Earth is not ending soon, despite doomsday predictions

THE EDITOR, Madam:

While never casting aspersions on any religion, must say that the latest doomsday prediction being proved inaccurate once again makes me wonder why these end-time predictors are the least bit credible.

Albert Einstein was an agnostic believing in “cosmic religion”, and defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results. He would most probably apply that definition to what’s been going on with the South African pastor currently predicting the Rapture – the transportation of all believers to heaven – would have taken place on September 23 and 24. There have been many millions faithfully following his message on TikTok and other social media, all prepared for their religious icon Jesus Christ’s return to this little blue marble that we all call home. The pastor is the latest in a very long list of erroneous apocalyptic predictors dating back to the first millennium: including Nostradamus, a few Popes, Christopher Columbus, and more recently prominent American media evangelists Herbert W. Armstrong, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, etc, etc.

Other folks who don’t take themselves nor their religion beliefs quite so seriously, may validly point out that on the very day that the latest doomsday event was predicted, the US President Donald Trump was addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York, and telling European delegations that “your countries are going to hell”. He had visited one of those countries only a week before, and been treated to highly-publicised mollycoddling by the King of England; including rides around the grounds of Windsor Castle in a golden horse-drawn carriage, over-the-top military parades and a lavish state banquet.

Now he stood before the world for almost an hour declaring that he was right about everything, while everyone else were Hell-bound. Believe it or not, later that evening there was indeed a second coming – in the form of late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, a constant critic of Mr. Trump. His show was briefly withdrawn from television following remarks that powers-that-be in Washington deemed offensive. His employers took a hit for stifling free speech, and he was back on most stations after a few days with record high ratings. I had watched his return on YouTube, and was amazed to see how many millions were viewing his show; with many thousands of favourable and supportive comments from many different countries.

Life as we know it on this little blue marble called Earth is surely not ending any time soon, despite the doomsday predictions.

BERNIE SMITH

Parksville, BC

Canada