Jonathan Swift and April Fool's. In March of 1708 Swift published a pamphlet (under the name Isaac Bickerstaff) predicting the death of a popular astrological charlatan (John Partridge) who had predicted the demise of the COE. On March 29th, Swift published an account of the fulfillment of the prophecy and of the man's death, convincing people, despite Partridge's protestations, that the man claiming to be Partridge was an imposter. The Bickerstaff-Partridge Papers.
Ben Franklin used a similar prank when he started Poor Richard's.
HP Lovecraft used the name Isaac Bikerstaff Jr., in 1914, when attacking "a quack named Hartmann, a devotee of the pseudo-science of Astrology."
posted by OmieWise on Apr 1, 2005 - 7 comments

Top 100 April Fools Hoaxes of all time. Also, April Fools on the Net - a history of newsgroup April Fools posts.
posted by badstone on Apr 1, 2004 - 3 comments

Anybody know the origin of April Fool's day? We already have a post about the greatest hoaxes of all time, but doesn't anybody know WHY we hoax and trick? I won't tell you why here....but I find it funny, what with the current jingoism and all, that it comes from France...after you digest that first link, read more at urbanlegends.com.
posted by taumeson on Apr 1, 2003 - 8 comments

As a brief distraction from all the death and destruction, let's head over to the museum of hoaxes, where we'll find the top 100 April Fool's day pranks of all time. Good luck with your own respective hoaxing.
posted by jonz on Mar 31, 2003 - 5 comments

Are You Ready For April Fool's Day? Better read the Museum of Hoaxes's March Newsletter to find out. Certain pranks are already in progress, while other recent hoaxes - of which at least one was seriously discussed here on MetaFilter - remain fresh in our minds. Real aficionados and sleuths, of course, will head straight for the hoax websites pages, where some seem too good - or too awful - not to be true. In Southern Europe, April Fool's Day is known as Liars' Day and everyone is entitled - nay, compelled! - to invent at least one big whopper. Any ideas?
posted by MiguelCardoso on Mar 30, 2002 - 35 comments

Government GPS surveillance through your digital camera. A DOJ project to go after pedophiles and obscenity-mongers by regulating digital still and motion cameras is slated to be introduced in Congress:

A DOJ project code-named "Indecent Images" plans to implant technologies developed to automatically recognize hard-core Internet sex images into the next generation of cameras. An II-compliant camera will refuse to take illegal photographs or videos, and could even quietly tip off law enforcement to illicit behavior. . .

The II draft says that "any variant" of digital still or video camera must include a GPS device and a transmitter that is compatible with U.S. pager networks. When a child pornographer takes an illegal photo, the camera recognizes it and transmits an encrypted message containing the image, the date, and the location to the local police -- who would then raid the home and save the child from continued erotic exploitation.

They've got to be kidding. I'm not endorsing exploiting kids, natch, but I can't believe this this kind of surveillance is even being contemplated. . .

Then again, remembering Ashcroft's beady little eyes. . . (via J. Orlin Grabbe)
posted by aflakete on Apr 2, 2001 - 26 comments