Peter Gersten Didn’t Jump on Dec 21
Of course we are grateful that the fateful Dec 21, 2012 day wasn’t (as far as I can tell) marked by a single pointless death. The downside is that Peter Gersten has good cause for being embarrassed. Back in 2011 I reported on his crazy plans for a Sedona death leap:
Most of you will think that I am delusional and that my insane act will certainly result in my death. Death is inevitable – at least nowadays – and 100 years from now it won’t matter whether I died in 2012 or 2013 or even 2020. But I believe that some type of cosmic portal will be opening at that time and place and that an opportunity will present itself. I fully expect that it will either lead to the next level of this cosmic program; freedom from an imprisoning time-loop; a magical Martian-like bubble; or something equally as exotic.
Here’s the result:
Phoenix New Times: Gersten had been planning to leap into the “portal” last night. Instead, he apparently wandered home in an anticlimactic ending to his Doomsday stunt. “He went home,” says Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Dwight D’Evelyn. “His earthly home in Sedona.”
Ray’s X-Blog: Apparently the authorities were concerned about him and anyone else showing up for the cosmic event who might be considering taking a leap. Police and an emergency crew were nearby as seen in a news video posted online by the Fox 10 TV station in Phoenix. The video also shows some of the characters who showed up, including a couple of aluminum foil aliens, i.e., people wrapped in foil suits with springy antennas topped with silver balls attached to their heads.
Red Rock News: Since Dec. 21, some have speculated how much Gersten’s alleged leap of faith cost taxpayers, particularly due to the presence of law enforcement — a rescue team from the Sedona Fire District and a Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office rescue helicopter that flew nearby during the course of the day – $838.
Peter Gersten says he’s taking a “Leap of Faith” on top of Bell Rock near Sedona today, but that doesn’t mean he’s literally jumping off the prominent 547-foot-tall red butte in northeast Yavapai County.
“I don’t think it’s going to involve risking my life,” he said. “The Leap of Faith was bringing 120 people to the top of Bell Rock without knowing why.” He said he felt like he needed to bring at least 111 people to the top of Bell Rock over the last several months to prepare for today.
…Gersten assured the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office he doesn’t plan to jump off Bell Rock, YCSO spokesman Dwight D’Evelyn said.
“Today we walked the trail with him just to get an idea of where he’s going and where he’s going to plant himself” to wait for the portal, D’Evelyn said Thursday. “We obviously have a concern about folks mirroring whatever he’s going to do.”
