# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=218 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 219 --- ## [Speaking of Ketchup and McDonald's](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speaking-of-ketchup-and-mcdonalds/173192)
**Author:** [@fgarriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fgarriel)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 16, 2003, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speaking-of-ketchup-and-mcdonalds/173192 "2003-05-16T19:13:01Z")
I wonder how many tomatos are slaughtered each year for use in McDonald’s restaurants… On a (very slightly) more serious note, I seem to remember a McDonald’s near my hometown in NJ that didn’t put mustard on their stan… --- ## [Subliminal article imcomplete?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subliminal-article-imcomplete/173656)
**Author:** [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [May 16, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subliminal-article-imcomplete/173656 "2003-05-16T15:56:47Z")
After reading this article, I came away unsatisfied. What about the images hidden in print? I can remember examples of liquor ads having naked women hidden in the ice or curvaceous ladies hidden in cigarette smoke. (so… --- ## [Validity of Graphology](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/validity-of-graphology/169710)
**Author:** [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\ **Replies:** 136\ **Last updated:** [May 15, 2003, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/validity-of-graphology/169710 "2003-05-15T15:42:50Z")
Well, Cecil threw this out with a wave of his hand saying I’d like to know about those 200 objective scientific studies, and a web search brought up nothing. Cite, please. I have nothing but my own experience to dispu… --- ## [Stairway to Heaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven/171042)
**Author:** [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [May 15, 2003, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stairway-to-heaven/171042 "2003-05-15T06:54:26Z")
Geez, Cecil, how could you write a whole column about “Stairway to Heaven” and not mention this thread, which contains everything you need to know about the song?: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?thre… --- ## [Roaches on their backs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roaches-on-their-backs/175087)
**Author:** [@Goffs\_California](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Goffs_California)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [May 14, 2003, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roaches-on-their-backs/175087 "2003-05-14T21:21:36Z")
I’d not had opportunity to test Cecil’s comments on roaches dying on their backs until recently. Unfortunately, the place I’ve worked since February has a major roach problem which spraying seems to have absolutely no e… --- ## [Re: Why do car makers come up with so many meaningless car names?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-why-do-car-makers-come-up-with-so-many-meaningless-car-names/174171)
**Author:** [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [May 14, 2003, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-why-do-car-makers-come-up-with-so-many-meaningless-car-names/174171 "2003-05-14T18:31:39Z")
This thread is in response to Cecil’s column, Why do car makers come up with so many meaningless car names? I’ve been asking myself this question ever since I encountered the Oldsmobile “Alero.” Totally. Meaningless. W… --- ## [The first Straight Dope Column](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-first-straight-dope-column/175032)
**Author:** [@The\_Man\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_Who)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 14, 2003, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-first-straight-dope-column/175032 "2003-05-14T02:46:34Z")
I seem to recall that a couple of years back the first Straight Dope column was made available on the website. But I can’t find it now. Is it still around? I seem to recall it was a “around and about in Chicago” type … --- ## [chinese people jumping all at once](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chinese-people-jumping-all-at-once/174887)
**Author:** [@minionman30](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minionman30)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 13, 2003, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chinese-people-jumping-all-at-once/174887 "2003-05-13T13:03:27Z")
I’m sorry, but did the people who asked (and answered) this question fail highschool physics? Where to begin… first of all, look at momentum…the earth and 1 billion chinese people are a system, with a constant momentum… --- ## [stupid car names list topper...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-car-names-list-topper/174652)
**Author:** [@kizzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kizzle)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [May 13, 2003, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-car-names-list-topper/174652 "2003-05-13T00:34:54Z")
All this talk of stupid car names is pointless. Sierra, Sienna, Siena, Ciera; the similarity of the names pales in comparison to the name of a car Mitsubishi has been producing for years. “Mitsubishi Diamante” is about a… --- ## [car names](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-names/174084)
**Author:** [@tanja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanja)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2003, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-names/174084 "2003-05-12T22:13:15Z")
Dear Cecil, Sienna is a city (or, rather, a town) in Italy. So Japanese haven’t come down THAT low. --- ## [Is Mumia Abu-Jamal our Sacco and Vanzetti?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-mumia-abu-jamal-our-sacco-and-vanzetti/173519)
**Author:** [@braintree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/braintree)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2003, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-mumia-abu-jamal-our-sacco-and-vanzetti/173519 "2003-05-12T21:38:41Z")
Relevent column: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/950721.html Judge Thayer who gave the death penalty to Sacco and Venzetti is famous for having boasted, “Did you see what I did to those anarchistic bastards?” Even t… --- ## [No Cows at McDonalds](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-cows-at-mcdonalds/173535)
**Author:** [@LexNet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LexNet)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2003, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-cows-at-mcdonalds/173535 "2003-05-12T21:29:52Z")
The 1977 column’s title was “How many cows are slaughtered each year to make McDonald’s hamburgers?” The short (and accurate) answer is . . . . (ta da!) ==\> NONE!! Almost all beef comes from steers (castrated male catt… --- ## [Won't by Novas in Latin America](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-by-novas-in-latin-america/174015)
**Author:** [@Den13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Den13)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 11, 2003, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-by-novas-in-latin-america/174015 "2003-05-11T14:15:53Z")
GM had trouble marketing the Nova in Spanish speaking countries because “no va” in Spanish is translated as “doesn’t go”! --- ## [Urinal 101: piss n' spit](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/urinal-101-piss-n-spit/174295)
**Author:** [@OddTunes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OddTunes)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2003, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/urinal-101-piss-n-spit/174295 "2003-05-10T17:54:22Z")
I’ve been meaning to bring this topic up for some time, and after the recent article http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030509.html, the time seemed right. For the longest time I thought it was an odd quirk of mine: Wh… --- ## [Will all humans one day be the same color?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-all-humans-one-day-be-the-same-color/169474)
**Author:** [@Sirreal72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sirreal72)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2003, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-all-humans-one-day-be-the-same-color/169474 "2003-05-09T23:32:05Z")
Man I like this site…but I’m always reading these past posts and coming up with questions to questions that are almost 20 years old! This question was from Mar. 23, 1984 http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_098.html . … --- ## [So, what did happen when Nixon died?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-when-nixon-died/173633)
**Author:** [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2003, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-when-nixon-died/173633 "2003-05-09T19:16:44Z")
Call me totally out of touch with reality, but I didn’t know Richard Nixon was dead. Seriously. I managed to miss it for nine years. Found out today. Anyway, this made me remember an old column of Cecil’s in which he is… --- ## [Bush joke](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-joke/172319)
**Author:** [@green96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/green96)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-joke/172319 "2003-05-09T17:02:54Z")
\*\*Q: When is a Bush not a Bush? A: When he’s A merkin! (For further reading… Straight Dope answers: WTF is A merkin? )\*\* --- ## [McDonalds Hamburgers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mcdonalds-hamburgers/173224)
**Author:** [@aus55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aus55)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2003, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mcdonalds-hamburgers/173224 "2003-05-09T05:52:08Z")
Dear Cecil, http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_186.html I was under the impression that McDonalds Burgers were not 100% beef, but that they had a large amount of filler, specifically soy, in their burgers. If thi… --- ## [Ketchup & Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ketchup-mustard/171949)
**Author:** [@ThaPootah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThaPootah)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [May 8, 2003, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ketchup-mustard/171949 "2003-05-08T20:12:23Z")
Is it me or did Cecil mix up what he tried to say relating to the mouths of ketchup & mustard bottles? He said a wide mouthed ketchup bottle bombed and that some resteraunts have narrow mouthed mustard bottles. Well, I… --- ## [Mask of Zorro](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mask-of-zorro/173676)
**Author:** [@gurdal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gurdal)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 8, 2003, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mask-of-zorro/173676 "2003-05-08T03:02:51Z")
Re. the column on Joaquin Murieta: I was surprised to learn that one of my favorite serial adventure style movies of the last few years, “Mask of Zorro” with Antonio Banderas and Anthony Hopins, was more than just Holly… --- ## [Not Cecil's Column, but Slug's drawing, this time](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-cecils-column-but-slugs-drawing-this-time/172789)
**Author:** [@Freyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freyr)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 8, 2003, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-cecils-column-but-slugs-drawing-this-time/172789 "2003-05-08T00:23:47Z")
Here’s the link to the column, but I’m not worried about what the Perfect Master wrote, but what hath Slug drawn? The guy listening to the tape recorder and looking at the photo looks like a wonderful parody of ole J. E… --- ## [Pop goes the weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-goes-the-weasel/173567)
**Author:** [@adlerrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adlerrot)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 7, 2003, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-goes-the-weasel/173567 "2003-05-07T22:05:03Z")
I just wanted to say thank you for the column …What does “Pop goes the weasel” mean. I googled it and just happened to type in those exact words. I almost fell of the chair when your page showed up. You did an excell… --- ## [Standard Gauge](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/standard-gauge/173626)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Newton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Newton)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [May 7, 2003, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/standard-gauge/173626 "2003-05-07T11:56:37Z")
A NASA spokesperson confirms that railroad tunnel dimensions were a constraint that had to be taken into account when designing the SRBs. However, tunnel dimensions are less a function of track gauge than of rolling stoc… --- ## [Slug, you're a sick puppy. (I think).](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-youre-a-sick-puppy-i-think/169744)
**Author:** [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 6, 2003, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-youre-a-sick-puppy-i-think/169744 "2003-05-06T00:45:58Z")
OK. I give up. Slug’s illustration of Cecil’s current column Is handwriting analysis legit science?, has me baffled. I understand that the figure on the right is a stick-up artist named Francis, demanding that someo… --- ## [Summer](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer/172387)
**Author:** [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 5, 2003, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer/172387 "2003-05-05T23:08:08Z")
I’m surprised that Cecil did not mention that the Summer Solstice was traditionally known as “Midsummer’s Day” for centuries in England. Evidently, at least in Shakespeare’s day, people were still bright enough to know … --- ## [Mickey D's](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mickey-ds/173181)
**Author:** [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [May 5, 2003, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mickey-ds/173181 "2003-05-05T14:36:22Z")
In the column here Mcdonalds I have but one bone to pick (pun badly intended) with the info provided. As the vaunted McDonalds corp. was my very first employer at the age of 15, I know that they are not individual franc… --- ## [Did Jesus have siblings?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-jesus-have-siblings/169786)
**Author:** [@rittenboo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rittenboo)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [May 5, 2003, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-jesus-have-siblings/169786 "2003-05-05T05:00:29Z")
Since it was the day before Easter, I felt the need to watch something religious and educational. There was a story about Mary of Nazareth on the History Channel, so I watched. It spoke about this story being written b… --- ## [Asking SD staff, Who wrote the Bible?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asking-sd-staff-who-wrote-the-bible/172824)
**Author:** [@Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susma_Rio_Sep)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [May 5, 2003, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asking-sd-staff-who-wrote-the-bible/172824 "2003-05-05T00:59:28Z")
SD staff’s articles on ‘Who wrote the Bible?’ (http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mbible1.html) are very instructive. Now, I would like to address our patient researchers: Please tell me from your own personal convi… --- ## [Yellow Bellies!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-bellies/173088)
**Author:** [@aimz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aimz)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [May 5, 2003, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-bellies/173088 "2003-05-05T00:46:02Z")
"Yellow and yellow-bellied haven’t always had a negative connotation. An earlier and completely different use of “yellow-bellies” apparently first arose in England as a humorous reference to residents of Lincolnshire, wi… --- ## [Biblical humor](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biblical-humor/170664)
**Author:** [@M\_Grahn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/M_Grahn)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [May 3, 2003, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biblical-humor/170664 "2003-05-03T06:20:30Z")
(Re: a5\_244) The prophet Elijah shows some traces of humor, at least. In 1 Kings, after challenging the prophets of the rivalling god Baal to a little bull-sacrificing contest, he mocks them for not being able to get th… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=217) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=219)