Lies, Myths and Downright Stupidity : Stossel's List of Popularly Reported Misconceptions

ABCNEWS ^ | 1/23/2004 | John Stossel

[dhs12345]

Depends on what you spend it on. If you buy more things, then I agree, no it won't buy you happiness.

On the other hand, if money is used to buy independence, then it can bring happiness.

[185JHP]

#5 isn't a myth. The rich pay a lot b/c they get a lot of income. The nastiest of the predatory rich also have got the govt. not counting a lot of the $$$ they receive as "income." The tax code is over 14,000 pages. Not for the enrichment of the middle class...

[Poohbah]

You can be independent, and still not be happy.

Happiness isn't really tied to money. I've been dirt-poor and extremely happy--and unhappy. I've been very successful and very unhappy--and happy.

[narby]

Notice how they bury Stossel on friday night. The lest watched night on TV.

[dhs12345]

Independent means: working for someone or a business when you choose too and at the same time having a decent standard of living.

[Lancey Howard]

BUMP

[Damagro]

Sorry, but I still believe that money CAN buy happiness and anyone who disagrees with me should send me a couple of thousand dollars. Including Mr. Stossel :^D

---

I wholeheartedly agree, and until proved wrong, I'm sticking to that belief :)

[aruanan]

I'm happy to say that I've known these were myths for decades.

[xsrdx]

Myth No. 3 — Guns are Bad

America is notorious for its culture of gun violence. Guns sometimes do cause terrible harm, and many kids are killed every year in gun accidents. But public service announcements and news stories make it seem as if the accidents kill thousands of kids every year.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, fewer than 100 kids 15 and under are killed in gun accidents every year. Of course that's horrible, and I understand why demonstrators say we need more gun control.

But guess what? The Centers for Disease Control recently completed a review of studies of various types of gun control: background checks, waiting periods, bans on certain guns and ammunition. It could not document that these rules have reduced violent crime.

The government wants to say things like the Brady Gun Control Law are making a difference, but they aren't. Some maximum security felons I spoke to in New Jersey scoffed at measures like the Brady law. They said they'll have no trouble getting guns if they want them.

A Justice Department study confirmed what the prisoners said. But get this: the felons say that the thing they fear the most is not the police, not time in prison, but, you, another American who might be armed.

It's a reason many states are passing gun un-control. They're allowing citizens to carry guns with them; it's called concealed carry or right to carry. Some women say they're comforted by these laws.

Many people are horrified at the idea of concealed carry laws, and predict mayhem if all states adopt these laws.

But surprise, 36 states already have concealed carry laws, and not one reported an upsurge in gun crime.

[Alberta's Child]

Exposure to virus + weakened immune function = higher risk of cold.

Bingo. In cold weather, your body uses more energy trying to keep warm than it usually does.

[gatorbait]

John Stossel is a truly good reporter and can say more without spin than any of the others combined in the lamestream press.

[Alberta's Child]

Poor men want to be rich,
Rich men want to be king.
And a king ain't satisfied,
'Til he knows everything.

Bruce Springsteen, "Badlands"

[antaresequity]

Probably so. I mean, after new seat covers for the pickup, what else is there?

Fuzzy steering wheel wraps, Yosemite Sam mud flaps...get a clue partner...muahahah

[jimfree]

John Stossel has bunches of Emmys and has many colleagues who believe he is a nut. He lets a story tell itself; he doesn't contort himself to make it say what it otherwise would not.

[Petronski]

'Til he knows everything.

HUH? That isn't it at all, it doesn't even make sense.

The lyric is about boundless appetites for more, and the elusive sense of 'enough:'

Poor men want to be rich,
Rich men want to be king.
And a king ain't satisfied,
'Til he rules everything.

[RightWhale]

but no Myth #1. What the heck

Myth #1 -- There is a most popular myth

[Billthedrill]

Whoa...Yosemite Sam mudflaps...for me?

You're right. I need to up my expectations.

[Petronski]

Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you, but I've been singing that lyric for decades. It's 'rules' and it's probably 'poor man' and 'rich man,' not the plural.

[Cowgirl]

I always knew mothers didn't have to work if they had a husband who would.

[StriperSniper]

Thanks for the flash, didn't know about it.