World to end on August 22

Guardian ^ | 08/09/06 | Brian Whitaker

[presidio9]

Better cancel those holidays. We now have a date for Armageddon, and it's a week on Tuesday - August 22.

This information comes from no lesser source than the Wall Street Journal, where Bernard Lewis, President Bush's favourite historian, provides the details.

"In Islam, as in Judaism and Christianity," the professor writes, "there are certain beliefs concerning the cosmic struggle at the end of time - Gog and Magog, anti-Christ, Armageddon, and for Shiite Muslims, the long-awaited return of the Hidden Imam, ending in the final victory of the forces of good over evil, however these may be defined.

"Mr Ahmadinejad [the Iranian president] and his followers clearly believe that this time is now, and that the terminal struggle has already begun and is indeed well advanced. It may even have a date, indicated by several references by the Iranian president to giving his final answer to the US about nuclear development by August 22. This was at first reported as 'by the end of August', but Mr Ahmadinejad's statement was more precise."

Lewis continues: "What is the significance of August 22? This year, August 22 corresponds, in the Islamic calendar, to the 27th day of the month of Rajab of the year 1427. This, by tradition, is the night when many Muslims commemorate the night flight of the prophet Muhammad on the winged horse Buraq, first to 'the farthest mosque', usually identified with Jerusalem, and then to heaven and back (cf, Koran XVII.1). This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and, if necessary, of the world."

This sort of quasi-religious scaremongering always finds a receptive audience in the United States, especially among Christians of the jihadist

[Howlin]

You're damn right he does.

[McGavin999]

OMG yes!

[HeartlandOfAmerica]

*laugh* Excellent!

I'll see if I can dig up an email addy for President Achmadayaddayadda so we can send him a copy of our Freep-Over thread. I'm sure he'll loveit.

[OnRightOnLeftCoast]

Thanks for an adult response to the August 22 issue. While I don't agree with the Guardian that this is the 'end of the world,' I came in here to read viewpoints and exchange ideas. What I've seen from most posts here are silly childish remarks. God forbid if anything should go down on the 22nd, but it will wipe the cuteness off to 'Oh My God!' in a nano-second.

Fighting Irish got the message: "I started to make a joke about this then stopped when I considered just how unstable these Islamofreaks really are..."

---

I've noticed some interesting events in the recent past:

May 2006: The whackjob leader of Iran sent President Bush a letter officially demanding we embrace Islam. It ended with the term: VASALAM ALA MAN ATABA 'al hoda

This is the same term used in letters by Muhammad to the Byzantine, Persian, and Ethiopian emperors of his day warning them to accept Islam and his rule or suffer the consequences, and a letter from Khomeini to Mikhail Gorbachev along similar lines.

June 29: This is the deadline the U.S. and the EU gave Iran on concessions related to their nuclear program. Iran responds they will give their answer on AUGUST 22. The UN deadline is August 31st.

And this from the president of the Reform Party in Syria, Farid Ghadry claims, “Ahmadinejad is planning an illumination of the night sky over Jerusalem to rival the one that greeted the Prophet of Islam on his journey,” then it is difficult to imagine anything other than a full-scale Iranian nuclear attack...As Spencer continues, “a nuclear attack on Jerusalem or even an all-out conventional assault against Israel by Iran would be consistent with Ahmadinejad’s oft-repeated denials of Israel’s right to exist and recent predictions that its demise was at hand.” These observations are the latest from a growing list of ominous portents from Iranian and Syrian leaders too horrific to ignore.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1680231

[RMDupree]

Now, now Pres....you know we need an excuse to get away with that sort of thing in public. ;-)

[Howlin]

Me, too.

And we REALLY needed this!

I'm finding myself actually looking forward to the end of the world. :-)

[McGavin999]

Yep, the chaos (which he hopes to create) will cause the 12th Imam to emerge from the depths of the well (I think it's in Qom or one of the villages around Qom)

[Steve_Seattle]

I am also surprised that this post inspired so much levity. The point of Lewis's comments isn't that HE thinks the world is going to end, or that it will end, but that the crazy leaders of Iran might do something drastic to advance the apocalyptic vision that they have. Now, they might not attempt this on August 22nd, but there are strong indications that they plan something big against Israel as soon as they are able and when they think the time is right.

[McGavin999]

Look, most of us have been manning the Middle East Live threads for weeks. The people here are a LOT smarter than you seem to think. Just because you have no sense of humor, don't come onto this thread and try your gloom and doom crap on us. We know what we're facing. This is our way of handling it. If you want to run around in circles and whine like a baby, be my guest, but don't you make snide remarks about us having FUN. Got it?

[Steve_Seattle]

"Just because you have no sense of humor . . . "

One can have a sense of humor without thinking that every attempt at humor is actually funny. My local bartender was going on endlessly the other night with sophomoric jokes about "beavers"; if I found it lame, does that mean I have no sense of humor?

[Ingtar]

Ahmadinejad on Aug 23rd: Wait 'til next year!

[McGavin999]

Don't know. Why on earth would you bring up a conversation with your bartender here?

[Bubble Girl]

Oh boy, no more bills to pay, no more shaving my legs, no more having to get up early to go to work..

No more getting up..

:{

[SuziQ]

Yeah, well, just so they don't bother me when I fly to FL later that week. ;o)

Buncha goobers!

[MikeA]

Interesting information and chilling. If Rat Face really is planning to strike Jerusalem, he'll kill a good number of Palestinians too. I can't imagine a Shiite Persian slaughter of Sunni Arabs will go over well with other Arabs, even if it does take out some Israelis along with it. Jordan in particular I think would be apoplectic from the fall out that would come there way. I guess we'll just have to see what this lunatic has in mind. Surely he has to know his country will be wiped off the map if he does this.

[Quix]

Understand.

Quite plenty true.

Thanks.

[McGavin999]

Anyway I want to die laughing

LOL, me too.

[Steve_Seattle]

Why on earth would you bring up a conversation with your bartender here?

You accused onrightonleftcoast of having no sense of humor because he/she thought many of the comments on this thread were inane. I was just pointing out that somebody can have a sense of humor without thinking that every attempt at humor is funny or appropriate, and I cited my bartender's lame attempts at sexual banter as an example.

[McGavin999]

Actually, there is something FAR more serious Mike, along with the fall out that would kill just about everyone in the world. You have Am-a-dinner-jacket thinking he can out smart God by forcing the issue. Mocking God never seems to work out, especially for the guy doing the mocking.