-Caveat Lector-
SkeptiNews 990710b - - - - - - - - - - - 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 felonious financiers were jailed during production of this bulletin.
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# Mormon humor? Get serious. SALT LAKE CITY (AP) A new book of Mormon humor?
The very idea draws horselaughs from some members of the faith known for
seriousness & sobriety. Yet it's true- and the publisher is the LDS Church
itself. "We tried hard not to offend anybody" in "Best-Loved Humor of the
LDS People" this spring. An example: "Question: How are bishops chosen?"
"Answer: The stake leaders find the most righteous, spiritual, most loved
person in the ward - and then they call her husband." Head for the Improv:
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560232362-de7
: Is your belief system funny? Is your humor gentle, vicious, absurd? Does
your belief system generate many comedians, as Catholicism and Judaism do?
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# Alternative Medicine's Explosive Growth. (WebMD) Alternative medicine is
big business. Consider this analysis of data from 1997: 40% of Americans
used some type of alt.medicine. Total visits to alt-med practitioners
increased by almost 50% from 1990 and exceeded visits to all primary-care
physicians. We spent about $21.2 billion on alternative health care, more
than half paid out-of-pocket. But the New England Journal of Medicine has
lambasted alternative remedies as being irrational, insufficiently tested
and sometimes dangerous. "There cannot be two kinds of medicine." Either
it works or it don't: http://cnn.com/HEALTH/alternative/9907/08/alt.savvy
Do you prefer medicinal treatments that have or haven't been shown to work?
Do you make a good living fleecing suckers with ineffective treatments? How?
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# ALTERNATIVE FUNDING: STONY BROOK DEBATES ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE. SUNY Stony
Brook, already under fire for its controversial Center for Complementary/
Alternative Medicine, is now debating establishment of an Independent
Practice Association composed of alt.med practitioners. Members of the IPA
would be credentialed by SUNY and could negotiate with managed-care firms.
Promoters argue that since people already use alt.medicine you may as well
certify practitioners. But critics cry foul: How can a state university
endorse treatments with no scientific basis, especially when the idea for
the IPA comes from the owner of a line of herbal products? ###
: Should gov't certify faith-healers, homeopaths, Xian Sci practitioners,
Psychic Surgeons, phrenologists, iridiologists? Do you trust gov't that far?
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# THIRD VOICE RIPS HOLES IN WEB. Web utility Third Voice not only lets users
open their minds through lively debate -- it can also open their browsers
to security risks. And you thought is was just about interactive empower-
ment, eh? http://wired.com/news/news/email/tip/technology/story/20636.html
# Back Orifice - it's baaak! The malicious Back Orifice (B.O.) Trojan-horse
virus is on the loose. B.O. gives hackers unauthorized access to desktops
of victims' Win95 & Win98 PCs that are connected to the Internet. "Cult
of the Dead Cow," which makes B.O., announces the release its new Back
Orifice 2000 on July 9. The new, improved version of the virus enables
hackers to write plug-ins. And, unlike its predecessor, B.O. 2000 works
on Windows NT also. To protect yourself, make sure you're running a good
anti-virus program and updating it regularly. Or put a condom on your
modem, eh? http://www.winmag.com/people/melgan/winletter/45.htm
: Do you like to penetrate remote desktops and servers? Is it a sexual act,
or violent assaultive behavior, or just good clean fun? Do you have B.O.?
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# Napoleon's footsteps echo in Israel. JAFFA, Israel (AP) The bloody battle
for Jaffa's twisted alleyways ended. As cannon smoke drifted away, Muslim
defenders of the ancient port surrendered. French troops prodded 3000 POWs
to a beachfront. Napoleon gave his order: shoot them, bayonet them, drown
them. The sea turned red. For modern Palestinians, the 1799 invasion and
massacre are symptomatic of 200 years of sometimes catastrophic European
meddling in the Holy Land. Memory of Napoleon is still alive for Arabs in
Jaffa: http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560234055-59e
: Does your belief system promote the slaughter of your opponents? Are you
surprised that their descendants may look unfavorably upon you? Do you care?
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SkeptiBriefs:
# THIS WEEK ON THIS WAY OUT: Reflections on 30 years of liberation & battles
yet ahead at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade ... and in NewsWrap,
Hormel is finally sworn for Luxembourg, but Davies loses his Welsh Labour
leadership and an openly-gay Indonesian candidate loses his MP bid, but a
Namibian court welcomes a lesbian partner's immigration. Your source for
lesbigay news & information: http://www.planetout.com/radio/programs/two/
# Alleged polygamist gets 10 years. SALT LAKE CITY (AP) A judge sentenced a
prominent polygamist to up to 10 years in prison, the maximum sentence,
for having sex with his 16-year-old niece. The man was convicted after
his niece testified that she married him in a secret ceremony. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560238185-b7a
# Decoding the mysteries of ancient Egypt. Two hundred years ago the world's
most famous piece of rock was discovered on the muddy banks of the Nile.
It was known at the time to be an important find - but it was not until
more than 20 years later that the Rosetta Stone's real significance became
clear. http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid_389000/389573.stm
# Dinosaur bones global warming clue. WELLINGTON, N.Z. (AP) Discoveries in
Antarctica of bones from the time of dinosaurs are exciting scientists
pondering the mysteries of past global warming and continental drift. A
geological expedition has unearthed "huge deposits" of dinosaur-age bones
in remote Antarctic areas. Some resemble popular images of Scotland's Loch
Ness monster. http://infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560233945-089
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"SO, DO YOU FEEL LUCKY, PUNK? Now that the courts have removed one of the
last vestiges of self-preservation from the common man's arsenal, I don't
know what I'll keep in my glove compartment for protection anymore. Yes,
that's right, Nicholas Anthony Vitalich was charged with assault with a
deadly weapon after he slugged his girlfriend with a tuna. I've kept a
fish in my glove compartment for years and it's been quite a comfort when
traveling alone at night on a dark country road. In 20 years I've only had
to pull it in self-defense twice, but both times, I was mighty glad I had
it. There's nothing like smacking a two-bit criminal in the face with a
week-old Ling cod to stop a car-jacking. Oh well, I'm not too worried. As
soon as the Republicans hear fish have been classified as deadly weapons,
they'll fight throughout our next congress to protect our right to carry
concealed carp." --Cam Parry, editor, FORESTVILLE GAZETTE
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