# Ouija Boards - I used to think it was bull until...... **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 19, 2009, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528 "2009-02-19T09:46:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/121 "2009-02-19T19:16:51Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I have had some contact with people who “believe” in Ouija boards, and I offer their explanations without comment. > > The entities on the other end of the Ouija board are almost without exception those known as “elementals”. A virus would make a handy analogy. They are not “supernatural”, the simply represent a form of energy we do not understand. They thrive on attention and “play” the Ouija user like a cold read con man, looking for the buttons to push to keep your attention. They are not smart, they don’t even know what you know, and cannot tell you anything you don’t know with any more reliability. That answer, surprisingly, is a good one with just a few tweaks. Elementals are spiritual, meaning you can’t see them. They are not entities, more like fragments of entities. They do love to play and fool anyone that will listen. When you play the board it is likely you will get them, unless you have a guide to run them off in order to reach whomever you want to speak with. Now even the smartest spirit will not give you the lottery numbers because the numbers are not known until drawn. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/122 "2009-02-19T19:18:32Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > If this is the case, why on earth would anyone want to contact these entities? … In the naive belief that anything we don’t understand within our accepted rational framework must be “supernatural”, and, hence, endowed with capacities beyond our own. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/123 "2009-02-19T19:19:27Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Why doesn’t God snap his fingers and make Satan disappear? He doesn’t need to, you can snap your fingers and make Satan disappear if you wish. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/124 "2009-02-19T19:32:30Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > He doesn’t need to, you can snap your fingers and make Satan disappear if you wish. You had the power to go back all along, Dorothy. ---
**Author:** ![Hakuna\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hakuna\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakuna_Matata)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/125 "2009-02-19T19:36:34Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > That answer, surprisingly, is a good one with just a few tweaks. Elementals are spiritual, meaning you can’t see them. They are not entities, more like fragments of entities. They do love to play and fool anyone that will listen. When you play the board it is likely you will get them, unless you have a guide to run them off in order to reach whomever you want to speak with. Now even the smartest spirit will not give you the lottery numbers because the numbers are not known until drawn. So you can’t do lottery numbers because they are not known until drawn, but certainly you can tell me what my daughter’s name is. THAT is a known entity. Pull out one of the 10-15 boards to work and get back to me. Heck I will even give you a hint – the initials are H and M and K but they are not in order (hey I have to give you a bit of a challenge don’t I?) 🙂 Get to to it man–prove it to me. You are always going on and on about how this is all scientific fact, etc. Here is a golden opportunity to prove yourself. Wait I have this image forming in my head—Lekatt will not respond to my post! Wait–I must be pyschic. Prove me wrong my friend. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/126 "2009-02-19T19:37:53Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > He doesn’t need to, you can snap your fingers and make Satan disappear if you wish. OK, everybody can relax now. I just snapped my fingers on behalf of the world. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/127 "2009-02-19T19:39:48Z")
> [@Beadalin](#): > > OK, everybody can relax now. I just snapped my fingers on behalf of the world. It’s just too bad nobody thought of that earlier. Think of how many people could have been saved from being driven to writing teenage goth poetry. ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/128 "2009-02-19T19:43:23Z")
> [@razncain](#): > > does it work for long distance too? I wrote down a 6 digit number. 867530 ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/129 "2009-02-19T19:51:18Z")
> [@kidchameleon](#): > > 867530 …ni-ee-i-ine! ---
**Author:** ![Garula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ea666f/32.png) [@Garula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garula)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/130 "2009-02-19T19:54:33Z")
If I ever win the lottery, one of my first calls in going to be to Parker Brothers. I will ask “how much will you pay me if I claim I got the winning numbers from an Ouija board?” Then I will donate that money to a charity promoting scientific literacy for children. ---
**Author:** ![Garula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ea666f/32.png) [@Garula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garula)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/131 "2009-02-19T19:57:39Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > He doesn’t need to, you can snap your fingers and make Satan disappear if you wish. Does it work the other way around? Can I snap my fingers to make him appear? That would certainly spice up my next party. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/132 "2009-02-19T20:05:24Z")
> [@Snnipe\_70E](#): > > He would rather we did not believe in him. Then we will not worry about him. He wants to destroy us, if we assume defensive action then it makes his job harder. **Snnipe 70E** , would you reply to post #63, please? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Razncain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@Razncain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Razncain)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/133 "2009-02-19T20:09:39Z")
> [@Beadalin](#): > > OK, everybody can relax now. I just snapped my fingers on behalf of the world. Glad somebody had the courage to do it. Hero’s are hard to find these days. Let me be the first to say thanks for finally defeating Satan, when God couldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/134 "2009-02-19T20:11:11Z")
> [@omgzebras](#): > > medium of Hasbro is depressing. Ahem. Parker Brothers. But actually, Ouija Boards CAN be dangerous. Because like, it was my sister’s birthday party, and my cousins and my best friend were all up in my room playing with one, and then all of a sudden, the lights went out in my room! And so we all rushed down the stairs, pushing and shoving. And my friend really hurt her foot pretty badly in the ensuing rush. It turned out to be my cousin Marc hiding under my bed, who turned off the light. (My lamp was plugged into one of those electric strips, and he just hit the switch.) So, see? Ouija boards CAN be dangerous! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/135 "2009-02-19T20:15:48Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Ahem. Parker Brothers. Parker Brothers is a subsidiary of Hasbro. So is Milton Bradley. Monopoly ain’t just a board game anymore… ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Pedant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/136 "2009-02-19T20:17:29Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I have had some contact with people who “believe” in Ouija boards, and I offer their explanations without comment. > > The entities on the other end of the Ouija board are almost without exception those known as “elementals”. A virus would make a handy analogy. They are not “supernatural”, the simply represent a form of energy we do not understand. They thrive on attention and “play” the Ouija user like a cold read con man, looking for the buttons to push to keep your attention. They are not smart, they don’t even know what you know, and cannot tell you anything you don’t know with any more reliability. Well, in that case I’ll comment: Explanations by believers in these sorts of things always have one thing in common: wiggle room to avoid testability. Quoting from my first post: “I am certain someone (whoever is rigging the board, usually) will produce some sort of bs answer why proximately testable questions aren’t the right type. Take that as your first clue. Right now it appears you have no clue at all.” ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/137 "2009-02-19T20:18:43Z")
> [@Carmady](#): > > Isn’t there an Asimov story like this? > > It turns out you are lying. There may be several such stories, but the one that comes to mind for me is likely _The Obvious Factor_, of Asimov’s “Black Widowers” short stories. The Black Widowers are a dinner club that meets monthly and likes to solve mysteries presented by a guest of one of the members. In that story (assuming I’ve picked the right one - I’m quite confident) a guest claiming to be a parapsychologist describes an apparent instance of precognition and meets every reasonable objection by introducing new information, until it finally becomes too implausible and he cheerfully admits he was lying all along. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/138 "2009-02-19T20:25:39Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Wait, that’s my maternal grandmother’s name as well! Spooky!!! THAT’S MY MIDDLE NAME!!!:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek: ---
**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:** [February 19, 2009, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/139 "2009-02-19T20:26:16Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > Now even the smartest spirit will not give you the lottery numbers because the numbers are not known until drawn. But if spirits can invisibly move a Ouija planchette, why can’t they move those balls in the lottery drawing using a similar technique? If the spirit tells you that it will make certain numbers come up on a certain day, and then does it, that’s just as good as predicting the lottery numbers. ---
**Author:** ![Razncain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@Razncain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Razncain)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528/140 "2009-02-19T20:27:33Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by \*\*razncain \*\* > does it work for long distance too? I wrote down a 6 digit number. > [@kidchameleon](#): > > 867530 Damn, I just seen this! Did you determine this through a Ouija board? Not bloodly likely! Okay, I’ll give you that one, but like Diogenes said, one could possibly do this with some kind of spyware and viewing device that you could possibly view through my own my camera which I have attached to my computer. Just to be safe this time, I’ve disconnected the camera to my computer, and will leave the room, just to play it doubly safe, and write another another six digit number. Let’s see if you get it right this time. razncain [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-boards-i-used-to-think-it-was-bull-until/486528.md?page=8)