I'm Dreaming Of A White Apocalypse!

Seeing as how it's supposed to snow today here in my area, giving us the first real measurable snowfall of the season, I thought I'd commemorate it with a cartoon. Especially seeing as how that's pretty much all that's going to happen. I really find it hard to believe that in this day and age of intellectual enlightenment that so many people believe that the world will end today! I especially find it hard to believe that so many people put so much credence into a calendar left behind by a "lost civilization" that apparently couldn't even predict their own end.

Yes, it is the winter solstice. Yes, the Mayan long count calendar ended on today. Should that be so surprising, the winter solstice as well as other seasonal changes come at regular times, just like clockwork! If you're going to end a calendar, of course you're going to end it on a major changing point during the year, not just pick a random Wednesday and say, "oh, this looks like a good a place as any to stop"!

The Mayans were surprisingly sophisticated when it came to understanding the seasons and the movement of the stars, but that doesn't give them any kind of special pre-cognition that would allow them to forsee the fate of the world. The sad thing is that come December 22nd, all the doomsayers are going to start back-pedaling and tell us about how the end of the world is just around the corner, that they never meant that it would end all at once with a bang. That things that have been happening will continue to happen as signs of the apocalypse that is still evolving! There always have been and always will be people who just have to see the glass as half-empty and want the rest of the world to join them in their pity party!

What Are You Counting Down To?

So, what are YOU counting down to this December? Mostly we count down to Christmas, but this year I have a feeling there are a lot of people counting down to December 21st. That magic day that according to many will the be the Apocalypse, or at the very least, the beginning of it. Which Apocalypse you ask? I'm not sure, there are so many after all. 

Some say it will be the end of the universe, because the Mayan long-count calendar ends on that day, and we all know the Mayan's knew everything and could predict calamities thousands of years in advance! Other's claim it will be the day of Rapture, and GOD will sweep up all the deserving souls to reside in Heaven leaving those not taken to suffer through seven years of tribulations. Still others are banking on the Zombie Apocalypse, stocking up on food and ammunition. As for me, I don't think anything is going to happen on December 21st this year that doesn't regularly happen every year. There may or may not be snow in the cooler climates, and a lot of people are going to be fretting about last minute Christmas gift purchases. 

The one thing I wonder mostly is, what magical dates in the future all those alarmists are going to pick come December 22nd for the imminent arrival of the Apocalypse? You know it's going to happen. As soon as we've safely bypassed the 21st, Everyone out there that's been ballyhooing about how the "end of the world" is nigh will all be picking some new future date to hang their banner on. After all, after you've stockpiled a couple years worth of food and enough weapons and ammunitions to arm a small country, you've got to have something to look forward to!

Google Doodle = Racism?

Looking at the Google Doodle on August 7, 2012, commemorating the track and field event of the hurdles, I began to wonder if I was seeing some hidden racism in it's image. Look at the screen capture above and tell me if the runner that you're looking at who is depicted as African-American is standing on a track that appears to be a little reminiscent of a slice of watermelon? Is it just me, or is there really some hidden racism going on in this image? Then of course there's the obvious tie that blacks are often considered faster runners than non-blacks. I'm not sure if the person who created this doodle actually meant to inject some racism into this image, or if their choice of color palette was just unfortunate.