urban legends

I have never heard of two men losing their arms after playing tug of war. Is that really possible? I guess if they were yanking hard enough but that would really hurt. Why would you even want to play a game that harsh? I dont think it's worth losing your arm. Anyway, I also read that a man was killed by a lava lamp. How can these things happen? I guess anything can happen, but why? Serioulsly, come on that sucks. I enjoy lava lamps. I dont want to think one could kill me. They are supposed to bring you peace and make you feel relaxed and innocent, and it can kill you? What if a lava lamp is the only thing that makes someone happy and they read that legend? They will carry twisted dread within the rest of their life.