Kimmers, rather than get in an argument(sometimes that's a project in itself with in-laws, I know), you might want to hear her out. She sounds like a bountiful source of folklore/rumor/urban legend, especially from the WWII era.Does she also believe that aluminum cookware is dangerous?(The best reason I got for this was because an aluminum pan tarnishes if you boil eggs in them, therefore there must be something wrong with the pan.)
Mousethief, apparently during World War I, the Red Cross "store" was used as an army recruiting station. I found this out from Michael Cooney's album on Folk-Legacy,"The Cheese Stands Alone".