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end of the world, 2007, BS?

Mon, 2008-01-28 20:28 — Anonymous Coward
Question:: 
Alot of hardcore christian boneheads are talking about 2007 being the end of the world. They say the aztec calander ended in the year 2000, but the bible is 7 years behind our time... so that would logically combine to 2007. Im being warned of Zombies and "Silver saucers" in the skies. It all seems so dramatic... Is there really any proof of a dated end of the world, or any realistic reason it would end this year?
Atheist Answer: 

No and no. It's 2008 now, for a start. Sorry for the lateness of this answer.

Religions with an eschatology component (end-of-the-world hypothesis) work hard to make doomsday sound imminent. This gets harder as time goes on; the Jehovah's Witnesses had five "last" days go by before they stopped making specific forecasts.

The reason is that people are more likely to act if they think time is running out. The fear of missing out can be intense. It's just like an ad for furniture that says, "These deals will not last, so hurry!"

Every religion wants now to be the end times, because it's the equivalent of a closing down sale. Whatever people have done in their lives where they fear judgement, they can get square with their gods at the eleventh hour and be safe. It's great for recruitment and fundraising.

The next scare will likely be in 2012, because the ancient Mayans' calendar simply runs out that year. They didn't happen to say why, but surely if the world was going to end they'd have written it down. That would be a red letter day indeed.

- SmartLX