2012: Enter The Year of the Dragon

As I look to what 2012 has in store for us, I am wary of turning to economists. This dismal science did a terrible job of predicting events in 2011. Of course, who could have predicted the massive earthquake and nuclear disaster in Japan, the popular uprisings in the middle east and the near meltdown of the European Union? The lesson: There are too many unknown variables to make economic equations meaningful.

So why even bother with economics? Why not try something tried and true, something that has been in use for thousands of years and which billions of people use to make strategic decisions? Let’s see what the Chinese Zodiac has to say about 2012?

2012, it turns out, will be a very special year: The period from January 23, 2012 to February 9, 2013 is the year of the dragon. Of the 12 signs in the Chinese Zodiac, the dragon is the only one that is symbolized by a mythic creature. But unlike the west, where dragons are often viewed as evil, the dragon in China is a symbol of power, wisdom and benevolence. The dragon year is therefore considered to be auspicious. Couples like to have babies in dragon years.

You might think a system based on 12 categories might be a little simplistic? But dragon years come in many flavors. They can be associated with wood, fire, earth, metal or water. The year 1916 to 1917 was the year of the fire dragon: think World War I. 2012 is the year of the water dragon. Water, says psychic Verbena on californiapsychics.com, bestows a more peaceful disposition on the Dragon. Verbena does not give her credentials for interpreting the Chinese zodiac, but assures us that: The Year of the Water Dragon is noted for its calm, visionary intelligence, and balance of right brain creativity with left brain logic.

She continues with a more in-depth analysis: If you subscribe to the dawn-of-a-new-era theory of 2012, then its easy to see how the influence of the Water Dragon will increase the likelihood of success for progressive movements gaining momentum all across the globe. Energy conservation and green energy-producing technologies, curtailing global warming, challenges to multinational corporations, attention to world hunger and the renewed health of the oceans and sea creatures will all likely fare well.

That should be good news for regions like Washington state that are investing in green technology.

However, Verbena warns: If your expectations tend more toward disaster, then you might expect tsunamis, hurricanes, monsoons and other weather extremes to be in the headlines.

Most psychics this year seem to trend towards the disaster theory, predicting asteroids, floods and volcanic eruptions. Everyone is having dreams of disaster, one psychic offers as evidence on her YouTube video. She suggests moving to a place at least 700 feet above sea level to be safe when the sea starts to rise.

But what does this tell us about business? Well, an oracle in Britain who has previously used Chinese astrology to predict the real estate collapse and the financial crisis says he sees a crash coming in 2012 that will be much worse than the one in 2008. Since Im in the news business, I figured I should know what’s coming. I was ready to invest the $4.99 he wanted for his report until I noticed that his analysis was also based on insights from Russian and Dutch economists. What did they know about Chinese astrology?

Just as I was feeling a little pessimistic about the future, I came across a video of two identically dressed women who called themselves the psychic twins. They assured me that other soothsayers were all wrong. The alignment of the sun with the Milky Way and the end of the Mayan calendar were not signs of doom. To the contrary, they said, 2012 will be a time of awakening and rebirth. The psychic twins were also very upbeat about the career of Britney Spears.

Psychic Verbena also tended toward the optimistic interpretation, concluding that the water dragon is most likely to bestow the five blessings of harmony, virtue, riches, fulfillment and longevity.

I did come across some good news for entrepreneurs. People who take chances and are ambitious will succeed in the dragon year, according to one Chinese website, although it added: you must make tough choices and focus on the most rewarding opportunities.

However, warned another site, since, according to tradition, you can never see a dragons head and tail at the same time, the dragon can be very unpredictable. Which is to say: Anything could happen in 2012.

Now thats a prediction I can stand by.