# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=18 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 19 --- ## [Stonehenge and Basques](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stonehenge-and-basques/764828)
**Author:** [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [September 4, 2016, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stonehenge-and-basques/764828 "2016-09-04T01:40:44Z")
In re: Why are there so many crazy theories about negative blood types, there is considerable DNA evidence that the British pre-Celtic substrate was close to the Basques, so they (or their cousins) may indeed have built … --- ## [Embarrassing urinary noise](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/embarrassing-urinary-noise/763322)
**Author:** [@Woodrow\_W\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Woodrow_W_Smith)\ **Replies:** 61\ **Last updated:** [September 2, 2016, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/embarrassing-urinary-noise/763322 "2016-09-02T03:34:05Z")
The subject came up in my college years. You’ve been invited to your girlfriend’s parents’ home for dinner. You excuse yourself to use the bathroom. Where you find the commode so full of water, there is no “dry land” to … --- ## [FDR column: Is Slug just phoning it in now?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fdr-column-is-slug-just-phoning-it-in-now/763394)
**Author:** [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2016, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fdr-column-is-slug-just-phoning-it-in-now/763394 "2016-08-29T02:36:10Z")
If it wasn’t for the signature, I would swear Little Ed tried to slip in one of his kid’s scrawlings as the cartoon for the column on FDR’s disability: No wit, no sex, just some microphones, a leg brace and a wheelcha… --- ## [Adult diapers column: possible small error](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adult-diapers-column-possible-small-error/764252)
**Author:** [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2016, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adult-diapers-column-possible-small-error/764252 "2016-08-29T01:28:38Z")
In the column about how long adult diapers have been around, Cecil says: Wasn’t the guy’s name spelled Alan Shepard? (I’m assuming this is the guy, right?) Perhaps a spell check suggestion that was accepted by acciden… --- ## [It's a myth that FDR's disability was secret](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-myth-that-fdrs-disability-was-secret/763611)
**Author:** [@spodvoll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spodvoll)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2016, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-myth-that-fdrs-disability-was-secret/763611 "2016-08-26T02:28:30Z")
I could cite many references to debunk this urban legend. FDR did indeed take great pains to minimize perceptions that he was frail. However he was a great public champion of the disabled. The Democratic party adored … --- ## [The Exception that Proves the Rule](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-exception-that-proves-the-rule/617068)
**Author:** [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2016, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-exception-that-proves-the-rule/617068 "2016-08-26T01:20:33Z")
Link: I thought of a personal scenario related to this saying: My punctuality. I get a reputation at my jobs for being “on time, every day”. The one day that, for whatever reason, I oversleep and end up being late to w… --- ## [Difference between a church and a cult](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-church-and-a-cult/728783)
**Author:** [@Marion\_Wormer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marion_Wormer)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-church-and-a-cult/728783 "2016-08-25T15:44:51Z")
Regarding cecil’s post:What’s the difference between a church and a cult? - The Straight Dope I think that the modern definition of a cult would include that cults try to cut off members from their families, and control… --- ## [Yes - virgins were sacrified to volcanos.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yes-virgins-were-sacrified-to-volcanos/763829)
**Author:** [@wristwatch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wristwatch)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [August 24, 2016, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yes-virgins-were-sacrified-to-volcanos/763829 "2016-08-24T20:55:47Z")
This is a short response in regard to SD’s response on the subject of human sacrifices by means of an active volcano, particularly of virgins. “My query concerns the common conception of primitive cultures sacrificing v… --- ## [Did Americans Know That FDR Couldn't Walk?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-americans-know-that-fdr-couldnt-walk/763288)
**Author:** [@Scoodler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoodler)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [August 21, 2016, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-americans-know-that-fdr-couldnt-walk/763288 "2016-08-21T20:24:01Z")
Maybe before Trump. Now, Trump is already making stuff up about Clinton’s health; if Clinton actually had a health problems, Trump would think, Bonanza! --- ## [Do we drink dinosaur urine?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-drink-dinosaur-urine/763339)
**Author:** [@lynceus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lynceus)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 21, 2016, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-drink-dinosaur-urine/763339 "2016-08-21T00:43:50Z")
I wouldn’t be too worried about drinking dinosaur urine. However, the good folks of St Louis drink water that has passed through the inhabitants of Minneapolis (via the Mississippi) and/or Kansas (via the Missouri), and… --- ## [Stairway to Heaven Lyrics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven-lyrics/302103)
**Author:** [@Yavieriel\_Tarandir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yavieriel_Tarandir)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2016, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven-lyrics/302103 "2016-08-19T17:12:04Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030425.html I happened to be wandering around the Internet looking for someplace to listen to Led Zepplin’s song ‘Stairway to Heaven’, as I had never heard it, only seen the lyrics qu… --- ## [Dangers of microwave ovens](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dangers-of-microwave-ovens/302727)
**Author:** [@jimbobboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimbobboy)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2016, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dangers-of-microwave-ovens/302727 "2016-08-19T14:50:28Z")
Only in the Straight Dope can we get the proper balance of established facts to reduce our paranoia, and leading-edge science to get it back up there again. Let us not forget that the reason most experts dismiss concern… --- ## [Disney Naughties](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disney-naughties/762912)
**Author:** [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2016, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disney-naughties/762912 "2016-08-19T02:08:58Z")
Not precisely erotica, but definitely “Class A.” In the animated version of “Robin Hood,” Little John sings a song about Prince John. The original of the song was about King John of England, however … The song is a cle… --- ## [Peanut allergies -- outdated medical advice](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-allergies-outdated-medical-advice/763041)
**Author:** [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 17, 2016, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-allergies-outdated-medical-advice/763041 "2016-08-17T01:43:35Z")
The advice at the end of the column – to avoid peanuts during pregnancy and before age 3 – is outdated. There is increasing evidence that “early peanut introduction” – between 4 and 11 months of age – serves to decreas… --- ## [The Hillary column](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hillary-column/762569)
**Author:** [@Hussman32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hussman32)\ **Replies:** 51\ **Last updated:** [August 16, 2016, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hillary-column/762569 "2016-08-16T23:39:58Z")
Why? There is not one fact that could be used in a later time period. --- ## [Olympics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympics/669322)
**Author:** [@pplepic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pplepic)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [August 16, 2016, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympics/669322 "2016-08-16T02:48:58Z")
I’m going to train for the Olympics starting today! --- ## [peanut allergy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-allergy/762552)
**Author:** [@alanjackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alanjackson)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-allergy/762552 "2016-08-13T17:26:50Z")
The latest advice is the exact opposite of that in the column. --- ## [Stairway to Heaven = Galadriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven-galadriel/762252)
**Author:** [@squidfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squidfood)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2016, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven-galadriel/762252 "2016-08-12T15:55:43Z")
Since Stairway to Heaven came up in rotation today, there’s a theory floating around the interwebs these days that, like in Battle for Evermore, Led Zeppelin is taking us to Hobbitland again with Stairway to Heaven: T… --- ## [Re: What's the story with the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-whats-the-story-with-the-protocols-of-the-elders-of-zion/762353)
**Author:** [@waddlingeagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waddlingeagle)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2016, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-whats-the-story-with-the-protocols-of-the-elders-of-zion/762353 "2016-08-11T14:14:13Z")
It seems surprising to us today that people believe these things, but you have to remember just how insular the world was before the development of satellite communications. When I was a kid, it was still possible for en… --- ## [Dinosaur urine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinosaur-urine/761834)
**Author:** [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2016, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinosaur-urine/761834 "2016-08-10T21:31:09Z")
August 5, 2016: Do we drink dinosaur urine? Interesting discussion, but I wanted to point out that the burning of fossil fuels (which Cecil says has created less than 1% of the water on Earth) isn’t the only way that w… --- ## [How Does A Ouija Board Work?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-a-ouija-board-work/762211)
**Author:** [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2016, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-a-ouija-board-work/762211 "2016-08-10T16:44:26Z")
Jesus H. Christ. ‘spirits’??? I see this was a question from 16 years ago, and I would bet a year’s salary there are more dimwits today who believe ‘spirits’ than there were in the year 2000. I sometimes wonder, if yo… --- ## [4 out of 5 dentists](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/4-out-of-5-dentists/762344)
**Author:** [@sbunny8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sbunny8)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2016, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/4-out-of-5-dentists/762344 "2016-08-10T14:43:12Z")
In the mid 1980s, I was friends with a dentist who explained it to me this way: The growth of the microbes that cause tooth decay depends on (1) tiny bits of food stuck on, or in between, your teeth, and (2) a favorabl… --- ## [Holy Grail](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-grail/761012)
**Author:** [@toefungus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toefungus)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2016, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-grail/761012 "2016-08-10T02:24:18Z")
Rubbish. The Holy Grail is here in the Cathedral of Valencia, Spain. I’ve seen it many times. http://www.catedraldevalencia.es/en/el-santo-caliz\_historia.php It’s recognized by the Vatican, etc., and has over 1000 yea… --- ## [The Straight Dope](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-straight-dope/761923)
**Author:** [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2016, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-straight-dope/761923 "2016-08-06T09:14:11Z")
As a long time reader of Michael Quinnon’s World Wide Words, I was interested to see that this week he devoted most of his newsletter to the origin of the word ‘dope’. Towards the end, he gets round to expansions and wr… --- ## [Are gorillas using sign language really communicating with humans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-gorillas-using-sign-language-really-communicating-with-humans/760029)
**Author:** [@SisterofMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SisterofMax)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2016, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-gorillas-using-sign-language-really-communicating-with-humans/760029 "2016-08-03T11:27:34Z")
Well, I don’t know about gorillas, but here’s an example of a dog being able to reason: This happened in the late 1980s/early 90s. We had a dachshund (our second) named Fritz. Fritz had gotten a new bone for Christmas, … --- ## [Shipping containers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shipping-containers/761180)
**Author:** [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2016, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shipping-containers/761180 "2016-08-03T00:22:46Z")
In this column the Perfect Master mentions in passing NOAA’s report of containers’ impact on ecosystems when they fall off ships. Besides the fish, they can be a hazard to sailors before they sink. Robert Redford’s All… --- ## [Cameras add 10 pounds?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cameras-add-10-pounds/516834)
**Author:** [@DuckLux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DuckLux)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [July 31, 2016, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cameras-add-10-pounds/516834 "2016-07-31T10:40:55Z")
I had always thought this was a joke or something that affected antiquated equipment more than the newer kind, and I wondered why I didn’t really see this effect, well, anywhere. I’ve even recently gotten into photograph… --- ## [Pistachios and Kali...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pistachios-and-kali/760885)
**Author:** [@Major\_Matt\_Mason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Matt_Mason)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [July 27, 2016, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pistachios-and-kali/760885 "2016-07-27T23:28:05Z")
Another little-known fact is that the goddess Kali could be placated by offerings of honeydew, canteloupes and the like. This, of course, is where we get the title “Melon, Kali? Baby?” -MMM- --- ## [Music Licenses](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-licenses/760969)
**Author:** [@Klutzbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klutzbird)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 27, 2016, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-licenses/760969 "2016-07-27T14:18:29Z")
Every four years we are subjected to another round of musicians complaining about politicians using their music during campaigns and conventions. Most of the time they not only use the song, but the actual recording. In… --- ## [Memorial tributes, and what happens to them.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/memorial-tributes-and-what-happens-to-them/760670)
**Author:** [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [July 25, 2016, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/memorial-tributes-and-what-happens-to-them/760670 "2016-07-25T02:13:55Z")
This is about the thread concerning what happens to tributes left at memorials. I was in Oklahoma City for a science fiction convention, some time after the bombing of the Murragh Federal building. At this time the ru… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=17) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=19)