# The end of the world is 5/21/2011! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 11, 2010, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819 "2010-10-11T20:15:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![PamR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4491bb/32.png) [@PamR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PamR)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/61 "2011-01-03T20:43:04Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > _No, it doesn’t._ > > Please enlighten me as to why it doesn’t. > This is nonsense. [Here is a map of the galaxy. As you can see, our sun is nowhere near the middle.](http://cass.ucsd.edu/public/tutorial/images/mw.jpg) You might say it’s a small unregarded yellow sun far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy. I did not mention that as a fact - I mentioned that as a Mayan belief. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/62 "2011-01-03T20:53:44Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > And it’s mostly harmless. I hope **PamR** knows where her towel is. > [@PamR](#): > > I did not mention that as a fact - I mentioned that as a Mayan belief. That’s not what the Mayans believed. I see we didn’t really discuss the Mayans in this thread (because it’s been covered and dismissed so many freaking times already), but for the record, **PamR** , the Mayans does not predict the end of the world. It is the end of a cycle in their calendar. I’m guessing you have a calendar at your desk. Probably it’s a new one. When you have a minute, flip through the pages. Yes, I know, the kittens are cute and it ruins the effect if you rush through all of them. OK, now what comes after December 2011? Nothing? OH MY GOD, YOUR CALENDAR IS PREDICTING THAT THE WORLD WILL END ON DECEMBER 31, 2011! Oh wait, maybe your calendar is the kind that gives three extra months. What comes after March 2012? Nothing??? OH MY GOD, YOUR CALENDAR IS PREDICTING THAT THE WORLD WILL END ON MARCH 31, 2012! No, wait a minute. You have an extra-long calendar that lasts for the rest of the decade. OH MY GOD, YOUR CALENDAR SAYS THE WORLD WILL END ON DECEMBER 31, 2019! This is what’s going on with the Mayans. It has nothing to do with the rebirth or the galaxy or whatever. It’s the end of a cycle and the start of another one. The rest is just spooky nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![PamR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4491bb/32.png) [@PamR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PamR)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/63 "2011-01-03T21:19:57Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > This is what’s going on with the Mayans. It has nothing to do with the rebirth or the galaxy or whatever. It’s the end of a cycle and the start of another one. The rest is just spooky nonsense. As I said in my post - the end of a cycle is not the same as the end of time. I never said that it was the end of time, nor did I say that it meant the end of the earth. I also said in my post, that anyone who wants to believe something badly enough can come up with a mathematical equation to show how it is so. I don’t need a towel. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/64 "2011-01-03T21:46:35Z")
> [@PamR](#): > > I never said that it was the end of time, nor did I say that it meant the end of the earth. You said it was the end of their calendar, which is wasn’t, you suggested they believed it might be the end of the world as we know it, which they didn’t, and you said something about the sun being at the center of the galaxy, which doesn’t even begin to make sense. > [@](#): > > I also said in my post, that anyone who wants to believe something badly enough can come up with a mathematical equation to show how it is so. True. > [@](#): > > I don’t need a towel. You will when the Vogons show up. ---
**Author:** ![PamR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4491bb/32.png) [@PamR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PamR)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/65 "2011-01-03T22:01:52Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > You said it was the end of their calendar, which is wasn’t, you suggested they believed it might be the end of the world as we know it, which they didn’t, and you said something about the sun being at the center of the galaxy, which doesn’t even begin to make sense. > True. > You will when the Vogons show up. I give up - you need to learn how to read. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/66 "2011-01-03T22:50:26Z")
> [@PamR](#): > > I give up - you need to learn how to read. Use short words, then: how can the sun be at the center of the galaxy? ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/67 "2011-01-04T14:38:25Z")
> [@PamR](#): > > I don’t need a towel. We all need a towel. Especially if the Earth is about to be destroyed. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/68 "2011-01-04T16:02:55Z")
Clearly, **Scuba\_Ben** is the kind of hoopy frood who knows how to hang on to a towel. ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/69 "2011-01-04T17:07:41Z")
I wish I was, **Tranquilis**. I know the importance of hanging on to a towel – but I walked out the door this morning without mine. OTOH, back in 2001 I was the only person attending a Douglas Adams tribute party who DID bring their own towel. ---
**Author:** ![scissorhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f4b2a3/32.png) [@scissorhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scissorhead)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/70 "2011-04-25T12:46:22Z")
What happens to Camping on the morning of May 22? Does he roll it in and retire from religious broadcasting to spend his “Final Days” w/ his family, or does he regroup and double down? Your predictions please. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/71 "2011-04-25T14:51:16Z")
I am torn between a Heaven’s Gate-style mass suicide or an “Oops, my calculations did not take \ into account, the real date is XX/XX/sometime a few years off so I can make more money off gulible people reusing the same scam!”-type response. ---
**Author:** ![Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/regallag_the_axe/32/445_2.png) [@Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Regallag_The_Axe)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/72 "2011-04-25T15:12:47Z")
I hope the rapture comes soon. It would be great to have a few weeks of just us godless heretics, not getting hassled by the god fearing lunatics. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/73 "2011-04-25T15:23:32Z")
> [@Regallag\_The\_Axe](#): > > I hope the rapture comes soon. It would be great to have a few weeks of just us godless heretics, not getting hassled by the god fearing lunatics. Is there a religion or a cult out there that believes that the rapture has already occurred? If so, I’d like to sign up for their newsletter. ---
**Author:** ![dhkendall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9adbd/32.png) [@dhkendall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dhkendall)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/74 "2011-04-25T17:54:37Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > Is there a religion or a cult out there that believes that the rapture has already occurred? If so, I’d like to sign up for their newsletter. Yes, anyone who subscribes to [preterism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preterism) (which seems to be a fairly mainstream belief, not relegated to the “kooks”. > [@Death\_of\_Rats](#): > > I am torn between a Heaven’s Gate-style mass suicide or an “Oops, my calculations did not take \ into account, the real date is XX/XX/sometime a few years off so I can make more money off gulible people reusing the same scam!”-type response. I definitely say “B” will happen, that’s the predominant thing that happens to those that get the date wrong, “A” is relatively rare, and his followers, and Camping himself, don’t seem to be that much off the deep-end to go all Jim Jones. ---
**Author:** ![Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/regallag_the_axe/32/445_2.png) [@Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Regallag_The_Axe)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/75 "2011-04-25T19:05:01Z")
> [@dhkendall](#): > > Yes, anyone who subscribes to [preterism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preterism) (which seems to be a fairly mainstream belief, not relegated to the “kooks”. Only if they also believe in the rapture, which (IIRC) isn’t actually in the bible. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/76 "2011-04-25T19:24:09Z")
I’ve had to make frequent trips to the Oakland airport recently, and the kooks have a billboard there. You can see it in picture 3 of [this article.](http://www.insidebayarea.com/bay-area-news/ci_17910516) You can also see the billboard American Atheists put up about it. They are having a rapture party May 21 to celebrate. I assume that on May 22 we’ll discover that another miscalculation was made. I’d love to know if they paid for the billboard past May 21. ---
**Author:** ![QuercusMax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/8baadc/32.png) [@QuercusMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuercusMax)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/77 "2011-04-25T21:21:48Z")
> [@Regallag\_The\_Axe](#): > > Only if they also believe in the rapture, which (IIRC) isn’t actually in the bible. Seems like you need to brush up on your Scripture, then: 1 Thessalonians 4:15-20: According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words. ---
**Author:** ![dhkendall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9adbd/32.png) [@dhkendall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dhkendall)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/78 "2011-04-25T23:40:58Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I’d love to know if they paid for the billboard past May 21. It could very well be, people usually don’t pay for billboards by the day, but (I think, never rented one, nor worked in the billboard industry) by the month. I’m sure a lot of us have seen election billboards up after the election. (ETA: Ah, first page of your article link says the atheists “paid for five weeks”. Gives an idea of probably what Camping’s followers were charged for.) ---
**Author:** ![dhkendall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9adbd/32.png) [@dhkendall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dhkendall)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/79 "2011-04-25T23:57:33Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![Fraurnespange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/77aa72/32.png) [@Fraurnespange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fraurnespange)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2011, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-end-of-the-world-is-5-21-2011/556819/80 "2011-04-26T22:35:12Z")
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