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Thousands Expect Apocalypse in 2012

AOL
Posted: 2008-07-06 17:46:01
Filed Under: Weird News
(July 6) - Survival groups around the world are gearing up and counting down to a mysterious date that has been anticipated for thousands of years: Dec. 21, 2012.

Across the United States, Canada and throughout Europe, apocalyptic sects and individuals say that is the day that the world as we know it will end, ABCnews.com reports.

Signs of the Apocalypse

Mayan ruinsGregory Bull, AP

Those who claim the apocalypse will occur on Dec. 21, 2012, base their beliefs on a calendar devised by the Mayans, whose ruins are shown in Mexico above. The ancient civilization is known for its prowess in mathematics and astronomy.

1 of 7PHOTOS

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Ancient Mayan societies, known for their advanced mathematics and astronomy, followed a "long count" calendar that lasted 5,126 years. When their charts are translated to the Gregorian calendar, the international standard used today, time runs out on Dec. 21, 2012.

Believers say there are other links besides just the Mayan calendar that portend catastrophe. The sun will be aligned with the center of the Milky Way for the first time in about 26,000 years on the same day, which marks the winter solstice. Some say that will disrupt the energy flow to Earth, or that the high rate of sunspots or sun flares that NASA has predicted for 2012 could affect Earth magnetic fields.

Scientists have tried to squash the doomsday scenario as another empty prophesy, but it’s clear there are thousands who consider the possibility of a worldwide catastrophe occurring on that date very real.

"You have to understand, there will be nothing, nothing left," Patrick Geryl told ABC News. "We will have to start an entire civilization from scratch." Geryl, a 53-year-old former laboratory worker who lives in Belgium, quit his job two years ago after he saved up enough money to last him until December 2012. He’s now stocking survival supplies, a list of which runs 11 pages long.

Geryl is certainly not the only one. Searching for "2012 the end of the world" on Google brings up nearly 700,000 hits. More than 6,500 video posts about the day have been posted on YouTube. There are also countless books on the topic, many published in the wake of the success of Daniel Pinchbeck's "2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl," which has been selling thousands of copies each month since it was released last May.

Doomsday Cults

2008AP

2008: Dozens of members of a Russian doomsday cult left a remote underground dugout near the village of Nikolskoe, Russia, in March, after spending about six months holed up there. Others stayed behind, waiting for the world to end in May.

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But what do believers think will happen on Dec. 21, 2012? Some say a polar reversal, where the north pole becomes the south, where the sun rises in the west, triggering natural disasters around the world. Others say the date marks a worldwide spiritual awakening.

Experts laugh off these notions. "These prophecies of doom really don't have any basis in what we know about the Maya," said Stephen Houston, an anthropology professor at Brown University and an expert in Maya hieroglyphic writing. "The Maya descriptions barely talk about this event." He said the Mayans saw their calendar coming to an end on the date, but then starting over without any catastrophes.

"Really, it's a conversion of people’s anxieties about our times, and finding some remote mythological precedent or prediction of it," he said. "People like to believe that ancient wisdom is somehow predicting this time of upheaval."

2008 AOL LLC. All Rights Reserved.
2008-07-06 15:24:42
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8158 comments

believerforreal 10:33:48 AM Mar 02 2009

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This stuff is so real I can hardly believe it. Actually its not real. Who said that? Charlie Frost knows all. He works for Sony. Nostradamus is dead, but the folks over at GeddonGear.com figured out how to put him in a bottle. Fred Figgelhorn is rediculous. Its time to start operationalizing on our value proposition while doing deep dives into our collective synergies. Energize your efficiences people! The end time is nigh!

anacondamt22 01:43:01 AM Feb 17 2009

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hmmmmmm..... Not saying I am believer because I am not sure what to believe, but this is to all the non believers.... isnt that in the same sense, the same thing the people said to Noah when he was building his ark? Makes you think huh?

kennykuhns 11:50:23 PM Nov 27 2008

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Party time!

kennykuhns 11:48:44 PM Nov 27 2008

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I am going to get into my Lincoln Towncar and burn all of the gas I can. If everything will be lost anyway, I might as well party like it's 1999.

collody317 08:04:20 PM Nov 16 2008

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i dont know wat to think..

whatshername6263 06:28:06 PM Sep 26 2008

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news arrives that time hath pastyet still we stand in wake,fools are blind that do not askso they feel treacherous quakes,try and hide from fire in skywhile flames grow thick and tall, deviser of lies smite of lifeis here to consume us all.

kcaron10127 05:25:07 AM Jul 29 2008

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This country is bursting at the seams with superstitious fruitcakes.

jbeardslee 12:07:37 PM Jul 26 2008

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The Bible says that no man knows the day or the hour, but it also says that when you see all these things begin to happen, know that it is at the door....want to know the truth? Read the Bible..........

zippertheslipper 02:20:31 PM Jul 23 2008

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After reading this, I am feeling scared like a little girl. Time for me to go hide in my bunker and drink a few brewski's and look at smut till this blows over.

acespadesseven 12:28:44 PM Jul 23 2008

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i agree with ptfuga and gtwister111

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