Some things never change—well, hardly. The old time snake oil salesmen traveled through the Southwest both to reach customers and to make their escape when their perfidy became obvious. Today's snake oil salesmen have it much easier. In the anonymity of the Internet, they can ply their trade without traveling and, usually, without having to worry about having an open escape route.
The modus operandi, though, is much the same. Spew out a long list of
ills that the magic potion will cure. But don't just toss them out there. Accompany
them with that universal ingredient of the snake oil salesman's tool kit:
testimonials! Yes, indeed, only one bottle of the elixir of the gods, and I was cured
of cancer, near-sightedness, and hangnails! And so can you, for only 29.95 and
we'll throw in, absolutely free, an $80-value of magic, all-organic vitamins and
minerals! Yeah, right! Unfortunately, we're suckers for
testimonials—testimonials that study after study show are the least dependable of
possible evidences. On the other hand, I've found Dr. Jones' serpent lubricant
invaluable for . . .
Listen to the Audio (mp3 format) as
recorded by KTEP, Public Radio for the Southwest.
Contributor: Arthur H. Harris, Laboratory for Environmental Biology, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso.
Desert Diary is a joint production of the Centennial Museum and KTEP National Public Radio at the University of Texas at El Paso.