# Doper Parents - have your kids been taught about the 1980s Satanic Panic in school? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 22, 2024, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027 "2024-12-22T16:32:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/84 "2024-12-26T18:27:17Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > …the US\* has had a number of moral panics…I think among developed countries the US seems uniquely affected. Because this country was founded by a bunch of religious fanatics. (Have any other countries gotten started that way? Serious question, not snark.) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/85 "2024-12-26T18:33:59Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > Lennon would later say that was actually muttering the words ‘cranberry sauce’ in the background. Possibly the sauce upon which Paul choked to death. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/86 "2024-12-26T18:48:07Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > The teaching of critical thinking is precisely what those in power _don’t_ want. It’s literally true. [Texas GOP: No More Critical Thinking in Schools](https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/texas-gop-no-more-critical-thinking-in-schools/2012/06). ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/87 "2024-12-26T18:58:22Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > (Have any other countries gotten started that way? Serious question, not snark.) How about Pakistan? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/88 "2024-12-26T19:56:47Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > Because this country was founded by a bunch of religious fanatics. (Have any other countries gotten started that way? Serious question, not snark.) Was it founded by religious fanatics? It doesn’t really show in our Constitution. There were certainly religious fanatics present including Quakers and Puritans, but to say religious fanatics founded the United States isn’t accurate. ---
**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:** [December 26, 2024, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/89 "2024-12-26T21:54:12Z")
The northern colonies were founded by religious fanatics but their influence waned long before the Revolution and didn’t encompass the whole country. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/90 "2024-12-26T22:08:02Z")
Bingo. As one of my history professors put it, the people in the northern colonies mostly came for God and Cod. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2024, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/91 "2024-12-27T21:54:53Z")
wasn’t there claims about the Procor and Gamble logo being satanic? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2024, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/92 "2024-12-27T22:28:02Z")
There was. Any reasonable person could look at their company logo and see quite clearly they were Satanist. Or something. I don’t really understand why. Interestingly enough, P&G sued some Amway distributors in the early 2000s. Seems the distributors were spreading rumors about P&G’s involvement with Satanism as a means of bolstering their own Amway sales. P&G won. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/93 "2024-12-29T15:15:17Z")
> [@fedman1](#): > > wasn’t there claims about the Procor and Gamble logo being satanic? As said, yes; there was a [Straight Dope column](https://www.straightdope.com/21341688/is-procter-gamble-run-by-satanists) on it. The accusations eventually drove them to abandon their old logo. It’s a shame in a way, the old logo was much more interesting looking. The modern one is as blandly corporate as it gets. [![](https://www.corporate-eye.com/main/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/procter-and-gamble-logo.png) ](https://www.corporate-eye.com/main/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/procter-and-gamble-logo.png) ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/94 "2024-12-29T16:18:19Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > It’s a shame in a way, the old logo was much more interesting looking. The modern one is as blandly corporate as it gets. In fairness, it’s the direction of travel of all logos, panic or not. There are good strategic reasons for simplifying logos over time as a brand becomes better known and more diversified. But I agree that aesthetically I like the old logo better of course. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/95 "2024-12-29T19:08:16Z")
But the face is facing left! That’s the Satanic direction. The direction of Goodness and Righteousness and Light is to the right. Everyone knows Jeebus was a rabid Republican. [Extreme sarcasm if that isn’t clear] ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/96 "2024-12-29T19:30:55Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > But the face is facing left! That’s the Satanic direction. You make it sound sinister. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/97 "2024-12-29T20:44:20Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > You make it sound sinister. ISWYDT. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/98 "2024-12-29T20:50:04Z")
‘It’s Satan’s Will You Did That’? ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/99 "2024-12-29T22:53:57Z")
Several quite different sets of colonists established themselves here. Almost all of them were trying to escape something or other. The Puritans and Quakers and Anabaptists were being oppressed for their beliefs (the latter two sects were being burned as heretics). I would not call the latter two “religious fanatics” although they had strong beliefs. The southern colonies were settled primarily as business opportunities by younger sons and other disadvantaged gentry who fancied setting up a new feudal society with themselves as the lords over the black slaves. Nothing religious about that. The next waves of immigrants were mostly seeking economic opportunity as well – Scots, Irish, Italian, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2024, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/100 "2024-12-30T04:16:15Z")
I stand corrected, then. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2024, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/101 "2024-12-30T23:57:56Z")
Some people also had kittens and puppies because newer quarters had George Washington facing away from the “In God We Trust” phrase. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2025, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027/102 "2025-01-07T22:31:57Z")
There’s a new novel (out today) that looks at the Satanic Panic from an odd direction - it’s Charles Stross’ [_A Conventional Boy_](https://www.parnassusbooks.net/book/9781250357847) > In 1984, Derek Reilly was just another spotty teenage dungeon master growing up in middle England. But then a secret government agency tasked with suppressing magical intrusions received a tip-off – and one midnight raid later, his life was turned upside down by the Satanic D&D Panic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-have-your-kids-been-taught-about-the-1980s-satanic-panic-in-school/1012027.md?page=4)