The examples
that tell of prophecies for the end of the world, do not seem credible. This is because in
most stories, it isn’t based on facts, but merely thoughts of a “leader” or someone with a following that
has created hysteria though their mere “guesses” of a catastrophe.
However, I
can see how the Y2K fears could have been found credible. That was because
computers were not equipped to calculate using dates that started with 20 instead
of 19. My older brother was born in 2000, so my mom was pregnant with him on
that New Year’s Eve when it was turning 2000, and my father, was a police
officer so he was working that night.
They have
both told me stories from that night that they were unsure of what may happen.
My mom went to stay with her parents, in case anything weird happened so she wasn’t
alone. My father said a normal night on the street was tough enough, and he
didn’t know if traffic lights, police scanners, electricity, computers etc.
would malfunction and cause major, chaotic issues. Nothing bad happened, but this seemed more like it had the potential for bedlam.
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I also agree with you when you say that these claims don't seem credible except for the year 2000; It makes sense why people felt like something was going to happen because like you said, the computers weren't really made to go past 1999. When people said that the world was ending after that, there was no concrete evidence.
ReplyDeleteMost “End of the World” predictions are not based on fact, and it’s interesting that something that has a little bit of logic behind it (like computers not being able to handle the new millennium) can lead to so many people who wouldn't be superstitious otherwise, believing and even fearing the unknown. Even today, so many people are afraid of artificial intelligence simply because it is unknown and has the potential to cause so much harm.
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