Emails about urban legends

[CuriousAlice]

My family constantly sends me emails about legends that they hear and believe are true, usually forward emails. I tend to ignore them but read them for the entertainment. Does anybody get those emails? I'm sure there are so many variations that have changed from email to email.

 

[Allie-Gator]

Good god yes! I get them constantly from my friends and family. It's a total time waster for me and I hate that I even take the time to read them.

 

[Myrddin]

I don't get much in the way of urban legends in my inbox. Do either of you have any you wouldn't mind sharing?

 

[Katie]

I get so many of them, most of them are about women and rape and defending themselves and how fruits are dangerous/healthy/secretly killing me. I read them but I never forward them because I'm sure other people would have forwarded it to them anyway. haha.

 

[Myrddin]

That reminds me, have you heard of the one about how to defend yourself against someone armed with a piece of fruit? I'm trying to remember where I saw that...

 

[CuriousAlice]

I wish I had the original email but I deleted it a long time ago. I'll summarize one that I used to get fairly often.
The story goes something like this:

Police are investigating a situation at a shopping mall in (a city local to you) where a woman with a flat tire received assistance from a good Samaritan. The man, wearing a business suit, helped the woman change her tire and then he requested that she give him a ride somewhere. When she declined he got aggressive so she returned to the inside of the mall and asked security for help. When the police arrived they went to the car and saw that the woman's tire was slashed again and the man had left his briefcase in her backseat. When they opened it they found rope and a gun (or other weapon). Now police are warning women to be careful in (your town) because the man has not been found.

Then the email will usually give a description of the man and more fear mongering. I have started using Snopes articles and emailing them back to the constant "fowarders" so I get less of these things now.

 

[Myrddin]

Interesting. Thank you.

 

[CuriousAlice]

I do find them entertaining but they induce a lot of fear, I think. It's not necessarily good or helpful to pass around information like that if it's not true.

 

[Myrddin]

Very true.