General public ignorance about electriciy

[TConnolly 13]

In this news story about a Texas woman who survived a lightning strike that made its way into the interior of her home is the following statement on page 2. I'm glad that she survived and that her young son had the presence of mind to summon help in the proper way, but that statement by the reporter, or whoever the reporter is quoting, is simply ridiculous. No doubt Kimberly is still feeling the effects of the damage caused to her body, and that kind of injury can take a very long time to heal (I once took a 480 hit that hurt for nearly a year afterward) but there isn't any such thing as "residual electricity" to make its way outside her body. Its not that I expect the public to understand electricity on the same level as those of us who work with it, but can't we at least get our public education level up just a little? Its dismaying to see a statement like that in a news article that was probably written by a college educated journalist.

[Crossbow 295]

I guess 'shocking' would be bad pun huh?

[BobLfoot 302]

If you get it read this month's NFPA Journal article on the use of the word "panic" in the media. It goes along with the point you make. And yes, it would be nice to see an educated journalist write an educated report not a "yellow" sensational one.

[JeffKiper 9]

Every great now and then I still fill the after effects of grabbing an electric fence when I was 10. The barb went into my hand so every so often I will feel it when I wash my hand. Do you think it is like a super capacitor charging up under my hand waiting to discharge? May be it will lead me all to the next long lasting battery. I will remember everyone of you all as I sit back and let the money roll in.

[paulengr 44]

Don't hold your breath. They are trained to act that way. I once enrolled in a Freshman English class that was required. The instructor made the topic "journalism". After exactly a week of it, I was down to three choices: drop the class, shoot the instructor, or spend a lot of time with a psychiatrist. Passing was not an option. She was a devout communist, and I wasn't about to become a willing Trotsky slave to the Collective group think that she promoted. I seriously considered shooting her but decided that dropping the class was less pain and suffering on my part. The mindset of journalists is collectivist at best. They have no interest in being reporters and look on good reporting with total disdain. They view the public as the giant horde of unwashed who only need coaching and encouragement to see the communist light at the end of the tunnel. I have been working in the mining sector for over a decade now. I'm no longer surprised when journalists lie and twist the truth beyond all recognition. In fact, I've come to expect it.

[BobLfoot 302]

The biggest lie/twist for me was seeing footage of our guest speaker at college on the evening news, saying he had been at a anti-government pro communist rally in South Africa that same day. Really funny since we were in Virginia at the time and he was eating dinner with our school chancellor.

[TConnolly 13]

Many years ago a truck delivering compressed Argon gas bottles pulled up to the loading dock at the place where I worked at the time and the driver rolled up the truck back door before he rang the door bell. He heard a hissing sound so he hopped in the truck, pulled it to the end of the parking lot, and called 911. I guess he didn't know what Argon was. He didn't notify anyone in our facility. Next thing we knew the fire dept. was all over the place. They confined us to the front of the building. The FD decided this was a chance to practice haz mat response so they went all out. Two firemen put on space suits and went back to the truck and closed the leaking valve. Then they went back out front and did the full decontamination drill. The local newspaper ran the headline "Toxic Gas Leak At Local Company Hospitalizes 8" Except for the pictures of the firemen in the haz-mat suits, the entire story was a complete fabrication. Edited 11 Jul 2009 by Alaric

[Nathan 7]

Ha, ha - fantastic. They probably got sweet shots of the firemen in bunny suits! Dang toxic inert gasses that compose 1% of our air...it's gonna blow! Edited 12 Jul 2009 by Nathan