Why do people believe the world will end in their lifetimes?

I don’t know. I don’t believe that. Also, it seems extremely unlikely knowing how much history there has been since the planet started.

Could it be a weird form of ego? Not wanting the world to go on without you?

because if they don’t exist, nothing can exist.

Because most of us will survive to 2012 ~ ~ ~

It does seem to have a whiff of ego about it. What interests me about this whole thing is why are people A) So willing to believe it in the first place and B) Why they panic so much about it. I mean, if they are so sure it’s going to happen anyway… what do they hope to achieve with all the hype and panic? Why not enjoy those last few days/months/years?

I don’t panic about it, but I’m one of those worry warts for the future…I worry about it happening to my grand children or great grandchildren. Let me be afraid!

Certainly if the world ended before their lifetimes they wouldn’t be born at all, so that wipes out that whole contingent right there.

Then if it happens after their lifetimes they won’t be there to see it so why should they worry about it.

But if it happens during their lifetimes they will be able to see it happening so they can run about shouting “I told you so!”

Millennialism is about making the world better, or perhaps, the world becoming better, due to the arrival of a savior. It’s about people feeling helpless to make the world better on their own, so the only way it can happen is through faith.

more later

I’ve never thought about it beyond a manmade disaster by weapons.

To continue, most people who believe the world will end believe it because it is part of their religious lore. Many different religions have this belief. Most people who believe this think that the end of the world will be a good thing, because it will mean that the world is saved, and good things will happen to those who believe in the religion.

They look forward to the end of the world, so they are always predicting it will happen. They want it to happen in their lifetimes. I think that these predictions help leaders get their groups more tightly bound together. They must prepare for the end. As such, the prophets gain more power, which is probably something they like. Followers get a strengthened sense of belonging, and being special because they are one of the few anointed.

It’s mainly an organizing technique. You set up an us vs them scenario in order to whip up fervor. It is used in conjunction with brainwashing techniques, such as isolating the group from the rest of society, and constantly drumming the same message into them, and giving them a sense of purpose. It is a central idea around which organizers can bind followers more closely and make them work as hard as they can.

One problem with it is that when the day comes and goes, the leaders look sort of foolish. Some of them try to explain it away, and say the end of the world is still coming soon; they just missed the date. The brainwashed may still stick with them, depending on their other options in life. In any case, it is usually a fringe idea, and I don’t see that changing much.

It’s about control. If you convince say, a group of people that the world is going to end, then they won’t be living so much for themselves, or their children, but for those who convinced them. Whatev