The sensitivities of Islamic radicals over such a scene shows the weaknesses of their beliefs.  Catholicism has endured much.

US Evagelicals would scream holy war at the sight of the earth swallowing mega churches and Wal Marts.

 

My personal doomsday scenario involves more about Mayan culture and myth.  Supposedly their first emporer was an extremely tall, extremely pale man who sailed east on a ship of tremendous size, promising to return one day (this myth unfortunately walked the Mayans right into Spanish slaughter).

 

Add in the many carvings of men sitting in rocket-like mechanisms.

 

Now, it might be possible that such a massive, galactic alignment could open a natural wormhole, or assist an advanced species to open a trans-galactic wormhole that would allow them to come back to earth.  Note the 25000 year cycle of the Mayan calender and the coinciding cycle of this alignment.

 

As for polar alignment, all of the scientific analysis and historic geology shows that nothing happens during a polar reversal and that it is a natural function of our liquid/solid magnetic dynamo at the Earth's core.  Quite a few of these alignments have happened in the past.  At most, more gamma and some cosmic rays get through.

 

The earth's electronics and especially global navigation systems, on the other hand, could be in for a rough ride.

 

Two corrections on Nan here:

 

1) It was the Aztecs who had the legend of Quetzalcoatl being a white, bearded man, who they mistook Cortez for.  The Mayans were long gone by the time the Aztecs were running the show.  The 2012 prediction is indeed Mayan.

 

2) I really don't think that evangelicals would give a rat's ass if a Wal-Mart was shown being swallowed up.  I'm not at all an evangelical (though I like Evangelion), but that was just a cheap shot, Nan...which is increasingly becoming typical behavior for you.  My offer of a hug still stands.  (Me, I would complain if a Wal-Mart is shown being destroyed by a tornado or something.  Everyone knows Wal-Marts are ready-made fortresses for the zombie apocalypse.)

 

Anyhow, I'm not losing sleep over it.  I can't personally do anything about the end of the world, so who cares?  I wouldn't have to pay off my student loans, so that's a plus.  Besides, the Mayans only predicted that a "new age" would begin, not worldwide destruction.  A new age could mean anything from the aforementioned destruction, an age of unparalleled peace and prosperity, or just a different time period with no more bearing on reality than 2000 being the start of a new millennium.  Or maybe it means Obama will be reelected.  Who knows?