This has to be one of the more bizarre examples of how technology is impacting our lives:

JACKSONVILLE, Ore. — A pair of hoax ads on Craigslist cost an Oregon man much of what he owned.

The ads popped up Saturday afternoon, saying the owner of a
Jacksonville home was forced to leave the area suddenly and his
belongings, including a horse, were free for the taking, said Jackson
County sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Colin Fagan.

But Robert Salisbury had no plans to leave. The independent
contractor was at Emigrant Lake when he got a call from a woman who had
stopped by his house to claim his horse.

On his way home he stopped a truck loaded down with his work ladders, lawn mower and weed eater.

“I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff
back,” Salisbury said. “They showed me the Craigslist printout and told
me they had the right to do what they did.”

The driver sped away after rebuking Salisbury. On his way home he spotted other cars filled with his belongings.

Once home he was greeted by close to 30 people rummaging through his barn and front porch.

The trespassers, armed with printouts of the ad, tried to brush him
off. “They honestly thought that because it appeared on the Internet it
was true,” Salisbury said. “It boggles the mind.

Are you kidding me? These imbeciles tried to defend themselves with “but, it says in this ad I can take all of your stuff.” It frightens me that these imbeciles walk the streets. And, yes, they can be in a car next to yours. You just never know.

I guess it frightens me, too, that these people would say that because something appears on the Internet, it must be true. A shocking statement of our society.

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