12/09/02 - Target Stores vs. Vietnam Veterans
Does the Target Corporation consider Vietnam Veterans unworthy of its charitable support?

12/05/02 - Doctors Find Live Worm in Patient's Eye
Revolting photos show the surgical removal of a live worm from the eye of a patient who purportedly contracted the parasite from ordinary house dust.

11/20/02 - Return of the Butt Spiders
This recycled hoax claims that five women have died in North Florida after being bitten by deadly Indonesian spiders currently migrating to the U.S. under the toilet seats of airliners.

11/15/02 - Naked Injustice
New email scare-o-gram claims shopping mall robbers are eluding justice by forcing victims to disrobe in restrooms, leaving them helpless and humiliated.

11/06/02 - Origin of the F-Word
"In ancient England a person could not have sex unless they had the king's consent. When anyone wanted to have a baby, they got consent of the king, who gave them a placard to hang on their door..."

10/23/02 - Stop Terrorism: Boycott Middle Eastern Oil
This reinvented "Gas Out" for 2002 claims that consumers can avoid inadvertently supporting terrorism by boycotting certain brands of gasoline.

10/16/02 - Safety Tips for Sniper Attacks
Anonymous email flier purportedly written by an actual SWAT sharpshooter advises ordinary citizens on how to avoid becoming the Beltway sniper's next target.

10/07/02 - Men Who Love Pumpkins Too Much
"Police arrested Patrick Lawrence, a 22-year-old white male, resident of Dacula, GA, in a pumpkin patch at 11:38 p.m. Friday. Lawrence will be charged with lewd and lascivious behavior, public indecency, and public intoxication..."

10/02/02 - Caesar Didn't Say It; Shakespeare Didn't Write It
But everyone's quoting it — a passage allegedly conveying Julius Caesar's opinion of warmongering heads of state.

09/17/02 - Birth of an Expletive
In which we are told with a straight face that the word "shit" originated as the acronym of "Ship High in Transit," allegedly a nautical phrase.

09/12/02 - And the Lucky Number Is ... 911!
It's no hoax: the winning numbers drawn in New York's Numbers lottery on Wednesday, 9/11 — the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center — were 9...1...1.

08/28/02 - Soda Pop Terrorist Warning
In these variants of "The Grateful Terrorist," a man of "Arab descent" supposedly repays the kindness of a stranger by warning him or her not to drink Coke or Pepsi after a certain date.

08/12/02 - Shark Attacks Helicopter!
Dramatic still photo shows a great white shark lunging out of the water towards a diver dangling precariously from low-flying helicopter. Real, or fake?

08/05/02 - Microwave Ovens, Plastic Wrap and Dioxin
Does microwaving foods in plastic containers or covered with plastic wrap expose consumers to deadly cancer-causing chemicals?

07/29/02 - Snakehead Attack?  Wok, Don't Run!
Americans seem to find the idea of a walking fish particularly disturbing; why, I don't know. Maybe it smacks too much of evolution, another item high on our list of Dangerous Things That Must Be Banned.

07/19/02 - Static Electricity Causes Gas Pump Fires
Did the Petroleum Equipment Institute issue a warning about the danger of static-caused fires while refueling automobiles?

07/17/02 - Dr Pepper vs. God
Outdated email protest declares the Dr. Pepper/Seven Up company guilty of "anti-Christian political correctness."

07/09/02 - 'My name is Jasmine. I'm 11 years old.'
In which we are told that the Red Cross will donate 10 cents toward saving Jasmine's mother's life every time this chain email is forwarded. Sound vaguely familiar?

07/01/02 - Petition: Save the Pledge of Allegiance
U.S. Court of Appeals declares the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance "unconstitutional." Online petition drives promise to deliver "millions" of names to elected officials in protest.

06/10/02 - McDonald's Imports South American Beef
This chain letter calls on American consumers to boycott McDonald's because the burger chain has allegedly begun importing foreign beef.

05/31/02 - ATM Scam Warning
Various email alerts describe how thieves rig ATM machines to withhold bank cards which are later retrieved and used to empty victims' bank accounts.

05/17/02 - Doomsday on a $20 Bill
Can images "commemorating" the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks of last September 11 be seen on a properly folded U.S. $20 bill?

05/13/02 - 'The Cat's Meow'
Will Peter Bogdanovich's new movie about the mysterious death of pioneering filmmaker Thomas H. Ince finally exorcise a Hollywood ghost?

05/02/02 - 'The Bachelor' Tells All in Not-So-Private Email
Did Alex Michel, star of ABC-TV's "The Bachelor," admit in personal email correspondence that the show's finale was rigged?

04/16/02 - Jennifer Lopez: The Case of the Billion Dollar Booty
From the mailbag: "Dear Guide: Is it true that Jennifer Lopez insured her butt?"  We endeavor to get to the bottom of a scurrilous rumor.

04/01/02 - April Fool's Day Roundup 2002
NASA researchers using the Hubble Space Telescope find conclusive proof that the moon is made of green cheese! Also: Napster to buy Microsoft and sue itself for copyright infringement... and more.

03/27/02 - Wal-Mart Makes Employees Pay for Flag Displays
Is Wal-Mart too greedy and unpatriotic to pay for American flag displays at its stores?

03/21/02 - Hunt the Boeing!
French Website challenges the official explanation that the Pentagon explosion of 9/11 was caused by a hijacked jetliner.

03/18/02 - Cindy Williams vs. Military Pay Raise
Did the actress who played Shirley in "Laverne and Shirley" pen an editorial decrying military pay increases?

02/27/02 - Israel Omitted from Fuji Co. Maps
World maps supposedly distributed by the Fujifilm Company allegedly omit the state of Israel. This forwarded email alert calls for a boycott.

02/26/02 - Eau de Terreur
Are terrorists sending poisoned perfume samples through the mail to kill innocent U.S. citizens?

02/19/02 - IRS 'E-Audit' Scam Warning
Erroneous alert warns of a supposed tax scam being conducted by email.

02/06/02 - Automakers' Contributions to 9/11 Relief
This email alleging that non-U.S. auto manufacturers did not contribute significantly to post-September 11 relief efforts is almost entirely false.

01/28/02 - Applebee's Chain Letter
Just forward this message to nine of your closest friends and win a free gift certificate to Applebee's Restaurants. Not.

01/22/02 - Milking a Legend: La Llorona
The creators of the famous "Got Milk?" television ads have launched a new campaign based on the centuries-old ghost story of a woman who murdered her own children. Brilliant!

01/09/02 - Top 10 Net Hoaxes/Urban Legends of 2001
It wasn't all doom and gloom in 2001, as our adjusted-for-terrorism list of the Top 10 hoaxes, rumors and urban legends of the year reveals.

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