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Tinfoil Hat House

An anonymous reader writes "A family in Sacromento has covered the side of their house with aluminum to keep the radiowaves from their neighbors at bay. The city has given them one week to remove the life saving shielding or face charges."

24 of 896 comments (clear)

  1. At least they're taking extra precautions... by viva_fourier · · Score: 5, Funny

    "The inside of the house is also covered with foil and the beds are covered with a foil-like material as well,"

    So, these are the guys that buy those "space blankets"...

    --
    and now back to the fallout shelter...
  2. Re:I'm not a Californian by harmanjd · · Score: 5, Interesting

    From the article it looks like the building codes prohibit it. Maybe they should look at getting sheet metal siding - as long as its installed correctly and doesn't violate any of the neighborhood covenants they'd probably be ok.

  3. just because by blue_adept · · Score: 5, Funny

    just because your house is covered in tin foil doesn't mean they're not out to get you.

    --

    "Is this just useless, or is it expensive as well?"
  4. Re:I'm not a Californian by Kethryvis · · Score: 5, Informative

    Because it's a housing code violation. It looks from the picture like it's touching the fence/house next door and in CA (at least in Sac, I live there) it's illegal to build or have any structure connected to your house touching or within x amount of feet of the fence. Our neighbours behind us built some rickity lean-to on their house which used our back fence as one of the walls and we called the housing code people who came and told them to tear it down.

  5. Oops! Sorry, guys! by Quinn_Inuit · · Score: 5, Funny

    If I'd have known I was causing them problems, I would've stopped trying to microwave their paint off their house as a practical joke.

    --

    Stop learning! Only you can prevent esoterrorism.
  6. Tinfoil Hat Jokes aside by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm sure there will be plenty of Tinfoil Hat Jokes and other posts, but after reading the article I'd say they need lithium, not aluminum. That is to say, the "radio waves" deal is typical in schizophrenic patients. Other common variations are people using radio waves to listen to what their thinking, people using high-tech devices to spy on their homes. The end result is a bunch of variations on the sheet metal siding. Those people that aren't familiar with metal and radiation commonly use cardboard boxes to cover all openings and windows.

    A misdemeanor charge isn't what's needed, a visit from a social worker probably is. There's a difference between being unique and unusual, and having mental issues.

    1. Re:Tinfoil Hat Jokes aside by Vince+Mo'aluka · · Score: 5, Insightful
      A misdemeanor charge isn't what's needed, a visit from a social worker probably is.

      How about just leaving them the hell alone and minding your own god damn business? Am I the only one here who respects freedom more than arbitrary "social standards" imposed by some central planning agency?

      --
      You took his stuff. You pound him.
  7. Aluminum Siding? by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Why not just re-do the house in aluminum siding? Then they can keep their crazy ideas and have a decent looking house.

    Put in some Low-E glass windows with a metal reflective layer and a metal roof and they should be good to go - until someone tunnels under their house, of course.

    --
    My God, it's Full of Source!
    OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
  8. Re:Hmmm... by ErikTheRed · · Score: 5, Funny
    Why don't they just cover their bodies instead?
    Better yet, why don't they just seek proper psychiatric help?
    --

    Help save the critically endangered Blue Iguana
  9. Re:grumble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, you gotta admit, "Tinfoil Hat House" has a little more zing than your title. Yours is a little too factual, too journalistic. And all the words are spelled correctly.

  10. Interesting Shot by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I've never seen my house from that angle before...

  11. f'ed up neighbors by bobalu · · Score: 5, Insightful

    there's nothing liberal about trying to keep some looney bin neighbor from bringing down the local real estate values.

    or, if there is, then i'm all for it anyway.

    --
    The revolution will NOT be televised.
  12. Which scenario makes more sense? by Senor_Programmer · · Score: 5, Funny

    D'Souza family. Obviously culturally acclimated as their house is not garishly painted behind the metal sheets (I saw some detailed photos on a live TeeVee newscast) is nutzo. The whol efriggin family.

    OR

    OR

    OR

    There is a single, LONE NUT, in their neighborhood who coupled the magnetron from his microwave oven to an antenna and is actually tossing photons at the D'Souzas.

    Seriously guys, which is more believable? It's California after all. Personally, you couldn't pay me enough to live in any city in that state.

  13. Re:The best part... by mcc · · Score: 5, Funny

    That's irony

    No no... Aluminum

  14. what a crock by SuperBanana · · Score: 5, Informative
    The D'Souzas said the bombardment began after the first anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and that the radio waves have caused them health problems ranging from headaches to lupus.

    As someone who has a family member with Lupus, I call absolute bullshit on this.

    Lupus causes haven't really been figured out. Furthermore, there's absolutely ZERO medical evidence that EMF/EMI causes or even aggravates Lupus. Trust me, I looked and looked after her doctor told her to "avoid cell phones and wireless devices whenever possible". I even emailed two mailing lists- one for researchers, one for patients- and came up with nothing. Nobody had ever heard of this. Furthermore, if their theory wer correct, we'd be seeing an explosion of Lupus cases (we haven't).

    The D'Souzas said they will comply with the order and remove the sheet metal, but they also plan to gather evidence to show city officials what they believe is a problem with radiation.

    That will be pretty tough, given there's next to no evidence EMF/EMI causes anything in people, and a lot of studies showing it has no discernible effects.

    The inside of the house is also covered with foil and the beds are covered with a foil-like material as well,"

    Sounds to me like they'd be a lot better served spending their money on a psychologist, not tin foil. Self-diagnosis ("radio waves are making us depressed, and giving us Lupus!") is a textbook sign of a hypochondriac.

  15. Re:The best part... by badmicrophone · · Score: 5, Funny

    No no... Aluminum

    steel, he's got a point.

  16. Re:weird but illegal by meeotch · · Score: 5, Funny
    Are you nuts? That would keep the radiation *in*!

    mitch

  17. Re:Hmmm... by earthbound+kid · · Score: 5, Funny
    Better yet, why don't they just seek proper psychiatric help?


    One roll of tinfoil: $3.57
    One month of psychiatric help: $357
    Keeping the neighbor's dog from reading your mind: Priceless.
  18. Re:Too bad he's running the site off on 28.8 Kbps by WankersRevenge · · Score: 5, Funny
    I guess we slashdotted his poor site ... I've attached the copy below ... check out the site once he get's it back ... the pictures are just hilarious. I pulled the links from the copy to save his server.

    ------

    In case you're wondering, this Web page is about my next-door neighbors. Since my neighbors have been driving me crazy and no amount of civilized reasoning and/or negotiations have worked - I have decided to dedicate a small corner of cyber-space to them.

    My family and friends are constantly asking me to tell them the "latest" thing my neighbor has done so this page will save me from repeating myself. Besides, I thought it would be fun. Everything you read here is entirely true, that's what makes it so funny. Enjoy!

    Background:

    My neighbors moved into the house next to ours in October 1997. It's a brand new neighborhood with new houses. Everyone's house looks beautiful but that's about to change. The new neighbors seem like normal people until shortly after they move in (more later).

    First, let me say that my redneck neighbor is not destitute or under-privileged. The guy owns a business, drives VERY nice new cars, he just doesn't care about his house. In order to protect the ignorant, we'll call him John Doe # 8 or JD8 for short.

    October 1997 - They are here!

    Well, it should have been a sign of things to come but my neighbors move into their brand new house. Inventory: 1 artificial Christmas tree, clothes, stereo system, TV, no furniture). The Christmas tree is nicely decorated (remember, it's October). We can tell what the tree looks like because the windows have no miniblinds so at night, you can see right into the house as you drive up. They have also decided to wrap some strands of Christmas lights around their front porch railing. I guess there's no electric outlet nearby because they never turn these lights on.

    October 1997 - 1st Home beautification project

    It's dark outside, I'm standing in front of my house and my neighbor does the following: He gets in his car, drives it up to the house on the other side of my house (this house is still being built). He backs his car up to the construction site and opens the trunk. He calmly proceeds to load up the trunk with bricks and 2x4s. Pretty clever, huh?

    The following night, at around 9:00pm he decides it's time to build a mailbox post. It's very nice. He used the stolen 2x4s from the previous night. It looks like it's made out of 2x4s except he didn't steal any that were long enough so he nails a couple of them together to get the correct height - I mean, it has to look just right! The mailbox post is not very sturdy so he braces it with an additional 2x4 (at an angle). Click here to see the mailbox (no bracing 2x4 though).

    He uses the bricks as edging for his flower beds. They look nice. Especially with the newly planted bamboo trees and the ten gallon fish tank (no fish, just water).

    November 1997 - The fence!

    I wake up to my wife telling me, "Hey, it looks like JD8 is working on a fence". Well I don't think much of it until she tells me that he's trying to build a fence around the entire house (front and back) and that the fence is going to be chain-link. We have some "covenant rules" that prohibit you from putting up a silver chain-link fence. Also, you cannot have any fence go past the back of your house. By now, I am freaking out. I can see the property value falling faster than his mailbox post.

    Anyway, I get to work and at 9:01AM I call our builder. I explain the situation to him and he agrees to pay JD8 a visit before the concrete around the metal posts dries. Sure enough, I get home after work and the posts around the front of the house are laying on the street. Not exactly what I expected but at least they're out of the ground. Tra

  19. Re:I'm not a Californian by kylemonger · · Score: 5, Informative

    Not health code, fascist community code, as in "no trucks up on blocks in your front yard", "no neon Looney Tunes paint job for your house", "no satellite dish antennas", "no running a bordello in a residential neighborhood", that sort of thing.

  20. That, or by EtherAlchemist · · Score: 5, Funny


    Tinfoil on the inside of your house. After all, you don't want them to know you're on to them.

    You know who I mean

    --
    R(k)
  21. Hearing music on my phone! by Animats · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Some years ago, I started hearing music on my phone, even when no call was in progress.

    Of course, I just waited for station identification and found out which AM station I was getting. It turned out that the 50KW AM station nearby away had one of their three towers collapse in the 1989 California earthquake. Until they replaced it, their output pattern was distorted. I was in a really strong lobe.

    Adding a small bypass cap across the phone line helped the problem. But it took more filtering to completely cure it. I had to have the telco guys add some filtering on their side of the demark. And, years later, when I got DSL, that had to come out. Huge hassle. Three telco visits with test gear to get DSL working properly.

  22. Re:I'm not a Californian by Ponzicar · · Score: 5, Funny

    Aluminum siding. 'Nuff said.

  23. Re:The best part... by ectoraige · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ah... it's rare to see jokes of that mettle around here.

    --
    Vs lbh pna ernq guvf, ybt bss abj. Tb bhgfvqr. Syl n xvgr.