The Mayan Calendar and the End Of Time

It intrigues me that so much is being made of the supposed ending of the Mayan Long Count Calendar in three months.  Just because in coincides with the alignment of the sun and Milky Way galaxy for the first time in 26,000 years, “doom and gloomers,” as well as “end time” theorists are convinced that buying Christmas presents this year will be a waste of money.  After all, according to them there won’t be anyone left after December 21st to give them to.

Now, nothing is beyond the realm of possibility.  But perhaps those worrying about the issue should replace some of their emotion with objective consideration of what is actually known.  First, despite human predictions of world calamity, the calendar itself never predicted any sort of doomsday result.  And if that were not enough, the calendar really doesn’t end on December 21st, anyway.  Murals have been found in the jungles of Guatemala that extend it MANY years into the future.  Looks like Christmas shopping is on this year, after all.

Now, just for discussion, let’s say that the Mayan calendar DID end on December 21st.  Why should its abrupt conclusion be so quickly equated to deadly meteorite showers or a reversal of the Earth‘s magnetic fields?  After all, things end suddenly all the time, and usually for much simpler and less sinister reasons.  Consider these mundane possibilities:
 

-  The head Mayan calendar scribe retired, and his apprentice son decided there was more profit in making ceremonial headdresses than carrying on the traditional family business.

-  The price of mural space in caves and huts became too expensive due to inflated real estate costs, and calendar making was priced out of the market.

-  There was a sudden infestation of bark beetles that destroyed the natural material needed to make the bark-paper books in which many scribes recorded calendar data.

-  The Mayan Calendar Union went on strike for higher wages, and found out it was easier to go on unemployment insurance than to actually go back to work.

-  Mayan Calendar makers gave up their craft due to constant complaints from customers that the calendars lacked portability and couldn’t be carried in belt pouches.

-  Finally, the Mayan calendar really didn’t end as abruptly as was thought.  Those strange glyphs at the end of the text (and soon to be translated), will say the following: “etc., etc., etc.”