15. The Y2K panic did not end on January 1, 2000
On January 2, 2000, with the world still operating pretty much the same as always, United Press International ran an article discussing the reactions of survivalists. Many had created websites and online forums, urging their followers to sell their stocks, withdraw their money from banks, and purchase gold as a hedge against the breakdown of society. Often their sites linked to others selling survival food and gear, including shelters eerily similar to the fallout shelters of the 1950s and 1960s. As it became obvious that society had not and would not collapse due to the Y2K bug, some changed their position, while others focused on the relatively minor problems which had occurred.
One problem was an incorrectly coded webpage for the US Naval Observatory’s Atomic Clock. Though quickly corrected, the website briefly posted the date as January 1, 19100. Some doomers reported that the site indicated a widespread international conspiracy among governments which covered up the severity of problems being encountered around the globe. They reported the cover-up would soon collapse, taking civilization with it. Others changed their predictions of the end of the world, using the time-honored practice of simply changing the end of the world to a later date, when the “temporary fix” which resolved the Y2K issue failed triggering the foreseen collapse. Some predicted the problem would occur two decades later, when the calendar shifted to 2020.