2012 – The End of The World!

You know, I can predict the future. Every morning, I predict the day will end with dusk and dark. And, using my best Nostradamus skills, I predict a lot of New Age craziness on my favorite social networks this year. It will dwarf all talking of Michael Jackson’s death, Obama’s election, and Paris Hilton‘s underwear: the 21-12-12 frenzy.  The Mayan calendar,  you know, it maxes out end of this new year, when a huge astronomic line-up is due, and the Black Hole planet Nibiru will doom us all into the next solar maximum.  We’re doomed. We’re going to die.
Before you start maxing out your credit cards to go with a bang, hold your horses. First of all: Yes, the Long Count Calendar reaches the end of its round…. Only, it is not Mayan…  it’s Olmec.  Nowhere in Olmec or Mayan history is the end of the world mentioned. … but the end of an era.  After our calendar year 2011 was “up” and “over”, luckily we could start a new count in 2012. When the figures on the mileage counter of your car reach 99999 miles, it starts over again. So does the Olmec Long Count.  The ancient Mayas even thought it was the reason for a huge celebration…
There are even multiple references in as well Olmec as Mayan inscriptions referring to dates way beyond the turning of the long wheel (well, ellipse is more correct ;-)). B’ak’tun 13  is not the end of time.  In fact, there are inscriptions leaping forward to October 21st 4772 AD.  We should be fine. For the moment. I think.
The cosmic line-up is another doomsday reference….  It’s been said that on 21.12.12 the Sun will lign up precisely with the Galactic Equator on the 2012 winter solstice, the precision and slight wobbling of the earth all thrown in a mix that predicts overheating of the earth’s electromagnetic capacities, prompt polar reverses and mayor catastrophes.  Too bad that neither the Olmec nor the Mayas refer anywhere to the Milky Way. No inscriptions, no tailored calendar.  Most unfortunately, even today, no one knows even remotely where the exact equator of the Galaxy is… the Galaxy still mostly being very much uncharted and unknown… what we do know is that the accepted equator did indeed  align most precisely  with the exact center of the Sun, only….. this occurred  already  on October 27, 1998.
So… I’m going out widely on one limp here: we will be fine! The world will not end, just yet. Trust me, I’m a consultant. If you DO fear 21.12.12… Porter Novelli, the company I work for, offers great crisis communications advice. Now is the time to get your end-of-life-as-we-know-it-messaging right. Contact me for end-of-time prices.  It might be your last chance to spend your budget wisely ;-).