WSJ – 2012 Will Be Televised
April 19, 2010
Humorist Joe Queenan has written a piece for the Wall Street Journal, mocking the 2012 meme and the History Channel:
It was a 2008 History Channel documentary about the Mayan Calendar that first drew the public’s attention to the fact that Dec. 21, 2012 will probably be the last day in human history—meaning that 2011 will be the last year any of us will need to do any Christmas shopping. Watching that program again this week, I noted, nervously, that Dec. 21, 2012 is the date arrived at independently by both the ancient Mayans and the I Ching, and that the Welsh sorcerer Merlin is also on board with the belief that human civilization will end late in 2012. The Mayans and the I Ching guys could have had their numbers wrong, but Merlin’s verdict kind of sealed it for me.
Happily, some Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse buffs believe that the magnetic disturbances erupting at both poles on that date do not mean that all civilization will disappear, but rather that we will move into a new and better phase of the great human drama. That’s why I can’t wait to see the documentaries that air on A&E, The History Channel, the Military Channel and the Discovery Channel in 2013. Things like “I Never Knew I Was Pregnant and Living Through Armageddon,” “When Extraordinarily Large Numbers of Rats Attack,” and “Secrets of the Post-Apocalyptic Hoarders.”
Given the numerous apocalyptic documentaries that have appeared on cable TV in recent times, Joe’s tongue-in-cheek titles might not seem so far-fetched two years from now. After they have covered every doomsday scenario, they’ll need to delve into more “human interest” angles.
Spaces Available in USA Shelters
April 16, 2010
If you have $40,000, and live in the USA, Robert Vicino of Vivos has a 2012 survival solution for you. It is also good for a cataclysm that might occur beyond 2012.
The $200 million project will accommodate up to 4,000 people, in as many as 20 shelters, each strategically located within 150 to 200 miles of a major metro area.”The Vivos complexes are deep-underground, airtight, fully self-contained blast proof shelters, designed to survive virtually any catastrophe or threat scenario including: natural disasters, a nuclear blast, chemical and biological weapons, or even widespread social anarchy,” Vicino said.
Vivos’ first nuclear blast shelter is located near Barstow, California, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and has already received over a thousand applications for membership from people greatly concerned about their families’ survival.
Each Vivos shelter complex provides for up to one year of autonomous shelter for 200 people, complete with all necessities, including food, fuel, water, clothing, medical supplies, and security devices in a multi-level, 20,000 square foot hardened shelter, built 30 feet below the surface of the Earth. Owners need only to arrive before the facilities are secured.
At a cost of over $10 million per facility, the company is financing the development through deeded co-ownership, wherein each owner has an undivided interest.
China to Build Survival Shelters
April 11, 2010
Shanghai “is soon to start building massive survival shelters in case of a catastrophic end-of-days type environmental disaster. And not just one – the authorities are building three of them, each capable of housing up to 10,000 people for more than a month,” says the South China Morning Post. The article refers to the 2012 movie because it just happens this shelters will be completed by 2012. The shelters will come complete with entertainment, leisure spaces, gyms and car parks.
It is hard to determine exactly what has inspired this bold move from the Chinese government. Climate change is a strong possibility, especially due its coastal location. One would expect that if the government had knowledge of a 2012 event, as was depicted in the movie, that the shelters would either have a higher capacity, or they’d be secret.
A Beer for 2012
April 6, 2010
A cross between a black beer and an ale, this German-inspired, Wisconsin brewed brew is quite probably the first to be named after the Mayan doom date.
2012 Black Ale has been available since March 1, 2010 – or 12.19.17.2.14, according to the Long Count calendar method – and is sold in six-packs of 12-ounce long-neck bottles, plus kegs if you are planning a big party.
Inspiration comes in many forms, according to Joe Martino, Stevens Point Brewery Managing Partner :
“Some doomsayers think it will bring the end of time; others say the world will experience a new beginning,” Martino said. “One thing we do know is 2012 Black Ale will intrigue ale lovers as much as the Mayan calendar intrigues archaeologists, astronomers and doomsday prophets. It’s the right beer to enjoy as we contemplate what may happen after December 21, 2012.”
Don’t Watch 2012 in North Korea!
April 1, 2010
North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-il, has said that 2012 will be the year that his country will “open the grand gates to becoming a rising superpower”. This is likely due to April 15, 2012 being the centenary of the birth of Kim Il-sung, North Korea’s founder.
North Korea’s leaders do not want their people to watch a film in which the Earth is obliterated by a series of massive natural disasters, including earthquakes, tidal waves and volcanic eruptions, wiping out most of the planet, in the year they are due to rise in international stature.
Japan’s Asahi newspaper reported that “numerous” North Koreans caught watching copies of the film smuggled over the border from China have been arrested.
Authorities are prosecuting anyone caught in possession of the film with “a grave provocation against the development of the state,” a charge that carries a possible prison term of five years, the paper reported, citing anonymous sources.
Source: The Telegraph
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