Agent13
22nd December 2003, 10:51 PM
This will be the last news search for 2003. In about 12 hours, I'll be making the drive back to the Land of Lincoln to spend part of the winter break with my family. As always, thanks for your support, and best wishes to everyone in the New Year.
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Bunkum!
By Michael Shermer
Scientific American
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa006&colID=13&articleID=0001547E-EECE-1FD3-A7EA83414B7F012C
"Those of us who practice skepticism for a living often find ourselves tiptoeing politely around the PC police, who think that all beliefs and opinions are equal. Thus, when asked, "Are you a debunker?" my initial instinct is to dissemble and mutter something about being an investigator, as if that will soften the blow."
What Tyler Terror Bust?
BY LEE NICHOLS
Austin Chronicle
http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2003-12-19/pols_naked6.html
"Imagine this: The FBI nails a couple of major terrorism suspects, in possession of a weapon of mass destruction -- a sodium cyanide bomb -- as well as about 100 other bombs, bomb components, machine guns, chemical agents, and 500,000 rounds of ammunition. Additionally, they find documents detailing an apparent scheme to actually use these weapons, some indicating other suspects might still be at large. And to top it all off, the suspects plead guilty."
Off Target
By Dan McGraw
Fort Worth Weekly
http://www.fwweekly.com/issues/2003-12-17/metropolis.html
"Earlier this year, David Zellers, president of the Denton chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America, received an e-mail from his sister in Ohio. The e-mail was of the chain variety, saying that Target Corporation, parent company of the discount department store chain, was anti-veteran. Among other things, the e-mail stated that Target chose gay and lesbian causes over veterans' causes, was owned by the French, and did not support the United States Marine Corps' Toys for Tots campaign."
A sad farewell to Piltdown Man mystery
by JAY INGRAM
Toronto Star
<http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1071361744522&call_pageid=968332188774&col=Columnist977459474799>
"It's a time of crisis for me: Two of the best science mysteries, stories that I have been following for years, have suddenly become tired and uninteresting."
Vinland Map had me going around in circles
by JAY INGRAM
Toronto Star
<http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1071961807398&call_pageid=968332188774&col=Columnist977459474799>
"Last week, I acknowledged with disappointment that the Piltdown Man hoax might finally have ground to a halt, a great story that finally has run its course."
Nigeria's fatal anti-bullet test
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3328519.stm
"A traditional healer in Nigeria has died after an anti-bullet charm he prepared failed a potency test."
Nigerian herbalist shot dead as anti-bullet charm fails
Agence France-Press
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,8201957%255E29677,00.html
"A traditional doctor in central Nigeria has been shot dead by a patient who was testing the potency of an anti-bullet charm the herbalist had prepared for him, police told AFP on Wednesday."
World's most mysterious book may be a hoax
by JOHN WHITFIELD
Nature
http://www.nature.com/nsu/031215/031215-5.html
"A strange sixteenth-century book may be cunningly crafted nonsense, says a computer scientist. Gordon Rugg has used the techniques of Elizabethan espionage to recreate the Voynich manuscript, which has stumped code-breakers and linguists for nearly a century."
Cryptologists call mysterious manuscript a hoax
By Michael Woods
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/03355/253466.stm
"An ancient sorcerer's recipe for potions and cures, straight out of a Harry Potter adventure? An unbreakable secret code? Some message from a lost civilization -- or another planet?"
Lawton woman burns apartment to get rid of ghost
ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://kfor.com/Global/story.asp?S=1566470
"A Lawton woman is hospitalized after telling police she set fire to her apartment to get rid of a ghost living in the bathtub."
Nicaragua village in grip of madness
by Rupert Widdicombe
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1108463,00.html
"A team of doctors, psychiatrists, and anthropologists have reached a remote Miskito community in the jungles of northern Nicaragua where 60 people are suffering from a mysterious "collective madness"."
Malaysian villagers claim sighting of UFO
Agence France-Press
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1516&ncid=1516&e=5&u=/afp/20031216/od_afp/malaysia_ufo_031216190310
"An unidentified flying object was sighted hovering over a quiet village in northern Kedah state near the Thai border, the second such sighting there in two years, a report says."
Lawsuit alleges cult rebuff led to firings
By HARVEY RICE
Houston Chronicle
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2307067
"Supervisors who were members of a "new age" cult at an Exxon Mobil Corp. laboratory in Baytown harassed and fired workers who rebuffed cult recruitment efforts, according to a lawsuit filed by a former laboratory employee."
Squatter said to be evicted
By Paula Schleis
Akron Beacon Journal
http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/7528544.htm
"At first, crews renovating the 1909 home reported the sounds of footsteps and an unnerving sensation of being watched."
The Devil and Bill Ellis
By SCOTT McLEMEE
The Chronicle of Higher Education
http://chronicle.com/free/v50/i17/17a01801.htm
"As we zip around rural Pennsylvania in a Honda Odyssey van that is the color of dried blood, Bill Ellis recalls a time when his daughter worried about the books on the occult that were piling up in his study."
At 84, original 'abductee' still wants to believe
By BRAM EISENTHAL
Toronto Globe & Mail
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20031220/TAKEN20/TPScience/
"Betty Hill sits in her living room, an inquisitive, highly engaging woman of 84. Surrounded by the mementos and clutter of a lifetime that is waning as the cancer afflicting her progresses, she is serene, even as she reflects on her role in one of the strangest events of the 1960s, one that helped spawn a mass cult phenomenon."
The nature of miracles: Why do some patients manage to beat the odds?
By ALICIA CHANG
Associated Press
http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031221/APN/312210679
"If you ask why little Brandon Connor's tumor suddenly disappeared on the eve of his surgery, his doctors will try their best to explain."
Christmas presents to avoid
by Ben Goldacre
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/badscience/story/0,12980,1108849,00.html
"Our spies are everywhere and it seems last week's ludicrous "salt crystal lamp" is also being sold, of all places, in the Science Museum gift catalogue. Call me a pedant if you will, but I'm not sure it's entirely to the good of the scientific education of the nation for the the museum to be peddling made-up nonsense that advertises itself thus:"
Satirical Web site joke goes national
By JOHN MARTIN
Evansville Courier & Press
http://www.courierpress.com/ecp/news/article/0,1626,ECP_734_2519946,00.html
(see also <http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/20031218-9999_z1s18gallry.html>)
"A satirical Web site created by two Evansville natives fooled news organizations into thinking that a Purdue basketball scholarship meant for a 6-foot-6 -inch athlete was mistakenly awarded to a 5-foot-6-inch nerd."
Purdue-Related Hoax Goes National
by Brian Neubert
Gold & Black Illustrated
http://purdue.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=248163
"No, Boilermaker fans, there is no Jason Parker Smith or Jason Paul Smith. There are no Jason Smiths at all, at least as it pertains to Purdue's basketball recruiting efforts."
An urban legend invades Sports section
by Gina Lubrano
San Diego Union-Tribune
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/uniontrib/mon/opinion/news_mz1e22lubran.html
"Sports editor Chuck Scott is ready. He knows if Santa were to leave a stocking for the Sports department on Christmas morning, it probably would include a very large lump of coal. And it would be well-deserved."
Hoax about Purdue hoops reels in talk show host, newspaper
By Michael Pointer
Indianapolis Star
http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/103715-4790-036.html
"An Internet parody site and a national talk show host combined to make for an interesting week around the Purdue men's basketball office."
Millionaire's complex past delays day of reckoning
By Peter Franceschina
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-pfason13dec13,0,6624045.story
"Former Palm Beach millionaire Stewart Fason has lived many lives -- real estate investor, author, stockbroker, computer whiz, philanthropist, alternative-medicine guru and finally, wily fugitive."
Man held in Internet drug scam
Idaho Statesman
http://www.idahostatesman.com/story.asp?ID=56157
"A former Meridian resident who was a fugitive in Mexico for two years is in Ada County Jail, accused of using the Internet to falsely promote a cure for spinal cord injuries and other serious illnesses."
Trial set for man accused of selling phony cure to severely handicapped
Associated Press
http://www.ktvb.com/news/localnews/ktvbn-dec1203-trial.9ac9ea40.html
"The trial of a man accused of falsely promoting a cure for spinal injuries has been set for next month."
The Spam King
By J.M. KALIL
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2003/Dec-14-Sun-2003/news/22615610.html
"You probably don't know Bill Waggoner, but chances are good he has annoyed the hell out of you."
Missed flu shot? Try these options
By LIZ GREENAWALT
Greater Milwaukee Today
http://www.gmtoday.com/news/local_stories/December_03/12152003_09.asp
"You waited too long to get your flu shot. Talk around the neighborhood is that it's going to be a rough season. What will you do?"
Aura Quest
by ELIZABETH MANNING
Anchorage Daily News
http://www.adn.com/life/story/4524414p-4501031c.html
"Have you ever sensed someone was standing right behind you, even though you didn't hear or see the person approach?"
Doco provokes adult debate
By JANE CLIFTON
Dominion Post [New Zealand]
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2760961a1869,00.html
"TV One ran its Tuesday Expose documentary on homeopathy this week, and didn't you just fall upon it like a ravening beast?"
Bodine open to new ideas
By Greg Jones
Eastern Arizona Courier
http://www.eacourier.com/articles/2003/12/18/news/news11.txt
"Sheila Bodine has been living in the Valley for 31 years since she moved from Oakley, Idaho, to Thatcher at the age of 16."
Cold Comfort . . . Not!
by Janet Raloff
Science News
http://www.sciencenews.org/20031220/food.asp
"No doubt about it: We're in the throes of cold and flu season. Sniffles, coughs, sneezes, headaches, scratchy throats, loss of appetite, stuffy heads, and occasional vomiting can leave us feeling wretched for days to weeks on end. The youngest sufferers are especially miserable."
Seagrove loses bid to overturn ban on remedy
By Jeremy Laurance
The Independent
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/story.jsp?story=474885
"A campaign for herbal remedies led by the actress Jenny Seagrove failed yesterday in an attempt to overturn a government ban on kava kava, a natural tranquilliser."
The Duke of Dupery, Still Pulling the Wool
By JOSEPH P. FRIED
New York Times
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/21/nyregion/21FOLL.html?ex=1072587600&en=4f40c08a94415000&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE>
"After four decades as a major league hoaxer, Alan Abel says he is not through making news by faking news, and he holds out the possibility of concocting new escapades to hoodwink the public and news organizations."
Many Mainers use holistic arsenal to fight flu
By SELENA RICKS
Portland Press Herald
http://www.pressherald.com/homefam/stories/031221naturalflu.shtml
"Worried patients are phoning their doctors, heading to clinics, and basically panicking as the pernicious flu bug sends Americans to the hospital and creates a scare in Maine and across the nation."
Suspect asks for seized guns
By Athima Chansanchai
Baltimore Sun
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/carroll/bal-ca.tabassi22dec22,0,4618825.story
"Four months after police seized more than 80 weapons, including several machine guns, from a Carroll County firearms dealer's home, the man is asking for many of his guns back."
Exploring Nostradamus
by James F. Sweeney
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/107140864355621.xml
"If Nostradamus knew people would be talking about him 500 years after his birth, he didn't think it important enough to write about."
Believers versus skeptics
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/107140864955620.xml
"Standing against the shelves of books that seek to interpret and extol Nostradamus' prophecies is a book by James Randi, a magician and debunker of psychic phenomena."
Detroit Cops May Be Part Of Alleged Pyramid Scheme
WDIV
http://www.clickondetroit.com/money/2712072/detail.html
"Authorities are investigating to determine if some Detroit police officers are part of a group that's running an illegal pyramid scheme."
More Deny Beatles Reunion
by Gil Kaufman
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/newsarticle.asp?nid=19129
"Three days after an Internet auction site began offering what it claims is an erased tape of a secret 1976 Beatles reunion, the owner of the Los Angeles studio in which the band allegedly convened called the reunion "pop urban legend.""
Family Hopes Psychic Will Lead Them To Tabitha
WTVF
http://www.newschannel5.com/content/news/3118.asp
"The parents of Tabitha Tuders are flying to New York Tuesday morning. They hope a famous psychic will help them find their missing daughter."
Tuders Family Meet With Psychic
WTVF
http://www.newschannel5.com/content/news/3156.asp
"In an act of desperation, the parents of missing East Nashville teen Tabitha Tuders went to a psychic on a television show hoping for some clue where to find their missing daughter, but they've returned heartbroken."
He stays a step ahead of hackers
By Ellen Lee
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/7548120.htm
"Growing up on a ranch near Farmington, William Orvis protected cattle from predators. Now he defends the Energy Department's computers, keeping intruders and Internet attacks at bay."
Disneyland hoax `bomber' is dead
BY JOHN MCDONALD
Orange County Register
http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/nation/7516649.htm
"A man who died in a car explosion at a Santa Ana mobile home park was identified Tuesday as Liyanase Fernando, 37, who posed as a suicide bomber in an August 2002 Disneyland attack hoax."
'Email hoax attempted to deter drunk driving'
The Star [South Africa]
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=181&art_id=vn20031217040553649C787084&set_id=1
"KwaZulu-Natal traffic officials have dismissed an email regarding drunk driving penalties as a hoax."
Palace 'ghost' caught on camera
Associated Press
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/12/19/hampton.ghost.ap/
"Are there ghostly goings-on at Henry VIII's palace, or is that hazy image of a fellow in fancy robes just a bit of Christmas cheer?"
New 'ghost hunter' group being organized in Keyser
By DEL MALKIE
Mineral Daily News-Tribune
http://www.newstribune.info/articles/2003/12/23/news/news02.txt
"The "ghost hunters" are active in Mineral County again, with a new group being organized to investigate and evaluate continuing reports from residents who claim they often "seem to feel the presence" in their home of individuals from another spiritual milieu."
Magicians mad about Houdini trick
By Steven Hyden
Appleton Post-Crescent
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_13530948.shtml
"A rift between the Outagamie Museum and magic lovers over an upcoming Harry Houdini exhibit might have negative repercussions for the area's convention and tourism industry."
The great vaccination debate
By PAUL TAYLOR
Toronto Globe & Mail
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20031220/VACCINE20/TPHealth/
"Vaccines have become modern-day suits of armour, protecting humanity from deadly pathogens that used to cut us down in great numbers. But with many common illnesses now apparently vanquished, some parents question the need for vaccinating their children, fearing the potential side effects of the shots more than the diseases themselves."
Study aims to eliminate witchcraft killings
By Sizwe samaYende
The Star [South Africa]
http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=129&fArticleId=312973
"Jealousy and greed are at the root of "witch" killings, an international research report claims."
Woman found guilty of murdering 75-year-old Parma man she cared for
by Scott Hiaasen
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/107183012348591.xml
"No one knows how John McEwen came to drink the poison that killed him last year."
Santeria powder making mess at money-laundering trial site
BY LARRY LEBOWITZ
Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/7503584.htm#top
"Someone is apparently trying to give defense attorney J.C. Elso a supernatural leg up as his federal money-laundering trial hits the homestretch."
Third-Grader's Candy Cane Gift Bags Spark Controversy
KXAS
http://www.nbc5i.com/holidays/2714679/detail.html
(see also <http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/candycane.asp>)
"Gift bags and candy canes are staples of the holiday season. At least that's what one Plano third-grader thought when he arrived at school with gift bags of candy canes for his classmates."
Life on the Lam
By Matt Canham
Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/2003/Dec/12142003/utah/utah.asp
"Holding her toddler, Aubree Riegel answered a knock at her parents' door. Her father, his hands in shackles, was standing on the porch between two FBI agents."
Tale of 'The Indian Who Died 13 Times' an interesting one
By RON SIMON
Mansfield News Journal
http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/news/stories/20031221/localnews/78876.html
"Tom Lyons was one ugly man. And he was unfortunate enough to have died 13 times."
Jelly bracelets still innocent in this area, say school officials
BY NATHANIEL WEST
Mattoon Journal Gazette
http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2003/12/22/news/news03.txt
"While toys from the '80s are all the rage this Christmas, school officials are glad a supposedly sinister twist on another "retro" fad has yet to manifest among youths in this region."
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/skepticsearch/
-------
If you'd like to support the Skeptic NewsSearch, please consider making a donation via PayPal - <http://tinyurl.com/x81m>
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Bunkum!
By Michael Shermer
Scientific American
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa006&colID=13&articleID=0001547E-EECE-1FD3-A7EA83414B7F012C
"Those of us who practice skepticism for a living often find ourselves tiptoeing politely around the PC police, who think that all beliefs and opinions are equal. Thus, when asked, "Are you a debunker?" my initial instinct is to dissemble and mutter something about being an investigator, as if that will soften the blow."
What Tyler Terror Bust?
BY LEE NICHOLS
Austin Chronicle
http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2003-12-19/pols_naked6.html
"Imagine this: The FBI nails a couple of major terrorism suspects, in possession of a weapon of mass destruction -- a sodium cyanide bomb -- as well as about 100 other bombs, bomb components, machine guns, chemical agents, and 500,000 rounds of ammunition. Additionally, they find documents detailing an apparent scheme to actually use these weapons, some indicating other suspects might still be at large. And to top it all off, the suspects plead guilty."
Off Target
By Dan McGraw
Fort Worth Weekly
http://www.fwweekly.com/issues/2003-12-17/metropolis.html
"Earlier this year, David Zellers, president of the Denton chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America, received an e-mail from his sister in Ohio. The e-mail was of the chain variety, saying that Target Corporation, parent company of the discount department store chain, was anti-veteran. Among other things, the e-mail stated that Target chose gay and lesbian causes over veterans' causes, was owned by the French, and did not support the United States Marine Corps' Toys for Tots campaign."
A sad farewell to Piltdown Man mystery
by JAY INGRAM
Toronto Star
<http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1071361744522&call_pageid=968332188774&col=Columnist977459474799>
"It's a time of crisis for me: Two of the best science mysteries, stories that I have been following for years, have suddenly become tired and uninteresting."
Vinland Map had me going around in circles
by JAY INGRAM
Toronto Star
<http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1071961807398&call_pageid=968332188774&col=Columnist977459474799>
"Last week, I acknowledged with disappointment that the Piltdown Man hoax might finally have ground to a halt, a great story that finally has run its course."
Nigeria's fatal anti-bullet test
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3328519.stm
"A traditional healer in Nigeria has died after an anti-bullet charm he prepared failed a potency test."
Nigerian herbalist shot dead as anti-bullet charm fails
Agence France-Press
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,8201957%255E29677,00.html
"A traditional doctor in central Nigeria has been shot dead by a patient who was testing the potency of an anti-bullet charm the herbalist had prepared for him, police told AFP on Wednesday."
World's most mysterious book may be a hoax
by JOHN WHITFIELD
Nature
http://www.nature.com/nsu/031215/031215-5.html
"A strange sixteenth-century book may be cunningly crafted nonsense, says a computer scientist. Gordon Rugg has used the techniques of Elizabethan espionage to recreate the Voynich manuscript, which has stumped code-breakers and linguists for nearly a century."
Cryptologists call mysterious manuscript a hoax
By Michael Woods
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/03355/253466.stm
"An ancient sorcerer's recipe for potions and cures, straight out of a Harry Potter adventure? An unbreakable secret code? Some message from a lost civilization -- or another planet?"
Lawton woman burns apartment to get rid of ghost
ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://kfor.com/Global/story.asp?S=1566470
"A Lawton woman is hospitalized after telling police she set fire to her apartment to get rid of a ghost living in the bathtub."
Nicaragua village in grip of madness
by Rupert Widdicombe
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1108463,00.html
"A team of doctors, psychiatrists, and anthropologists have reached a remote Miskito community in the jungles of northern Nicaragua where 60 people are suffering from a mysterious "collective madness"."
Malaysian villagers claim sighting of UFO
Agence France-Press
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1516&ncid=1516&e=5&u=/afp/20031216/od_afp/malaysia_ufo_031216190310
"An unidentified flying object was sighted hovering over a quiet village in northern Kedah state near the Thai border, the second such sighting there in two years, a report says."
Lawsuit alleges cult rebuff led to firings
By HARVEY RICE
Houston Chronicle
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2307067
"Supervisors who were members of a "new age" cult at an Exxon Mobil Corp. laboratory in Baytown harassed and fired workers who rebuffed cult recruitment efforts, according to a lawsuit filed by a former laboratory employee."
Squatter said to be evicted
By Paula Schleis
Akron Beacon Journal
http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/7528544.htm
"At first, crews renovating the 1909 home reported the sounds of footsteps and an unnerving sensation of being watched."
The Devil and Bill Ellis
By SCOTT McLEMEE
The Chronicle of Higher Education
http://chronicle.com/free/v50/i17/17a01801.htm
"As we zip around rural Pennsylvania in a Honda Odyssey van that is the color of dried blood, Bill Ellis recalls a time when his daughter worried about the books on the occult that were piling up in his study."
At 84, original 'abductee' still wants to believe
By BRAM EISENTHAL
Toronto Globe & Mail
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20031220/TAKEN20/TPScience/
"Betty Hill sits in her living room, an inquisitive, highly engaging woman of 84. Surrounded by the mementos and clutter of a lifetime that is waning as the cancer afflicting her progresses, she is serene, even as she reflects on her role in one of the strangest events of the 1960s, one that helped spawn a mass cult phenomenon."
The nature of miracles: Why do some patients manage to beat the odds?
By ALICIA CHANG
Associated Press
http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031221/APN/312210679
"If you ask why little Brandon Connor's tumor suddenly disappeared on the eve of his surgery, his doctors will try their best to explain."
Christmas presents to avoid
by Ben Goldacre
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/badscience/story/0,12980,1108849,00.html
"Our spies are everywhere and it seems last week's ludicrous "salt crystal lamp" is also being sold, of all places, in the Science Museum gift catalogue. Call me a pedant if you will, but I'm not sure it's entirely to the good of the scientific education of the nation for the the museum to be peddling made-up nonsense that advertises itself thus:"
Satirical Web site joke goes national
By JOHN MARTIN
Evansville Courier & Press
http://www.courierpress.com/ecp/news/article/0,1626,ECP_734_2519946,00.html
(see also <http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/20031218-9999_z1s18gallry.html>)
"A satirical Web site created by two Evansville natives fooled news organizations into thinking that a Purdue basketball scholarship meant for a 6-foot-6 -inch athlete was mistakenly awarded to a 5-foot-6-inch nerd."
Purdue-Related Hoax Goes National
by Brian Neubert
Gold & Black Illustrated
http://purdue.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=248163
"No, Boilermaker fans, there is no Jason Parker Smith or Jason Paul Smith. There are no Jason Smiths at all, at least as it pertains to Purdue's basketball recruiting efforts."
An urban legend invades Sports section
by Gina Lubrano
San Diego Union-Tribune
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/uniontrib/mon/opinion/news_mz1e22lubran.html
"Sports editor Chuck Scott is ready. He knows if Santa were to leave a stocking for the Sports department on Christmas morning, it probably would include a very large lump of coal. And it would be well-deserved."
Hoax about Purdue hoops reels in talk show host, newspaper
By Michael Pointer
Indianapolis Star
http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/103715-4790-036.html
"An Internet parody site and a national talk show host combined to make for an interesting week around the Purdue men's basketball office."
Millionaire's complex past delays day of reckoning
By Peter Franceschina
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-pfason13dec13,0,6624045.story
"Former Palm Beach millionaire Stewart Fason has lived many lives -- real estate investor, author, stockbroker, computer whiz, philanthropist, alternative-medicine guru and finally, wily fugitive."
Man held in Internet drug scam
Idaho Statesman
http://www.idahostatesman.com/story.asp?ID=56157
"A former Meridian resident who was a fugitive in Mexico for two years is in Ada County Jail, accused of using the Internet to falsely promote a cure for spinal cord injuries and other serious illnesses."
Trial set for man accused of selling phony cure to severely handicapped
Associated Press
http://www.ktvb.com/news/localnews/ktvbn-dec1203-trial.9ac9ea40.html
"The trial of a man accused of falsely promoting a cure for spinal injuries has been set for next month."
The Spam King
By J.M. KALIL
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2003/Dec-14-Sun-2003/news/22615610.html
"You probably don't know Bill Waggoner, but chances are good he has annoyed the hell out of you."
Missed flu shot? Try these options
By LIZ GREENAWALT
Greater Milwaukee Today
http://www.gmtoday.com/news/local_stories/December_03/12152003_09.asp
"You waited too long to get your flu shot. Talk around the neighborhood is that it's going to be a rough season. What will you do?"
Aura Quest
by ELIZABETH MANNING
Anchorage Daily News
http://www.adn.com/life/story/4524414p-4501031c.html
"Have you ever sensed someone was standing right behind you, even though you didn't hear or see the person approach?"
Doco provokes adult debate
By JANE CLIFTON
Dominion Post [New Zealand]
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2760961a1869,00.html
"TV One ran its Tuesday Expose documentary on homeopathy this week, and didn't you just fall upon it like a ravening beast?"
Bodine open to new ideas
By Greg Jones
Eastern Arizona Courier
http://www.eacourier.com/articles/2003/12/18/news/news11.txt
"Sheila Bodine has been living in the Valley for 31 years since she moved from Oakley, Idaho, to Thatcher at the age of 16."
Cold Comfort . . . Not!
by Janet Raloff
Science News
http://www.sciencenews.org/20031220/food.asp
"No doubt about it: We're in the throes of cold and flu season. Sniffles, coughs, sneezes, headaches, scratchy throats, loss of appetite, stuffy heads, and occasional vomiting can leave us feeling wretched for days to weeks on end. The youngest sufferers are especially miserable."
Seagrove loses bid to overturn ban on remedy
By Jeremy Laurance
The Independent
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/story.jsp?story=474885
"A campaign for herbal remedies led by the actress Jenny Seagrove failed yesterday in an attempt to overturn a government ban on kava kava, a natural tranquilliser."
The Duke of Dupery, Still Pulling the Wool
By JOSEPH P. FRIED
New York Times
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/21/nyregion/21FOLL.html?ex=1072587600&en=4f40c08a94415000&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE>
"After four decades as a major league hoaxer, Alan Abel says he is not through making news by faking news, and he holds out the possibility of concocting new escapades to hoodwink the public and news organizations."
Many Mainers use holistic arsenal to fight flu
By SELENA RICKS
Portland Press Herald
http://www.pressherald.com/homefam/stories/031221naturalflu.shtml
"Worried patients are phoning their doctors, heading to clinics, and basically panicking as the pernicious flu bug sends Americans to the hospital and creates a scare in Maine and across the nation."
Suspect asks for seized guns
By Athima Chansanchai
Baltimore Sun
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/carroll/bal-ca.tabassi22dec22,0,4618825.story
"Four months after police seized more than 80 weapons, including several machine guns, from a Carroll County firearms dealer's home, the man is asking for many of his guns back."
Exploring Nostradamus
by James F. Sweeney
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/107140864355621.xml
"If Nostradamus knew people would be talking about him 500 years after his birth, he didn't think it important enough to write about."
Believers versus skeptics
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/107140864955620.xml
"Standing against the shelves of books that seek to interpret and extol Nostradamus' prophecies is a book by James Randi, a magician and debunker of psychic phenomena."
Detroit Cops May Be Part Of Alleged Pyramid Scheme
WDIV
http://www.clickondetroit.com/money/2712072/detail.html
"Authorities are investigating to determine if some Detroit police officers are part of a group that's running an illegal pyramid scheme."
More Deny Beatles Reunion
by Gil Kaufman
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/newsarticle.asp?nid=19129
"Three days after an Internet auction site began offering what it claims is an erased tape of a secret 1976 Beatles reunion, the owner of the Los Angeles studio in which the band allegedly convened called the reunion "pop urban legend.""
Family Hopes Psychic Will Lead Them To Tabitha
WTVF
http://www.newschannel5.com/content/news/3118.asp
"The parents of Tabitha Tuders are flying to New York Tuesday morning. They hope a famous psychic will help them find their missing daughter."
Tuders Family Meet With Psychic
WTVF
http://www.newschannel5.com/content/news/3156.asp
"In an act of desperation, the parents of missing East Nashville teen Tabitha Tuders went to a psychic on a television show hoping for some clue where to find their missing daughter, but they've returned heartbroken."
He stays a step ahead of hackers
By Ellen Lee
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/7548120.htm
"Growing up on a ranch near Farmington, William Orvis protected cattle from predators. Now he defends the Energy Department's computers, keeping intruders and Internet attacks at bay."
Disneyland hoax `bomber' is dead
BY JOHN MCDONALD
Orange County Register
http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/nation/7516649.htm
"A man who died in a car explosion at a Santa Ana mobile home park was identified Tuesday as Liyanase Fernando, 37, who posed as a suicide bomber in an August 2002 Disneyland attack hoax."
'Email hoax attempted to deter drunk driving'
The Star [South Africa]
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=181&art_id=vn20031217040553649C787084&set_id=1
"KwaZulu-Natal traffic officials have dismissed an email regarding drunk driving penalties as a hoax."
Palace 'ghost' caught on camera
Associated Press
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/12/19/hampton.ghost.ap/
"Are there ghostly goings-on at Henry VIII's palace, or is that hazy image of a fellow in fancy robes just a bit of Christmas cheer?"
New 'ghost hunter' group being organized in Keyser
By DEL MALKIE
Mineral Daily News-Tribune
http://www.newstribune.info/articles/2003/12/23/news/news02.txt
"The "ghost hunters" are active in Mineral County again, with a new group being organized to investigate and evaluate continuing reports from residents who claim they often "seem to feel the presence" in their home of individuals from another spiritual milieu."
Magicians mad about Houdini trick
By Steven Hyden
Appleton Post-Crescent
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_13530948.shtml
"A rift between the Outagamie Museum and magic lovers over an upcoming Harry Houdini exhibit might have negative repercussions for the area's convention and tourism industry."
The great vaccination debate
By PAUL TAYLOR
Toronto Globe & Mail
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20031220/VACCINE20/TPHealth/
"Vaccines have become modern-day suits of armour, protecting humanity from deadly pathogens that used to cut us down in great numbers. But with many common illnesses now apparently vanquished, some parents question the need for vaccinating their children, fearing the potential side effects of the shots more than the diseases themselves."
Study aims to eliminate witchcraft killings
By Sizwe samaYende
The Star [South Africa]
http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=129&fArticleId=312973
"Jealousy and greed are at the root of "witch" killings, an international research report claims."
Woman found guilty of murdering 75-year-old Parma man she cared for
by Scott Hiaasen
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/107183012348591.xml
"No one knows how John McEwen came to drink the poison that killed him last year."
Santeria powder making mess at money-laundering trial site
BY LARRY LEBOWITZ
Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/7503584.htm#top
"Someone is apparently trying to give defense attorney J.C. Elso a supernatural leg up as his federal money-laundering trial hits the homestretch."
Third-Grader's Candy Cane Gift Bags Spark Controversy
KXAS
http://www.nbc5i.com/holidays/2714679/detail.html
(see also <http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/candycane.asp>)
"Gift bags and candy canes are staples of the holiday season. At least that's what one Plano third-grader thought when he arrived at school with gift bags of candy canes for his classmates."
Life on the Lam
By Matt Canham
Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/2003/Dec/12142003/utah/utah.asp
"Holding her toddler, Aubree Riegel answered a knock at her parents' door. Her father, his hands in shackles, was standing on the porch between two FBI agents."
Tale of 'The Indian Who Died 13 Times' an interesting one
By RON SIMON
Mansfield News Journal
http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/news/stories/20031221/localnews/78876.html
"Tom Lyons was one ugly man. And he was unfortunate enough to have died 13 times."
Jelly bracelets still innocent in this area, say school officials
BY NATHANIEL WEST
Mattoon Journal Gazette
http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2003/12/22/news/news03.txt
"While toys from the '80s are all the rage this Christmas, school officials are glad a supposedly sinister twist on another "retro" fad has yet to manifest among youths in this region."
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