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Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Enough Already!
This week, I already have been buried under an avalanche of apocryphal hoaxes, rumors, and urban legends. It's almost like being trapped in the editorial HQ of The National Enquirer. I have read that U.S. Senators and Representatives don't participate in Social Security. I've read that Senator Hillary Clinton deliberately insulted members of the Gold Star Mothers (mothers of slain military personnel). I've posted — to this blog — a doctored image from the Hubble Telescope. I've been asked to pray for a nonexistent cancer victim. The list of stuff goes on and on. At the very least, this blog has never reported that Arnold Schwarznegger is either an alien or Hitler's grandson.
There is a valuable Internet resource for checking hoaxes, rumors, and urban legends. After bookmarking the site for Urban Legends, enter something like "Hillary Clinton and Gold Star Mothers" in the search window. Shazam! The story is nonsense. Enter something like "Pray for Cindy Hogan" in the search window. Pow! There may be a number of Cindy Hogans, but none fit the story circulating endlessly as forwarded e-mail. Enter "Congress and Social Security" for the truth, not the nonsense. Ditto for "The Eye of God and the Hubble Telescope." The beat goes on.
If this is (fair & balanced) honesty, so be it.