Theory of Nothing: The ALT timeline is the only timeline ever by Dirk Pitt

Put simply: The island is created outside of "time" by demigods/superbeings to test humanities worthiness to exist, we win it, and therefore the losties never really went to the island at all and have always been in the ATL.

Reasoning: This explains/does three difficult things.

1) It avoids paradoxes. If the island exists outside of time the testers (Jacob/MIB) can and will draw any test subjects they want from the possible existence of humanity without restriction and without any effect on the real and only (the ATL) timeline. By outside of time I mean instantly pulled people to test and then put back. The testers playing out their test can interact with humans from any time period and not disrupt humanities reality since the island exists outside of time. Anything that happens doesn't effect anything because once humanity proves its worthiness (and it does this before humanity really exists because it is tested outside of time) and then the real timeline, the ATL, "takes over" from the beginning. But not really because the idea of it "taking over" is wrong as it is the only timeline to ever exist. Again, if the island exists outside of time everything we have seen has been for all intent an instantaneous "flashback" and the ATL is the only realit! y to have ever existed for humanity.

2) It negates the need for parallel realities. Without the idea that the ATL as the only reality viewers will have to accept the idea of an alternate reality or at least two realities existing at the same time. The losties would have to be on the island (post jughead explosion reality with say Kate in the tree) and in the world with the island underwater (reset reality with Kate back on the plane) all at the same "time." Now this is fine, to accept the idea of alternate realities or two realities, however, the same corporal entity of Kate can only exist in one reality at a time. There can not be a tree Kate and a plane Kate. There can be only one single entity "Kate" at one "time." If there is only one real timeline then everything that happened in regards to the island happened outside of time. The island being outside of time negates the need for two simultaneous Kates. So again, the island and the uber-test on the island happened outside of time, and everything we have se! en on the show has been for all intent a "flashback" and the ATL is the only reality to have ever really existed for humanity.

3) Rebuttal: What about Jack's neck cut and the island being underwater in the ATL you say? They make perfect sense since Jack and the island existed along with everything we have seen on the show "outside of time." The events happened outside of time but the events happened. Everything happened to the real body of Jack and the real dirt of the island. However, the events outside of time happened so fast when the demigods of Jacob the MIB or whoever pulled them from time and then put them back in time that yeah, the cut follows Jack. The island exists, but it existed outside of time under a bubble. Hence the need for the sub or special flight angles to get to the island that was outside of time. So tree Kate and friends will stay on the island and we will see the final moment we win our worthiness and then bam! Everyone will be back on the plan in the ATL, and the ATL will be the only reality, and that will be the end of the show. What about the island underwater? First thin! gs first...Jughead did not cause it. If Jughead caused it then Eloise Hawking dies and Faraday is not born and Jughead does not explode. That is a basic grandfather paradox. So I would suggest that the island will sink once we win our worthiness just moments before the aforementioned bam back on the plane first sight of the ATL. Just because the island was hidden from time does not mean that it was not "real." Jack was there, Dharma was there and Dharma was real but it was never real in the ATL for them in the ATL which was the only real to exist inside of time. With the events of the island existing outside of time Jacob can pull whoever he wants and the actual timeline is not effected. In essence Jacob creates a reality that happens so fast it never happens. It happens outside of time. What about the flashbacks off island? Easy, just expand the outside of time bubble.

Conclusion: The specifics of who what why when and where only cloud this theory which is why I titled this post the Theory of Nothing. It is at its best with no expanded explanation. The Theory is that the events of island are outside of "time" and are required by demigods/superbeings (Jacob/MIB) to test humanities worthiness to exist, we won it, and therefore the losties never really went to the island at all and have always been in the ATL.