Ok, so we just felt a minor earthquake here in Toronto. Buildings shook a bit, and people got a little nervous. Which is fair. We had a similar earthquake last year, which was a bit stronger, but again just a minor earthquake...more of a tremor really. When these earthquakes happen in Toronto (and I suspect anywhere that earthquakes aren't common) people start in with the whole 2012 nonsense. To which I love to point out that nobody listens to any Mexicans predictions on the future but for some reason a lot of people get wrapped up in the predictions of a long dead society.
Now, I just got back from Mexico and checked out a bunch of the Mayan ruins with my wife and our friends. The buildings were nice, and the bas reliefs were cool. But, while we were there I couldn't help thinking that if the Mayans were able to predict the future, why didn't they see their own demise coming? I mean, I think a couple of people in central America speak Mayan still, but no one would claim they are a thriving culture anymore. But once someone (I have no idea who by the way) starts talking about how the Mayans predicted in 2012 that the world would end, a bunch of people totally bought into it.
Earthquakes happen. They happen all over the world. Ditto for tornadoes, volcanoes and mudslides. They are not more common then they ever were (although there is evidence to suggest that tornadoes might be, which could be associated with climate change, but since that is a hoax, it must be a Mayan apocalypse) but with the increasing amount of connectivity amoung people now we are more aware of them. Don't believe, check out your Facebook feed today - the Eastern Seaboard is alight with #earthquakes.
Just a little food for thought.
2 comments:
Always enjoy reading your posts and agree that (a) 2012 apocalypse theories are nonsense, (b) we should listen more closely to Mexicans (was that part of the point?), and (c) the frequency of geologic events is independent of the frequency with which we hear about them! However, your comments on modern Maya strike me as more drunk than articulate. Millions of people speak Mayan languages (there's more than one of 'em… I think a dozen or two in Guatemala alone) in Southern Mexico and Central America. While I won't claim that the Maya people have special predictive powers, I will claim that they are a thriving culture indeed.
b - that was most definitely part of the point, and c - i'm not surprised. I know there are some speakers of Maya, BUT, this blog is only updated when I am drunk so you are very likely to find some factual errors...and I am more than happy to have them pointed out.
Post a Comment