Weekly Weird News for 6 January 2023

Hello and thanks for kicking off the new year with me. Let’s get into some strange news of the week starting with Russia - a place where people are on edge and it appears there is a strong cultural belief in mystical and paranormal things. That combination produces my first two pieces this week.

Russia’s fear of psychic attacks

An article in Foreign Policy this week argued that the Russian government harbors a fear that Western enemies can use mystical powers against them. Putin, they claim, is a strong believer in astrology, psychics, hypnosis and telekinesis and that his forces may be trying to protect themselves against it. An example is the rhetoric of “Satanism” used in the justification for the Ukrainian invasion. Concrete evidence is a leaked memo from the Russian leadership to the Federal Guard Service that emphasizes psychological protection. This may be overblown or it may be a nifty belief for the besieged Ukrainian people to exploit. https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/01/03/russia-western-psychic-attacks-mystics-astrology-putin-ukraine/

Russia shoots down “UFO”

A video out of Rostov shows a bright ball of light traveling across the night sky. It appears to have been shot at and exploded. It was most likely a drone. But anything can be called a UFO today if people are not sure what it is. Fear of unknown invasion is ubiquitous in this place and time. Such stories can quickly dominate the news cycle. Not enough people have the skills or desire to think through the obvious with such events and, instead, promote the drama. https://www.jpost.com/omg/article-726849

Yellowstone victim followup

In August of last year, we all heard the story of the foot found in the Yellowstone hot spring. Followup from that story revealed the identity of the person who died as a 70 yr old California man. No one appears to have witnessed his demise but it was not considered suspicious. This week, new documents showed that cash, and handwritten poems, but no suicide note were found in his car left in the park. So, left unresolved is the possibility that his death was an accident. Several people over the decades have died accidentally in Yellowstone. https://ktla.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/nationworld/man-whose-foot-was-found-in-yellowstone-pool-left-poems-447-in-cash-in-car-investigators/

How Monday night football boosted anti-vax bullshit

The collapse of a seemingly healthy player due to cardiac arrest during Monday night football caused a surge in conspiracies as people attempted to explain the shocking collapse. With no specific information as to why Damar Hamlin’s heart stopped on the field, concerned and misinformed social media participants glommed onto and shared unfounded ideas about COVID-19 vaccinations. Unfortunately, it’s all to easy to make lies and bogus information go viral, which is what happened. The false idea originated with a speculative documentary called Died Suddenly that claims, without evidence, that sports players are experiencing a side effect of the vaccine. Scumbag Tucker Carlson hosted an anti-vax cardiologist on his show and boosted the baseless idea that Hamlin may have suffered from “vaccine-induced myocarditis”. Someone should report that guy for the unethical practice of diagnosing an illness with no evidence whatsoever. The more prevalent fact that professional sports like football are very dangerous activities was conveniently ignored. Even the more plausible idea that a past COVID infection could have contributed to collapse was given less attention in favor of a cynical and false narrative pushed by anti-science proponents. https://komonews.com/news/nation-world/hamlin-collapse-buffalo-bills-safety-damar-nfl-monday-night-football-covid-vaccine-misinformation-cardiac-arrest-cincinnati-bengals-fox-tucker-carlson

https://knowyourmeme.com/news/anti-vaccine-conspiracies-run-wild-following-damar-hamlins-cardiac-arrest

https://www.rumorguard.org/post/anti-vaxxers-exploit-damar-hamlin-collapse-to-spread-evidence-free-claims

Amazing adaptable fox

An amazing observation almost too weird to be believed was also captured by video this week as a family in Derbyshire, U.K. had a strange visitor to their yard. A fox with only two front legs poked around their yard for 45 minutes allowing them to get a very good video of it moving around. The video is bizarre and fascinating. The animal appears to have been born with a congenital abnormality where it is missing the hind legs. It has adeptly learned to walk on its front legs only. It looked healthy and well-adjusted which strongly suggests the animal was born this way and learned to function with the handicap. Wildlife officials were stunned. https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-derbyshire-64165953 and https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-derbyshire-64172621

Altogether ooky funeral directors sentenced

Sentencing occurred this past week for a director of a Colorado funeral home who was found guilty of fraud charges after illegally selling bodies or body parts of more than 500 victims over years. Families were given different cremated remains. Bodies were sold for exhibits. Gold teeth fillings were extracted and sold. Parts were rented or sold for medical training. All this was done without consent or in defiance of the stated wishes of family members. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/01/04/megan-hess-body-parts-colorado-funeral-sentencing/

There seems to be an obvious need for better regulations in this area. Or, why not consider an alternative to putting remains in the hands of others. 

New York becomes 6th state to approve human composting

Joining Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont and California, New York passed legislation to allow for legalized natural organic reduction. In other words, your remains are placed in a reusable container with material to enhance decomposition. Natural microbes do the rest of the work to turn you into compost in about a month. Then, you return to the dirt from which we all came to nuture new life. It’s pretty lovely and simple. But the clergy (and funeral directors) hate it. https://apnews.com/article/new-york-business-washington-vermont-funerals-and-memorial-services-c4b392bc9433505808c73367b2a2ea9e

Word of the week: virovory

Viruses are everywhere. In the air, on surfaces, in water, and in other organisms. New research is showing that viruses in freshwater are a major food source for a microscopic animal called Halteria. The consumption of viruses, called virovory, was barely studied until recently even though it is obvious that such a huge population of viruses would likely be eaten by something else that evolved to exploit that source. The findings change ideas about the food chain, about removing viruses from water, and about global carbon cycling. It’s a fascinating story. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/975344

Unknown creature filmed near short in NC - commence random guessing

A boater films an animal off the coast of North Carolina on Jan. 3. The animal surfaces to breathe so it is certainly a mammal. But the “mass opinionation” naturally kicks into gear and people insist it’s an alligator, snake, oarfish or, of course, a “Lock Ness monster” (sic). It is most likely a young whale. The original video and all the comments can be seen on Facebook. https://www.newsobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article27079657

Thanks for reading! Please share with your friends who like offbeat news stories.