…and this is a 
Two children are missing in Belize, and no one knows what happened to them. So a helpful 'psychic' declared that they had been fed to the crocodiles in a nearby sanctuary. The results were predictable.
Reports are that the mob shot and killed some of the 17 crocs held in captivity at the sanctuary. Also destroyed were the Rose's two story home that included a laboratory and nursery for baby crocs. One baby American Crocodile was to be flown to Chicago to the Wildlife Discovery Center in Lake Forest, Ill. USA for the first ever animal exchange program between Belize and the USA. Over $2,500 in vet supplies that were recently donated for a new humane society that Cherie, along with other locals were working on in Punta Gorda were also lost. "This one wrongful incident has effected and hurt many innocent people and animals," added Cherie.
The sanctuary looks like it was an amazing setup: all power was provided by solar and wind, they offered educational programs, they were training students, and they were also supporting local eco-tourism. And of course their primary mission was protecting endangered reptiles.
Now it's all destroyed by the lies of one ignorant fraud, whipping up a mob into a ridiculous frenzy. Even now the people who ran the sanctuary can't come back — they've been threatened with death.
Ignorance isn't just a passive failure. Ignorance topples and destroys the great things people build up.
The organizers are asking for donations — they're hoping to rebuild.
International wiring account number for donations
Belize Bank # 630-1-1-10130
Account# Vince & Cherie Rose Fire Victim Account
Environment
Comments
Posted by: Porco Dio
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September 7, 2010 8:20 AM
QFT PZ...
this one will be around long after you are...
Posted by: EboTebo
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September 7, 2010 8:22 AM
Ignorance is within every corner of this pale blue dot!
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp
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September 7, 2010 8:23 AM
And people ask what's the harm?
Posted by: Anubis Bloodsin the third
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September 7, 2010 8:25 AM
Seems to be the way that religion works.
Takes one character that no one dares to question...allow him the latitude to blossom...and he has a little army willing to do his dirty work.
Any bigotry hatred fear the character possesses a personal intolerance towards can be removed by summoning and dispatching a crowd in mass hysteria.
That is an xian speciality.
Posted by: pulsfordp
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September 7, 2010 8:32 AM
Brilliant. Psychics. 21st century?
Posted by: david.utidjian
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September 7, 2010 8:33 AM
Bah! Seems I have to sign in with googlemess. Vox is shutting down September 30 2010.
I found a regular donation page at:
(from the donate link on the croc page.)Posted by: Birger Johansson
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September 7, 2010 8:36 AM
It worked pretty much the same with the "witchfinders" that were active in Europe and New England. One we had in Sweden profited nicely, with a small payment per witch, eventually adding up. Västerbotten county, Sweden, experienced a hysteria that saw a hundred women executed.
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 8:41 AM
San Pedro's Visitor Guide slogan is "United and Proud, Moving Forward". Perhaps it should be "Moving "Forward" Back into the Dark Ages"
One can only wonder if there is something more to the story as it is "alleged" that the same group of villagers have burned other homes in the recent past.
Could they be going after foreigners?
Posted by: bobdelany
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September 7, 2010 8:42 AM
I don't know. I've always thought crocodiles were the handiwork of Satan.
Posted by: MetzO'Magic
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September 7, 2010 8:43 AM
And now there's some pretty solid research to back this up. Everyone here that hasn't done so should go read Bob Altmeyer's The Authoritarians:
The Authoritarians, free on-line PDF
It also explains the mindset of the Tea Party. A fascinating, and frightening, good read.
Posted by: Shala
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September 7, 2010 8:44 AM
I am way too mad to post about this. Are we still living in 2010, or is this the 1400s? Is there anyone who even gives a fuck about ethics and Science anymore?
Posted by: hyperdeath
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September 7, 2010 8:48 AM
The homes, property and savings of all mob members should be seized and liquidated, and the revenue added to the rebuild (with any excess being used to fund other conservation projects). The only thing the mob members should be left with is a commemorative plaque, bearing the message:
"You are stupid. You are ignorant. You are gullible. This is the reward for your stupidity, your ignorance and your gullibility."
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 8:48 AM
@david.utidjian #5,
Depending on how the Rose's non-profit is set up, donations through the development fund may or may not be used to rebuild elsewhere, as the Rose's have indicated they wish to do. Those funds may or may not be available immediately, as the Rose's need to do.
It seems it would be a better bet to donate to the disaster fund as the Rose's have requested and NOT the Development fund.
This is not a flame; I suspect strongly that you are trying to help. I just think it's a better idea to help in a way the victims have requested.
Posted by: Multicellular
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September 7, 2010 8:49 AM
Too soon bobdelany.
Posted by: Daz
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September 7, 2010 8:50 AM
Some days I feel like I'm living in a Douglas Adams attempt at black comedy.
Posted by: Richard Dawkins
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September 7, 2010 8:53 AM
I suppose I'd be a dick if I say I utterly despise both the 'psychic' and his followers. Well in that case I'm proud to be a dick.
Posted by: Rorschach
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September 7, 2010 8:57 AM
Hehe ! This planet needs more dicks like you.
Posted by: Multicellular
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September 7, 2010 9:04 AM
Me too, but no matter how dickish you are British dicks always sound so polite (plus I hear they have spotted ones).
Posted by: Utakata
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September 7, 2010 9:06 AM
Speaking of dicks, Richard...a certain Jonathan Jones over at The Guardian has a hard-on for you. :(
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2010/sep/07/darwin-dawkins
Posted by: Darrell E
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September 7, 2010 9:08 AM
For me, this is the grand prize winning bit of ignorant fuckwittery about this whole event.
I mean, if you are going to get all righteous, shouldn't you go after whatever caused the death of the children? For example, whoever it was that purportedly fed the children to the crocodiles?
This seems to be a pretty common failing, choosing the wrong target, and I just don't fucking get it. That's not just ignorance. That is stupidity. And bovine like.
Posted by: Rorschach
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September 7, 2010 9:13 AM
Oh for the love of dog, another flea !!
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 9:21 AM
Here is a TV news report from Belize (with a transcript in English) from yesterday. It looks like some people have been detained.
Posted by: David Marjanović
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September 7, 2010 9:24 AM
Okay. And what'll happen to the perpetrators (charlatan included)?
You can still sign in with Vox, so far.
Posted by: hyperdeath
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September 7, 2010 9:27 AM
Sweet Nyarlathotep's balls! That article is stupid, even by the standards of the Guardian's near-daily whinge...whinge...Dawkins...whinge... piece.
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 9:28 AM
Depends on the law in Belize.
Posted by: david.utidjian
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September 7, 2010 9:31 AM
@Doodle Bean #13,
Good points.
I would prefer to send a check to a US address. I have an aversion to sending money to foreign bank numbers with an an account number that isn't even a number. I have no idea what to do with the information they have given for donations.
Too bad they didn't set up a PayPal account or something. I get a bit miffed at people that will take the effort to make a website and a blog and can't simply put in a simple PayPal link.
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 9:33 AM
Here is the ACES Facebook page, which doesn't look to have been updated recently (big surprise).
Facebook members could probably help the Rose's by liking and/or linking to them. It couldn't hurt to post about this tragedy in your own status, also.
Posted by: Moggie
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September 7, 2010 9:38 AM
It's a distressing story, and sickening that the "psychic" (at least) will probably get away with it. But I was a little taken aback by this quote from Cherie Chenot-Rose:
What, the whole country? I understand that, in the emotional state she's probably in right now, it probably feels that way. But there was probably already resentment towards them from some locals, and a comment like that is unlikely to help.
/tone_troll
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 9:48 AM
@28
There's no guarantee that there was resentment. that's how this witch hunting works. "Oh hey look at them, evil" and then the angry mob forms. Upstanding members of societies have been destroyed by this nonsense. Look at the Satanism scare in the US. Teachers, caretakers etc were sent to prison for molestation that never happened.
Btw, does the Pyschic introduce him/her/zer self as a "Man of wealth and taste?"
Posted by: K Twomey
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September 7, 2010 9:49 AM
Moggie, I think they are just in such a high emotional state right now. I stayed with them about 5 or 6 years ago, when they only had one croc and her few babies, before they had even really set up the sanctuary and they are both the nicest people. They both worked hard to be part of the community, and Vince would give work to locals whenever he could. I'm guessing they feel betrayed for how much work they have put in only to be treated as evil outsiders after it all.
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 9:49 AM
@david.utidjian #26,
You can contact your bank (or PayPal) for instructions on wiring money to a foreign bank account.
I'm taken aback at your 'miffed' comment; why be so judgmental about people who were working hard to preserve an endangered species just because your convenience was not their priority?
And do you even know for a fact that PayPal even accepts Belizian bank accounts?
Posted by: Cuttlefish, OM, CR
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September 7, 2010 9:51 AM
I remember when that batty matron, "the pet psychic", was all the rage amongst my students. They could see no harm, since she was so obviously benign. I pointed out that she *regularly* "helped" police with cases--telling them it was this neighborhood or that, giving info on a brown van, etc. This current story is the natural outcome of such batshit witchhunting. "Psychics" should be held accountable for the money squandered in situations like this; it would perhaps serve as a deterrent for later cases. Yes, Sylvia, I'm looking at you.
Posted by: Doodle Bean
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September 7, 2010 9:51 AM
@Moggie #28
Way to pick on a victim of a violent crime!
Posted by: te24hours
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September 7, 2010 9:54 AM
What a horrible and stupid thing. I'll be donating.
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 10:06 AM
Everyone should have to read "The Theory of Scapegoat"
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 10:08 AM
@33
Yeah, but did you hear what the crocodiles were wearing? Tight snakeskin, those hussies were totally asking for it.
Posted by: Mattir-ritated
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September 7, 2010 10:24 AM
If Professor Dawkins is a dick, may I be one too?
We'll be giving funds as well. What a piece of work our species is...
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawlhJkLoaLREvGWBjKzFVMpetAw91i17YYw
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September 7, 2010 10:42 AM
@ Ing #36,
Too soon. It looks like at least one of the crocs was hacked to death with machetes.
Posted by: raven
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September 7, 2010 10:43 AM
I've thought the same thing about Theothuglicans, Tea Partiers, and fundie xian death cultists. It takes thought and motivation to be actively evil.
Crocodiles, big deal. They are just animals and the new world ones are heading towards extinction because they are in the way of humans and edible.
Posted by: scooterKPFT
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September 7, 2010 10:49 AM
We should rebuild the sanctuary in Houston, as long as we can offer a Crocodile vs Psychic cage match to-the-death every Saturday, open to the public.
The beer sales alone could fund hundreds of animal sanctuaries, and also shelters for psychics. We could construct habitats to exhibit captive psychic populations in their natural surroundings.
Tarot Card enclosures reeking of incense, strewn with cheap quartz, even a cold reading room.
We could also put together a petting zoo in LaGrange TX for hot babe psychics , we could make a killing on that. All very non-profit, of course.
The psychic food supply is endless, we could keep thousands of crocs fat and happy until the next asteroid strike..
Please donate to:
Crocs and Psychic natural selection fund at
http://acksisofevil.org
Thank you for your time
Posted by: Michelle R
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September 7, 2010 10:55 AM
Obviously the crocodiles were responsible. Look at them, all smiling to themselves... WHAT ARE THEY HIDING?!
Ahem. Buncha douches.
Let's be hypothetical. Let's believe the kids were truly fed to the crocs (Obviously not). Would it be the crocs' fault for accepting a free meal? I think not.
There's a lot of work to be done in that country. One of which is to teach these people that PSYCHICS ARE SCUM.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 11:03 AM
I'm all for feeding the psychic to the crocs.
Posted by: mistereveready
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September 7, 2010 11:05 AM
according to the article referenced, the mob were already stupid gits who did damage before. The psychic was that catalyst, but the dangerous mob seems to still be lurking about the area.
also the woo woo artist said fed to crocodiles, so not exactly like it was the crocs fault anyway.
I've said it before, birth control and quality control are often the same thing. Air drop some condoms and waist high poorly made microwaves to those S.o.B.s.
another tragedy was the people affected by it were praying and had people praying for them. i'm sure that a paid hotel room would have been much more helpful. but i guess for some people praying for them can be mentally soothing, much like the sound of the ocean >_>.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 11:05 AM
I somehow wonder if someone's treating this like the Sentinelese people killing folks that get on their land - too backwoods a place for the law to apply in their minds?
I don't think the country itself had any hand in it, though.
Posted by: rob
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September 7, 2010 11:06 AM
I feel sorry for the crocs. I guess they now know how we gay folks feel after being targeted by ignorant theists for so long. "It's the gays. They caused the plague, flood, famine, decay of society... You name it, we caused it.
This sort of thing just makes you despair don't it!
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 11:13 AM
(obligatory)
SHE TURNED ME INTO A NEWT!
... I got better.
(/obligatory)
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 11:15 AM
OH FSM GREAT SHIRT IDEA:
'Barack Obama turned me into a newt. That's why I'm voting Tea Party.'
Posted by: Grumpy1942
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September 7, 2010 11:18 AM
During the 1990s and early 2000s I lived in Punta Gorda. I knew many of the village Maya, some of them quite well. They are, by and large, a gentle and courteous people, almost to the point of servile.
In fact, I was utterly amazed at their docility when I began to understand how exploited those people are by their government, by the non-Maya populace, the foreign developers, and most of all, but the fucking missionaries.
This horror is a complete anomaly.
I lived in town, but visited village families often. I had contact in town with American and European ecotourists who had stayed in village guesthouses all over the Toledo District. They were uniformly in love with the Maya by the end of their experience.
I believe this story, but I don't understand it.
Posted by: Silič O'Nopolitanopoulos, Färschdbischuf Beesknees aus Ulm und Klein Elguth, Elector Pharynguline.
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September 7, 2010 11:26 AM
Where do we pay to have the psychic and the mob prosecuted so they can pay restitution?
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 11:28 AM
That was my point, some insinuating it was the institution who fostered bad relations with the dumbasses
Posted by: mel.unique
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September 7, 2010 11:36 AM
Charles Dickens was right in "A Christmas Carol." Ignorance really is much worse than Want, and leads to Doom.
Want, at least, can be overcome with work, ideas, and new techniques. Ignorance rejects, abandons, and tries to destroy all of those.
Posted by: K Twomey
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September 7, 2010 11:45 AM
Grumpy1942, I had the same experience. The people seemed wonderful and welcoming in all the little villages we went. I don't think this is representative of the Maya in general, but like anywhere else, you have good people and bad, and it only takes religion or other irrational beliefs to make good people do horrible things.
Posted by: Manny Calavera
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September 7, 2010 11:47 AM
I don't mean to sidetrack the thread but in all seriousness, could someone just answer one question?
How do you people deal with this shit, day in day out??
I've always had a sense of humour about things (to the degree that some would call me sick), I've always been able to sigh and laugh about the horrible things human beings do even if a story made me sad. These days though, I just don't feel like I can take it anymore. We're just a horrible, hopeless species. I want no part of this whole 'human being' thing. From the large scale events such as wars to the fact that you'll find people bickering like children in every single comment thread on the Internet. It's all just fucking sick and depressing.
Like I said, I don't want to sidetrack the thread with any melodrama, this isn't some suicide note type deal. When I say it makes me want to give up I'm not talking any dramatic shotgun in the mouth type dealy. I'm talking more about wanting to do as George Carlin claimed to have done and mentally separate myself from this species, viewing them only as entertainment and not caring what happens to them at all.
I'm just pretty much desperate to know, from anyone who bothered to read this far, how do you cheer yourself back up after reading this crap?? Whether it's flash videos of dancing kitties or naked pictures of Burt Reynolds, bring it on. I need suggestions. Just please note - 8 legged sea creatures don't do it for me. Sorry, they just don't.
Posted by: scooterKPFT
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September 7, 2010 11:55 AM
Manny @ 53
I recommend the Carlin option, it works for me. It also worked for Mark Twain, and note that both of the above offered stinging social commentery til their last minute.
Misanthropy is not a form of surrender, and hardly an easy way out.
Posted by: MosesZD
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September 7, 2010 12:22 PM
Psychics, another form of knowing. Right up there with other woos fests: religion, homeopathy and libertarian economics...
Remind me again why weren't not supposed to be dicks by pointing out the obvious to the woo-sacks that they're full of shit? I mean, seriously, why shouldn't we be dicks?
(Not that we are (particularly) dicks, except, frankly when we're being assaulted by terminal stupidity and arrogance under the cloak of "polite and respectful.")
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
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September 7, 2010 12:25 PM
[This comment redacted by the author for containing gratuitous wishes of violence towards psychics and their supporters.]
Posted by: a_ray_in_dilbert_space, OM, A little FUCKING ray of sunshine
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September 7, 2010 12:35 PM
Manny Calavera, On the other hand, we for all practical purposes created dogs. I keep hoping humans will learn enough from their creation before they destroy the planet. Until then, I will justify my continued existence as essential to providing for my dogs. Not much, but what else is there?
Posted by: Richard Eis
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September 7, 2010 1:00 PM
Looks to me like this psychic needs a little more investigation into their "actual" connection to this "supposed" mob.
Posted by: Utakata
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September 7, 2010 1:14 PM
...and the sad irony about it Rorschach @ 21 and hyperdeath @ 24, that writer is being complete dick about Richard being a dick. /facepalm
Posted by: Glenn G
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September 7, 2010 1:22 PM
This is what happens when a society is not ruled by science and rational thought.
Hopefully they hang the psychic, and hang her high.
Posted by: elonin
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September 7, 2010 1:29 PM
Too bad that noone in the mob will remember this debacle the next time a psychic makes predictions. I'll agree with the feeding psychics to crocs idea.
Don't know about the law in Beliz but she should get whatever the penalty is for inciting a mob.
Posted by: Joe Bloe
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September 7, 2010 2:02 PM
What's the education system like in Belize? If a psychic can get people that stirred-up then I guess they are pretty stupid.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 2:03 PM
Manny, I just mock them mercilessly - emphasis on 'mercilessly', because they lost their chance at mercy by being so fsm-awfully dumb. Many who don't know me better shake my finger at me because of this, but it is quite likely I've been through things they haven't - I have some extremely atypical life circumstances in some respects, and this does contribute a bit to my decidedly negative attitude about most of my conspecifics. (A certain percentage - not even close to the majority, but a certain percentage - of my misanthropy comes from past experiences that were so horrendous that I have blacked out most of my childhood, in part because of realizing 'what the fuck, people DO these things?!' and 'THAT MANY people do these things?!' and 'people that age are immature enough to do these things?!' and 'people are that irrational?!'. Various things such as that. Mere exposure effect and all that.)
And also do my best to work in the way that I choose, which is through doing science (this is just part of why I do science, there are many more reasons I do so), to make this world a little better and make people a little smarter.
Because there are people in the world worth my time and effort to make it better and I am not alone and there are people I can relate to and commune with and feel understood and feel as if I'm around a group of sane, well-educated folk who understand the world more than most.
My misanthropy sounds a little schizophrenic until you think about it, but I'm a bit of a humanitarian misanthrope; someone who both thinks most humans are gibbering idiots and/or severely ignorant and who wants to make the world better for everybody.
Surround yourself with sanity, Manny, and do your best to make the world a better place for all.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 2:06 PM
Oh, and also because making the world better benefits everyone - it may benefit the dumbasses, but it also benefits us smart folks, and if it benefits everyone and helps them get smarter in the process that's always a good thing.
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 2:08 PM
I've found most misanthropes are that way not out of an inherent hate of the species, but out of disappointment of not living up to hype.
Posted by: Joshua Zelinsky
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September 7, 2010 2:28 PM
Am I a bad person if a large part of me wants to go and out and kill the psychics?
Posted by: Katharine
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September 7, 2010 2:30 PM
Oh yes. My misanthropy is a direct result of repeated disappointment about folks.
There's some quote about it being the sign of a well-seasoned idealist.
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 2:33 PM
Ummm any word what did happen to the kids?
Posted by: Gregory Greenwood
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September 7, 2010 2:47 PM
I never cease to be horrified by how terribly easy it is for charlatans to convince the gullible that they possess magic powers, and then how simple it is for those snake-oil salesmen to unleash a swarm of their unreasoning acolytes to do violence against essentially anyone that the fakir has taken a dislike to.
This holds for the 'psychics' of this particular incident, and it is equally applicable to organised religion which, more often than not, is simply the same phenomenon writ large, whether it is young fools strapping bombs to themselves in order to kill the 'infidel', or acolytes of the christian 'religion of love' engaging in homophobic violence because their millennia old book of magic spells mandates it.
Posted by: K Twomey
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September 7, 2010 2:56 PM
Ing (#68), no word yet.
Posted by: Ternon
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September 7, 2010 2:58 PM
It would be nice if this incident is used to expose the fraud and educate the population and legally sanction the attackers...
Any chance of that happening?
Posted by: david.utidjian
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September 7, 2010 3:09 PM
@Doodle Bean #31,
Yes I know I have to contact my bank to arrange a wire transfer. I will have to go to the bank during banking hours and it will take about an hour (I have done this before.) An hour of my time is something I don't have to spare right now.
I can spare $20 to help their cause, just not the hour.
I have no idea whether PayPal can arrange wire transfers. Generally it is from PayPal account to PayPal account.
I am not judging their work on endangered species. If they want my money there is very little they would have to do to make it a whole lot easier for me (or anyone else) to give it to them. It is 2010, not 1910... in this day and age if someone needs money from anonymous donors then they should invest an hour of their time. I would guess that a whole lot more contributions would be coming their way if they did.
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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September 7, 2010 3:16 PM
@70.
So what are placing odds on the psychic actually being in on the disappearance? 3 to 1?
Posted by: K Twomey
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September 7, 2010 4:11 PM
David (#72), I think you have a valid point, but the snark doesn't seem appropriate. Nevertheless, it's a good idea to have an easier way to contribute and I have forwarded that information on to Cherie. I'll post again if and when I hear something else has been set up.
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawkL6rop7ope6a9ysVWsdSU1FNTAQmmW9gw
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September 7, 2010 4:38 PM
Sooo... is the psychic going to be charged with negligent homicide?
After all, with her powers she must hvae known ahead of time what would happen yet she did nothing to stop it.
Rob Jase
Posted by: Manny Calavera
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September 7, 2010 4:45 PM
Thanks for the replies folks, this misanthropy thing doesn't seem to be sticking with me because it actually cheered me up to see from the responses that there are still some decent intelligent people out there. I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get the naked Burt Reynolds pictures I was angling for but oh well, I guess that's what Google is for.
Posted by: ajerma
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September 7, 2010 6:10 PM
"Seeking help from the United States Embassy in Belize proved to be fruitless. “They just told us what it will cost to replace our passports,” Vince grumbled."
Nice to see that a government protects its own.
Posted by: MadScientist
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September 7, 2010 6:13 PM
Hmmm. I wonder if I should ask some people to donate 0.30 machine guns, recoilless rifles, and Claymore mines.
See - some people haven't evolved from the monkeys yet. That's what religion promotes - unthinking acceptance of bullshit.
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawmHWq8OAnBwrPDrX0SGxJvll7SUT4PfIiM
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September 7, 2010 8:44 PM
The stupidity of it all.
Posted by: david.utidjian
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September 7, 2010 10:41 PM
@K Twomey #74,
I doubly apologize for the snark... mainly because I was aware of it but couldn't figure out how to de-snarkify my comments here enough to write an email to Vince and Cherie suggesting that they set something up to make it easier for people to donate directly. This is why I dug up their regular "Donate" link from their website and posted it here.
Thanks for taking the time to write a tactful suggestion to them about a more convenient method for online readers to donate to their work.
Posted by: Twin-Skies
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September 7, 2010 10:54 PM
@Manny Calavera
Easy.
Whenever some religious or superstitious idiot in my immediate vicinity starts gushing about how much better is with their faith, I literally rub stories like this in their face, followed by copious amounts of
"Fuck you asshole, incidents like this happen because of the same delusions you are so proud of!"
...and other similar statements.
For every whine by religious self-righteous blowhards about a secular society that is critical of their faith, I use stories like this to bash into their skulls the reality that it is THEIR fucking belief that is getting people hurt, maimed, and killed, and that they have no fucking right to play the victim card.
Unfortunately, in a country like the Philippines, there is no shortage of fortune tellers, new-age nuts, alternative medicine/snake oil salesmen, and religious fundies.
Posted by: One Furious Llama
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September 8, 2010 4:13 AM
The real travesty is that there are no more crocodiles left to feed the phony psychic to when the crowd of idiots realised they were lied to.
A real shame.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 8, 2010 7:40 AM
I keep wondering if we're speciating.
Posted by: Julie Stahlhut
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September 8, 2010 7:41 AM
And, of course, if the children really were victims of foul play, the criminals who were actually responsible are still at large. Instead of investigating possible actual dangers to the local children -- for example, pedophiles, traffickers, or even conditions conducive to serious accidents -- the locals were too busy mutilating animals, menacing innocent researchers, and undermining their own economy.
Posted by: Katharine
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September 8, 2010 7:42 AM
Because goodness knows the dumb tend to keep to the dumb and the smart keep to the smart.
Posted by: goonters mom
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September 8, 2010 1:13 PM
So, did the search for these kids stop on some psychic's say-so that the case was solved? If these kids aren't just lost in the woods, and there is a kidnapping child-molester out there, he's still free to pick off more kids. Even if they are just lost, any chance of finding them alive is dwindling while mobs waste time destroying crocodile sanctuaries. Let that be laid at this psychic's door also.
Posted by: thrawn369
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September 8, 2010 1:47 PM
It's just so terrible. I even feel bad for the ignorant violent mob, since they've probably suffered so much in their lives, and from what I've read the police in the area didn't do that much policing, especially for the poor. I can understand how in a bad situation scared, grieving and ignorant people can do horrific things. I just feel sad about the tragedy.
No sympathy for the preacher, though. He's nothing more than an arrogant, bigoted, ignorant, bloodthirsty vulture.
Posted by: K Twomey
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September 8, 2010 4:51 PM
A better way to send donations has been set up.
ACES 501(c)(3) partner ''The Belize Economic & Ecological Development Fund" has set up an online paypal for donations to help ACES and the crocodiles...those wishing to help can make a paypal donation using the email info@beedfund.COM.
Posted by: SQB (fuck death)
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September 9, 2010 7:31 AM
Darell E (#20), Michelle R (#41): Well, to me it was sort of implied that the kids were supposedly fed to the crocodiles by the sanctuary.
Posted by: david.utidjian
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September 9, 2010 2:50 PM
@K Twomey #88,
A thousand thanks.
I just PPed them US$50.
Posted by: lifelinking
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October 23, 2010 12:15 PM
For the record, the individual accused of claiming to be 'psychic' appeared in court in Belize on the 21st Inst on a charge of 'fortune telling'. The magistrate threw the charge out, as the prosecution had failed to present any actual evidence. Thankfully for her, unlike some people who appear to accept just about anything if it supports a pet theory, the court concerned was not impressed with rumours and malicious gossip.
Posted by: lasse5220
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November 5, 2011 9:23 AM
The direct translation of the word "clairvoyance" is "clear sight".It is defined as the ability to perceive or even see with the "mind's eye" something that is going on in a remote location without any previous knowledge of the event. Most paranormal professionals and enthusiasts believe that psychic ability resides (albeit unlocked) within every human being. Their belief is that most people do not tap into their clairvoyance because they are either too unaware or unwilling to unveil it, and that it takes perseverance to develop one's own personal psychic abilities. In other words, everyone has a second sight but it has to be awakened. Don't worry - you don't have to obtain a tarot reading or call a psychic phone reading line. It just takes some introspection.
Psychic Abilities
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, OM
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November 5, 2011 10:53 AM
Any sort of pyschic ability would be a benefit to those people who had it. They would be selected for by natural selection and pyschic abilities would become quite widespread in only a few generations. But these abilities are not universal or even common. Therefore the probability of pyschic abilities is quite low.
But I'm sure the true believers will ignore this point, just like they ignore all other evidence their brand of woo is just woo.
Posted by: Nerd of Redhead, OM
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November 5, 2011 11:02 AM
Funny how with proper controls designed by magicians to stop cheating in place, nothing can be seen beyond chance. Doesn't say much for the repeatability and accuracy of psychic abilities...Posted by: Amphiox, OM
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November 5, 2011 11:22 AM
Well, if it's already UNLOCKED, why can't we all do it right now?
(Of course, all humans, except a few on the very worst end of the autistic spectrum, are capable of reading minds with a high degree of accuracy. But there's nothing paranormal about it).
Posted by: Amphiox, OM
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November 5, 2011 11:29 AM
Ah, but you see, the earliest, most rudimentary forms of it would be very unreliable and intermittent. So, any benefit accrued from these variants would be outweighed by the disadvantage of how the ability would creep out all their neighbours, leading to social ostracization, loss of mating opportunities, and plain old burning at the stake. The rest will be so distracted by their attempts to remote view the next valley that they won't see the sabretooth in their own valley right in front of them, and get eaten. The final, powerful version would be a major advantage, but natural selection will weed out all the less reliable intermediates before they have a chance to evolve further sophistication.
Thus psychic ability can't evolve. It's irreducibly complex!
Of course this still means the probability of it existing is quite low.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, OM
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November 5, 2011 1:55 PM
Not to mention socially complex as well. Hoist by two petards.
Posted by: https://me.yahoo.com/a/_4KIfrwRxNWU8qEsAFrxolQ6Tw--#4599c
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November 5, 2011 3:06 PM
From lasse5220's link:
Wow, that high?