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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
 Posted - 10/29/2008 : 13:51:24
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Okay, I am no expert in this sort of thing, but as I gather it, someone has taken the www.stopsylviabrowne.com domain name and changed the site. This is really bad news. As I understand it, the guy who did this is a predator who steals expired domain names and then attempts to sell it back at a high price.
October 23 was when he swooped in. Robert Lancaster is still in the hospital and no one was minding the store.
Major bummer…
[Edited to break old link in favor of new Stop Sylvia Browne link - Dave W.]
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Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Simon
SFN Regular
USA
1992 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2008 : 14:32:37 [Permalink]
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Well; Robert Lancaster can always reopen the site with a different name...
Although, a cursory glance suggests that the articles themselves might be unchanged... Which is better than nothing.
Best wishes to Mr. Lancaster; the rest can always wait! |
Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there – on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
Carl Sagan - 1996 |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2008 : 14:33:20 [Permalink]
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Why aren't there some kind of safe-guard against kidnapping websites like this?
The same thing happened to a Swedish Health Services page. The guy who scooped up the expired name made good money on redirecting traffic to porno-sites. Lots of unsuspecting people ended up with near heart-attacks...
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Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
 Posted - 10/29/2008 : 14:40:03 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Simon
Well; Robert Lancaster can always reopen the site with a different name...
Although, a cursory glance suggests that the articles themselves might be unchanged... Which is better than nothing.
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Actually, no. Nothing from Robert's site is left. Hopefully it's stored somewhere... |
Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Simon
SFN Regular
USA
1992 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2008 : 14:50:09 [Permalink]
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Oh... Ok. I saw articles about Sylvia Browne being a fake and didn't look further.
Well; hopefully it is stored somewhere.
And; I am sure there would be plenty of volunteers to help him building his site back... |
Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there – on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
Carl Sagan - 1996 |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2008 : 15:11:57 [Permalink]
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From the site as it now exists...
What to Look for in Psychic
There are a few things to look for when searching for the best psychic for you. It is important to look for these things before you go ahead and get a psychic reading. The first thing to look at is what types of readings they offer. You want to make sure if you are looking for a psychic reading, that they in fact do psychic readings. Online psychic readings can sometimes be tricky. You want to make sure you are speaking with a valid psychic and you do not fall victim to a psychic scam. Read the feed back left by other users. This will give you a good idea of what the psychic reader is like.
Also a lot of first time users will be offered FREE psychic readings when dealing with a valid psychic. This is a good opportunity for you to see what kind of reading you will be getting and if you are comfortable with the psychic. Your receptiveness to the psychic reading and reader is very important. There are just some psychics you may not feel a connection too, that is the best indicator as to whether or not you should try a different psychic. |
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Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2008 : 15:52:54 [Permalink]
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The person who now owns the domain, kreimanchess, appears to own 191 domains, total, including LifePsychic.com
Yuck.
Edited to add: lots of wild speculation over at JREF. But it's clear that the chess master, Boris Kreiman, now owns the domain name and has posted credulous crap. One poster, "krelnik," says that "it should be fixed in a couple of days," but needing a new domain name is not "fixed," it sucks. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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Vic Daring
New Member
49 Posts |
Posted - 10/31/2008 : 09:56:23 [Permalink]
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Here's the e-mail I sent to the address listed under "Contact"
The subject line was "You are filth."
The rightful owner of this domain, Robert Lancaster, is in therapy, recovering from a massive stroke. This is not, I'm sure, news to you.
That makes you a despicable human being. A gutter lying perdator. A classic bottom feeder. Utter contemptible.
I hope you get ball cancer.
Piss off.
ETA: Angry enough to include typos. Ah well. |
The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed. |
| Edited by - Vic Daring on 10/31/2008 09:58:21 |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
 Posted - 10/31/2008 : 10:44:18 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Vic Daring
Here's the e-mail I sent to the address listed under "Contact"
The subject line was "You are filth."
The rightful owner of this domain, Robert Lancaster, is in therapy, recovering from a massive stroke. This is not, I'm sure, news to you.
That makes you a despicable human being. A gutter lying perdator. A classic bottom feeder. Utter contemptible.
I hope you get ball cancer.
Piss off.
ETA: Angry enough to include typos. Ah well.
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LOL. Good stuff... |
Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 10/31/2008 : 16:58:55 [Permalink]
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Edited to remove content.
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Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
| Edited by - Dr. Mabuse on 11/05/2008 20:53:39 |
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chefcrsh
Skeptic Friend
Hong Kong
380 Posts |
Posted - 10/31/2008 : 18:34:01 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
Why aren't there some kind of safe-guard against kidnapping websites like this?
The same thing happened to a Swedish Health Services page. The guy who scooped up the expired name made good money on redirecting traffic to porno-sites. Lots of unsuspecting people ended up with near heart-attacks...
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Because the internet is bigger than any big brother. It would cost a ridiculous amount for an international ISP police and court. If you buy a domain and let it lapse the only loser is you. The cost and burden are nice and tight.
I feel certain that the vast majority of domain name turn overs and lapses happen without a hitch. The owner don't want anymore (or cant afford) and so they are no longer the owner. No one complains, no one knows no one even cares.
It is a shame about RSL's site, but there are some reasonable rules, and it may be fixable. Otherwise goes to show you, set up things like auto renewal and do not miss your bill payments. |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
 Posted - 11/01/2008 : 11:50:45 [Permalink]
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Just so you know, something is being done about the domain problem. A new domain has been created. I just received this letter and we will fix our links.
I'm writing you because your site is one of the top ranked sites (according
to Google) which hyperlinks to the site Stop Sylvia Browne. As you know,
Robert Lancaster has done a fantastic service to the community by creating
and maintaining this site over the last two years. Robert is currently in
the hospital recovering from a stroke that he had in August.
Unfortunately, the renewal for the domain name "stopsylviabrowne.com" came
due during the first weeks after Robert's stroke, and it expired. A domain
squatter noticed this fact, and snatched up the domain before anyone
noticed. So now that domain contains non-skeptical content that we should
not be endorsing via hyperlink.
I've written up what we all need to do here:
http://skeptools.wordpress.com/2008/11/01/skeptics-load-your-google-bombs/
But to quickly summarize:
DO: Start using STOPSYLVIA.COM in all links to the site including buttons
and so on.
DO NOT: Use any .NET or .US or other domains you may have heard of, even if
they work. For google ranking purposes it is important we all link to the
same address.
DO: Include "Sylvia Browne" in the text part of your hyperlink.
DO NOT: Include the word "Stop" in the hyperlink. Google will already rank
this site well for searches for "Stop Sylvia Browne" because of the content.
We need it to be boosted for searches for "Sylvia Browne".
DO: VERY IMPORTANT! Go back and revise any old posts or content you have on
your site to reflect the new link. This will simultaneously boost the
correct site and hurt the bad guy who stole the domain.
DO: Consider adding a link like this to your signature file on any forums
you frequent.
DO NOT: Bother linking in places like blog comments or Wikipedia where they
use the rel="nofollow" attribute on all user-submitted links.
Again, all the gory details are in that blog post above.
I thank you for your attention to this, and I'm sure Robert and Susan
Lancaster thank you too.
--Tim Farley
http://whatstheharm.net
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By the way, do look at Farley's site. It's a good one. |
Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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chefcrsh
Skeptic Friend
Hong Kong
380 Posts |
Posted - 11/01/2008 : 18:17:00 [Permalink]
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| Tim is a smart guy, on this stuff fo sho...but I have yet to see if anyone has even tried asking what the ransom is. |
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the_ignored
SFN Addict
2562 Posts |
Posted - 11/03/2008 : 06:49:48 [Permalink]
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Rob has put a new site up. I found that from the Bad Astronomer's blog.
Mind you, I don't think that the thread title, "Sylvia Browne is laughing now" is really accurate; the guy still seems to slam her, but he endorses psychics in general. Of course, I've only skimmed through the site.
The guy is a prick though, for swiping the site like that while Robert is in hospital and unable to renew the payment for it.
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>From: enuffenuff@fastmail.fm
(excerpt follows):
> I'm looking to teach these two bastards a lesson they'll never forget.
> Personal visit by mates of mine. No violence, just a wee little chat.
>
> **** has also committed more crimes than you can count with his
> incitement of hatred against a religion. That law came in about 2007
> much to ****'s ignorance. That is fact and his writing will become well
> know as well as him becoming a publicly known icon of hatred.
>
> Good luck with that fuckwit. And Reynold, fucking run, and don't stop.
> Disappear would be best as it was you who dared to attack me on my
> illness knowing nothing of the cause. You disgust me and you are top of
> the list boy. Again, no violence. Just regular reminders of who's there
> and visits to see you are behaving. Nothing scary in reality. But I'd
> still disappear if I was you.
What brought that on? this. Original posting here.
Another example of this guy's lunacy here. |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 11/03/2008 : 08:37:57 [Permalink]
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I'd already changed every link I could find around here, Ig, but thanks for posting this because I missed the link that was in the OP of this thread.  |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13477 Posts |
Posted - 11/03/2008 : 09:06:45 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by the_ignored
Rob has put a new site up. I found that from the Bad Astronomer's blog.
Mind you, I don't think that the thread title, "Sylvia Browne is laughing now" is really accurate; the guy still seems to slam her, but he endorses psychics in general. Of course, I've only skimmed through the site.
The guy is a prick though, for swiping the site like that while Robert is in hospital and unable to renew the payment for it.
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The mild "leave it up to you" approach on the new site, along with directions on how to find a good psychic is really not so bad for Browne. I have to think that Browne is happy about the change and was even more happy that, at least for a while, the real RSL site was down.
Anyhow, thanks to Tim Farely and some quick work by Dave and people who do what he does at other skeptic sites, the problem will be solved without giving in to some kind of ransom by the lowlife who took the domain name. Hopefully the new domain will quickly move up in google searches, making the old domain name functionally useless in terms of hits... |
Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Sylvia Browne is laughing now...
