But what precisely is the point of all of these stories? Other than buying an earthquake preparedness kit, what else is there we can do? If we, say, were 500 pounds, had a cholesterol reading of over 300 and were chain smokers and a doctor told us that there was a pretty darn good chance we would get heart disease, we could at least cut down from two packs of cigarettes a day to a pack. But if one fault decides they've had it with another fault and they go at it, what the hell can we do about it?

It could also be said that the constant hyping of these stories could actually backfire. There is only so many times that one hears that the end is nigh before they stop listening to those cries. The Big One might not be that big, after all, if all those melting glaciers put us twenty feet under water. And aren't all those Jihadist's still out there looking to drop some WMDs on us? And whatever happened to the Avian Flu? Or what could happen if all those Miley Cyrus fans come of age to vote. There’s only so many things we can be scared sh-- less about.

In other words, call us when they figure out exactly when the damn thing happens.