Weekly Weird News for November 26, 2021
Where the fake news is strange but the truth is even stranger
Welcome to another edition of Weekly Weird News. It’s been a bit slow in the strangeness category this week. Make sure you send me interesting stories you find via Twitter or email! I appreciate it.
Maybe things are slow because it is Thanksgiving week in the US. It was also the 50th anniversary of one of the most enduring mysteries in U.S. history: the disappearance of plane hijacker D.B. (Dan) Cooper.
D.B. Cooper mystery 50 years later
November 24, 1971, a man whose ticket read “Dan Cooper” hijacked a plane from Oregon to Seattle and demanded money and a parachute. The plane was ordered to take off and head to Mexico. A short time into the flight, “Cooper” exited the plane with the parachute and bag of money. He was not obviously equipped for the landing and environment and it was presumed he’d died. A massive search turned up no evidence. In 1980, new and conclusive evidence in the case was found in a river area outside Vancouver, Washington. The FBI website says a rotting bag was found with the packs of $20 bills but other sources say it was just the money, indicating some cash may have fallen out of the bag that had been buried but later retrieved by Cooper. The FBI considered 800 suspects. https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/db-cooper-hijacking. On July 12, 2016, they closed the investigation with no conclusions. The legend proliferated in print, on TV, and online with various errors and fictions introduced. People continue to speculate as to who the man was and if he survived the most dramatic escape. While many people continue to guess, and people assert that they know who Dan was, it’s very likely that the world will never know. https://www.king5.com/article/news/crime/db-cooper-mystery-remains-unsolved-50-years-later/281-74a7b11d-68fd-450b-aea5-52eafdf722e4
Fake story about a millionaire dog spread widely
Someone should have been axed at AP for this gaff about a millionaire dog. The Associated Press admitted they’d been duped by a hoax news story about German shepherd dogs named Gunther who were bequeathed the wealth of a German countess. The story began sometime around 1995 in an Italian newspaper when a businessman invented the story of the eccentric countess and her dogs. A continuation of the story of the rich dogs reappeared. Earlier this month, the AP and other sources reported that the current Gunther was selling a $32 million mansion in Miami. The elaborate story, complete with pictures of the frolicking dog, was picked up by mainstream news sources everywhere. The AP apologized that the story was not up to standards. Always verify and assume that the story is more than what’s on the page. But a bigger problem with hoaxed news is that the majority of the people who read the original story will not see the correction and will continue to believe it. In this instance, there is no question that pets cannot own property. So the story was bogus at face value. We expect better from top news sources. https://apnews.com/article/sports-oddities-entertainment-lifestyle-europe-c1629fb79b02fe67392922687c2bf2fa
Four-eared cat
From dogs to cats, at least this story is real:
A kitten born in the backyard in Ankara, Turkey was discovered to have genetic mutations that led to a misformed jaw and two sets of ears. The kitten, named Midas, was taken in by the family who made her Internet famous. The owner hopes that the story of Midas encourages people to adopt pets instead of breeding them. https://indianexpress.com/article/trending/trending-globally/midas-four-ears-cat-turkey-internet-sensation-7633037/
Qanon cult vigil continues
Weeks after QAnon followers gathered in Dallas, Texas to await the arrival of JFK, Jr. to anoint Trump as the real president, some are still there. The spinoff group of believers has been labeled by the Dallas press as “undeniably a cult” as their bizarre beliefs show they are entirely disconnected from reality and not returning to their lives. Some that looked to the past are warning that this situation can lead to a violent end as with other cult situations. The absurd claims are the work of Michael Brian Protzman who claims to have used mystical numerology to interpret codes that tell a prophecy of what’s to come. Never underestimate the power of people to believe truly fantastic things. And be prepared for them to die for their beliefs. https://www.thebulwark.com/the-twisted-qanon-vigil-awaiting-jfk-jr-s-return/
Mexican lottery nightmare
Last year, tickets to a lottery in Mexico were bought by anonymous benefactors and donated to poor schools and nurseries across the country. The win by a nursery school in a small village created a heap of trouble in the town where armed gangs rule. The workers say they were threatened by one of the groups to use the funds to buy them guns. Part of the money was spent on a roof for the building. The threats have increased and one person was shot after the nursery used the money for their purposes in the village instead. Some families have fled the village for safety and the authorities can’t seem to handle the situation. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-59386281
Deep-sea mammoth tusk
A mammoth tusk was retrieved from the ocean 185 miles offshore of the California coast and 10,000 feet deep. While this is highly unusual, the remains are from an animal carcass that had been washed out to sea. The ivory was coated with a crust of iron-manganese. The conditions preserved the tusk whose age is still unclear but is over 100,000 years. Additional studies on the specimen can shed light on mammoth evolution. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/22/science/mammoth-tusk-ocean.html
Crazy cocaine cactus toy
It’s now officially the holiday shopping season and so I found a timely story of a toy that freaked out an adult. A Polish grandmother in Ontario bought a singing cactus toy from the Walmart website thinking it would sing in English, Spanish, and Polish. What she heard were swear words and talk of cocaine use. While it’s not unreasonable to suspect that the woman misheard the toy, she didn’t. The Chinese manufacturer used an unauthorized song by Polish Rapper Cypis that is indeed about drug use. Walmart removed the toy from their online inventory, finally, after complaints had been circulating for months. While this is a terrible product, it’s not at all likely it would harm children listening to it. https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/mobile/walmart-pulls-children-s-toy-that-swears-and-sings-in-polish-about-doing-cocaine-1.5678364
Wandering pet pigs take over golf course
Two large pot-bellied pigs roaming a West Yorkshire golf course harassed golfers and disrupted traffic. Where the pigs came from is unknown. They came out of the woods and attacked a golfer who ran away with only minor scrapes. The pigs returned two days later to mess with the greens director. Police were called in to round them up. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-leeds-59400964
Thanks for reading. Catch you next week!