Urbana High School
#Illinois #UnitedStates #Urbana

It is said that the ghosts of a student and a teacher haunt the fourth floor of this building. Supposedly, they were involved in a relationship that ended tragically after the teacher’s husband discovered them; the two lovers then reportedly hanged th...

https://hauntedlineage.com/directory/urbana-high-school/

#apparition #bleedingwall #ghost #haunting #lights #school #student #teacher #urbanlegend

Urbana High School - Haunted Lineage

It is said that the ghosts of a student and a teacher haunt the fourth floor of this building. Supposedly, they were involved in a relationship that ended

Haunted Lineage
#NowWatching “Cropsey” (2009) on iTunes DVD: amzn.to/4nNz6Lp Realizing the urban legend of their youth has actually come true, filmmakers delve into the mystery surrounding 5 missing children & the boogyman linked to the case #documentary #ad #FolkHorror #UrbanLegend #mystery #filmsky #moviesky

Cropsey
Amazon.com: Cropsey : Greg Cusick, Barbara Brancaccio, Joshua Zeman: Movies & TV

Amazon.com: Cropsey : Greg Cusick, Barbara Brancaccio, Joshua Zeman: Movies & TV

Creative Writing: … and Stormy Night

“If only they would tell the truth,” the lost girl mused. Katie watched as the teens in the group wandered into the woods. “If these children knew my story, they would never come out here.” Only a few would be returning, and they wouldn’t be returning whole. She knew this from the moment she issued the challenge over a hundred years ago. She was killed right here, in the woods, at the very spot where she used to tell the story and where the challenge always began. This firepit […]

https://ceriashwardauthor.wordpress.com/2026/05/25/creative-writing-and-stormy-night/

Creative Writing: The Darkened…

The night, dark and stormy as always, felt cliché. And the first person who could find the totem left behind would be the winner of this strange game. They decided to play a game based on the stories they told as kids as a joke. The ones that made you think twice before sleeping in the dark of your bedroom. The spooky stories that were certain to give you a slight fright. But this little game was not based on any old story. It had its origins in an actual event that occurred nearby, in the […]

https://ceriashwardauthor.wordpress.com/2026/05/24/creative-writing-the-darkened/

The Unopened Door of the Vise House

The Unopened Door of the Vise House

Smartphonography Club

The “188 Children” Benefits Myth That Won’t Go Away

Viral stories spread fast online, but not all of them are grounded in fact. Photo credit: Unsplash.

Dear Cherubs, every so often the internet serves up a story so outrageous it practically begs to be believed. This is one of those cases—and no, it doesn’t survive contact with reality.

Let’s start with the claim: a man named “Alibana Muhammad” allegedly had 188 children to claim government benefits. It’s dramatic, it’s viral, and it’s also not supported by credible evidence. In fact, there’s no reliable record of a real person by that name linked to such a case in any verified news reporting.

WHAT’S ACTUALLY GOING ON

Stories like this tend to follow a familiar pattern. A shocking statistic appears, often tied to welfare systems, immigration, or cultural stereotypes. The details are fuzzy, sources are vague, and yet the claim spreads like it’s breaking news.

According to fact-checking organizations such as Full Fact and Snopes, similar viral claims about individuals having extreme numbers of children for financial gain are almost always exaggerated or entirely fabricated. The numbers alone should raise eyebrows—188 children would require logistical, biological, and legal circumstances that simply don’t add up in any documented case.

It’s also worth noting that benefit systems, particularly in countries like the UK, have caps and verification processes. As reported by the UK government, there are limits on how many children qualify for certain benefits, making the idea of someone successfully claiming for nearly 200 children highly implausible.

WHY THESE STORIES SPREAD

Here’s the part where things get a bit more human. Outrage travels fast. A story like this taps into existing frustrations about taxes, public spending, and fairness. It’s the kind of content that gets shared with a quick “this can’t be real” — except people rarely stop to check if it actually is.

As noted by thisclaimer.com, viral “fail” stories and exaggerated claims often gain traction not because they’re true, but because they confirm what people already suspect or fear. It’s giving confirmation bias with a side of chaos.

There’s also a digital echo chamber effect. Once a claim appears on social media, it gets reposted, reworded, and stripped of any original context. Before long, it feels like common knowledge—even if it started as a misunderstanding or outright fiction.

THE REALITY CHECK

Let’s be clear: large families do exist, and welfare systems can be complex. But extreme claims like “188 children for benefits” fall apart under basic scrutiny. No credible outlet—think BBC, The Guardian, or Reuters—has reported such a case.

If anything, the persistence of this story says more about the internet than it does about reality. It highlights how easily misinformation can spread when it’s packaged as something outrageous and emotionally charged.

So next time you see a claim that sounds like it belongs in a soap opera rather than real life, it might be worth pausing before hitting share. Not everything that trends is true—and some stories are just… very committed fiction.

Sources list:
Full Fact — https://fullfact.org/
Snopes — https://www.snopes.com/
UK Government (Benefits and Tax Credits) — https://www.gov.uk/browse/benefits
thisclaimer.com — https://thisclaimer.com/

The Thisclaimer logo blends a classic warning symbol with a brain icon to represent critical thinking, curiosity, and thoughtful disclaimers. #benefitsSystem #factCheck #fakeNews #internetMyths #mediaLiteracy #misinformation #SocialMedia #ukWelfare #urbanLegend #viralStories

Chīsai-ojisan 小さいおじさん

#Wss366 bottom

There, right by the hem of her dress, was a face: round, big yellow eyes; smaller than a child, but bigger than a mouse.

“It’s under your dress,” I said.

“What is?”

“A Tiny Uncle, one of those little old men they used to talk about on TV.”

She lifted the #bottom of her skirt, revealing only her feet and ankles. “You were dreaming again,” she said.

“Maybe,” I replied.
#cryptid
#NMFic #TootFic #UrbanLegend #MicroFiction

Welcome to #LoveMakeShare for May 2026! Tell us about you, and the things you create!
I am a web novelist of #Mythpunk, #UrbanFantasy, #HistoricFantasy, #TimeTravel, #Fantasy, and #Yuri-- fueled by #Folklore, #UrbanLegend, and #Creepypasta. I am working on my fourth light novel series: Bijou the #TimeTravelingGhost.

Bijou the Time-Traveling Ghost

For Love of a Konbini Idol

My Girlfriend Almost Got Me Killed (R18)

Arisu: The Girl Who Saw Ghosts

I also write Poetry: Waka, Tanka, Renga, and Rengay.
And I am an urban photographer

#NMFic