Sunday, December 18, 2011

Looking to ancient cultures for predictions

Why do so many people put their faith in ancient cultures to predict the future?
People seem to think that our distant ancestors were better at predicting future events than today’s scientifically advanced culture. It’s like they had skills that we lost over time or that they were closer to God.
It’s a load of bunk, of course. Nostradamus and his ilk perfected the art of making vague predictions that eventually could be construed as coming true.
Now some people think that the world is going to end on Dec. 21, 2012, just because that’s when the Mayan calendar runs out. The Mayans may be right, but if they are it would be pure coincidence that the world ended then.
You wouldn’t take medical advice from one of your ancestors from centuries ago, so why would you trust them on prophecies?

Art: Poster from the end-of-the-world disaster movie “2012.”

Further reading:

2012 phenomenon (Wikipedia)

Mayan Prophecy For 2012 Has Believers Preparing For Catastrophe (Huffington Post)

2012 Mayan Calendar ‘Doomsday’ Day Might Be Wrong (Seeker)

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