while ballpits CAN be dangerous...

[Guest guest]

<http://www.snopes.com/critters/snakes/ballpit.htm>

http://www.snopes.com/critters/snakes/ballpit.htm

<http://www.snopes.com/horrors/parental/archer.htm>

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/parental/archer.htm

Origins: Readers,

take heart -- as Prick me!frightening as this story is, there's nothing

to it. No little boy (named Archer or otherwise) died in such a

fashion, in Sugarland or Midland, Texas, or anywhere else. (Some

versions simply stated the incident occurred in Midrand

<http://www.midrand.co.za/mcdonalds.html> , with no U.S. state

mentioned, which left a town in Africa under the gun.)

The claim about the Houston Chronicle's running a story about the boy's

death is equally false. The article doesn't exist, yet so many believed

the e-mail's claim that there had been such an article, the paper was

prompted to run a denial

<http://www.chron.com/content/chronicle/columnists/galloway/2000/1/9/>

in February 2000 attempting to put down these rumors. The Midland

Reporter-Telegram ran such a piece itself once a shift in the rumor made

it appear this horrific apocryphal incident happened in that city. And,

of course, Mc's says there's nothing to this:

Thank you for taking the time to contact Mc's Corporation directly

to receive accurate information regarding a rumor you have heard. We

have thoroughly investigated this rumor and it is absolutely not true.

There have been no such incidents ever reported at any Mc's. In

addition, there has never been an article in any newspaper regarding

this rumor.

Unfortunately these types of rumors bring unnecessary concerns for our

customers. It is important to know that safety is a top priority at

Mc's, especially as it relates to children. We take many

precautions to ensure our Playlands are safe.

We do realize that the Internet is a " hotbed " for irresponsible rumors,

and for that reason, we especially appreciate the fact that you have

taken the time to contact Mc's for the facts. I encourage you to

share this e-mail with anyone who shares this rumor with you.

Chalk this one up as yet another cautionary tale warning parents to not

place their faith in the presumed safety of a child's surroundings.

Later versions of this baseless scare placed the action in either

Midland or Midrand, Texas, and occurring on 2 October 1999.

Though the tragedy described in " Archer's " e-mail is fictional,

the danger of a tot coming into contact with a discarded syringe in one

of those play nests is surprisingly real. Ball pit play areas aren't

always kept in the best condition. Before letting your child loose in

one, make sure the play area's maintenance staff spot cleans the pit

once a day and washes all the balls every week. Diapers come off in ball

pits, and half-eaten candy is routinely found in there. More

disturbingly, syringes and knives have turned up in ball pits.

Another " death in the ball pit " legend circulates on the Internet, this

one about a tot who fatally encounters a nest of baby rattlesnakes

<http://www.snopes.com/critters/snakes/ballpit.htm> lurking beneath the

balls. It too is false.