-Caveat Lector-
SkeptiNews 990708c - - - - - - - - - - - All The News That's Fit To Question
: Passages starting with ':' are editorial comments to provoke discussion.
: Nothing contained herein is ever endorsed for truth, accuracy or meaning.
: No paranormal speculations were harmed during production of this bulletin.
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# I WAS A HOOKER FOR HEAVEN IN AN EVIL SEX CULT. "All they care about is
power and money -- even if it means getting girls into prostitution."
Miriam Williams spent 15 years as a member of a bizarre sex cult called
Children of God, sleeping with countless men in the twisted notion that
it "would show them God's love." The group, which is still flourishing,
had 18,000 members at one time, including Fleetwood Mac guitarist Jeremy
Spencer and dead-by-overdose film star River Phoenix, whose parents were
members. Join up now: http://www.nationalenquirer.com/stories/10599.html
: Does your belief system recruit members using sex & drugs & rock'n'roll,
money, promises of eternal life or real-world power or cleaner complexion?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
# Pagan Leaders Champion Religious Freedom in Military. Calling for inter-
faith dialogue and the affirmation of religious freedom as an inalienable
human right, the leaders rejected attempts by Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) and
other US gov't officials to ban the practice of Wicca on military bases.
"Wicca is a constitutionally protected religion, legally established in
the U.S. for more than a quarter-century. If Rep. Barr and others succeed
in outlawing this religion, what faith is safe?" asked Rev. Selena Fox.
http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/Current_Releases/0704-101.htm
: Does your belief system promote banning competing belief systems? Should
your belief system be banned? Should all belief systems be banned? Why not?
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# Mideast Misses the Net. Censorship, taxes, and traditional Muslim mores
have curbed Net use throughout much of the Middle East. A human rights
organization reports on the restrictions.
@ Human Rights Watch: http://www.hrw.org/
# See also: Least Connected Nation Status:
http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/16904.html
: Does your belief system or culture prevent you from participating in the
global culture and economy? Are you non-competitive? Will you evolve or die?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
# Casteism alien to Tamil culture. COIMBATORE, India. Casteism is a borrowed
concept that had no place in ancient Tamil culture, Mr. K. Anbazhagan,
Education Minister, explained. He said that although clans existed from
early times, Tamils did not ostracize any section of people or treat them
as untouchables. Casteism was the product of alien cultures having a bane-
ful influence on the Dravidian way of life. Imposed by Aryan invaders:
http://www.indiaserver.com/thehindu/1999/07/05/stories/0405223a.htm
: Does your belief system promote social segregation, isolation, ostracism?
Do you favor apartheid, castes, separation for social control? Will you win?
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# Cult disappears to find spaceship. At least 40 members of a cult have gone
missing in the mountains of Colombia, when they apparently went to meet a
spacecraft they believed would save them from catastrophes at the end of
the millennium. The alarm was raised after the Gnostic Church Stella Maris
cult, from Cartagena Colombia, did not return on Monday from a spiritual
retreat. Colombian cops are searching the north Sierra Nevada mountains.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.html?in_review_id=154116
: Has your cult ever gone missing? Would anyone miss you? Will the Galactic
Brotherhood save you? Will they save anyone else?
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# Cult leader: Praise t'Lord & pass t'malnutrition. Debra Geileskey solemnly
told her followers in the Magnificat Meal Movement that The Lord had told
her to diet on the Eucharist. Over 14 months, the MMM guru claimed to have
eaten nothing but "holy" wafers, except on 33 days when God told her she
could eat normally. When caught with junk food, she blamed Satanic decept-
ion. Mrs Geileskey, an ex-teacher, has a worldwide following of thousands,
claims to see Jesus & the Virgin Mary and to report messages from God. Mrs
Geileskey's husband Gordon says his wife has prophesied that she will die
on Sept 9 (9th day of the 9th month of '99) and that fire will destroy the
MMM headquarters. He fears a Jonestown-style mass suicide. Waco redux? BBQ
time? Hot diggidy: http://www.smh.com.au/news/9907/03/text/pageone4.html
: Are you deceived by Satan much? Do you follow a holy-wafer-and-water diet?
Are you fat anyway? Is your head? Are mass suicides always gov't-promoted??
Do you have thousands of followers? Do they give you cash, food, drugs, sex?
Will you miss'em when they're gone? When will you be called to heaven? Now?
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# Inside a Virus Writer's Mind. Hackers who author the programs that infect
PCs are not all adult sociopaths or adolescent dropouts. But they *are*
usually male and well-to-do. "People write viruses to feel empowered" -
see http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/20624.html
# See also: Only You Can Prevent Cybercrime [ya, sure]:
http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/20609.html
@ Black Hat Briefings cybersecurity confab: http://blackhat.com/
: Is hacking/cracking/viruswriting a cultic practice? Do people join cults
for empowerment? Do cults create crop circles, alien implants, awful music?
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SkeptiLinks:
# Demonic dog attacks girl, 3, rips her face from skull:
http://vh1459.infi.net/region/docs/dog070899.htm
# Case against gay journalist dropped - insufficient evidence:
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560216919-5e6
# White supremacist distributed leaflets, wrote letters to his college
newspaper: http://www7.mercurycenter.com/premium/nation/docs/suspect05.htm
# Kuwaiti women to fill combat posts - can vote and hold office too:
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560214418-877
@ Profiles in Porkage: Book celebrates Spam - "serious Spam scholarship":
http://www.pioneerplanet.com/seven-days/3/news/docs/018275.htm
@ WWF CONSERVATION ACTION NETWORK: http://takeaction.worldwildlife.org
# Some nuke plants still need Y2K work - 35 of 103 in US aren't done:
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560218325-96a
# Also: List of nuclear plants not Y2K ready, see
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560218354-f7f
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"Drawing on my fine command of language, I said nothing. --anon.
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