NetCynics Blog

Now that it’s 2008 (yes, I know, it’s April 2008, please feel free to pretend that it’s January, thanks) it’s time to check the handful of predictions for 2007 and see what happened (note that the fact that you’re even reading this probably suggests that the more extreme ones were nonsense, but you knew that anyway didn’t you?).

Unknown month

According to Armageddon Online this year will see the “Battle of Armageddon”. This will involve a nuclear war that will leave “2 billion dead”.

NetCynics says Fail!

August 2007

According to Juval Aviv “six, seven or eight cities” within the US will be hit “simultaneously to show sophistication and really hit the public“. Apparently “it could happen as soon as tomorrow, or it could happen in the next few months. Ninety days at the most“. So keep an eye out for this one until the end of October.

NetCynics says Fail!

September 2007

According to Pat Robertson the Christian God told him that there will be a “mass killing” in the United States of America. He said “The Lord didn’t say nuclear. But I do believe it will be something like that.” so it remains to be seen what, exactly, the attack will be. Keep in mind that for 2006 he predicted that a tsunami would hit the US coastline — it didn’t, but he did claim that heavy rains and flooding in New England in the spring were a partial fulfilment of his prediction.

Observant readers will note that the CNN story link no longer works (big surprise there). NetCynics says Fail!

Also, regarding the Juval Aviv prediction from August: NetCynics says Fail Again!

October 2007

Sorry Juval Aviv. NetCynics says Fail Yet Again!

If you have any predictions for 2008 please feel free to let us know and we’ll add them to the 2008 page.

I’m most surprised to read an item by the Daily Mail that actually looks into the advertising of common products and challenges the companies to justify the marketing claims and decisions. Wow.

Researchers name and shame 11 companies for making ‘false health claims’ | the Daily Mail:

From the Psychic Skeptic:

A psychic can claim to be ‘skeptical’, but can a skeptic be psychic?

Is psychic ability in the eye of the beholder?

 

These questions arose when I stumbled across a job opportunity for psychics, advertised at careerone.com.au. Job sharing, casual work and second, even third jobs are necessary evils in today’s world. Some replenish stock in supermarkets at night, others telemarket or work behind a bar. Only the very few can earn a few extra dollars as a psychic. That would require a specific skill, wouldn’t it? But what kind of skill? Real psychic ability or cold/warm/hot reading skills and a glib manner?

Read more at the original article, although I think I’ve given the game away with the subject :)