James Cameron and a group of Israeli archeologists are claiming to have identified the remains of Jesus and his family from a set of 10 stone caskets uncovered in a Jerusalem suburb 27 years ago.

Time magazine also has more on the upcoming announcement.

There’s a couple of problems with this. For one, the Yeshua would have been one of the most common names in First-Century Israel. Likewise with the Hebrew version of Mary and Joseph. Even if the people in the tomb were related, lived in the reign of Herod, and had the same names as the Biblical individuals, that doesn’t really prove anything.

There’s another problem — the Israeli archaeologist who is pushing this discovery also tried to sell the public on another groundbreaking historical find: the James ossuary. The discovery turned out to be a modern forgery. It’s understandable to be skeptical of someone making such an extraordinary claim when there’s already one forgery associated with him.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence — and if Cameron wants to claim that he’s found the remains of Jesus, he’d better be able to come with some equally dramatic evidence. The fact that someone may have found a tomb bearing the names of the Holy Family that date to the reign of Herod is one thing — saying that it is the Holy Family is quite another.

This may sell a lot of book from the same crowd who lapped up the fictional history of The DaVinci Code, but real archeology requires something more than just a series of coincidences. Certainly it makes for a very interesting story, but if one wants to “debunk” all of Christianity they’d better have something more concrete to prove it.

A former member of the UK’s Ministry of Defense warns us that aliens could attack at any time.

For the record, the following things can now kill you at any time:

• Aliens
• Illegal Aliens
• Global Warming
• Nuclear Winter
• al-Qaeda
• Al Roker
• Fast Food
• Undercooked Food
• SUVs
• George Clooney’s Ego
• Republicans
• Democrats
• Asteroids
• Hemorrhoids

Thank you, and remember, if you’re not defecating yourself in constant fear, you’re not paying attention.

UPDATE: And let me add to that list KILLER JAPANESE ROBOTS WITH A TASTE FOR HUMAN FLESH!

It looks like someone at MSNBC made a rather embarassing mistake…

It looks like I’ve gotten a score on the IFOC Dead Pool as veteran actor Eddie Albert has gone off to the Green Acres in the sky at the age of 99…

I’m not sure what the heck this is, but it looks rather suspicious to me. There’s also another blob here.

I, for one, welcome our new shiny photographic error overlords…

A man who had his name changed to Jesus Christ is in a legal battle to get a West Virginia driver’s license:

Attempts to prove his name really is Christ have led the man born as Peter Robert Phillips Jr. through a lengthy legal battle and a recent victory in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

“This all started with him expressing his faith and his respect and love for Jesus Christ,” attorney A.P. Pishevar told The Associated Press. “Now he needs to document it for legal reasons.”

Described by his attorney as a white-haired businessman in his mid-50s, Christ is moving to West Virginia to enjoy a slower lifestyle. He bought property near Lost River, about 100 miles west of Washington, and has a U.S. passport, Social Security card and Washington driver’s license bearing the name Jesus Christ.

One wonders if when he stubs his toe he shouts “AW ME!” reacts in shock by exclaiming “ME!” and has a mortal enemy in Buffalo Sabres right-wing Miroslav Satan… (And someone at ESPN has a twisted sense of humor – note the ID number in the link address…)

Have you ever been sitting at your computer and suddenly wondered “Hey, I wonder if Abe Vigoda is still alive?

I know I have!

Well, now there’s a handy Mozilla extension to keep you up to date on Abe Vigoda’s status.

I have a feeling that this thing could come in handy for certain IFOC Dead Pool 2005 contestants…