http://www.mfi-miami.com/2012/12/2-michigan-counties-close-schools-because-of-mayan-doomsday-prophesies/
Global poll: 10 percent fear world's end Friday as Mayan calendar ends
By BILL SHERMAN World Religion Writer
Published: 12/19/2012 2:17 AM
Last Modified: 12/19/2012 7:21 AM
You may want to mark Friday on your calendar. That's the day of the winter solstice, and also the end of the 5,125-year Mayan "long count" calendar.
It's also the day that 10 percent of humanity fears the world will end.
Doomsday fears have reached people around the world this year, fueled by Internet reports of ancient Mayan prophecies, the movie "2012" and books such as "The Mayan Testament."
Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported some unrest and panic buying as the date approaches. New-Agers are heading to certain small towns in Europe and Asia hoping to find portals to a new world.
Tourists are flocking to southern Mexico and Central America, where the ancient Mayan civilization flourished and where huge celebrations are planned to mark the end of Mayan calendar.
An End of the World party will be held Friday night at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa - if the world is still here.
Paul Vickery, professor of history at Oral Roberts University, said there is no evidence the Mayans themselves linked the end of their calendar to the end of the world.
"It's fabricated," he said. "It's an excuse for a party, really."
All the hype has even moved NASA to debunk the doomsday stories in a 10-point Q&A on its website. NASA's position is unequivocal: "The world will not end in 2012."
The website said the story began with an Internet hoax claiming that Nibiru, a supposed planet, would hit the Earth in May 2003. When that failed to happen, the doomsday date was linked to the end of the Mayan calendar, Dec. 21, 2012.
Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20121219_18_A1_Youmay475922&allcom=1
Global poll: 10 percent fear world's end Friday as Mayan calendar ends
By BILL SHERMAN World Religion Writer
Published: 12/19/2012 2:17 AM
Last Modified: 12/19/2012 7:21 AM
You may want to mark Friday on your calendar. That's the day of the winter solstice, and also the end of the 5,125-year Mayan "long count" calendar.
It's also the day that 10 percent of humanity fears the world will end.
Doomsday fears have reached people around the world this year, fueled by Internet reports of ancient Mayan prophecies, the movie "2012" and books such as "The Mayan Testament."
Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported some unrest and panic buying as the date approaches. New-Agers are heading to certain small towns in Europe and Asia hoping to find portals to a new world.
Tourists are flocking to southern Mexico and Central America, where the ancient Mayan civilization flourished and where huge celebrations are planned to mark the end of Mayan calendar.
An End of the World party will be held Friday night at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa - if the world is still here.
Paul Vickery, professor of history at Oral Roberts University, said there is no evidence the Mayans themselves linked the end of their calendar to the end of the world.
"It's fabricated," he said. "It's an excuse for a party, really."
All the hype has even moved NASA to debunk the doomsday stories in a 10-point Q&A on its website. NASA's position is unequivocal: "The world will not end in 2012."
The website said the story began with an Internet hoax claiming that Nibiru, a supposed planet, would hit the Earth in May 2003. When that failed to happen, the doomsday date was linked to the end of the Mayan calendar, Dec. 21, 2012.
It will not mean the end of the world but a shift in paradigm, the way humanity views life, he said.
The new era that begins Friday will be simpler, more harmonious. It may take 20 or 30 years to become evident, he said.
"The consciousness of people will change. ... They will open their hearts to love, life, truth."
Faulty Bible interpretation has contributed to a doomsday mentality in recent years.
Former Family Radio President Harold Camping predicted the biblical apocalypse would occur on May 11, 2011, and when it didn't, he recalculated to Oct. 21, 2011. He made similar predictions in 1994.
Camping is in a long line of people throughout history who have incorrectly predicted the end of the world.
Mark Hitchcock, pastor of Faith Bible Church in Edmond and author of best-selling book "2012, The Bible and the End of the World," says he's been inundated with end-of-the-world questions, especially from young people, who are vulnerable to suggestions of a coming apocalypse.
"I tell people there's nothing to the Mayan calendar hype," he said. "I can say that with confidence. Only God knows the future."
2 Michigan Counties Close Schools Because Of Mayan Doomsday Prophesies
December 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Steve Dibert, MFI-Miami
Two Counties in Mid-Michigan have closed their schools for Winter break two days early because of Mayan Doomsday prophesies. The Flint Police Department posted this message on their Facebook page:
SCHOOLS CLOSED – Viewers, schools in the Genesee County Intermediate School District have unanimously agreed to close schools for the remainder of the week due to “Doomsday” rumors for Friday. All Genesee County Schools are closed. This includes most evening activities for all schools also. A complete list can be found atwww.abc12.com or scrolling at the bottom of their screen
Other schools in Genesee County soon followed along with neighboring Lapeer County who issued this statement:
Given the recent events in Connecticut, there have been numerous rumors circulating in our district, and in neighboring districts, about potential threats of violence against students. Additionally, rumors connected to the Mayan calendar predicted end of the world on Friday have also surfaced. These rumors of violence have been thoroughly investigated and determined to be false. There have been no credible threats made against any of our students. However, these rumors have been a serious distraction for students, teachers, administrators, and parents. Therefore, given the significant disruption to the teaching and learning process, I have decided, along with my fellow superintendents of Lapeer County, to cancel school for both Thursday, December 20th, and Friday, December 21st. This includes all after school extracurricular events, programs and athletic contests and practices. Although we in the county are reluctant to cancel school because the rumors are unsubstantiated, we feel it is the most appropriate decision given the gravity of recent events and our present circumstances.On behalf of the Board of Education, teachers, administrators, and support personnel, I wish each of you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. We look forward to working with your children when school resumes on Monday, January 7th. Have a wonderful and enjoyable break!!
Matt Wandrie
Superintendent
Lapeer Community Schools
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/12/dec-21-2012-fearful-end-of-world-callers-flood-nasa-phonelines-.html
Dec. 21, 2012: Fearful 'end of world' callers flood NASA
If there's one government agency really looking forward to Dec. 22, it's NASA.
The space agency said it has been flooded with calls and emails from people asking about the purported end of the world — which, as the doomsday myth goes, is apparently set to take place on Dec. 21, 2012.
The myth might have originated with the Mayan calendar, but in the age of the Internet and social media, it proliferated online, raising questions and concerns among hundreds of people around the world who have turned to NASA for answers.
Dwayne Brown, an agency spokesman, said NASA typically receives about 90 calls or emails per week containing questions from people. In recent weeks, he said, that number has skyrocketed — from 200 to 300 people are contacting NASA per day to ask about the end of the world.
"Who's the first agency you would call?" he said. "You're going to call NASA."
The questions range from myth (Will a rogue planet crash into Earth? Is the sun going to explode? Will there be three days of darkness?) to the macabre (Brown said some people have "embraced it so much" they want to hurt themselves). So, he said, NASA decided to do "everything in our power" to set the facts straight.
That effort included interviews with scientists posted online and a web page Brown said has drawn more than 4.6 million views.
It also involved a video titled, "Why the World Didn't End Yesterday." Though the title of the video implies a Dec. 22 release date, Brown said NASA posted the four-minute clip last week to help spread its message.
NASA suspected it might have to create such a campaign a few years ago, when the idea of the world ending began "festering," Brown said. The apocalyptic action movie "2012," released in 2009, didn't help, he said.
"We kind of look ahead — we're a look-ahead agency — and we said, 'You know what? People are going to probably want to come to us' " for answers, Brown explained. "We're doing all that we can do to let the world know that as far as NASA and science goes, Dec. 21 will be another day."
NASA has handled high-profile events before, Brown said, including the Venus transit this year, but nothing the agency has had to "debunk" has been this big.
"It's been a very, very busy week," he said.
As for Saturday, when the questions — not the world — end: "I wish it was tomorrow."
and......
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1303216--93-people-arrested-for-spreading-mayan-calendar-doomsday-fears
93 people arrested for spreading Mayan calendar doomsday fears
Published on Monday December 17, 2012
10 Comments
Chinese authorities detained 93 people, including 37 affiliated with the “Almighty God” cult, for spreading rumors of impending apocalypse, the Xinhua News Agency reported today.
Members of the cult have latched onto the “Mayan doomsday scenario” and warn that the sun won’t shine and electricity won’t work for three days starting Dec. 21, Xinhua reported.
and......
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20121219_18_A1_Youmay475922&allcom=1
By BILL SHERMAN World Religion Writer
Published: 12/19/2012 2:17 AM
Last Modified: 12/19/2012 7:21 AM
You may want to mark Friday on your calendar. That's the day of the winter solstice, and also the end of the 5,125-year Mayan "long count" calendar.
It's also the day that 10 percent of humanity fears the world will end.
Doomsday fears have reached people around the world this year, fueled by Internet reports of ancient Mayan prophecies, the movie "2012" and books such as "The Mayan Testament."
Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported some unrest and panic buying as the date approaches. New-Agers are heading to certain small towns in Europe and Asia hoping to find portals to a new world.
Tourists are flocking to southern Mexico and Central America, where the ancient Mayan civilization flourished and where huge celebrations are planned to mark the end of Mayan calendar.
An End of the World party will be held Friday night at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa - if the world is still here.
Paul Vickery, professor of history at Oral Roberts University, said there is no evidence the Mayans themselves linked the end of their calendar to the end of the world.
"It's fabricated," he said. "It's an excuse for a party, really."
All the hype has even moved NASA to debunk the doomsday stories in a 10-point Q&A on its website. NASA's position is unequivocal: "The world will not end in 2012."
The website said the story began with an Internet hoax claiming that Nibiru, a supposed planet, would hit the Earth in May 2003. When that failed to happen, the doomsday date was linked to the end of the Mayan calendar, Dec. 21, 2012.
Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20121219_18_A1_Youmay475922&allcom=1
Global poll: 10 percent fear world's end Friday as Mayan calendar ends
By BILL SHERMAN World Religion Writer
Published: 12/19/2012 2:17 AM
Last Modified: 12/19/2012 7:21 AM
You may want to mark Friday on your calendar. That's the day of the winter solstice, and also the end of the 5,125-year Mayan "long count" calendar.
It's also the day that 10 percent of humanity fears the world will end.
Doomsday fears have reached people around the world this year, fueled by Internet reports of ancient Mayan prophecies, the movie "2012" and books such as "The Mayan Testament."
Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported some unrest and panic buying as the date approaches. New-Agers are heading to certain small towns in Europe and Asia hoping to find portals to a new world.
Tourists are flocking to southern Mexico and Central America, where the ancient Mayan civilization flourished and where huge celebrations are planned to mark the end of Mayan calendar.
An End of the World party will be held Friday night at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa - if the world is still here.
Paul Vickery, professor of history at Oral Roberts University, said there is no evidence the Mayans themselves linked the end of their calendar to the end of the world.
"It's fabricated," he said. "It's an excuse for a party, really."
All the hype has even moved NASA to debunk the doomsday stories in a 10-point Q&A on its website. NASA's position is unequivocal: "The world will not end in 2012."
The website said the story began with an Internet hoax claiming that Nibiru, a supposed planet, would hit the Earth in May 2003. When that failed to happen, the doomsday date was linked to the end of the Mayan calendar, Dec. 21, 2012.
Academics and archeologists and even the Vatican reject the end-of-the-world scenario that is being played out in the blogosphere. Many say it is based on misinterpretation and sensationalizing of the Mayan culture.
But the doomsday idea persists. A recent poll conducted for Reuters by Ipsos Global Affairs found that 15 percent of people globally believe the world will end in their lifetime. In America and Turkey, the number is 22 percent.
And 10 percent of people worldwide reported they were experiencing fear or anxiety about it happening in December, linked to the end of the Mayan calendar.
The experts may deny the significance of the end of the Mayan calendar, yet some New Age adherents do not.
"I do think there's something to it," said Ivy Norris of Tulsa, who oversees the School of Metaphysics branches in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
"There's an astrological alignment occurring. ... There's a reason why the Mayan calendar ends. The Mayans were great timekeepers. They understood things we don't understand now. It's not that the world is going to end physically, but that the world we're used to will be different."
Norris will attend a meditation celebration marking the end of the Mayan calendar on Friday and Saturday at the College of Metaphysics, Windyville, Mo.
College director Daniel Condron said the Mayans were the greatest timekeepers the world has ever seen, with calendars vastly superior to the Western calendar.
Friday will mark the end of the last "Baktun," or era, of the Mayan calendar, he said, an era marked by the development of modern civilization with its bigness, complexity and explosiveness (as in internal combustion engines and nuclear bombs).
It will not mean the end of the world but a shift in paradigm, the way humanity views life, he said.
The new era that begins Friday will be simpler, more harmonious. It may take 20 or 30 years to become evident, he said.
"The consciousness of people will change. ... They will open their hearts to love, life, truth."
Faulty Bible interpretation has contributed to a doomsday mentality in recent years.
Former Family Radio President Harold Camping predicted the biblical apocalypse would occur on May 11, 2011, and when it didn't, he recalculated to Oct. 21, 2011. He made similar predictions in 1994.
Camping is in a long line of people throughout history who have incorrectly predicted the end of the world.
Mark Hitchcock, pastor of Faith Bible Church in Edmond and author of best-selling book "2012, The Bible and the End of the World," says he's been inundated with end-of-the-world questions, especially from young people, who are vulnerable to suggestions of a coming apocalypse.
"I tell people there's nothing to the Mayan calendar hype," he said. "I can say that with confidence. Only God knows the future."
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