POSTSCRIPT: This website was frozen on December 31, 1999, as a permanent document on how all of us acted and reacted to the Y2K myth from 1997 to 1999. There will be no updates. Enjoy reading all of the emails, especially the wild ones from 1998. - David Robert Loblaw, 03 January 2000
APR1999@sundial.net
"I've been programming for almost 10 years and I've experienced hundreds of crisis situations much more complex than this date problem.... As for the hysterical non-programmers of the world... they need to shut up and butt out because they just don't understand this issue."
"I work in the computer industry, and of course people are going bonkers, but most of my coworkers and I believe that the biggest danger comes not from the 'Y2k bug' itself, but from the people who are, deliberately or otherwise, using the occasion to foment a bit of lawlessness."
"Having been in the computer world for a few years, I wish I could identify what it is, that is causing all these people to behave so irrationally.... I don't doubt for one moment there are some computers that will possibly burp, there will be some software apps, that will mis calculate due to lazy data entry habits, (two-digits for year). But overall, this is not a show stopper."
"This earth is full of murder, hate, killing and awful things. We need to remember our creator and Y2K, MAY, make some of us remember this. If nothing happens, GREAT, I won't have to buy groceries for a little while! But if it does I know I have tried a little to prepare and I know that GOD loves me just as I am."
"I looked through some of the responses on your feedback page. As a Christian, i am embarrassed at the comments made by some of the 'believers' regarding judgement and punishment.... That people hatefully reject your view on Y2K and try to link it with 'judgment' - that's what in my ministry is called 'Spiritual Abuse'. In my eyes what does Y2K and Jesus have in common? Nothing. There is no correlation between what programmers chose to do decades ago and what Jesus did 2000 years ago."
"Oh, to spice up your web page you need to talk to my mother..she swears they are secretly building compounds for those who cannot pay their bills and need some place to go Jan 1 2000, She also swears that her timing chain in her car won't function so she is having that Y2K ready, every day I get a new fear from her."
"Amid the growing hysteria, I am glad that not everyone thinks it is 'the end of the world' or 'God's judgement upon mankind'. These doomsayers almost seem to relish the thought as a vindication of their belief."
"Just close your eyes and clear your head and try to think of all the places where embedded chips might be. Try to think of the impossible places to test like undesea pipelines and pumps or the sheer magnitude of the number of telephone switches that must be checked compared to the number of programmers of available to do the job. It boils down to simple math."
"To me the real issue, the government is so full of lies and spin and with this y2k problem there seems to be plenty going in all directions, mostly that it's a bump in the road. My problem with the government is that I know for a fact (I really do) that they are preparing to have camps across the country. This more than anything bugs me. Is the y2k problem more than a hoax? possibly a front? If, then a front for what?"
"Recently, my company began a Y2K compliancy program, and half of the things they asked me to check were totally ridiculous. Battery chargers, diesel trucks, RADIOS in trucks, etc.... Those who know the truth, that at best, there will be little or no problems, are ignored, while the fear mongers amongst us are being listened to and believed."
"I have a young family to think about and if I ignore this possible threat what kind of mother am I? You be sure to notify me when your degree in fortune telling arrives."
"I hope for your soul's sake that you are just ignorant.... I admit, I could be wrong about Y2K. But if I'm not, this is a matter of life and death for millions of people. Are you really willing to take that risk?"
"is your site a joke? are you serious? ... if you are wrong you die, if i am wrong i get laughed at"
"Unfortunately the majority of the people refuse to believe that such an event could happen, they don't want to be disturbed in their comfort zone. So I choose to be a realist. By the way, judgement upon America is right around the corner. The Lord Jesus will protect his own, however!"
"You must be a real pile of bad smell and soon you will not be the only one. I do not have to pray, for I know all of mankind will soon get what it deserves!"
"Someone may use this as an opportunity to conduct techno terrorism. If Melissa can cause the problems (and some believe it was a test), a virus, when combined with the problems that will exist, can cause massive problems which may seem to be a verification of the 'end of technology'"
"Is there ANY ounce of truth to any of this crap!? I've heard that VIBRATORS will stop!!! Hey, if you find a vibrator smart enough to tell the date & time, please let me know!!"
"Is it true or a bunch of hog wash that vehicles will stop running? A car does not read a date (except for a couple of the luxury models out there). If you have a car that does not read a date, how in the hell will a car stop running?"
"I have been treated as a leper for not 'realising' the danger that we are in coming up to the turn of the Century. I personally know people who are taking advantage of this scam and they are starting to believe their own crap!"
"I am in the military working in a hospital. I fix the medical equipment there. I have been appointed Y2K representative for the equipment in the hospital. Of the 1700+ pieces of equipment in the hospital only 25 will be affected --- and the biggest problem faced --- the date will not print right on the test strip. I have heard that a pencil is a good fix for this, but perhaps we need to spend a ton more money just to study if this will work."
"Found your site today and am hugely relieved to find an island of sanity on the North American continent!! ... Is it because you're Canadian?? From my view point in Australia it seems as if the US is just full of Chicken Littles darting terrified glances at the sky.... The only difference today is that the shysters have access to much bigger audiences."
"I would like to know how to make some cash off these fools and get rich. Maybe if I stock up on those meal supplement drinks, bulk and canned foods and bottled water I can start making a killing in October and November when these idiots really start to panic."
"I have attached a copy of a nomination I made to the Australian Skeptics for the annual Bent Spoon award, where I collectively nominated the same people your site is about."
"I truly hope Y2K is a hoax. BUT ... It got me off my fat butt and into action to provide some reasonable disaster preparedness for my loved ones!! Thanks for your site. It adds real balance to this issue!"
"what makes you and all the rest of the world think they know whats going to happen in the future, things unimaginable can happen, disastorious things, what if you are wrong? what if they are wrong?"
"You might want to get your facts straight. I have been following this problem for over 2.5 years and have read thousands of articles from numerous sources. July 1997 front cover of newsweek was just the begining.... You like many other critics will be very silent in January."
"I will keep your forecast on file and will email you, one week after Jan. 1, 2000 and if you are correct I can still communicate with you because our ISP will still be working. I also suggest that you become serious on this matter and avoid jokes. There are some people who believe you and they will take your every word you say. This is also true for the doomsayers. -- Yours in Christ,"
"Everyone drawing all their money out of the banks because they do not want to loose it and what they are doing is DESTROYING the economy!! This COULD be a distaster, it would be riotous everywhere."
"Your site has helped alot in not only my understanding of this whole shin-dig, but it's also helping my grade. Without this site my paper would've been alot harder...glad you see this whole thing my way..."
"If we talk about something long enough it may just come true. To quote the great philosopher in disguise, George Burns: 'Fairytales can come true ... it can happen to you...'"
"I'm not a programmer, but I've read hundreds of articles on y2k and I know what's coming.... You should be scared shitless. Don't be so narrow minded. Start reading stuff on the net."
"The same thing happened in 1000, and I'm sure the same thing will happen in 3000. They won't be able to use the 'Y3K computer bug' as an excuse for why the world will end in 3000, but they will think of something."
"Is it ethical and legal to sell survival kits to people who are scared to death because they simply do not understand the technological elements of the problem and are frighten by the implication and feelings of helplessness?"
"There are a lot of DRAMA kings and queens today. Don't even try to talk sense to the fools. This y2k situation is just another thing to add more excitemnet into their boring lives."
"A couple of years ago I was living in south Florida. I underestimated the power of hurricane Andrew. I don't intend to be caught underestimating another catastrophe."
"I myself am amazed at how incredibly hyped up this whole issue has become. People I know with no computer knowledge are worried that their toasters won't work after 2000.... The whole thing makes me want to pull my hair out and run screaming through the streets."
"Thank you for your common sense and good humor. It's nice to know there a few pepole left who can actually think!"
"i'll pray 4 u"
"You're right that if bad things happen, that they'll happen just because people think they're going to happen. So silly. As someone who's worked as a programmer on Y2K projects, I have to say that I personally couldn't get *anything* really bad to happen to programs we were fixing."
"The MTBF (mean time between failure) for a typical computer is no more than an hour. This means that, for a computer that is running at least during business hours, there are on the average at least 2,000 failures per year, or 2,000,000 failures per millennium."
"Do you suppose it's possible that the escalating Y2K budgets are in part caused by people taking advantage of the fear and getting those new computers and equipment they've been wanting?"
"When I reported to my politician bosses that we wouldn't need to spend a fortune to fix this 'crisis', I got my head handed to me.... In my research I have found many sites where local governments have spent a lot of money and time planning and testing, but they never seem to say how the tests turned out. Could it be that they don't want to admit that they have wasted a ton of taxpayer money for no good reason?"
"Yes, it's just a number. One of the biggest assumptions that you are making is that there are enought competent programmers who can keep focused amid the mass hysteria to get the job done right. I'm stocking up and getting out into the country just in case."
"It's good to find someone w/ the courage to say, 'The Emperor is wearing no clothes.' Please folks, don't start rashly selling your investments. Sheer panic can ruin a market just as surely as an actual problem!"
"As for elevators crashing to earth, as I told my boss when he raised the issue: Anyone who is sad enough to be in an elevator at midnight on millennium eve won't be missed if the thing crashes to the basement."
"Maybe it's the thrill, perhaps to the extent of sexual excitation, to believe there will be chaos. I hope they aren't too disappointed..."
"Regarding the hype you speak of, I witnessed exactly the same thing in the UK with BS 5750 (British Standards Institute certificate for quality assurance) and then its international equivalent ISO 9000. Expensive consultants creating jobs for themselves... I assume those folks are now safely riding on the Y2K hype."
"How can you make the computer bug and send it to other computers. (Do U have any saved on disk that you could send so I could test it for myself."
"japan is in y2k trouble ... embedded chip capital of the world? japan ... mountains, rivers, too many obstructions- most all is burried.... japan is size of california- but flat area is only that of rode island- ... you must learn more."
"God's Wisdom to Help with Y2K: Proverbs 26:12 'Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.'"
"Y2K over 30 years old! As loans are concerned, the Y2K problem hit back in the 70's since the payoff date for many reached into the 00's. They handled that one without any media attention and they did it in COBOL."
"When my computer illiterate friends ask me what they should do, I say 'treat it as if you were expecting a storm.' It doesn't hurt to have some extra food around the home, candles just in case, etc."
"My father-in-law is all into this; in fact, he's stocked up food from some millenium food staples group, and he annoyed the %$#@ outta me at Christmas by giving us huge checks so we, too, could buy food before the apocalypse. What a light note for Christmas Eve, eh?"
"The Doom Merchants are at work....what a load of old cobblers. Working in the investment markets, if anyone thinks world institutions will disinvest causing an economic meltdown they are mis-guided sorry souls."
"Riots, food shortages, and a financial collapse will occur. I have always belived that history repeats itself. In this I am reminded of the roman empire. In their last days sports were a national craze. The United States of America is home to couch potatos who think that an athlete should make more money than their doctor, or senator" MORE EMAILS:
1999, Part 3
...
1999, Part 1
1998, Part 3
1998, Part 2
1998, Part 1
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