The most evil curse ever

[BurtWorm]

Courtesy of PZ Myers:


http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/comments/the_most_evil_curse_ever/

Philip Klass, the famous UFO debunker, has died and left behind a particularly nasty curse:

The Last Will and Testament of Philip J. Klass

To UFOlogists who publicly criticize me…or who even think unkind thoughts about me in private, I do hereby leave and bequeath THE UFO CURSE: No matter how long you live, you will never know any more about UFOs than you know today. You will never know any more about what UFOs really are, or where they come from. You will never know any more about what the U.S. Government really knows about UFOs that you know today. As you lie on your own death-bed you will be as mystified about UFOs as you are today. And you will remember this curse.

Oooooh. Now that sends chills down my spine.

But on the other hand, it does help one appreciate science more. I know far more about my chosen field now than I did when I was an undergraduate, I know more than I did last year, and I know more than I did yesterday. If I drop dead tonight, I'll exit knowing I learned something new every day; but I don't want to die yet, because every moment I postpone it means there is another wonderful something to discover. I must be living under the counterpart, the Scientist's Blessing—we've traded the unknowable and the invisible for the real and the material, and it feels fine.

[pitohui]

1. not sure that's a curse

nothing wrong w. a bit of mystery you can't ever crack

sorry to hear of dr. klass's passing however

[phantom power]

2. strange they call him a "debunker." He sounds like a "believer."

[BurtWorm]

3. He was probably pretty confident in his belief

in the solidity of the curse. I'd bet on him being right myself.

[Astarho]

4. Maybe

but maybe not.

While we may not learn much more about what UFO's are, I think we'll probably learn what they aren't. New natural phenomina may come to light that may explain some. Military hardware will be surpassed and declassified which may well explain others. Will it explain them all? I doubt it.

Either way, we'll just have to wait and see.

[nashville_brook]

5. sad

when someone's last words are a curse.

[greyl]

6. Those weren't his last words.

They are at least 2 years old, if they're real at all. And it's not like he wished any harm. :)

I haven't found it here yet, where it supposedly originated:
http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/search.htm

edit: This is the oldest reference to the Kurse I can find:
http://www.torontoghosts.org/scienceandklass.htm

Might this be a hoax?

[Dogmudgeon]

7. VERY doubtful story

I've been reading a lot of Skeptic sites over the past few days. If Phil Klass had been called home by Jeebus, nearly every Skep site would have the story as front-page news.

Klass has been at UFO debunkery so long, he is a legend. Even a large number of believers love the guy. The guy from Saucer Smear magazine always gives updates on Klass, who has been in failing health for several years now.

It's possible this is just breaking, and is very early news, but there again, I would have expected CSICOP to have gotten the first phone call after Mr. Klass' relatives. So he might be dead. But I think we're going to have Phil Klass with us a little longer yet.

--p!

[Nihil]

8. Heh

Yeah, they're just having difficulty in phrasing the description ...

"... was found on his side in an empty field with strange burn marks
on his ribs and with his rectum surgically removed. Reports of bright
lights in the vicinity have yet to be confirmed."

:evilgrin:

[BurtWorm]

9. His obit is in today's NY Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/12/national/12klass.html

Of course it could be an extraordinarily elaborate hoax...

[Dogmudgeon]

10. Oh, well ...

... it's a sad day for the friends and sometime sparring partners of Mr. Klass.

The Skep group has yet to be informed. Since I have been riling them up over the last few days, I will post the link and break the news, partially to make amends. I myself liked Klass, and also have a friend who knew him pretty well who probably needs a note, too.

Rest in peace, Mr. Klass.

--p!

[greyl]

11. I was suggesting that the Kurse may be a hoax,

not his death.