And I Feel Fine?

Conditions: Not too bad, actually.

The End of the World, Again

It's always nice to have something to look forward to for the weekend, and this particular weekend we have a special treat indeed. It's the end of the world, again. This time on the advice of bible mathematician Harold Camping, who has calculated out that the rapture will take place today, around 6pm (18:00 hours.). That's 6pm, everywhere!

The 89-year-old doomsday prophet, a former engineer who perhaps inevitably comes from California, has prompted a tide of expectation, elation and derision after persuading listeners to his Family Radio Worldwide across the US and as far away as the Philippines to sell up everything and prepare for the beginning of the end of the world with the second coming of Jesus.

If all goes according to plan, those who have been "saved" by Jesus will rise into the air in the Rapture and look down as God smites billions of nonbelievers with a great earthquake rolling from city to city across the planet, and a bit of fire to boot.

"Everyone will be weeping and wailing because they'll know in a few hours it'll come to their city," Camping told the TYT Now online news show. "It's going to be a horror story of tremendous proportion."

Judgment day will begin at 6pm wherever you are. The mayhem will move west over the planet, wiping out cities, towns and villages.

In the US, some believers have given up their jobs and donated money they think they will no longer need to pay for more than 2,000 billboards across the country proclaiming "Judgment Day: May 21, 2011 – Cry mightily unto God. THE BIBLE GUARANTEES IT!"

- guardian.co.uk/world/

Oh dear. See one of the problems with the rapture is that it's not really in the bible. And the second problem is just how batshit insane it sounds when you try to communicate it to others. You really need to already have a touch of the crazy to take it on board. However that hurdlke has not prevented a very large portion of people preparing themselves for the big event, selling their stuff and saying goodbye. And that has allowed another large amount of people to try to make some money off the true believers, by for instance offering to take care of their pets once the rapture comes (no pets in heaven, see. I guess if the angels want someone to go fetch, they'll draw straws.)

So what can we learn from this? Well, it seems most people like the idea of the rapture, presumably because they are tired and hate their jobs and want a really long vacation. One sympathizes. The great thing about making fun of these kinds of things is that if it is actually the apocalypse no one will care about who was being snitty beforehand.

But inevitably I feel confident that come 7 o'clock there's going to be a bit of a down slide for a certain population who perhaps gambled a little too much on the predictions of one man. It's one thing to wonder about the end of the world, but quite another to make preparations for it.



Film Review: Thor

What a boost this whole Avengers thing has been to the comic book movie genre. I mean, without it various films of late would have had to come up with extra scenes and characters of their own, rather than just relying on this overall Government department of superheros to step in and help out with plot points. Thor, one of the lesser-known comic book properties, puts forward the idea that all the old Scandinavian legends were actually real, and that back in the day humans were subservient to the various Nordic gods. But with the war against the ice planet won there was no longer need to mess about on Earth, so they've left us alone. Odin, played by a rejuvenated Anthony Hopkins, is preparing to pass his crown on to his son Thor, essentially a hot headed pretty boy. This does not sit well with younger son Loki, who wants the crown for himself. It doesn't take much goading for Thor to act thoughtlessly and risk the peace his father fought so hard for. His punishment is to be banished to Earth, without his powers.

And so enters Natalie Portman, who plays some kind of Astrophysicist working in New Mexico alongside Skellen Skarsgard trying to figure out these weird space phenomenon that keep happening. Naturally when Thor arrives she hits him with her car, and from there it's, well, some kind of goofy attraction at first sight. Thor immediately sets about being Thor, trying to strong-arm his way back to retrieving his hammer, but soon realizes that he's just a man, and needs help. It's then up to him to finally grow up a little bit and figure out how to get back home again to save his father from his brother.

This is quite a shallow movie, balanced precariously on the charm of it's leading man and some action sequences involving Thor hitting various things with his hammer. And while both things are reasonably OK, we really are expecting a bit more in this day and age. Or at least I am. Perhaps I'm just simply cut off from this kind of movie, all style with a small bit of meaning in the middle. Kenneth Branagh has directed his actors well, but there's just simply not a lot for them to do, or even be, hence I expect the rather large amount of Shield nonsense throughout. And when is Hollywood going to finally understand what the word 'immortal' actually means? Two fancy costumes out of Five.


- Peace out