I M Probulos.com

I just read about this story about Lyndee Pellettiere-Swapp today, July 10, 2017, assuming it was a new story. After a little research I found the same article repeated virtually verbatim by a dozen, conservative, religious-themed websites without any follow up or analysis. Other than “It’s a miracle!”

This story lacks journalistic integrity and has numerous inaccurate and contradictory statements.

It’s not news; it’s a propaganda piece.

At best it’s an example of the probability of a comatose patient waking up after 12 days. There are probably well over 100,000 patients, worldwide, currently in a coma. And a certain percent will wake up–nothing unusual or miraculous there. It’s probability, not a miracle. This is a nothing story. But the way it’s written, and subsequently hyped smells of a urban myth–or to be blunt–its bullshit. For balance report “Why God hates over 100,000 comatose patients who never wake up.”

The most glaring omission is that comatose is not clinically “brain dead”; these are two separate issues and there is not one mention of that fact in the article. There are numerous variations of a coma: brain-dead, locked-in syndrome, persistent vegetative state, and different coma scales.

Again, no science in the article–just a declaration of a miracle where none exists. The article is purposely misleading  purporting that if a comatose patient is removed from life support they die. You don’t prepare to harvest organs from someone who is in a coma unless they are clinically and legally brain-dead. There is no mention of having any MRI scans performed. If this patient could hear and understand them then her functional MRI scan would have lit up like a Christmas tree. There is no evidence or indication that the doctors declared her clinically brain dead.  If that was the case, then the article would have more merit.

Also, if you are on life support, most people are in a coma and unresponsive.  In addition, being able to hear what is being said has been documented numerous times. It’s not miraculous.

The first story was posted by CBS 5 News: March 2 2016. By Yetta Gibson.

The Phoenix AZ story article is dated March 2 but states “last month Steven found Lyndee unconscious and called 911. That means the event occurred around Feb 2 2016.

So around Feb 2 she was in a coma for 12 days.

Yet There is a Gofundme page with a $50K goal and $1220 raised and it was posted October 24 2015!

The text on the gofundme page states that on 10/16 she was unresponsive and in coma.

The Gofundme pagpage was created 10/24/2015.

That would be eight days later.

Yet the story was published by CBS 5 News on March 2 2016 ?!

I see an update on the Gofundme page is listed at 19 months ago (from July 10, 2017)  which would be around November 2015 and it appears to indicate that she remained hospitalized and was in physical therapy at least until January 2016. It both states that she is “at home” and the doctor is considering “releasing her” which are contradictory. It states that there are Facebook updates but none to be found.

Why do none of these dates match up? Not one of the reposts bothered to do any research. My bullshit meter is ringing nonstop.

There is also a curious lack of discussion of what precipitated the coma. Often it’s a lack of oxygen to the brain. It could have been a stroke–or perhaps a suicide attempt but of course that would ruin the narrative.

The article lists her friend, Amanda, stating “I thought you had been gone for 12 hours.” [what does that mean? Is that 12 hours or 12 days? Did the doctor’s say she would probably die within 12 hours?]. Again this is shoddy journalism at best.

I googled her name and found Lyndeelynn Pellettiere-Swapp, age 30, is a captive insurance agent based in Peoria, Arizona.

The article states, “Lyndee, 45, fell into a coma for 12 days.”

Is there another person in AZ with nearly the identical name?

With dozens of articles repeating the original there is not one detailing Lyndee Pellettiere-Swapp’s current condition or anything about her or the family after the March 2 article. Why is that?

Her facebook page is not a legitimate page. There are no photos of her or her family. No follow-up. Just links to friends. Why is that?

Here is just a short list of the reposts–all nearly verbatim with zero follow-up.

March 7 2016  www.opposingviews.com

Tue, 2017-04-04 13:05            Newsiosity

Dec 6 2016      newsner

Dec 6 2016      AMP

Dec 10 2016    www.girlydreams.net

Jul 3 2017        catholicism.org            no date

July 3 2017      Americanflashnews.com

WDAF reports            Fox 4 in Kansas City MO

This looks like an urban myth; like walking on water, or changing water to wine–but in the 21^st Century. Hey maybe I’m wrong and there is more to the story. Always open to new informationa and facts.

I know to the faithful this kind of propaganda is comfort (It’s a miracle!) but to the skeptical and scientific-minded this type of journalism just confirms how the religious don’t value the truth and are more than happy to blindly perpetuate fake news and alternate reality as long as it promotes their agenda. This is exactly how Jesus rising from the dead started. In so few question this story why would anyone doubt that someone could return from the dead if everyone told him it was true? To me this is hypocritical and lying (omission, inaccuracy, misleading), which by the way–is a sin (if I believed in sin).

I M Probulos

www.improbulos.com