Intelligent donation?
By Farhad Manjoo
Salon
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2005/08/26/gatesfoundation/index.html

"No one could deny that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation cares
deeply about science. The foundation, by far the nation's largest
philanthropic organization, donates hundreds of millions of dollars
every year to promising medical research, including vaccines and
treatments for malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis. The foundation also
cares about education. In 2004, it donated $720 million to improve
American schools. Both Bill and Melinda Gates themselves frequently
argue for schools to ramp up their science and math programs to
create a competitive American workforce for the future."


Jim Leftwich's Flying Spaghetti Monster T-shirt at Boing Boing store
Boing Boing
http://www.boingboing.net/2005/08/26/jim_leftwichs_flying.html

"Boing Boing is selling a fundraising shirt to support the National
Center for Science Education (NCSE), an organization that defends the
teaching of evolution in public schools."


Corvallis man's parody is Internet 'monster'
By Greg Bolt
Eugene Register-Guard
http://tinyurl.com/8lj46

"In the beginning there was ... pasta."


Not everyone is believer in popular faith healer
by Harlan Spector
Cleveland Plain Dealer
http://www.cleveland.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news/112323438889840.xml?nnmed&c\
oll=2

"The call came at 10:30 on a Saturday night."


Rumsfeld's Wisdom
By Michael Shermer
Scientific American
http://tinyurl.com/a9hmx

"At a February 12, 2002, news briefing, Secretary of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld explained the limitations of intelligence reports: "There
are known knowns. There are things we know we know. We also know
there are known unknowns. That is to say, we know there are some
things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns, the ones
we don't know we don't know.""


Boy dies during autism treatment
By Karen Kane and Virginia Linn
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05237/559756.stm

"A 5-year-old autistic boy died Tuesday in a Butler County doctor's
office while undergoing an increasingly popular though controversial
medical treatment touted by some as a cure for the lifelong
neurological and developmental disorder."


Autistic boy, 5, dies after disputed therapy
By Michael Hasch
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
http://pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/trib/regional/s_367277.html

"A 5-year-old autistic boy died after undergoing a controversial
medical treatment in a Butler County doctor's office."


Autistic boy's death raises questions about medical treatment
by JENNIFER C. YATES
Associated Press
http://www.timesleader.com/mld/timesleader/12473259.htm

"The death of a 5-year-old autistic boy undergoing chelation therapy
has raised questions about whether the medical treatment aimed at
cleaning the body of heavy metals should be used to treat autism."


Autistic kids' parents desperate for help
By Lillian Thomas
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05238/560383.stm

"The death this week of an autistic boy receiving a controversial
treatment laid bare the emotionally raw world of autistic families,
who face a poorly understood condition that robs their children of
many childhood qualities and isolates caregivers as surely as sufferers."


Chelation therapy has critics, champions
By Virginia Linn
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05238/560376.stm

"For autism scientists, the growing popularity of chelation therapy
is reopening a heated and frustrating debate on the origins of the condition."


Parents of dead autistic boy ask for privacy, attorney says
Associated Press
http://tinyurl.com/85oab

"The parents of a 5-year-old autistic boy who died last week after a
controversial medical treatment appreciate the sympathy they have
received but are asking for privacy while they grieve, according to
their attorney."


Debate over controversial treatment heats up after death of 5-year-old boy
By Virginia Linn
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05241/561879.stm

"The death last week of a 5-year-old autistic boy during a
controversial treatment to rid his body of heavy metals is giving
pause to some families who have embraced this therapy for their own
children, but many are continuing to use it."


The Age of Autism: Gold salts to be tested
By DAN OLMSTED
UPI
http://tinyurl.com/d8okp

""You follow your nose in research, and when I saw that I thought,
yes, this is a possibility," said Boyd Haley, a professor and former
chemistry department chairman at the university."


A Helping Hand for a Huckster?
by Maia Szalavitz
STATS
http://www.stats.org/record.jsp?type=news&ID=512

"In an article clearly intended to debunk the bestselling Natural
Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About, which was self-published
by infomercial huckster and ex-con Kevin Trudeau, the New York Times
inadvertently ends up helping to promote the book."


HOAX!
By Ofelia Casillas, David Heinzmann and Rex W. Huppke
Chicago Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0508260251aug26,1,6901924.sto\
ry

"Word that Sgt. Dan Kennings had been killed in Iraq crushed spirits
in the Daily Egyptian newsroom. The stocky, buzz-cut soldier
befriended by students at the university newspaper was dead, and the
sergeant's little girl--a precocious, blond-haired child they'd grown
to love--was now an orphan."


DE duped in hoax
Daily Egyptian
http://www.dailyegyptian.com/fall05/kodeehoax

"Over nearly two years, the Daily Egyptian told the story of a
precocious little girl whose mother was dead and whose father was
fighting in Iraq."


Our Apology
Daily Egyptian
http://www.dailyegyptian.com/fall05/apology.html

"It was a heart-rending story--a blonde waif, her mother dead,
entrusted to the care of a family friend while her father fought with
the 101st Airborne in Iraq. The youngster was intelligent, friendly
and engaging, and developed close bonds with many of the newsroom staff."


Girl's story of dad in Iraq was hoax, paper says
By Kevin McDermott
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
http://tinyurl.com/cmj8t

"For two years, Carbondale residents have been riveted by the writing
of a little girl imploring her father in Iraq: "Don't die, OK?""


Former Daily Egyptian editor says he was an 'idiot'
By Meta Minton
Southern Illinoisan
http://www.southernillinoisan.com/articles/2005/08/27/top/13519242.txt

"The networks are clawing for interviews with former Daily Egyptian
editor Michael Brenner."


Was student editor in on hoax?
By Meta Minton
Southern Illinoisan
http://www.southernillinoisan.com/articles/2005/08/27/opinions/columnists/minton\
/13519241.txt

"A lot of the media - state, local and national - have been chasing
Michael Brenner, the former Daily Egyptian editor and self-proclaimed
father figure to a cute little camouflage-wearing blonde girl thought
to be named "Kodee.""


Mixed reaction from campus about DE hoax
by Andrea Zimmermann
Daily Egyptian
http://www.dailyegyptian.com/fall05/reactions.html

"The University was bombarded with dozens of reporters and many more
questions Friday morning as national and local media tried to piece
together a story of an elaborate hoax about the lives of a soldier
and his daughter."


SIU newspaper: when scoop turns to dupe
By Joe Parrino
Daily Illini
http://tinyurl.com/b9hnu

"Southern Illinois University at Carbondale's student newspaper, the
Daily Egyptian, dismissed two columnists for plagiarism in 2004. Now
the newspaper is investigating the role that a former editor in chief
might have played in the paper's bogus coverage of an Army soldier
and a daughter awaiting his return."


Elaborate hoax leaves Illinois student newspaper reeling
Associated Press
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-26-studentpaperhoax_x.htm

"Kodee Kennings' story was pure gold."


Media find no answers to hoax at Marion home
BY CALEB HALE
SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN
http://www.southernillinoisan.com/articles/2005/08/27/top/106490.txt

"Though many believe Jaimie Reynolds concocted the story of Kodee
Kennings because she craved attention, the former Southern Illinois
University Carbondale student wanted nothing to do with the news
media that came knocking at her door Friday."


Student reporters reeling over hoax
By Rex W. Huppke and David Heinzmann
Chicago Tribune
http://tinyurl.com/dfhdw

"Students and faculty at the Southern Illinois University journalism
school in Carbondale are investigating a hoax that led the school's
student newspaper to spend more than a year chronicling the lives of
an Army soldier in Iraq and the young daughter he left behind."


Staff of student newspaper looks back on mistakes in 'Kodee' hoax
By Kevin McDermott and Doug Moore
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
http://tinyurl.com/d8u8v

"The current and former student journalists with Southern Illinois
University Carbondale's campus newspaper now find it easy to see
where they went wrong in running columns by 8-year-old "Kodee Kennings.""


'We do what good people do': Orient Legion was duped into hosting
fake memorial service for Dan Kennings
BY MICHAEL A. THOMAS
SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN
http://www.southernillinoisan.com/articles/2005/08/28/top/106548.txt

"When people ask Orient Legion bartender Teri Berkley how Jaimie
Reynolds could fool so many people, she has a simple answer:"


Hoax ripples beyond SIU
By Liam Ford
Chicago Tribune
http://tinyurl.com/b3q8a

"The hoax that led the student newspaper at Southern Illinois
University to chronicle the life of a non-existent soldier in Iraq
and his young daughter also duped members of a southern Illinois fire
department."


Fireman believes he was duped by 'Kodee,' too
BY MICHAEL A. THOMAS
SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN
http://www.southernillinoisan.com/articles/2005/08/30/local/106571.txt

"West Frankfort volunteer fireman George Gass was more than happy to
show young Kodee Kennings one of the fire trucks at the West
Frankfort Fire Department."


SIU Newspaper Falls Victim of an Elaborate Hoax
By Lauren Keith
KFVS
http://www.kfvs12.com/Global/story.asp?S=3773140&nav=8H3xdrwP

""There was no casket, no body of course, because there was no Dan!"
That statement alone should prepare you for what you're about to
read. Student journalists at the SIU-C newspaper, "The Daily
Egyptian" claim they're all a victim of an elaborate hoax that's now
teaching them an important lesson in the field of journalism: check
the facts, and check them twice."


Dreams of Hollywood Disappear Along With Fake 'Real Rome'
By Richard Verrier
Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-realrome27aug27,0,792182.story?coll=la-hom\
e-headlines

"There are two reasons that Jeff Barr, an aspiring screenwriter,
won't be able to bring himself to watch Sunday's debut of the HBO
series "Rome.""


'Spectacular' view of Mars turns out to be hoax
CTV
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1125102575457_75/?hub=CTVNew\
sAt11

"It was touted as a 'spectacular' view of Mars and a
'once-in-a-lifetime event.'"


Farmer May Have Caught Legendary 'Chupacabra'
KNSD
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/4895017/detail.html

"A Texas farmer may have found what some would call a "chupacabra," a
legendary animal known for sucking the blood out of goats."


Mysterious creature found in Coleman
By SIDNEY LEVESQUE
Abilene Reporter-News
http://www.sanangelostandardtimes.com/sast/news_local/article/0,1897,SAST_4956_4\
032041,00.html

"Was the strange creature recently killed in this West Texas town a
bloodsucking monster called a chupacabra?"


Ga. Healer Targeted Over Cancer Treatment
By ELLIOTT MINOR
Associated Press
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050829/ap_on_he_me/flesh_eating_paste

"Curtis Brown carries business cards with old pictures of his tumors,
including an egg-sized growth on his neck. He says they were each
shed after the application of a flesh-eating paste containing the
medicinal herb bloodroot. "I cured myself of cancer," the cards read."


http://skepticality.com/


Would You Buy A Used Cure From This Man?
The Smoking Gun
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0826051trudeau1.html

"When we first heard about this fellow Kevin Trudeau--best-selling
author of "Natural Cures," infomercial king, and scourge of the
Federal Trade Commission--one line from his resume jumped out at us.
And that would be his federal felony conviction, a collar he
considers a youthful indiscretion, though he was 28 when he copped an
April 1991 plea to two counts of credit card fraud."


Psychic cruises: Afloat, aware, agog
By LINDA GORDON
Naples Daily News
http://www.naplesnews.com/npdn/neapolitan/article/0,2071,NPDN_14939_4027637,00.h\
tml

"Holding out a shaking hand, the visitor from Tupelo, Miss., couldn't
wait to discuss her first-ever psychic experience."


Searching for orbs in all the wrong places
by Kelly Fitzpatrick
Orlando CityBeat
http://www.orlandocitybeat.com/columnists/ocb-bars-irish08252005,0,6698402.colum\
n

"This week's column is brought to you by the letter "S," for spirits
and - gasp! - sobriety."


Who ya gonna call? Ghost Trackers will check out things that go bump in night
By JUDY JENKINS
Henderson Gleaner
http://www.courierpress.com/ecp/gleaner_news/article/0,1626,ECP_4476_4031104,00.\
html

"You say you're regularly hearing footsteps walking around upstairs
though you know there's no one else at home?"


Teens' caper haunts real ghost-hunters
by Marissa Yaremich
New Haven Register
http://tinyurl.com/8uceq

"It's often difficult enough for professional paranormal researchers
to convince skeptics that the intangible world of ghosts and demons exists."


Supernatural or spoof? Iowan hunts ghosts
By MARC HANSEN
Des Moines Register
http://www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050827/OPINION01/50827034\
1/1035/OPINION

"Pat Olson is a level-headed, feet-on-the-ground, middle-America kind of guy."


Is There A UFO Freeway Above Earth?
By Corwin Haeck
KOMO
http://www.komotv.com/stories/38802.htm

"We are not alone."


Northwood abuzz about crop circles
by RONA JOHNSON
Grand Forks Herald
http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/news/columnists/rona_johnson/12490474.h\
tm

"Crop circles? I bet you never thought you'd see those words appear
in one of my columns. Or, maybe you did."


Waking up to the worst nightmare
Sydney Sun-Herald
http://www.smh.com.au/news/health/waking-up-to-the-worst-nightmare/2005/08/27/11\
24563066939.html

"It's the middle of the night. Suddenly you're aware that you're
awake, but you can't move or make a sound."


Nonbeliever probes `alien encounters'
By Jessica Heslam
Boston Herald
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=99952

"His last alien encounter occurred two years ago."


Who you gonna call?
By Steven Jones
Selma Times-Journal
http://www.selmatimesjournal.com/articles/2005/08/28/news/local/news2576.txt

"The two sexiest fat men in America came to Selma hunting ghosts on Friday."


Dowsing: Real deal or too much zeal?
By Steven Oberbeck
Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_2959255

"On the north slope of the canyon in the mountains high above the
Weber River, Shem Jessop carefully stepped through the undergrowth
while patiently waiting for the rod in his hands to move."


Believer in Bigfoot gathers tales of local sightings
By SCOTT WEISSER
Goshen News
http://www.goshennews.com/news/files/2005/8/8-28-2005/news1.html

"Mike Bardsley is used to people giving him a hard time."


Haunted house?
By Carly Nation
Hendricks County Flyer
http://www.flyergroup.com/story.asp?id=7339

"Joe Davee refurbished a house on Cartersburg Road and says he's made
peace with the spirits who inhabit it. He says he sometimes sees a
little girl in a blue dress running around the yard and hears
conversations between unseen people."


Pair of scissors ... paranormal?
By Sumathi Reddy
Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.journal29aug29,1,7153901.story

"Between the whir of the electric razor and the clip of the scissors,
there escape the low, muffled words of Martin Miller."


Ancient healing art lives in Chehalis
By Carrina Stanton
Centralia Chronicle
http://www.chronline.com/main.asp?SectionID=45&ArticleID=23156&SubSectionID=153

"Acupuncture is responsible for Russell Wahlund's pain-free days."


Ancient therapy
By Tasneem Grace Tewogbola
Syarcuse Post-Standard
http://tinyurl.com/bdapv

"Forget flowers, jewelry and fashions, when Daryl Files' birthday
rolls around, she receives gifts that calm her chronic pain:
certificates to her acupuncturist."


Abel Raises Cain
by Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/lifestyle/orl-abelfilm05aug25,0,1250116.\
story

"As a member of the generally credulous and gullible American public,
you've probably fallen for some Alan Abel con or another through the years."


With help of a laser she's kicking the habit, again
By SHANNON BREEN
St. Petersburg Times
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/26/Citytimes/With_help_of_a_laser_.shtml

"I said I'd never be in this position again. But here I am. A
habitual on again, off again smoker who's reaching for the "off"
switch ... again."


Effects of homeopathy 'are all in the mind'
By Maxine Frith
Belfast Telegraph
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/health_beauty/story.jsp?story=658632

"Homeopathy offers no real health benefits and its perceived effects
are "all in the mind", according to new research."


Knock, knock - is there anyone there who believes this twaddle?
by Oliver Kamm
The Times
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1072-1752036,00.html

"LAST WEEKEND the Pope gave a warning against treating religion as a
"consumer product" in which one picks and chooses the bits one likes.
Though irretrievably atheistic, I have every sympathy with him.
Christianity has been shaped historically by St Augustine's belief in
the power of reason to gain knowledge of the world. Our nominally
Christian culture celebrates amorphous spirituality more than reason.
It thereby has little defence against popular irrationalism."


Some skeptics become acupuncture advocates
By KIMBERLY NICOLETTI
Summit Daily News
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20050828/NEWS/108280018

"Dr. Julie Colliton studied traditional Western medicine and was a
huge skeptic of acupuncture - until she saw proof."


Sticking to old traditions
By Tony C. Yang
Oakland Tribune
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/ci_2982586

"Philip Christie was nervous."



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