The date was March 10, 1982.  Volcanoes erupted, severe earthquakes shook the ground on every continent, and the oceans pulsated with multiple tsunamis.  The earth was engulfed in the dramatic scene of catastrophic events as the syzygy of the solar system took place in the heavens.  All nine planets (as we then understood them) were on the same side of the sun, and the resulting “Jupiter effect” caused the sun’s gravitation to be amplified, resulting in the earth’s crust being strained beyond its capacity, and California slid into the Pacific Ocean.  What?  You don’t remember?

           How about this: December 31, 1999—I know you remember that one.  That was the day we waited with breathless anticipation for the stroke of midnight, when the “Y2K bug” was to strike all the world’s computer systems and bring our global economy to a screeching halt.  Our nest eggs evaporated, tax records were lost by the IRS, and … you don’t remember that stuff happening either?

           I guess you see the point by now, and you know what I think about the global warming issue.  Every so often, a subgroup within our society decides to go into an uncontrolled frenzy over some pseudo-scientific prediction which ultimately amounts to nothing.  Certainly, there are some differences with the current debate over global warming—for example: the scientists are of somewhat greater reputation, and there are more of them.  Also, there is no specific date given for any aspect of the result of the heating of the planet, so the open-endedness of the time-line serves to stretch out the alarm for as long as is deemed necessary.

Science falsely so called

           Evidence that the sky is falling makes headlines on a daily basis.  Proof that the earth is actually warming up is abundant, however, the idea that it is our doing is only supported by narrow conjecture, and is thankfully under debate by the best of minds on both sides of the issue.  But personally, I find it grievous when genuine experimentation and scientific method is supplanted by assumption and speculation.  This time, the fringe has gone mainstream.

           Speaking of bad science, allow me to digress for a moment to mention the topics of evolution and the Jesus Tomb.  The thing that Cameron’s “discovery” has in common with Darwin’s theory is simple: it wouldn’t be the first time that someone drug out a bag of old bones and then proceeded to state with authority what color its toenails were and what it had for lunch on the day before it died.

Getting the word out

           Ignoring the fact that there is no more inconvenient truth for mankind than the Gospel message of repentance (yes, I know this is a political essay, but I just couldn’t resist), a cadre of musicians and celebrities decided to travel around and hold concerts dedicated to their message of environmental repentance, which centers on having the American public become educated about what we can all do to lessen our impact on nature.  I wonder what kind of carbon footprint was left behind by all the power used by the lights and sound amplifiers, the bus and jet fuel for the means of travel, etc., etc.

           Of course, the justification for this effort was stated to be the bringing of attention to the situation.  But who is there who doesn’t know about this declared threat to the environment?  OK, so let’s assume that there is someone who’s been living under a rock in the mud and doesn’t know anything about the global warming controversy.  Is this person going to come out to a rock and roll concert so he can find out?  Do any rock stars really want this kind of person at their show anyway?  And how is he going to change his ways to accommodate the need?  Have the musicians written some snappy little tune with lyrics that will teach us how we can change our lives and save the planet?  Does it have a catchy hook?  Can we sing along?

           The only thing that’s really rising is our capacity for being ridiculous.  Usually our knee-jerk reaction only serves to make things worse, and we fail to see our lemming-like proclivity for going off the deep end.  History has much to teach us on this point, if we will only pay attention.

Dates I didn’t mention at the beginning

           Look out for this one: December 21, 2012.  This for many people is significantly more than a mere winter solstice; it is the beginning of the thirteenth baktun of the ancient Mayan calendar.  According to Mayan legend, the gods recreate the earth at the beginning of every thirteenth large-scale cycle of days, or baktun; so there are some who feel that what the Mayans saw as an act of gods was actually some cycle of nature, and that we can expect some sort of major event on that date.  A few have gone so far as to say it will be the end of the world as we know it.  Good luck.