# Challenging superstition **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 31, 2004, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149 "2004-10-31T08:44:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/21 "2004-11-01T12:15:02Z")
Hey, didja hear the one about the dyslexic Satanist who had “999” tattooed on his forehead? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/22 "2004-11-01T12:17:57Z")
I saw a liscense plate not so long ago \*\* 666 XXY\*\* All I could think of was, “S/he’s one letter off from being The Devil Pornstar.” Too bad. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/23 "2004-11-01T13:28:47Z")
Once I was playing 7 card stud in Atlantic City with a guy who was dealt 3 6s up. He immediately folded his winning hand. He said he didn’t want to win money with the devil’s number. The guy was gambling and drinking heavy so I’m not sure what kind of religion he followed. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/24 "2004-11-01T15:05:25Z")
> [@Teelo](#): > > My bill for replacing two new front end struts on my car cost $666. > Mind you the damage was an accident, so I just knew I was being fucked with. > > BTW, I’m not religious. But I do believe in being fucked with. Come on! It is common knowledge that auto mechanics are the devils children. ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/25 "2004-11-01T15:51:39Z")
_chuckles_ When I was still a wee stump, my parents had taken my younger brother and I out to a restaurant, when an elderly couple walked in. My mother glanced up at the man, and noted that his eyebrows kind of pointed up… they were, indeed, a very funny shape, as though they were full, normal bushy manbrows, but toward the outer ends, they tufted up. My mother, still being fairly young herself (and very, very Catholic) began giggling quietly, glancing over at the old fellow, and told my father “That man looks like he’s the Devil!” (the way she says it, the “Devil” is always a proper noun). Eventually, my mother gets over her little giggling fit, and the old couple finish their meal quietly and get up to leave. They both smiled warmly at us, and nodded (Canadian, elderly, grinning at kids; naturally they smiled and nodded). Mom begins giggling again. They walk out the door, and Mom says “Wow, the Devil seems like a nice guy.” We stood up to leave ourselves, and as we stood, we could see the elderly couple getting into their vehicle. Mom saw the licence plate and blanched. The last three numbers, were, of course, 666. I think she’s still begging God’s forgiveness for saying the Devil was a nice guy. 😃 But he _was_! ---
**Author:** ![Rufus\_Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@Rufus\_Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rufus_Xavier)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/26 "2004-11-01T16:03:27Z")
> [@nocturnal\_tick](#): > > no-one has battered a eyelid I note here that battered eyelids is Satan’s favorite delicacy. and add that I knew a man once who had the easiest number to remember I have ever seen: 666 4 007 ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/27 "2004-11-01T16:57:27Z")
Recently at DangerDad’s software firm, QA sent back the latest build version with a request to do another one and then send it on. Why? Because it was build #1666. :rolleyes: They decided it was less hassle to do it and let the QA people explain to the Feds what that was about. (Note that while the engineers at the company are all religious, the QA folks are not, except for the Scientologist or whatever she is this week.) ---
**Author:** ![nocturnal\_tick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3d9bf3/32.png) [@nocturnal\_tick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nocturnal_tick)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/28 "2004-11-01T17:21:52Z")
A little something I remembered seeing about The Number: [http://www.funkypages.com/beast/index.php](http://www.funkypages.com/beast/index.php) I reckon it’s good for a giggle. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/29 "2004-11-01T18:01:23Z")
> [@Bill H.](#): > > I intentionally have 666 in my cell phone number. I have 666 in my home phone number. The local phone company usually gives you a choice of a couple of phone numbers when you set up service. I chose that one, and the lady on the other end asked if all those sixes worried me. Little did she know that I chose it because I’m hoping that Jehovah’s Witnesses and other missionary groups might be afraid to harass someone with the Phone Number of the Devil… 🆒 Even if that doesn’t work out, the repeated numbers at least make my phone number easier to remember… ---
**Author:** ![Katisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bcef8e/32.png) [@Katisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katisha)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2004, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/30 "2004-11-01T23:56:29Z")
> [@Anastasaeon](#): > > I think she’s still begging God’s forgiveness for saying the Devil was a nice guy. 😃 > > But he _was_! Well, even as I type this the Simpsons Halloween ep is on which reveals that it’s Ned Flanders. I think he counts as a nice guy… ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/31 "2004-11-02T02:23:04Z")
The last three digits of my driver’s license number are 666. I’ve actually had cashiers start praying for my soul when they see that. There is just no accounting for stupidity. I guess I should dust these off: 666 - The number of the beast 667 - neighbor of the beast 660 - Approximate number of the Beast DCLXVI - Roman numeral of the Beast 666.0000 - Number of the High Precision Beast 0.666 - Number of the Millibeast / 666 - Beast Common Denominator 666 ^ (-1) - Imaginary number of the Beast 1010011010 - Binary of the Beast 6, uh… what was that number again? - Number of the Blonde Beast 1-666 - Area code of the Beast 00666 - Zip code of the Beast 1-900-666-0666: Live Beasts! One-on-one pacts! Call Now! Only $6.66/minute. Over 18 only please. $665.95 - Retail price of the Beast $699.25 - Price of the Beast plus 5% state sales tax $769.95 - Price of the Beast with all accessories and replacement soul $656.66 - Walmart price of the Beast $646.66 - Next week’s Walmart price of the Beast Phillips 666 - Gasoline of the Beast Route 666 - Way of the Beast 666 F - Oven temperature for roast Beast 666k - Retirement plan of the Beast 666 mg - Recommended Minimum Daily Requirement of Beast 6.66 % - 5 year CD interest rate at First Beast of Hell National Bank,$666 minimum deposit. DSM-666 (revised) - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the Beast Lotus 6-6-6 - Spreadsheet of the Beast Word 6.66 - Word Processor of the Beast i66686 - CPU of the Beast 666i - BMW of the Beast ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/32 "2004-11-02T03:22:50Z")
Here in Topeka, Kansas, the ZIP codes start with 666–. FRed Phelps, well know wacko who makes Topeka his home, says it’s a sign of how evil this town is. :rolleyes: He oughta know, I guess. Two other things Fred says shows Topeka is damned. Our city motto is “The Golden City” which Fred says comes from Revelations and stands for Babylon. And the name of the Washburn University of Topeka mascot is the Ichabod. The name is supposed to mean “The glory of God is departed.” With Fred in town I wouldn’t be surprised. ---
**Author:** ![Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bites_when_provoked/32/18073_2.png) [@Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bites_When_Provoked)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/33 "2004-11-02T04:33:06Z")
> [@Shirley Ujest](#): > > I saw a liscense plate not so long ago \*\* 666 XXY\*\* > > All I could think of was, “S/he’s one letter off from being The Devil Pornstar.” Too bad. P’raps it was a New Zealander. I reckon that’d be pronounced ‘sex sex sexxxy’ 😉 _grins mischievously at Calm Kiwi_ ---
**Author:** ![NoPretentiousCodename](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/82dd89/32.png) [@NoPretentiousCodename](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoPretentiousCodename)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/34 "2004-11-02T06:06:56Z")
Once as a kid, my parents moved house. The new place had a street number of 1666. They changed it to 1660. Not because they were superstitious, but because they didn’t want to provide any provocation (however slight) for anybody to vandalize the house (or try to summon demons there or something). The house got egged anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Elvez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8491ac/32.png) [@Elvez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elvez)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/35 "2004-11-02T07:12:35Z")
> [@Cinnamon Girl](#): > > How do you laugh in the face of superstition? In the spring, I do a lot of whitewater kayaking. This isn’t 666-related, but sometimes after scouting a drop I’ll be sitting in my boat getting ready to peel out into the current, and a cloud will cover the direct sunlight. Or sometimes the otherwise cloudy sky will break and let the sunshine through. It’s tough, in those moments, to not let the superstitions creep in and break the focus. It’s easy to think, “Maybe this is an _omen_.” But I agree with what Kurt Vonnegut once said: “This promising of great secrets which are just beyond our grasp- I don’t think they exist…" I can’t say I laugh in their faces, but I can mostly push them away. ---
**Author:** ![dangergene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@dangergene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangergene)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/36 "2004-11-02T09:38:04Z")
let me provide some of the rather more ‘exotic’ superstitions I’ve giggled in the face of. (bearing in mind these aren’t exotic here, they’re normal. The stuff you guys have listed would be exotic here). I’ve worn ladies underpants on my head without fear of losing at gambling I’ve read a book next to a game of Mah Jong. I’ve pointed at the moon (on many occasions) ‘Look at the moon, WOW!’ without fear of having my ears cut. I’ve said my son is a ‘good little boy’. I’ve said, ‘careful, you could be killed’ I’ve worn black and red to a funeral. I’ve worn white to weddings. I’ve sung songs near the Angsana tree at night. I’ve walked at night through the abandoned barracks on Pulau Blakan Matti without fear of whiteladies or the orang bunian (the island of death, also known as Sentosa, the holiday island. I kid you not!). and I’ve said ‘Pontianak’ on a dark and stiflingly hot wet-season night whilst the lightning cracks over the mountains up north and the neighbours shudder at every creaking floorboard and every shuffling gait. For this night, EVIL WALK ABROAD!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! Oh, and I didn’t put an iron nail above my son’s crib. (doesn’t mean he isn’t a changling child though!)\* \*ok, so that’s not an asiatic supersition, but at least my offerings are divergent from the 666 tangent we’re developing here. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2004, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149/37 "2004-11-02T10:45:56Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > and add that I knew a man once who had the easiest number to remember I have ever seen: 666 4 007 “Do you expect me to talk?” “No, Mr. Bond. I expect you to burn forever in a lake of fire.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenging-superstition/272149.md?page=1)