More Rumors.

I am sure you are all avoiding Wal-Mart because of the impending gang initiation, right. After all, the warning came by email and you know it has to be true. Who would send out something like that unless it was real? The saddest thing of all is some people really believed that. I have heard these things so many times I simply ignore them. I also keep up with Snopes.com, which debunks these rumors. The Wal-Mart story is here.

Why do people believe this nonsense? Some of it is fear. We read about the random violence that strikes and the fear is there that I am next. Yet if you look at it, most of the time the violence is not random. The perpetrator is often known by the victim. I know you can quote times where that is not the case. I am not saying it doesn't happen. If you worry about this too much, you will never leave your home. Taking simple precautions lessens your risk of danger. If you are at Wal-Mart or any other 24 hour retailer and have worries about going to your car, ask for an escort. An employee will accompany you. Be aware of your surroundings. If you see something suspicious, call 911. It is better to have a false alarm than have something happen to you.

Another type of rumor that goes out is something a business is supposedly doing. Things like McDonalds puts earthworms in their hamburgers or KFC no longer uses chicken in their name because the birds they use are genetically modified and cannot be called chickens. I heard about the KFC rumor from she who departed in the middle of the night. Her ex-husband worked for KFC for awhile and he swore he went to one of farms and saw those chickens. I never could convince her otherwise. He had told her a lot of lies that she knew were lies, yet she believed that. Another rumor I heard was about Proctor and Gamble donating a percentage of their profits to a Satanic church. I was going to a church in Illinois when that one went around. The preacher told everyone to boycott all of P&G's products because of that. I voiced doubt about it and knew I would have to prove it to them. I called P&G's 800 number and asked them about it. The first thing they wanted to know was who told me that. One of the church members had claimed to watch the Phil Donahue show where this supposedly happened. Since I didn't want to get her in trouble I didn't name anyone. They sent me a booklet that disputed the whole thing. There were letters from Phil Donahue stating that no one from P&G had ever appeared on the show. There was also a letter of support from Billy Graham. I think the pastor of the church was a little disappointed I disproved it. I think he really wanted to believe that. This man was beginning to turn that church into basically a cult. I'll talk more about that later.

If you hear a story that sounds a little suspicious, check it out before you pass it along.
I agree with what Travis said yesterday. We didn't learn about insect bodies in second grade. The answer is the thorax.

Today's question is Grade 5/Music.

What is another name for the refrain of a song?

I knew that one. 56-13.