Skeptics Stack Exchange
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Questions tagged [united-states]

Use this tag for questions about claims based in the United States, or limited to the United States.

The United States of America (also referred to as the United States, the U.S., the USA, the States, or America) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district.

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Does pornography bring in more money than all US sport franchises combined?

I've been sent chain emails about pornography industry revenues and was quite flabbergasted by some of the figures. The version I recalled hearing was that pornography brings in more revenue than all US sports franchises combined. I looked around…
Hendy
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Did the House Select committee on Assassinations come to the conclusion that JFK was "probably" eliminated as part of a conspiracy?

Former Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura writes in American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies That the Government Tells Us: There are two official government reports on the assassination of President Kennedy, and they directly…
Christian
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Does limiting the price of pharmaceuticals lower the number of new treatments produced?

A recent article in Forbes arguing against the latest US Government proposals on drug pricing argued the following: Everywhere they've been tried, price controls have reduced biopharmaceutical research spending, resulting in fewer vaccines,…
matt_black
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Was Ross Capicchioni shot by a friend as part of a gang initiation?

Ross Capicchioni was a teenager who was shot several times and required emergency surgery. He reported that he had been shot by someone he knew who was undergoing a gang-initiation. He claims the shooter was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Ross…
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Do the "Presidential Alerts" give the government full access to all phone functionality?

John McAfee, libertarian politician and former computer programmer, tweeted this: The "Presidential alerts": they are capable of accessing the E911 chip in your phones - giving them full access to your location, microphone, camera and every…
James G.
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Are people with a high IQ not allowed to become police officers in New London?

This 2000 ABC News report says: A man whose bid to become a police officer was rejected after he scored too high on an intelligence test has lost an appeal in his federal lawsuit against the city. [...] Jordan, a 49-year-old college graduate, took…
SAH
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Did a senior U.S. Justice Department official state that 3- and 4-year-olds can learn immigration law well enough to represent themselves in court?

The following article—dating from March 5, 2016—in The Washington Post titled, “Can a 3-year old represent herself in immigration court? This judge thinks so.” is now making the rounds across the Internet in light of current U.S. immigration policy…
Giacomo1968
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Is a tow truck driver killed every six days on average in the US?

Along I-90 in Massachusetts (and I presume elsewhere in the state), there is a digital billboard which sometimes displays a message from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation that a tow truck driver is killed every six days in the US. (I'd…
user44729
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Are physically attractive people more likely to be right wing politically?

The Guardian recently reported this: It is a finding unlikely to prove popular with Guardian readers, but a study has concluded that attractive people are more likely to be rightwing. The study has been widely reported elsewhere. The text of the…
matt_black
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Does the US Federal Government want to cut down and burn trees on a property to protect an extinct frog?

Edward Poitevent made a claim on the Tucker Carlson show that the government wants to take his land in Louisiana without paying, cut down all trees and burn it in the name of protecting an extinct frog. They claim [the frog] was there because they…
ventsyv
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Did NFL players used to remain in the locker room during the pre-game national anthem, prior to sponsorship by the Department of Defense?

Floating around Facebook Caption reads: Before 2009, NFL Players did not stand for the National Anthem, they stayed in the locker room. The custom didn't start until the Dept. of Defense gave the NFL $5.4 Million Dollars to stage on field…
Evan Carroll
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Are these rape statistics correct regarding rapes of black women by white men between 2003 and 2008 in USA?

I recently saw this picture: The image links to this DOJ document. A similar image gives the following sources from the USA Bureau of Justice for the years 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 (table 42 in all cases). Somehow, the perfect 0 score for 5…
Worse_Username
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Does the US have the highest "natural" life expectancy?

An article titled The Myth of Americans' Poor Life Expectancy claims that the US leads the OECD in life expectancy once the numbers are adjusted to remove deaths due to fatal injuries. Unfortunately, the link to the research by Ohsfeldt and…
Brian
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Has Trump exonerated Russia for the downing of flight MH-17?

In an interview with the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, according to the NOS (Dutch Public Broadcasting), he said the following about the relations with the USA, in light of the recent elections in the USA and the coming elections in The…
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Did the Obama Administration only complain about Russian hacking after the election?

On December 15th, 2016 Donald Trump tweeted: "If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost?" Did the Obama Administration wait until after Hillary lost to…
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