Committee for Skeptical Inquiry

[SkeptInq@aol.com]

 Join the CSICOP 5/5/2000 Doomsday Vigil at www.csicop.org/chat/index.html on
May 5, 2000, 7:30 to 9:00 pm Eastern Time

 May 4, 2000

 According to doomsday author Richard Noone and others, the world is going to
end this Friday, May 5. The idea that May 5, 2000 will bring earth-shattering
catastrophe has been incubating for more than twenty years. The five visible
planets will be roughly aligned on tomorrow on one side of the Earth, and
doomsayers say that their combined gravitational pull will cause catastrophic
tidal forces on our planet.

 Richard Noone, author of 5/5/2000 Ice: the Ultimate Disaster, thinks that we
can expect anything from "a few earthquakes" to the revolt of every natural
phenomenon. Shifting tectonic plates will create Richter 13 megaquakes.
Supersonic winds will blast cities to rubble, and massive walls of ice jarred
from their polar repositories will careen over the planet scything down
everything in their path.

 Astronomers see May 5, 2000 as the date of a rather unremarkable alignment,
which will have absolutely no effect whatsoever on the climate or geology of
our Blue Marble.

 One thing is sure: The planet will never be the same. (How, exactly, it will
be differrent, is anyone's guess…but that's beside the point). No good
skeptic would want to miss out on the chance to share his or her experience
of this momentous occasion with their fellow skeptics.

 So go to www.csicop.org/chat/index.html at 7:30 Eastern time and log onto
CSICOP's chat room, hosted by Kevin Christopher. Kevin will outline the
background of the 5/5/2000 doomsday claims and facilitate discussion. See you
there tomorrow…maybe!