5 ms·

Zzyzx, California, or the Biggest Health Spa Scam in American History

50 points by nols 11y ago

tptacek 11y ago
Video of Curtis Howe Springer and Zzyzx: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91rdB5fDMaA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91rdB5fDMaA
moosetafa 11y ago
Just think. If he were alive today, he'd probably be leading the cast of clowns running for the GOP presidential nomination.
bbleciel 11y ago
i took the exit pictured here out of curiosity once.. drove 10 miles into the desert to the remains of the retreat. walked inside a small library or welcome center and found a warm cup of coffee but no person to accompany it. then, walking around the grounds outside in the sun (it was summer), i started to have a panic attack. i climbed in my car to leave but my car wouldn't start. -eventually it did. strange place
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
coldcode 11y ago
To use a Yiddish word, this guy had real chutzpah. Then again as long as there have been suckers, there have always been people to take advantage.
mattbeckman 11y ago
I made a trip to Zzyzx as part of a CSUF geology trip years ago. Strange place, but I wish I had known the back story back then!
Udik 11y ago
I don't get it. Most of the remedies listed sound exactly like those sold every day by proponents of homeopathy and alternative medicines. Boiron, which has a stable presence in the USA, has thousands of employees and revenues in the hundreds of millions, selling stuff like "Oscillococcinum", which is plain sugar, at a price of around $1000/kg. Have they been condemned for fraud and false advertising?
- JamesBarney 11y ago
  Yep. They have been condemned for fraud and false advertising.[0] [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscillococcinum https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscillococcinum
- shas3 11y ago
  Not just fringe BS like homeopathy, but fairly-mainstream dietary supplements industry is full of dubious remedies. See for example, http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/02/how-supplements-work/385119/ http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/02/how-supple...

50 points by nols 11y ago

Video of Curtis Howe Springer and Zzyzx: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91rdB5fDMaA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91rdB5fDMaA

moosetafa 11y ago

Just think. If he were alive today, he'd probably be leading the cast of clowns running for the GOP presidential nomination.

bbleciel 11y ago

i took the exit pictured here out of curiosity once.. drove 10 miles into the desert to the remains of the retreat. walked inside a small library or welcome center and found a warm cup of coffee but no person to accompany it. then, walking around the grounds outside in the sun (it was summer), i started to have a panic attack. i climbed in my car to leave but my car wouldn't start. -eventually it did. strange place

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

coldcode 11y ago

To use a Yiddish word, this guy had real chutzpah. Then again as long as there have been suckers, there have always been people to take advantage.

mattbeckman 11y ago

I made a trip to Zzyzx as part of a CSUF geology trip years ago. Strange place, but I wish I had known the back story back then!

Udik 11y ago

I don't get it. Most of the remedies listed sound exactly like those sold every day by proponents of homeopathy and alternative medicines. Boiron, which has a stable presence in the USA, has thousands of employees and revenues in the hundreds of millions, selling stuff like "Oscillococcinum", which is plain sugar, at a price of around $1000/kg. Have they been condemned for fraud and false advertising?

JamesBarney 11y ago
Yep. They have been condemned for fraud and false advertising.[0] [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscillococcinum https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscillococcinum
shas3 11y ago
Not just fringe BS like homeopathy, but fairly-mainstream dietary supplements industry is full of dubious remedies. See for example, http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/02/how-supplements-work/385119/ http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/02/how-supple...