WR - Fw: Fw: PLEASE..Read & send out

[William E. Lyon]

ranzy d rowe wrote:
> In service to the dream
> Ld. Randolph Stewart
> >>> > >Hello, my name is David "Darren" Bucklew. I live in
> >>> > >Pittsburgh, PA where I attend Bethel Park High School
> >>> > >and participate in many sports.
> >>> > >I have severe ostriopliosis of the liver. (My liver is extremely
> >>> > >inflamed).

Okay, folks; Alden here...let's try this again:
This is a HOAX. This is *only* a HOAX. It is someone's infantile 
attempt to waste your time (and a lot of other people's), and 
someone fell for it. So, let's discuss how to spot these HOAX's:

First: Hospitals are not normally in the habit of donating money 
because of "signatures" on an E-mail. (Neither are Corporations, 
Government agencies, or Bill Gates.) If such Donation opportunities 
*do* occur, they are designed to be promotional: i.e., to make the 
corporation money, or get you to know their name.

Second: Exactly *how* is this supposed letter going to get back to 
the institution, with verified signatures? (BTW, E-mail cannot be 
traced back unless each person in the chain does everything 
exactly right. It *can* be traced back from you to the person who 
sent it to you; but not reliably past that.) (It cannot be traced 
forwards at all.) 

Third: Why is this child sending the letter, and not the Hospital? 
Why is there no web link, or contact point for this Hospital?

Fourth: This one doesn't involve logic, but research. There is *no* 
record of a Valley Children's Hospital (Except for Valley Forge 
Medical Center, in Norristown, PA.; jhowever there is one in 
California, who disavows any knowledge of this hoax.) (Check 
www.555-1212.com, which gets it's information from the three 
major phone book publishers.)
There is *no* such organization listed as the National Disease 
Foundation (in any manner of spelling.) (Check www.yahoo.com, or 
any other search engine; don't forget quotes around the phrase.) 
Think about this; non-profit organizations *need* to keep in contact 
with the public. Such an organization *must* have a website. (or at 
least a phone listing.)
There is *no* such medical condition as "ostriopliosis". (Check 
http://www.graylab.ac.uk/omd/contents/O.html ...it's an online 
medical dictionary.) 

So...who does this hurt? Nobody, right? Well....if you go by the 
first two versions of this hoax letter 
(http://urbanlegends.miningco.com/library/weekly/aa021198.htm) 
which cite the American Lung Association, and the American 
Cancer Society....*they* are the ones hurt. These non-profit 
organizations now must spend a significant amount of time, 
money,and manpower answeriung the letters sent to them by well-
wishing victims of this hoax. 

Okay...rant over, folks. Please go back to your regularly scheduled 
lives. Bye!

In Sevice, I remain
Alden Pharamond
Mendersham, Ansteorra
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