29 January, 2009

Smile of the day: Cello Scrotum vs. the Brain Cloud

BBC NEWS | Health | Peer reveals 'cello scrotum' hoax

What strikes me here, and not in a teabagging kind of way, is the flippant attitude of the spokesman for the British Medical Journal on clearing up the 1974 hoax:

"Once these things get into the scientific literature, they stay there for good. But it all adds to the gaiety of life."


Cello Scrotum may not be the worst hoax prognosis to receive, but consider the sufferers of "Brain Cloud". It is characterized by no symptoms, has no cure, yet leads to death within six months. At least one Brain Cloud sufferer chose to end his life as a sacrifice to an angry volcano god rather than suffer the final throes of this disease. That's hardly adding to the gaiety of life!

Pity those misdiagnosed with Andromeda Strain, Bone-itis, T-Virus, Pedlar's Limp, and Progressive Retroform Cooties. The Institute for Diseases of the Extremely Gullible seeks your donations now!

Bonus Smile: Picture the glee of the poor web journo who put together the story for the BBC web site inventing the Sub-heading: "Scrotal Flak".

Labels:

22 January, 2009

No God, Faithful want Proof.

And now, another, through-the-looking-glass moment:

ASA News: Atheist bus ad campaign is not in breach of the Advertising Code

The British Humanist Association (BHA) started running a series of ads from last October on various city buses throughout the UK with the line: "There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" Ariane Sherine, a comedy writer, co-created the campaign and financial contributors included Richard Dawkins.

The Advertising Standards Authority received over 300 complaints that the ad "broke the advertising code on the grounds of substantiation and truthfulness."

The ASA ruled that the campaign did not mislead consumers and that it would not launch an investigation.

"The ASA Council concluded that the ad was an expression of the advertiser's opinion and that the claims in it were not capable of objective substantiation."

Ostensibly the complaints came from people who have proof of God's existence. Where are they hiding this proof? Perhaps we're just meant to take it that they have it, on faith.

Labels: ,

15 January, 2009

Now we are sixless.

'Prisoner' star McGoohan dies, aged 80

His memory will likely be desecrated by the remake, which will likely steam ahead without his input, or objections. With the utterly charisma free Jim Caviezel taking THE number, I sense that the clueless remakers will balls this up worse than HHGTTG. They clearly don't get the essence of the original.

I wonder if there will be a memorial service at Portmeirion (actually they do note the passing on the website: http://www.portmeirion-village.com/, and are offering free admission to sign the memorial book).

Even "rover" is sad. You don't want to see what that big white ball looks like when it cries....

Labels: , ,