Remember where you were when John F. Kennedy was shot? Or how about when Apollo 11 landed on the Moon? How about some other significant event in time? The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait? Do you remember what you were doing, or what other events were taking place?
Chances are very good that you would remember some other unconnected event. It's called association. Two unconnected events happening at the same time. It does not mean that one influenced the other. It's just that you "stick a pin" in the events in your mind. It helps you to remember. Winning a lottery did not cause the invasion of Kuwait, but someone did win a lottery the same day (no not me). Others recall the events because it was their birthday, but their birthdays did not cause the events that coincided. That's just the same with Comets. There are scores of comets discovered and rediscovered each year. Most miss our attention, because most people are not aware of them unless they get significant coverage.
When Halley's Comet came around in 1066, it did not cause the Norman invasion of England. It just happened to be a significant event in the sky, that happened at the same time. However, for ages people have believed that astronomical events influence human behaviour. Early society had no year calendars as such, they would use terms such as "In the second year of the reign of King......" and more significantly, "In the year after the great comet in the reign of King......."
So comets, being significant things remembered by pretty much everyone, would "put a pin" in the time the person was referring to.
Well, not much has changed, we still associate disconnected events, it "puts a pin in" so we all know exactly about the time we are talking about.
You will note, that people never predict that comets bring good things (even though the Normans got some good out of 1066). That's because it's far easier to claim hundreds of bad things, so that sooner or later they will "get a hit", and most people only remember when they hit, not when they missed. This page is therefore here to expose the big misses, and to provide a resource so that the frauds, charlatans, and just plain misguided people don't get away with it again with Comet Lee.
To read a recap of the kind of crap the new age nitwits, frauds, chicken littles, charlatans, and just plain misguided people told you in 1997, read on about Hale-Bopp.