Posts tagged “myths”

It Could Be All Downhill from Here:

Cards Against Humanity Gives You Your Fucking Money Back

  • In any other universe, this would be the biggest story of the month. But in our current dystopian hellscape, it barely made the news: The US Justice Department withheld testimony that POTUS sexually abused a girl when she was 13 or 14. – via @adamjschwarz
  • In any other universe, this would be the second-biggest story of the month. But in our current dystopian hellscape, it barely made the news: The US Secret Service shot and killed an armed man who entered the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago.
  • Companies with backbones should be supported.
  • Wired is reporting that a popular right-wing account that called a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes “a masterpiece” appears to be run by a White House staffer.
  • What is clear is that Kansas Republicans have weaponized the government to target a tiny subset of an already small portion of the population to score political points and institutionalize cruelty.
  • Someone referred to VPOTUS as the Pillsbury Proud Boy and that is simply some top-tier comedy right there.
  • An analysis reveals that the social media accounts of Nicki Minaj, which are now advocating for conservative causes, has been amplified by an army of bots and coordinated activity.
  • U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas resisted growing calls from fellow congressional Republicans to resign over a report of an alleged affair with a former staffer who later died after she set herself on fire.
  • More than a dozen states sued the current administration over its rollback of vaccine recommendations for children, calling the move an illegal threat to public health.

To paraphrase FDR’s grandfather:

Not all conservatives are evil men.
But all evil men are conservatives.

@BabyCenter has a great list of thirteen myths about colds and the flu. Remember: Only a cold virus can give you a cold. Being cold can’t make you sick!

Naming Legends

I know you want to believe it. I know that it came from a trustworthy source — your sister, your cousin, your aunt — who would never lie to you. I know it is almost plausible. But, no. Your aunt did not have twins in her class named Orange Jello and Lemon Jello. Your sister

Metafilter Mythbuster?

One of my favorite sites is Metafilter (aka “mefi”). I found it way back in ’99 and became a member in March of ’00. For years it has consistently been wonderful. The users are infinitely more mature and intelligent than the ones at digg. It’s really quite incredible how mefi has managed to stay so

No Champagne for Shula and the Boys

And so another childhood belief is disproved. I had always liked the oft-told tale of the surviving members of the ’72 Dolphins sending a case of champagne to the team that beats the last unbeaten NFL team each season. Apparently it’s simply another urban legend. I followed a link from Pop Culture Junk Mail to

Urban Myths

From the “Frequently Asked Questions” page at the California Highway Patrol web site: I have heard that some gangs are initiating new members by driving with their headlights off and when people flash their lights at them, they must shoot the drivers of the cars who do this. Is this true? Ha!

Miss Cleo

Yes! This snip from NextDraft makes me very happy: Missouri has filed lawsuits against the psychic Miss Cleo (if you have ever watched television, you know her) charging her with consumer fraud. According to the state’s attorney general: ‘Miss Cleo should have seen this coming. It doesn’t take a crystal ball to realize that ripping

More Debunking

The Urban Legend Combat Kit is a free collection of canned responses to help you combat Internet myths and urban legends. When someone sends you an urban legend, just cut and paste the appropriate response from this site. Another fine link via Rebecca’s Pocket

fake facts

I’m a big fan of urban legends. Well. Okay. I’m a big fan of debunking urban legends. (Stop the bunking!) I don’t do much actual debunkment myself, rather I tend to inform people when what they are telling me is an urban legend or where they can go to learn if I am really risking

Disney Myths

More Debunking Fun! Claim: The closure and removal of Disneyland’s Skyway in November of 1994 was prompted by a guest’s having fallen from the ride several months earlier. Status: False. Claim: Several guests have lost their lives on various Disneyland attractions. Status: True. Claim: One of the castle spires on the cover of Disney’s The

What Is This?

davidgagne.net is the personal weblog of me, David Vincent Gagne. I've been publishing here since 1999, which makes this one of the oldest continuously-updated websites on the Internet.

bartender.live

A few years ago I was trying to determine what cocktails I could make with the alcohol I had at home. I searched the App Store but couldn't find an app that would let me do that, so I built one.

Hemingway

You can read dozens of essays and articles and find hundreds of links to other sites with stories and information about Ernest Hemingway in The Hemingway Collection.