2012 THE END IS NIGH

The end of the world is nearly upon us, but there's a silver lining: At least you know when your 401(k) will finally hit bottom. Mark Dec. 21, 2012 on your calendar. That's the exact day that lots of normally sane people believe some disaster will befall our planet - and not the kind of annoying everyday disaster like your cable going out or Ethan Hawke writing another novel. We're talking Biblical proportions - the end of life on Earth as we know it.

We're guessing this means the Second Avenue subway won't actually get finished.

If you're looking for someone to blame (and rightfully so), search no further than the Mayans. Examination of their calendar is responsible for much of the apocalyptic hand-wringing.

The ancient Mesoamericans were highly advanced in the areas of mathematics and astronomy, and they accurately tracked the movement of the sun and the planets. They used multiple calendars, but it's the one called the "long count" that has soothsayers so agitated. The long count calendar measures 5,126 years, then resets, marking the end of one age and the dawn of another. The current age is scheduled to end on - a cookie for anyone who can guess - Dec. 21, 2012. This day also happens to be the winter solstice and a time when the sun will be aligned with the center of the Milky Way for the first time in about 25,800 years.

Could the Mayans have known something huge was going to happen, simply by examining the stars? Lots of people think so. The doom and gloom is so mainstream, there's even "The Complete Idiot's Guide to 2012."

One such believer is Patrick Geryl, a 53-year-old Belgian, who in 2006 quit his job with an oil company and began preparing for the coming apocalypse. He's written three books on the topic, including "How to Survive 2012" and "The World Cataclysm in 2012."

He may not be the cheeriest fellow, but Geryl is committed. In Belgium, he's formed a survival group of about 20 people who plan on buying land in Africa to start building the foundation for a new society. That will be after the Earth's magnetic poles suddenly shift, causing a new Ice Age.

"The best thing you can do is stop working and go on vacation," he says. "I go on vacation six times a year."

Hollywood is on the bandwagon as well. To capitalize on the hysteria, Columbia Pictures will release "2012" this fall, a thriller starring John Cusack as a researcher trying to survive various global catastrophes. It's directed by Roland Emmerich, a man who, after reading the reviews for his wretched last film "10,000 BC," knows a thing or two about destruction.
2012 THE END IS NIGH
2012 THE END IS NIGH
2012 THE END IS NIGH
2012 THE END IS NIGH
by new york post