# Is this page on symbols accurate? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 5, 2006, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482 "2006-06-05T14:21:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BluePitbull](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@BluePitbull](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BluePitbull)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/1 "2006-06-05T14:21:24Z")
[http://www.capalert.com/backtoschool/backtoschool.htm](http://www.capalert.com/backtoschool/backtoschool.htm) This is from a CAPALERT site which lists all the bad things in children movies. So I am wondering if some of the info is correct or bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/2 "2006-06-05T14:43:10Z")
Some are correct, but others are spectacularly wrong, such as the inverted cross, also known as the [Cross of St. Peter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_of_St._Peter): > [@](#): > > A St. Peter’s Cross is an inverted Latin cross. The origin of this symbol comes from the fact that St Peter was crucified upside down, as he felt he was unworthy to be crucified in the same manner that Christ died (upright). It is often used with two keys, symbolizing the keys of heaven. > > The Alexandrian scholar Origen is the first to report that St. Peter ‘was crucified head downward, for he had asked that he might suffer in this way’. Some Catholics use this cross as a symbol of humility and unworthiness in comparison to Christ. It is still used in the Catholic Church, as evidenced by [this photo of John-Paul II](http://www.shasta.com/sphaws/invertedcross.html). Your cite appears to have a paranoid obsession with Satanism. ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/3 "2006-06-05T15:05:01Z")
> [@BluePitbull](#): > > [ChildCare Action Project: Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP) - Back to School Special - With Update 3/10/07](http://www.capalert.com/backtoschool/backtoschool.htm) > > This is from a CAPALERT site which lists all the bad things in children movies. So I am wondering if some of the info is correct or bullshit. I cannot verify all of the information; I haven’t even seen some of those symbols before. However, some of the information is either incomplete or just plain incorrect (either deliberately, or by accident). For instance, his description of the Swastika is shamefully wrong; the version of the swastika used for religious purposes looks different [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika), and he incorrectly attributes it to the Celts and fails to include Hinduism and Jainism. His description of the “Evil Eye” is also way off the wagon; as used on the currency, it is meant to be the all seeing eye of God, not Satan… you know, kinda like how it also says “In God we Trust”. The guy also clearly has an agendum. He clearly has it in for metal, and apparently any other religion (even other Abrahamic religions, like Judaism and Islam). I agree with a few of his premises, but his poor research and bias pretty much makes this page worthless. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/4 "2006-06-05T15:07:52Z")
There is an interesting mix of fact indistinguishably muddled with fundamentalist alarmist bullshit with a capital B. "ANKH: This symbol represents fertility and lust and is also known as the Key of Life. . . .the cross below it as the male member in mockery of Christ as the giver of eternal life. " The ankh was a symbol in Egypt millenia before Jesus, so I don’t get this reference at all. “EVIL EYE or MAL OCCHIO: Found on US currency, this symbol portrays those who claim to be chosen by Satan to control world finances. We might see this symbol used more frequently as the New World Order and the one-world currency mature. This icon is to say to the observer that the “eye of Satan” is watching, especially in finances. It is also connected by some with the spiritual burdens of envy and greed.” Oh, please. Stop it. Here is what [Cecil has to say](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_022.html) on this one. “‘PEACE’ SYMBOL OR BROKEN CROSS: Welcome to the seventies, flower child. Originally the Cross of Nero (who falsely blamed the new first-century sect called Christians for burning down Rome), this emblem was used profusely by the hippies and freeks(1), or more respectfully, the student movement of the seventies and by the anti-Vietnam war activists. Now it is back by “popular demand.” Little did the student movement and anti-Vietnam war activists know they were promoting the main doctrine of the church of Satan. . .” [More BS.](http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/~lcushing/addpages/PeaceSymbolArticle.html) > [@](#): > > Gerald Holtom, a conscientious objector who had worked on a farm in Norfolk during the Second World War, explained that the symbol incorporated the semaphore letters N(uclear) and D(isarmament). “SCARAB BEETLE: This little bug is the one that rolls manure into balls for food for their young. An amulet of the scarab beetle was associated with sun worship in Egyptian cosmology and in Egyptian history. ‘. . .the setting sun was Atum, shown as a ram-headed man.’ Ram-headed man, huh. Sounds a lot like the goatheaded. So, here is a link between the scarab beetle as an adornment to Satanism.” This leaping to conclusions is a feat comparable to Evel Knievel’s jump over the Snake River Canyon. Oh yeah, Evel failed too. “UDJAT OR ALL-SEEING EYE: As an amulet, variations of the udjat are used for wisdom, protection, good health, prosperity, clairvoyant powers, and protection from the evil eye. . . . But in satanism, it is as evil as evil can be. It is the right eye of satan. . .” Ho hum. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/5 "2006-06-05T17:00:02Z")
> [@BluePitbull](#): > > So I am wondering if some of the info is correct or bullshit. It is a correct representation of one sort of alarmist, paranoid, fear-mongering Christianity. These folks seem able to find the devil in everything, including the details. :rolleyes: **Anarchy (A in circle) symbol.** This guy does some extreme stretching to make a political symbol into an anti-Christian one. I call that Lycra reasoning. **Pentagram/Pentacle.** This one actually does figure into Satanism and witchcraft, but you’ll find it in hundreds of other non-Satanic uses. Watch yourself on Flag Day, folks. 😉 **Hexagram.** He’s got a lot of nerve calling this an evil sign. The Star of David is one of the main religious symbols of Jews around the world. **Ankh.** More stretching and scrambling here. The symbol preceded Christ by several centuries. How can it be anti-Christian? He does a lot of silly dancing to claim the Ankh represents genitals and mocking of Christ’s resurrection. The ancient Egyptians believed in reincarnation, and Jesus wasn’t even born yet. Why would they go around mocking some future deity? **Swastika.** The author goes through a brief list of the innocuous uses of this symbol before the Nazis, then, through a leap of Hitler’s “covenant with Satan” :dubious: he thus connects it with devil worship. Again, he claims an ancient symbol and architectural detail is a twisted cross meant to mock Jesus. **666.** No comment. **Tau Cross** Oy. Come, now, usually a T is just a T. If your kid has a T on his clothing, he’s probably a sports fan. Fans of the Aggies may say the Longhorns are Goddamned, but only in the way the Red Sox fans say the same about the Yankees. **Unicorn Horn or Leprechaun’s Staff.** Sheesh. **Evil Eye or Mal Occhio.** (an eye atop a pyramid) “Found on US currency, this symbol portrays those who claim to be chosen by Satan to control world finances.” The paranoia gets pretty deep. Listen, folks, that all-seeing eye on the back of the dollar bill is intended to be the eye of God. The phrase above it, Annuit Coeptis, means “He watches over us,” or so I’m told. **Southern Cross.** The author simply hasn’t done his homework, as **Fear Itself** pointed out. **Peace Sign or Broken Cross.** I got tired of this silly argument 30 years ago. It’s a matter of pro-war hawks smearing anti-war folks with the Satan brush. Bovine dung. **Yin-Yang.** The author knows a little about this one, but misunderstands it. It’s not a matter of which color is on top. The symbol shows that good and evil, light and dark are equal parts of the same whole. The sunny half of the river and the shaded side are one river. **Scarab Beetle.** “The rising sun was Khepri, shown as a scarab-beetle, the noonday sun was Horus, the hawk god, and the setting sun was Atum, shown as a ram-headed man.” Ram-headed man, huh. Sounds a lot like the goatheaded. So, here is a link between the scarab beetle as an adornment to Satanism." The author clearly can’t tell the sheep from the goats. **Satanic or Broken S.** The author ranges from Zeus to Hitler on this one, grasping straws where he can. Then he quotes that eminent philosopher Indiana Jones. Pretty thin. **Star and Crescent (of Islam).** The author cherry-picks Bible verses to justify his anti-Islam hatred. Then he twists Genesis into pretzels to explain his Lycra reasoning. **Horned Hand or Manu Cornuto.** “This gesture is the satanic salute, a sign of recognition between and allegiance of members of satanism or other unholy groups.” Oh, yeah, such as University of Texas Longhorns fans. Well, **Blue Pit Bull,** you asked if it was bullshit; yes, it is. It is not merely ignorance. The author goes out of his way to distort the facts and ignore mainstream scholars. I would not advise you to trust anything the **ChildCare Action Project, CAPALERT** has to say. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/6 "2006-06-05T17:06:41Z")
> [@](#): > > SWASTIKA: This all-too-familiar icon is NOT just representative of Nazi Germany, the Neo-nazi movement nor other ultra-control freaks. It’s history is vast. It even appeared on the Boy Scout’s Thanks badge before Hitler’s regime. In the fourteenth century, it was know as the Fylfot and was said to represent obedience or submission, which fits into Hitler’s use of it although unrighteous. It also is representative of sun god worship. Though Hitler had made a covenant with Satan to build the Third Reich (the third kingdom), the swastika was used long before Hitler as a “religious” symbol by Buddhists, Celtics, and Greeks. The swastika is the Cross bent all out of shape, symbolic of the rejection and abuse of Him and His Sacrifice and Truth. It is used heavily in contemporary occultism and satanism, likely because of its association with the Holocaust – massive and most dastardly death at the hands of evil men. In each contemporary use, it appears to represent, as it did in the fourteenth century, willing obedience or submission, not to righteous authority but rather to dark forces and evil. How sad. Not even a little comment about how the swastika the other way around has been used for thousands of years by Hindus…tho Hindus daren’t even use it in the States because of all these kinds of negative connotations. From [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika): > [@](#): > > The swastika (from Sanskrit स्वस्तिक svastika) is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles in either left-facing (卍) or right-facing (卐) direction. The swastika is a holy symbol in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. In the West, it is most widely known and used as a symbol of Nazism. It is traditionally oriented so that a main line is horizontal, though it is occasionally rotated at forty-five degrees. The Hindu version is often decorated with a dot in each quadrant.(snip)Since its adoption by the Nazi Party of Adolf Hitler, the swastika has been associated with fascism, racism (white supremacy), World War II, and the Holocaust in much of the Western world. Before this it had seen a resurgence in recognition from the archaeological work of Heinrich Schliemann, who discovered the symbol in the site of ancient Troy and associated it with the ancient migrations of Proto-Indo-Europeans (“Aryan” peoples). He connected it with similar shapes found on ancient pots in Germany, and theorised that the swastika was a “significant religious symbol of our remote ancestors”, linking ancient German, Greek and Vedic culture.[1] [2] ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/7 "2006-06-05T17:23:28Z")
Its nice they allow the patients in the mental ward to have access to the internet. What I find funny, is that in order to follow Satan you must first believe in him. By preaching all this nonsense the fundies make it more likely that their children will end up practicing Satanism. That’s one thing I don’t have to worry about with my atheist child. If I were to believe in Satan and the Anti-Christ the first people I’d look at would be those who loudly proclaim themselves as the most pious. Think about it, if you were a Communist infiltrator during the cold war would you walk around wearing a Che T-shirt and carrying pictures of Chairman Mao or would you try and fit in by joining the John Birch Society and wearing a flag pin on your lapel. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/8 "2006-06-05T17:33:40Z")
> [@Blaster Master](#): > > The version of the swastika used for religious purposes looks different [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika) > [@Anaamika](#): > > How sad. Not even a little comment about how the swastika the other way around has been used for thousands of years by Hindus…tho Hindus daren’t even use it in the States because of all these kinds of negative connotations. > > From [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika): There is not necessarily much if any _visual_ difference between the swastika as used by Hindus and by the Nazis. If you read the Wiki article that you cite, you’ll see that the “other way around” bit isn’t true. Buddhists and Hindus and Nazis all use(d) it pointing in both directions. What is true is that the Nazis often turned it so that the arms formed an _X_ instead of a _+_ and this is not usual for religious use in South and East Asia. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/9 "2006-06-05T17:54:30Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > It is a correct representation of one sort of alarmist, paranoid, fear-mongering Christianity. These folks seem able to find the devil in everything, including the details. :rolleyes: The movie reviews on that site are a real hoot. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/10 "2006-06-05T20:12:49Z")
I first saw the CAPALERT site via a link from [LandOverBaptist.org](http://LandOverBaptist.org) . For quite a while, I thought it was a parody site someone put up as a joke. I was astonished to discover that it was real, and these people actually believe all this crap. Absolutely nuts! ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/11 "2006-06-05T20:27:04Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > There is not necessarily much if any _visual_ difference between the swastika as used by Hindus and by the Nazis. If you read the Wiki article that you cite, you’ll see that the “other way around” bit isn’t true. Buddhists and Hindus and Nazis all use(d) it pointing in both directions. What is true is that the Nazis often turned it so that the arms formed an _X_ instead of a _+_ and this is not usual for religious use in South and East Asia. I do know that. But I always add the other way around to at least help differentiate in people’s minds. You see, I am Hindu. It just makes me sad that such an important religious symbol has been so corrupted. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/12 "2006-06-05T20:37:31Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > You see, I am Hindu. I knew that. But a lot of people get confused by the good swastika/bad swastika fallacy and there are plenty of Hindus among them. > [@](#): > > I do know that. But I always add the other way around to at least help differentiate in people’s minds. Okay, now I’m confused. If you know that the “other way around” bit is not true, then how does saying it help ease confusion? > [@](#): > > It just makes me sad that such an important religious symbol has been so corrupted. I’m not sure that a symbol can really be corrupted. Associations between symbols and ideas are arbitrary anyway. Still, it seems to me that most Hindus here in the United States don’t let the association of the swastika with Nazis prevent them from using the symbol the way they want to at home. Perhaps they just have to be a bit discreet about using it in public. And, of course, in India and in Buddhist countries, the Nazi issue hasn’t discouraged anyone from using it in the traditional way. ---
**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:** [June 5, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/13 "2006-06-05T20:40:23Z")
In the section on the hexagram (Star of David), the author asserts that the hexagram “is on the lid of the box for the Tarot deck.” That’s nonsense. There isn’t just one Tarot deck, there are many, as a visit to any bookstore with a new-age section would tell you. They don’t all contain the same symbols or imagery, and they certainly don’t all have the same symbol on the lid of the box. The closest thing I can think of to a “standard” Tarot deck, the Rider-Waite Tarot, doesn’t contain many six-pointed stars (if any). The stars depicted in that deck tend to have either five or eight points. The “unicorn horn or leprechaun staff” looks more like a chipotle pepper to me. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/14 "2006-06-05T20:45:40Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > The movie reviews on that site are a real hoot. No kidding! Exactly what kind of drugs does one have to take to get that far out? ---
**Author:** ![BluePitbull](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@BluePitbull](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BluePitbull)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/15 "2006-06-05T22:14:10Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > No kidding! Exactly what kind of drugs does one have to take to get that far out? I agree. They don’t like any mention of evolution even if it was only briefly mentioned in ICE AGE and X-MEN ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/16 "2006-06-06T00:14:29Z")
I think it’s a joke - they put “reviews” in quotes on the front page of their own site. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/17 "2006-06-06T01:55:28Z")
> [@Patty O'Furniture](#): > > I think it’s a joke - they put “reviews” in quotes on the front page of their own site. The reason “reviews” is in quotation marks is because these are not reviews of the film- they are just analyses of the negative content in them. [This](http://www.capalert.com/before.htm) is their explanation. I don’t really agree with their ideas, though- one should look at both the positives and the negatives in all cases. Many films feature characters with bad behaviors who end up becoming better people. If they were good people at the start of the film, there would be no point to it. Even in the Bible, characters learn the errors of their ways and become better people. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/18 "2006-06-06T02:28:22Z")
> [@Anne Neville](#): > > The “unicorn horn or leprechaun staff” looks more like a chipotle pepper to me. Well, at least they got one evil thing tagged right, even if under the wrong name! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/19 "2006-06-06T03:15:41Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > The phrase above it, Annuit Coeptis, means “He watches over us,” or so I’m told. [He favors our undertakings.](http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/annuit+coeptis) > [@Patty O'Furniture](#): > > I think it’s a joke You’re right there: It’s a huge joke because they take it so seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482/20 "2006-06-06T06:49:50Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > The reason “reviews” is in quotation marks is because these are not reviews of the film- they are just analyses of the negative content in them. Hmm. Wonder how the Bible would fare if they analyzed it using that criteria. For example: - Cain & Abel – murder, false witness, coveting brother’s inheritance. - Samson & Deliliah – carnal acts between unmarried people, false witness, betrayal, destruction of public property, suicide. Clearly, their criteria would rate the Bible as not acceptable. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-page-on-symbols-accurate/359482.md?page=2)