"The horror ... the horror ... "
Those words were spoken by an out-of-his-mind Colonel Kurtz, played by Marlon Brando, in the movie Apocalypse Now.
But in a nutshell, that also describes the attitude of many of the people featured in the documentary Apocalypse 2012, which airs Thursday, Dec. 2, on CBC as part of the Doc Zone series.
When we say "nutshell," that's appropriate, too -- especially the "nut" part.
Apocalypse 2012, which was written, produced and directed by Cynthia Banks, examines the bizarre and growing phenomenon of people who are thoroughly convinced life as we know it is going to end next year.
A perfect storm of ancient myth, 21st-century paranoia and shameless commerce is fuelling this fear. And acting as the gasoline on the fire is that little truth machine known as the Internet.
At the heart of the darkness is the ancient Mayan Long Count Calendar, whatever the heck that is. We're not even sure exactly who the Mayans were and why they allegedly were so damn smart.
Nonetheless, many people today -- and more of them are from the social and economic mainstream than you might think -- are taking the Mayans' doomsday prophecy very seriously indeed with regard to Dec. 21, 2012.
So what exactly is supposed to happen? A mythical planet will crash into the Earth. Or solar flares will scorch our soil. Or the Earth's magnetic poles will flip. Or its rotation will change direction.
Floods. Earthquakes. Volcanoes. Another season of Dancing With the Stars. No one knows for sure what's going to occur, but word is, it's gonna be bad.
In Apocalypse 2012, we meet a developer who is converting a missile base in Kansas into luxury condos for the end of days.
We meet a Belgian author who is building secure dwellings on the highest mountain in Spain.
We meet a survivalist who is so convinced that desperate days are ahead, he is willing to sell you all the gear you'll need -- at a hefty profit, of course.
A basic rule of economics is that fear makes money. But generally speaking, this all seems relatively harmless, right?
If frightened fools want to spend their cash on costly crap, why should the silent majority care? It's sort of Y2K all over again, isn't it?
Well, yes and no.
It is pointed out in Apocalypse 2012 that some people are getting so caught up in the paranoia, they're making horrible life decisions that will haunt them if they aren't lucky enough to be right about the world ending.
A doctor at NASA, for example, says he gets daily e-mails from people -- some of them quite young -- who are so distraught about what they think is coming that they've contemplated suicide. Or they're selling their homes and assets, and spending the money on ridiculous preparations for heaven knows what.
OK, we're going to come right out and say it: We do not believe the world is going to end in 2012.
But that's a no-lose bet, right? After all, if the world does end next year, we won't be around to hear the words, "Told you so!"
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