision in love and finances that has the possibility to end badly. I'm glad when the coming week is over.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Any tips to convince him the world is not coming to an end? Apparently he's convinced because two independent cultures (that couldn't have communicated with each other) predicted the end of the calendar at that date. It was probably in a Discovery channel documentary.

I don't know what the second culture is but the Mayan calendar in question doesn't predict the end of the world. It just calculates certain very large cycles of planetary or star motions up to a point and then takes a rest, so to speak. All that is coming to an end is one of these very large cycles. Things will segue into the start of the next cycle with no visible disturbance of anything anywhere.

If you google, Monique, you'll find they discovered an even longer term calendar in some other Mayan ruin that goes something like 2000 years into the future from now. Your Dad should be told about that.

Any given Mayan calendar stops at a certain point for the same reason all calendars stop at a certain point: if you don't stop somewhere you will just keep calculating forever. Our calendars are limited to year-long increments for convenience' sake. The world is not expected to end every 31st of December despite the fact that, every year, the calendar ends on that date.

 

[Borek]

Thanks Borek.

It just occurred to me - in a way, when those closest to us start believing such things, word DOES come to an end. Different word, different end, but heartbreaking.

 

[Borg]

Any tips to convince him the world is not coming to an end?

Ask him to give you all of their money, possessions, home, etc. After all, they aren't going to need any of it. Watch his reaction and see if he has to think twice. If he hesitates or finds a reason why he shouldn't then I would think that he doesn't believe it as much as he's saying.

 

[leroyjenkens]

Show him this video. I love this guy.

-HghEBxHvgg[/youtube]

 

[surajt88]

Ask him to give you all of their money, possessions, home, etc. After all, they aren't going to need any of it. Watch his reaction and see if he has to think twice. If he hesitates or finds a reason why he shouldn't then I would think that he doesn't believe it as much as he's saying.

I'd second that. If he DOES give you everything, that'll be a cause for concern.

 

[Redbelly98]

Any tips to convince him the world is not coming to an end?

I doubt you can convince him, and probably just have to wait it out to Dec. 22. You probably should keep an eye out that somebody doesn't come along and take advantage of your parents.

 

[OmCheeto]

Show him this video. I love this guy.

-HghEBxHvgg[/youtube][/QUOTE] I ...alignment.html"]2012: Shadow of the Dark Rift

One of the most bizarre theories about 2012 has built up with very little attention to facts. This idea holds that a cosmic alignment of the sun, Earth, the center of our galaxy -- or perhaps the galaxy's thick dust clouds -- on the winter solstice could for some unknown reason lead to destruction. Such alignments can occur but these are a regular occurrence and can cause no harm (and, indeed, will not even be at its closest alignment during the 2012 solstice.)

I'm not at all familiar with the Mayan Calendar system, so perhaps a bit of wiki/wican-magic is in line:

Maya Calendar

Misinterpretation of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar is the basis for a popular belief that a cataclysm will take place on December 21, 2012. December 21, 2012 is simply the day that the calendar will go to the next b'ak'tun, at Long Count 13.0.0.0.0. The date on which the calendar will go to the next piktun (a complete series of 20 b'ak'tuns), at Long Count 1.0.0.0.0.0, will be on October 13, 4772.
Sandra Noble, executive director of the Mesoamerican research organization Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI), notes that "for the ancient Maya, it was a huge celebration to make it to the end of a whole cycle". She considers the portrayal of December 2012 as a doomsday or cosmic-shift event to be "a complete fabrication and a chance for a lot of people to cash in."

bolding mine

Or as Borg mentioned:

Ask him to give you all of their money, possessions, home, etc. After all, they aren't going to need any of it. Watch his reaction and see if he has to think twice. If he hesitates or finds a reason why he shouldn't then I would think that he doesn't believe it as much as he's saying.

Cha-Ching!

I mean really. Do you want someone not playing with a full deck to have control of the family fortune?

That reminds me. My sister thinks the world is coming to an end because Obama became president. A UDT Seal Mensa member told her so.

My apologies if I've come across as painting your father as a bit crazy, but my entire family is a bit crazy. I know crazy.

 

[Kuhan]

Fail

 

[russ_watters]

No but start taking monetary bets with people. $50 if the world doesn't end

Bets? If the world is going to end, they won't need any money -- just have them write you a check for whatever is in their bank account!

 

[BobG]

Get the grungiest male friend you know to come visit your house. Have him explain how he may only be a garbage man, right now, but someday he hopes to own his own garbage truck.

When your father asks why he's telling him all this, then it's time for you to tell your father of your plans to avoid dying a virgin.

That will snap him out of it.

 

[Czcibor]

In my time zone the world still exist. (guys in Asia should have 21 st by now) How is it in your time zone? ;)

 

[jtbell]

Surely the appropriate time zone is the Mayans', i.e. Central Time (Chicago etc.) in the US.

 

[TheMadMonk]

I hope the world does end, I don't want to go to work tomorrow.

 

[Evo]

This is really bizarre, we had an inch of snow yesterday, nothing today. Tomorrow will be sunny and 37F, but the tv is showing that all schools are closing due to weather. WEATHER? Since when are clear skies and 37F reason to close for weather? Are they closing for THE END OF THE WORLD? There are no storms predicted, nothing. WTH?

 

[WannabeNewton]

Are they closing for THE END OF THE WORLD? There are no storms predicted, nothing. WTH?

I'm gunna miss you evo Say goobye to Chacha for me

 

[Evo]

I'm gunna miss you evo Say goobye to Chacha for me

Nooo, I am strapping her to me, chacha will survive, and I am her care taker, therefore, I shall live!

 

[Evo]

I am not doing dishes tonight on the off chance that there is no tomorrow.

micromass already informed me that everything went dark where he lives hours ago. The same thing has happened here and I fear the worse.

 

[WannabeNewton]

micromass already informed me that everything went dark where he lives hours ago.

That's because he got under his snuggie.

 

[Evo]

That's because he got under his snuggie.

Oh.

 

[micromass]

That's because he got under his snuggie.

I love my snuggie!

 

[WannabeNewton]

I love my snuggie!

It's ok. I don't judge.