Monday, February 28, 2005

Ancient Wonders of the World are A Modern Mystery 

Without looking, how many of the seven can you name?

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:26 PM

Top Ten Scions Of The Bush Dynasty 

The Bush Famly: Every Bit as Crooked as You Think They Are!

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:09 PM

Some tall tales take wing 

Myths and tall tales about the Denver airport.

And in the interest of fairness, here's some more Denver Airport weirdness from Anomalies Unlimited.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:12 PM

Town seeking protection for manmade cave 

Trying to save the Upton Cave.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:07 PM

India finds more 'tsunami gifts' 

Indian divers have found more evidence of an ancient port city, apparently revealed by December's tsunami.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:05 PM

Ashcroft's name substitutes for obscenity in movie 

"You're an Ashcroft!" "No, you're an Ashcroft!"

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:36 AM

Jeff Gannon, Johnny Gosch, Hunter Thompson, and Bohemian Grove snuff porn  

A nice overview concerning the speculation about the true identity of "Jeff Gannon" that has been circulating in the Blogosphere these past weeks.

See also the fine work going on over at Rigorous Intuition.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:03 AM

BTK suspect's associates: "Why was he faking it all this time?" 

For several hours Sunday morning, through two services, members of Christ Lutheran in Park City, a Wichita suburb, leaned on one another and on Clark to get through their shock and disbelief.

Just a week ago, Rader was involved in the 10:45 a.m. service, an usher who helped collect the offering. Now he is suspected of 10 homicides that occurred from 1974 to 1991.

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:30 AM

Officials neither confirm nor deny confession report in BTK case 

Dennis L. Rader, the man arrested as a suspect in the BTK case, has confessed to some of the killings connected to the serial killer, The Associated Press reported Sunday night.

But Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola Foulston on Sunday night denied AP reports that there could be three more BTK victims.

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:26 AM

Saturday, February 26, 2005

Arrest brings long-awaited relief to families of BTK victims 

They waited as long as 31 years for a serial killer to be arrested for the slayings of their loved ones.

Saturday's announcement that Wichita police had arrested 59-year-old Dennis Rader in the case brought mixed reaction. But the common theme was relief.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:18 PM

Pat Brown's BTK profile 

Hex correspondent Ian has noticed how closely Pat Brown's BTK profile matches what we know about BTK suspect Dennis Rader.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:10 PM

BTK on Ebay  

Dennis Rader's business card.

And a letter from Rader.

And "exclusive photos".

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:47 PM

Police: BTK is arrested; Dennis Rader named as suspect in killings 

Officials have linked two more killings to BTK suspect Dennis Rader.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:00 PM

Welcome to Park City! 

The Google Cache page of the Park City, Kansas, Compliance Department featuring BTK suspect Dennis Rader. The page seems to have been removed from their home page.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:38 PM

Who is Dennis Rader? 

From the Wichita Eagle.

Who is Dennis Rader?


Dennis L. Rader, 59, has worked as a compliance supervisor for Park City in charge of animal control, nuisances, inoperable vehicles and general code compliance since about 1990.

He grew up in the Park City area and has lived there ever since.

He worked for Coleman in the early 1970s -- as did two of BTK's early victims.

He served in the military during the Vietnam era and worked for years at a home security company in Wichita.

He attended WSU -- long linked to the BTK case -- where he graduated in 1979 with a major in Administration of Justice.

He is married and has grown children.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:15 PM

A statement from the church 

Here's the statement from BTK suspect Dennis Rader's Christ Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kansas.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:10 PM

Wichita police announce arrest of suspect in BTK case 

With six terse words Saturday, Wichita, Kan., Police Chief Norman Williams unveiled what he hopes will be the solution to a mystery that has stymied authorities and gripped a community for 30 years.

"The bottom line: BTK is arrested," Williams said.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:50 PM

Friday, February 25, 2005

Police Question 'Person Of Interest' In BTK Serial Killer Case 

Police have received a possible break in the BTK serial killer investigation.

KMBC's Peggy Breit reported that a man was questioned Friday, although Wichita police are not calling him a suspect, only a "person of interest."

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:27 PM

Riddle of a lost Chinese city on the Atlantic coast 

On May 16, a Canadian architect will tell the United Nations of a lost Chinese city on the Atlantic coast of North America, lending weight to the theory that the Chinese arrived in the New World some 70 years before Christopher Columbus.

A Canadian architect has discovered what is believed to be the lost naval base of China‘s foremost explorer on the Atlantic coast of North America, lending weight to the theory the Chinese arrived in the New World some 70 years before Christopher Columbus.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:35 PM

Mystery of 49 headless Romans who weren't meant to haunt us 

ARCHAEOLOGISTS have unearthed a Roman cemetery in York with the skeletons of 49 beheaded young men.

Experts from the York Archaeological Trust have yet to explain why the men had been decapitated. One of the victims was buried with thick iron rings around his ankles that had been forged on to him while he was alive. Patrick Ottaway, the trust's head of fieldwork, said: "That really is odd. We've never had anything like that before, in Roman Britain or the Roman world."

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:37 PM

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

Quote of the Week 

"Extremism is so easy. You've got your position, and that's it. It doesn't take much thought. And when you go far enough to the right, you meet the same idiots coming around from the left."

--Clint Eastwood

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:22 AM

Monday, February 21, 2005

Many report seeing Bigfoot in Virginia. One man is trying to prove it 

10 years ago, Dranginis says he crossed paths with something in the deep, dark woods of Culpeper County.

Snicker if you want, but his life has never been the same.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:39 PM

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Hunter S. Thompson, 1937-2005 

Author Hunter S. Thompson Kills Himself.



Rest in peace, Hunter.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:47 PM

BTK killer's writing style has gone from chilling to chatty 

The killer once raved about "factor x" and an inability to control a "monster" living inside him, all the while giving graphic descriptions of his crimes. The few details released about the new messages indicate a businesslike, almost cordial approach.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:27 PM

A building of 'secret encoded clues' 

Four years ago, Frank Albo was driving past the Manitoba Legislature building when he looked up on its roof and spotted a pair of stone sphinxes that stuck out in the bright, blue, Prairie sky.

"They are a noted Egyptian motif," recalled the 33-year-old Winnipeg native, who was studying Eastern religions. "I thought: 'What on Earth are Egyptian sphinxes doing flanking a building where laws are enacted in Manitoba?'."

Since then, his tiny discovery has led to an exhaustive investigation into the grand Winnipeg building, which he now calls "the Da Vinci code in stone."

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:26 PM

It took a rocket scientist / Research pioneer also delved into the occult 

Review of "Strange Angel, The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons" By George Pendle.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:25 PM

Friday, February 18, 2005

Millionaire to fund dig for lost Roman library 

A PHILANTHROPIST has stepped forward to fund excavations at the ancient city of Herculaneum in Italy, where scholars believe a Roman library lies buried beneath 90ft of lava from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD79.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:57 AM

Ancient diamond secret bared 

Ancient Chinese craftsmen might have learned to use diamonds to grind and polish ceremonial stone burial axes as long as 6,000 years ago, US researchers said on Wednesday.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:30 AM

Divine intervention - or sheer chance and probability? 

Once, while waiting in a hospital A&E department after banging his head, journalist and author Martin Plimmer discovered a two-year-old magazine open to an article he had written - about headaches. Coincidence? Or something beyond the realms of chance? Plimmer wasn't sure. But he was so intrigued by the concept of coincidence that he set about finding out.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:46 AM

Police are 'pleased' by ongoing dialogue with BTK 

The big mystery in the latest BTK serial killer announcement could well be what Wichita police Lt. Ken Landwehr talked about the least "The ongoing dialogue" with BTK. Dialogue? For those who like mystery, for the BTK-fearful, for cable-channel serial-killer aficionados, it's always captivating to hear Landwehr -- head of the BTK investigative unit -- talk at all, even in monosyllables.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:38 AM

Two packages are from BTK, police say 

The FBI has confirmed two more packages as coming from serial killer BTK, Wichita Police Lt. Ken Landwehr announced at 10 a.m. today. He also said that several pieces of jewelry have been included in recent packages apparently from the man who has eluded capture for 31 years.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:34 AM

Small fringe jumps from hobby to cult 

Vampires among us!

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:13 AM

THE THUG IS EVERYMAN AND NO MAN 

Who is this guy?

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:35 AM

Maltese falcon back home for celebration 

The statue of the Maltese Falcon, perhaps the most storied bird in cinema, has returned to San Francisco for the 75th anniversary of Dashiell Hammett's novel.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:02 AM

Mysterious Urn Donated To Thrift Store  

Ashes to ashes dust to . . . the thrift store?

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:57 AM

Wednesday, February 16, 2005

Schmancy Bigfoot 

Check out this cool Bigfoot from Schmancy.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:52 PM

Study: the Pill Changes Women's Taste in Men  

Yikes.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:43 PM

Workers find buried treasure under streets 

When construction crews tear up a street, they never know what kind of treasure they might find.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:05 AM

A Fingerprint May Hold Clue To Da Vinci Code Mystery 

It's an artistic mystery whose hottest clue is a fingerprint.

"The Adoration of the Christ Child" is attributed to Fra Bartolomeo, but a newly discovered fingerprint in the paint, along with stylistic similarities, are making experts think of Leonardo da Vinci, who sometimes left a digital imprint on his works as a sort of signature.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:36 AM

Eccentric Genius 

Unbelievably cool items of desktop mayhem from Eccentric Genius. Check out that HypnoDisk. It really works!

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:58 AM

Monday, February 14, 2005

Police: Blood Found in Detroit Not Hoffa's 

Blood found on the floor of a Detroit home is not that of Jimmy Hoffa, investigators said Monday, ruling out what had looked like one of the most promising recent leads in the disappearance of the Teamsters boss 30 years ago.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:03 PM

Invisible tiny UFO caught on chemical-imaging camera 

Teeny tiny ufos must have teeny tiny aliens.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:41 PM

Presstitute? Media whore? 

The story of fake reporter "Jeff Gannon"/Jim Guckert gets stranger and stranger. Now it looks as if he has a past in gay male prostitution. Americablog has the whole seedy story.

Warning: Not exactly work safe (unless you work as a gay male prostitute.)

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:12 PM

Extremely cool ufo image 

UFO over the nation's capital.

Original link found at the Fortean Times.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:14 AM

Sunday, February 13, 2005

Radio-guy.net 

Check out the cool stuff for sale over at www.Radio-guy.net.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:38 AM

Saturday, February 12, 2005

Pirate of the airwaves takes crusade to television 

Get your own television station!

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:09 PM

Sleeping Buddha may have eluded Taliban  

The search for the Sleeping Buddha of Afghanistan.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:40 PM

Tsunami throws up India relics 

The deadly tsunami could have uncovered the remains of an ancient port city off the coast in southern India.

Archaeologists say they have discovered some stone remains from the coast close to India's famous beachfront Mahabalipuram temple in Tamil Nadu state following the 26 December tsunami.

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:32 PM

Can This Black Box See Into the Future? 

Extremely important article about new findings that may change the way we live.

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:12 PM

What's your sign? 

Article on astrology from the Notre Dame and Saint Mary's Observer. As a side note, the author brings up an issue that has bothered me for years now -- when did fortune cookies stop being fortunes? Now they just tell you something nice about yourself. My last one read "You are quick-witted and fun to be around." Both true, of course, but where's the fortune?

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:51 AM

Mysterious city of black stone 

Villagers and orang asli in this part of Johor have grown up with stories about a mysterious lost city made of black stone.

Some say they may have actually seen the city and others say they have seen artefacts from that city, which independent researcher Raimy Che-Ross claims could be the ancient lost city of Kota Gelanggi, reputed to be made of black stone.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:22 AM

FBI Completes DNA Tests in Hoffa 'Murder' Mystery 

The FBI has completed a DNA analysis of evidence that could help solve the 30-year-old mystery of the disappearance of Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:20 AM

Thursday, February 10, 2005

The Phony Newsman or, A Defense of the Family Name 

News Hounds has an interesting article on the possible origin of the "Gannon" pseudonym.

What you may not know is that there is another Gannon out there, closely related to the Bush administration - Gannon International. For months - because of the surname connection - I've been trying to find out which "Gannon" started this company, but to no avail. For the life of me I can't find a single reference in the company history or on the internet to a founding father (or mother) named "Gannon."

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:46 PM

The Power of the New Media, Jeff Gannon Dispatched Into Irrelevancy 

Great essay over at OpEd news.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:00 PM

Fake news, fake reporter 

Salon has a nice overview of the "Jeff Gannon" afffair.

posted by Prof. Hex at 12:58 AM

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Jeff Gannon and the Valerie Plame Affair 

Pseudo-journalist and propaganda operative "Jeff Gannon" proved quite useful to the White House during the illegal outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame.

Spiderleaf has the timeline.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:09 PM

The Strange Case of "Jeff Gannon"  

In brief:

Jeff Gannon is a "reporter" for the Talon News Agency who has been accused of lobbing softball questions to President Bush in White House Press Briefings

In light of the recent revelations that some pundits and reporters have been taking cash for spreading the Bush Gospel, some bloggers (and others) got curious about Gannon and launched a multi-pronged investigation into his background.

Conspiracy ensued. Fake names, mysterious access to the White House, dummy companies, gay prostitution, and a curious silence from the principal parties.

Americablog has been covering it nicely.

Here's a good recap from MediaCitizen.

Atrios turned me on to it.

Daily Kos is following the story.

As is World O'Crap

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:07 PM

Ukeleles made from books 

Coolest thing I've seen all week.

Link found at boing boing.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:01 AM

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

Could George Bush Sr really be Deep Throat? 

He was the world's most famous journalistic source and heralded the end for Richard Nixon. A new report says he is the former president, another that he is near death.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:28 PM

Mainstream medicine is beginning to explore the aisles of botanicas 

Drive along many boulevards in the Los Angeles area and you will see colorful botanicas, with their curious mix of candles, incense, potions, lotions, rosaries and a pantheon of Catholic and folk saints in the window. Botanicas have arrived in this metropolis along with the immigrants they serve, soaring in numbers as Latinos make up nearly 45% of the Los Angeles population.

Great article from the Los Angeles Times.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:55 PM

Hands that heal  

Interesting article on Pranic healing, a "drugless therapy that entails the transfer of an energy, whose existence is probably unknown to most of us, from healer to patient."

From the article:

The pranic healing therapist does not touch the body of the patient who sits in a meditative position.

The therapist scans the energy field to locate areas of imbalance, and removes the dirty, stagnant energy and infuses fresh vital energy. Since this is a scientific method, treatments are specific to conditions and results are consistent.

And:

Pranic healing involves working on our bio-energy body or aura (which permeates the physical body, and extends a few inches beyond it) and our chakras (there are 11 major chakras in the body, each related to major organs in the body, each with its specific colour).

Disease first manifests itself in the aura, before even appearing in the physical body. Energy healing works on the aura level and corrects the blocked or malfunctioning chakras to cure the disease.

Plus:

The master cites three major sources of prana: sun, air and earth. Trees and plants absorb so much prana from these sources that they exude an excess of it.

This explains why tired or sick people can benefit enormously by lying down under trees.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:05 PM

Biotech: Government Forced to Reveal Crop Test Sites 

In a first step toward public disclosure of test sites of biopharmaceutical crops, the U.S. Department of Agriculture was forced by court order on February 4 to reveal the locations of these sites in Hawaii. Following the ruling, representatives of the USDA handed over to Earthjustice attorneys information on the precise locations of open-air field tests of biopharmaceutical crops genetically engineered to produce industrial chemicals and drugs. This marks the first time the federal government has been forced to disclose the location of field tests of genetically engineered crops since it began systematically hiding these locations from the public.

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:36 PM

Paranoia Grips the U.S. Capital 

This week, former military intelligence analyst William Arkin revealed a hitherto unknown directive, with the Orwellian name "JCS Conplan 0300-97," authorizing the Pentagon to employ special, ultra-secret "anti-terrorist" military units on American soil for what the author claims are "extra-legal missions."

In other words, using U.S. soldiers to kill or arrest Americans, acts that have been illegal since the U.S. Civil War.


See also: Commandos Get Duty on U.S. Soil

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:13 PM

Secret Societies : Are They Real and Will You Ever Be Able to Join  

Join a secret society! For a limited time only! Act now!

Read their press release and then visit their website.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:59 PM

Penn State Bigfoot club searches for the legend 

He is estimated to be at least 8 feet tall and to have about 800 pounds on his hairy, up-right frame. For centuries, people have reported seeing him, yet scientists are still unsure if he exists.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:53 PM

Atlantis Theories: Simple Coincidences or Plagiarism? 

Tempest in a pisspot. Two Atlantis theorists are arguing about who came up with the theory that Atlantis might be located just outside the Straights of Gibraltar, despite the fact that that's where Plato said it was in the first place. And Atlantis theorists wonder why no one takes them seriously.

See also: Atlantis 2005. International Conference
The Atlantis Hypothesis: Searching for a Lost Land.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:49 PM

UFO over Hawaii puzzles astronomers 

An unidentified streak moving through the night sky above Hawaii has sky watchers puzzled.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:36 PM

Man Finds Mystery Nail in His Neck 

Steve Villagomez, a 29-year-old football coach in California, thought he injured his neck during a football practice this past summer and visited a doctor. An X-ray revealed he had what appeared to be a metal object lodged in his neck.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:28 PM

Monday, February 07, 2005

New Life in Sirhan Defense 

Ever since he was seized with a .22-caliber revolver in his hand in the pantry of the Ambassador Hotel in June 1968, Sirhan Sirhan has maintained he was hypnotized into shooting Sen. Robert F. Kennedy.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:37 PM

Tulsa 'psychic' says search misdirected  

Pretty in-depth article on psychics and police work.

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:15 PM

Political Wire: Deep Throat is Ill 

In a Los Angeles Times piece, former Nixon counsel John Dean writes that Bob Woodward "has advised his executive editor at the Washington Post that Deep Throat is ill. And Ben Bradlee, former executive editor of the Post and one of the few people to whom Woodward confided his source's identity, has publicly acknowledged that he has written Throat's obituary.

posted by Prof. Hex at 3:05 PM

Unity falconer forms bond with hawk in ancient hunting sport 

Nice article on falconry.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:14 AM

Truth that lies in the mists of ancient legend 

Who was King Arthur?

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:13 AM

BTK Teaching Tool 

The BTK serial killer investigation is being used as a teaching tool for college criminal justice programs around the country.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:10 AM

"I'm just looking in the sky"  

Go ahead, call Paul Spera crazy. He's used to it. Whenever Spera talks about the lights he sees flashing and circling in the sky, most people dismiss him as a goofball.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:08 AM

Arizona town stacked with appeal 

Within the first hour, I met a time-share salesman handing out tourist maps, a park ranger touting the red rock scenery, and a clairvoyant who sees spaceships hovering above his house.

And right away, I grasped the essence of Sedona.

Part hustle. Part heaven. Part hoodoo.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:06 AM

Strides in research 

Kinesiology professor examines child violinists, Parkinson's disease - and images of Bigfoot.

See also: Felton Bigfoot museum explores all things Sasquatch.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:03 AM

It's a Noir World / Why Bogart made "The Maltese Falcon" what it is 

I can never watch "The Maltese Falcon" without acknowledging the invaluable contribution George Raft made to its creation -- by turning down the role of Sam Spade.

See also:

Dashiell Hammett's legacy lies not only in his writing, but in his living -- rough, wild and on the edge.

And: Watching the Detective
The Falcon's cynical influence on a young reader.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:44 AM

Mysterious suicide of Nuremburg psychiatrist 

Forty-seven years have washed over the memory of that New Year's Day in 1958. Doug Kelley was 10 years old. His brain stored what happened that day in snapshots.

His father exploding in rage in the kitchen of their sprawling Kensington home.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:41 AM

Mounds hundreds of acres of mystery 

The mystery surrounding the sprawling prehistoric Indian earthen mounds and walls in east-central Ohio continues.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:25 AM

Saturday, February 05, 2005

Chair Yoga Catching on Among Seniors 

A more gentle form of yoga is catching on in some retirement communities.

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:58 PM

Quote of the Week 

"If you think you have something good and some idiot says it's no good, go to another idiot." -- Stan Lee

posted by Prof. Hex at 11:18 PM

Saudi Who Rode "Satan's Horse" Tells His Story 

"Satan's horse" is not a myth. As narrated by an elderly Saudi, it is the name local residents of Buraidah, Al-Qasim, used to call a bicycle some 47 years ago at a time when new inventions were unacceptable to the majority of people there and ignorance prevailed.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:11 PM

Deviled Jam  

Prosecutors backing off on hate crime charge in beating of Queens Satanist.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:08 PM

Wicca finds spirituality in nature 

Wicca, an often misunderstood form of paganism, is a spiritual practice that focuses on the connection between all things in nature and the presence of a divine spirit in everything, said Sabrae Jason, an Athens resident and the high priestess of the Coven of Celestial Tides.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:58 PM

Are The World's Top Microbiologists Being Murdered? 

Sure looks that way.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:38 PM

Author Now Suspects 'Deep Throat' Was - Drumroll, Please - George H.W. Bush 

The author of the 1993 biography of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, "Deep Truth," today named George H.W. Bush the new chief suspect as famed Watergate source Deep Throat.

Link found at What Really Happened.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:31 PM

Old gaol alive with restless souls 

A team of ghost hunters believes it has uncovered chilling new evidence of paranormal activity at the Old Melbourne Gaol.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:34 PM

Mystery of Achaemenid City Abandonment still Unresolved 

Why did its citizens abandon Dahaneh-gholaman?

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:00 PM

Friday, February 04, 2005

New Evidence: Enron Scams Began Years Ago 

Fallen energy giant Enron Corp. was running scams to drive up the cost of power years before the 2000-01 West Coast energy crisis, according to audio transcripts and documents unveiled Thursday by a public utility north of Seattle.

Related: The strange and convenient death of J. Clifford Baxter - Enron executive found shot to death.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:51 PM

Homeland Security Cites Credible Godzilla Threat 

Homeland Security elevated the alert level to "Red" in the New York City area after receiving information that indicates a high probability that terrorists will try and unleash a giant reptile in the city's financial district.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:56 AM

Fantastic tale of silver mother lode 

Great story of a lost silver mine.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:47 AM

Belly dancing "a healing art form" 

Belly dancing is not just about wriggling, writhing and twisting the body.

Dancer Sherlyn Koh said it is "a spiritual and imaginative form of exercise and far removed from the provocative entertainment that many tend to associate it with".

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:41 AM

Exercise as art 

They begin before sunrise every day on the picnic pavilion at Barnes Park in Monterey Park. Arms gently flow in the same direction. Bodies slowly stretch en masse. Legs softly extend in identical positions with the fluidity of ballet as hundreds of senior citizens, middle-aged women and men and a few young adults practice the deep breathing and the deliberate movements of the ancient martial art, tai chi.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:38 AM

Shakespeare was wrong about Macbeth 

Macbeth was not the ambitious, cold-blooded murderer Shakespeare described in his play but a popular king who ruled over a peaceful land, a group of Scottish parliamentarians said .
he

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:35 AM

Neighbor wasn't home, missed BTK 

On March 17, 1977, a man who would become known as the serial killer BTK knocked on a woman's door at 1243 S. Hydraulic.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:29 AM

Missing B.C. teen was drawn to occult websites 

The parents of a missing B.C. teen have made a tearful plea to help find their daughter.

According to police,16-year-old Josephine Shih had been visiting satanic cult websites before she disappeared.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:23 AM

The Living Gargoyle  

In 1992, current owner of Gargoyle statue worked as a ranger officer in Austin, TX. In fall of 1992, officer responded to 911 distress call routed through dispatch indicating "GARGOYLE HAS COME ALIVE!!". Two minutes later, radio dispatch announced that gun shots had been fired from the same location. Officer was provided address where 911 call was initiated to investigate incident.

Officer pulled up to address where 911 call was made to find male & female homeowner standing in yard waiting for police. Officer notified them to immediately place any weapons they had on the ground (male was holding a 357 magnum pistol). Female approached officer in clear state of hysteria screaming that the Gargoyle statue had come alive. Male homeowner was asked to explain what had occured before the officer arrived at the residence.

Male indicated that the 911 call was placed immediately after they saw the Gargoyle statue moving its head and wings. Homeowner then proceeded to fire two rounds point-blank from a 357 magnum pistol into the moving Gargoyle statue. Male indicated that he ran away after seeing both bullets bounce out of the front of the statue. Picture of one of the bullet holes included below.

Homeowners sold Gargoyle statue to ranger officer upon agreement that it would be immediately removed from the property. Now, 12 years later, there is an opportunity for one lucky bidder to be part of this Gargoyles' illustrious past & future.


Asking price? $1.6 million. Link has many more pictures. Original link found at boing boing.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:10 AM

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Man offers $10,000 for Pedro Mountain Mummy 

In the name of poking holes in the theory of evolution, a Syracuse, N.Y., man says he will pay $10,000 for one of the most mysterious artifacts ever dug up in Wyoming -- the Pedro Mountain Mummy.

posted by Prof. Hex at 10:30 PM

Psychic helps B.C. police find hiker's body 

Police in Nelson, B.C., have found the body of a young woman who disappeared last March, and they credit a local psychic for pointing them in the right direction.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:56 PM

Psychic offers help in rapist hunt 

"I knew you'd call," says Noreen Renier's voicemail message, a hint of her alleged extrasensory powers the nationally known psychic has offered to Charlottesville police. Renier wants to lend her talents to the hunt for the serial rapist who's sexually assaulted at least seven women since 1997.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:53 PM

Superbowl Myth Has More Lives Than a Cat 

The Superbowl and violence against women myth.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:48 PM

Law Legend "Big Bill" Dies 

He had a full life of fighting crime, hobnobbing with stars, and even meeting a popular President. Now San Antonians prepare to say a final goodbye to a man nicknamed "Big Bill." The legend is often called the best police officer in San Antonio history.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:37 PM

BTK survivor recounts mother's slaying 

"Are your parents home?"

Little Steve Relford looked at the well-dressed man holding a briefcase who had knocked on the door, and, like almost any 5-year-old would have done in 1977, told him the truth.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:20 PM

BTK:Back: A Message To KAKE 

Another mysterious postcard sent to KAKE-TV Thursday, one that could be from BTK. It's the second possible communication from the serial killer in about a week. The communications are getting more frequent, and a lot more personal.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:11 PM

Bar criticized for serving shots with live goldfish 

It's disturbing that a Calgary bar sold liquor shooters with live goldfish in the glass, but it's not illegal, says the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:31 PM

UFOs are out there, say real X-Files  

Britain's secret X-files have revealed a flurry of UFO activity in the last two weeks, it was revealed today.

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:24 PM

A Norfolk Couple's Mystery: What Was That Ball of Light? 

At about 10:30 on the evening of Jan. 2, Drew Quale and his wife, Sally, were with a friend at their weekend home on North Colebrook Road, packing up their car for a trip to Bronxville, N.Y., when they say they saw a brightly-lit orb hovering above a 10-acre field nearby.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:03 PM

Bigfoot, 911! 

A recording of a 911 bigfoot call in Washington State.

posted by Prof. Hex at 2:15 PM

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

Who burned the witches? 

For years, feminist scholars have argued that witch hunts were inspired by a reactionary, misogynistic church. But new scholarship, like Lyndal Roper's "Witch Craze," reveals that the real villains were the neighbors.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:15 PM

D'oh! 

Woman Pleads Guilty to Selling Fake Duff Beer.

posted by Prof. Hex at 4:12 PM

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Search For Treasure: $ Millions Lost (To Be Found?) 

A few lost treasures waiting to be found.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:18 PM

Dowsers find answers with earthly solutions 

Some historians trace dowsing back to the Egyptians, and some even further to prehistoric cave paintings. Even though scientists discredit the practice, dowsers are still commonly hired to help people find a spot to drill a well.

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:45 PM

Is Wicca Under a Spell?  

As publishers produce more books about casting spells, is the spiritual message of witchcraft getting lost?

posted by Prof. Hex at 7:29 PM

Bolt may have triggered 'tremor' 

A lightning bolt may be behind reports of an earth tremor in Melbourne early this morning.

The earth may have moved for residents but experts say they did not feel a thing.

Geoscience Australia, the national body which measures earthquakes, said there was no evidence of an earth tremor in Melbourne, despite radio reports of one this morning.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:43 PM

Is Jolie Working Black Magic on Brad Pitt? 

The vial of gray powder Angelina Jolie gave to Brad Pitt is a marriage-breaking voodoo spell, says British voodoo expert.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:38 PM

Uncovering the mysteries of the wok 

"Wok hay," loosely translated from Cantonese, means "the breath of a wok." And that's the title of the culinary chronicler's latest book ("The Breath of a Wok" by Grace Young and Alan Richardson, Simon & Schuster, $35), an engaging meditation on the history of China's most basic cooking tool and a tour through the country's culture in an effort to find out just what the secrets of Chinese food are.

posted by Prof. Hex at 6:18 PM

The Selling of the Last Savage 

On a planet crowded with six billion people, isolated primitive cultures are getting pushed to the brink of extinction. Against this backdrop, a new form of adventure travel has raised an unsettling question: Would you pay to see tribes who have never laid eyes on an outsider?

posted by Prof. Hex at 5:20 PM

Hypnotism in Russia a street-crime weapon? 

Across Moscow, a chestnut as old as crystal balls and gypsy curses makes regular appearances on the crime logs - hundreds of victims a year who say they were seduced out of their money in seemingly chance encounters with strangers. Many claim they were hypnotized by intense stares, mesmerizing babble and warnings of curses on their loved ones.

Great article. Link found at the Anomalist.

posted by Prof. Hex at 1:04 PM

Feb. 14 is shrouded in myth and mystery 

As with any good tale, our hero - St. Valentine himself - is shrouded in mystery. In fact, legends actually look to several men named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.

Interesting fact: Ancient Egyptians believed a vein of love ran from the forth finger of the left hand right to the heart, which is why wedding rings are worn on this finger.

posted by Prof. Hex at 9:22 AM

Women warriors from Amazon fought for Britain's Roman army 

The remains of two Amazon warriors serving with the Roman army in Britain have been discovered in a cemetery that has astonished archaeologists.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:52 AM

Centuries' Old UFO Coin Remains Mystery 

An unidentified flying object on a 17th century French coin continues to mystify rare coin experts.

With good pic.

posted by Prof. Hex at 8:48 AM