PS On Slavery and the Theme Park

I received a few emails about my post on plans for 'a Jackson Family museum/Slavery theme park in Nigeria' Most raised a very valid point: is this for real?

Its a great question. Who knows? I do know that BBC, The Guardian and Nigerian News Service are among those reporting the issue. But, that does not make it real...

I'm reminded of a story long-time friend Ali put me onto a few years ago. Essentially, BBC reported that 42 Cambodian midget wrestlers were killed or injured after their 'owner' pitted them against a lion in a ring match, in which they faired disastrously. Turned out the story was actually the product of an elaborate bet made by a disgruntled journo who claimed he could get an absurdly fake story onto BBC online, and won (terms unclear). BBC retracted the story.

But don't that suggest that the absurd can't be real in the news.

For the record on the Jackson Tribute/Slave Theme Park, I'm torn between wanting it to be real vs. wanting it to be a hoax, but I'm fairly certain the plans for it are real.