Who Will Survive 2012?

Everyone’s talking about 2012 – whether they’re hating or raving, this movie’s got a lot of buzz.

And now that I’ve seen it, I can’t stop thinking about it.

I remember vividly the anticipation of reaching the year 2000 and now the world is believed to end on 2012. Heavy stuff.

Before I dive into this subject, I’ll give you a basic introduction:

Basic Synopsis:

Directed by Roland Emmerich and starring John Cusack as a published author trying to save his family, Danny Glover as the US President and Woody Harrelson as a crazy radio talk show host, 2012 is the end of the world as we know it, a date marked in history significant across so many cultures, religions, scientists and governments. An epic story of the survivors and their struggle to stay alive and save/say goodbye to loved ones.

2012 Phenomenon:

“The 2012 phenomenon comprises a range of eschatological beliefs and proposals, which posit that cataclysmic or transformative events will occur on or around December 21 in the year 2012,^[1][2] which is said to be the end-date of a 5,125-year-long Mayan Long Count calendar. These beliefs may derive in part from archaeoastronomical speculation,^[3] alternative interpretations of mythology,^[4] numerological constructions, or alleged prophecies from extraterrestrial beings.” – Wikipedia

Review of 2012: A 2 1/2 hour movie with overly dramatic and sitting-at-the-edge-of-your-seat action scenes where the main characters continue to narrowly escape death countless times. Mediocre acting, but the movie itself is a great concept and overall great special effects and ‘epic storyline.’

Best Part:

• Powerful message and epic storyline
• Great special effects makes for a trip to the movie theater worth it (MegaBox at Sanlitun is half-price on Tuesdays! Only RMB 40 per ticket)
• Pretty up-to-date references with fake Arnold as Californian governor, Queen of England, but Danny Glover as Obama?  I don’t know about that.
• Exaggerated action scenes keep you clenched with anticipation and at the edge of your seat

Comments:

• I wish the main character was someone other than John Cusack – not a fan
• Acting overall was pretty mediocre (the actress who plays the daughter of president is painfully bad)
• English with Chinese subtitles (which is bad if you can’t read Chinese b/c there are quite a few times when people are speaking in French, Russian or other languages and there are no English subtitles available)

Food For Thought:

To even begin to consider the possibility of the end of the world seems unfathomable.

The chances of a global cataclysm bringing the end of the world seems much more far-fetched than say, a nuclear war where we self-destruct and destroy ourselves.

But hypothetically speaking, the end of the world is approaching in two years. What do you do? What can you do? How would you prepare yourself? Do you try to buy a billion Euro ticket to be one of the selected elite population rescued from global destruction? Do you even try to survive? Or do you just accept doomsday?

I know I for one would not be a selected survivor out of the entire world population and I am not sure if I would even try to survive.  I think I would find comfort in knowing that I was not alone and I would accept that this was out of my hands. Bad things happen all the time. Freak accidents happen all the time. And when they do, it is unusual, unlucky, unexpected, leaving you in a state of shock, fear and devastation.

But in the unlikely scenario that the world will come to an end, I would at least find comfort in knowing.  I would know it was the end and I would be able to say goodbye. But more than that, I find comfort in knowing I am not alone. I’ve always believed that no matter the situation, people is better than no people. True happiness is greatest when shared, grief is soothed by the comfort of another.  Whether that shared consolation is found in God or in your best friend, it is human nature to find solace and peace in knowing you are not alone.

Quote of the Day: “Life is so much better when you’re not walking it alone”

I think ultimately your answers to the questions I’ve raised will reflect your personal beliefs and your faith.

I am curious to know the correlation and see the consistencies/contrasts between someone’s religion/faith/beliefs and their actions, thoughts, and means of dealing with imminent global obliteration.

If you knew, what would you do?