# Who is Safer Playing with the Ouija Board? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 12, 2012, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269 "2012-01-12T10:32:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/21 "2012-01-12T14:23:54Z")
germane fun fact: demon possesion in the americas went up 300% when the europeans came to the new world. one can conclude any of the following: 1. europeans brought demons over on ships (this is silly). 2. no one knew what demons were til they europeans got here to set everyone straight. this one is dubious because that’s like saying sightings of american mountain lions went up 300% upon the geo/political creation of ‘america.’ clearly there’d be a name for it. also, there are various native american terms for spirts and entities comparable to demons (as exist in nearly all cultures). 3. europeans brought an ideological view of what certain behavoirs could or should be interpreted as, and inflicted their religious ideologies on already naturally occuring instances of various social behaviors, immoralities or even mental disabilities. methinks we have a winner. the principle is the same in law: meth abuse went up many hundreds of % the second meth was outlawed. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/22 "2012-01-12T14:26:14Z")
> [@Theophane](#): > > Let me start by strongly recommending that **no one play with the Ouija Board under any circumstances ever!** We’ve all heard the stories. I haven’t heard the stories. What will happen if I play with a Ouija board? ---
**Author:** ![Theophane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@Theophane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theophane)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/23 "2012-01-12T14:29:40Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > A germ theory denier has no reason to adhere to proper hygienic practices which will increase his chance of contracting a contagious disease, and no reason to seek antibiotic treatment, which will increase the likelihood of serious problems from the diseases he does contract. > > A demon denier doesn’t have any effective demon precautions or demon treatments to avoid because of his stubborn dubiousness. Bingo! ---
**Author:** ![Theophane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@Theophane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theophane)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/24 "2012-01-12T14:33:43Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > I haven’t heard the stories. What will happen if I play with a Ouija board? [Ouija Board Stories](http://www.squidoo.com/freakiest-ouijastories-ever) ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/25 "2012-01-12T14:41:46Z")
> [@Theophane](#): > > [Ouija Board Stories](http://www.squidoo.com/freakiest-ouijastories-ever) Is this akin to the frequent claim that clergy/public service officer/politician possesses child pornography for the purposes of “research”? Better not look too long into the abyss… ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/26 "2012-01-12T15:12:15Z")
Monopoly is a far more dangerous game. All of those small parts to choke on! ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/27 "2012-01-12T15:22:51Z")
[Relevant C & H strip](http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes) from today (click back for yesterday’s too). ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/28 "2012-01-12T15:27:25Z")
science knows how Ouijas work. are we all just going to ignore that…? ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/29 "2012-01-12T15:34:13Z")
> [@Dr.Colossus](#): > > demon possesion in the americas went up 300% when the europeans came to the new world. Shouldn’t the OP be encouraged to consult the laws of his or her state first? AFAIK, where the OP lives demon possession could be completely de-criminalized. 😉 Granted, using cheap zip-lock baggies may piss them off… ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/30 "2012-01-12T15:53:12Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > What if you’re playing with a Ouija board while alternately repeating “Bloody Mary” and “Candyman” into a mirror and then you receive a phonecall which turns out to be coming from inside the house and when you check the phone you find a bloody hook hanging from it? _ **WHAT THEN???** _ _That’s_ when you put on your shortie baby-doll nightie, pick up a malfunctioning flashlight, and go into the cellar (or the attic) and ask in a quavery voice, “_Hello?_ Is someone t_here?_” ---
**Author:** ![PacifistPorcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PacifistPorcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PacifistPorcupine)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/31 "2012-01-12T15:58:16Z")
> [@Dr.Colossus](#): > > science knows how Ouijas work. are we all just going to ignore that…? Only if the answer is not “demons.” ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/32 "2012-01-12T16:02:32Z")
> [@Dr.Colossus](#): > > science knows how Ouijas work. Yes, the people at Hasbro made a deal with Satan. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/33 "2012-01-12T16:10:02Z")
… ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/34 "2012-01-12T16:11:07Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Yes, the people at Hasbro made a deal with Satan. Milton-Bradley uses juices squeezed from unbaptized babies to mix their ink. i get to make as much fun of this as i want, i think–my dad was a preacher and i grew up witnessing deliverances. i’ve done my due diligence. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/35 "2012-01-12T16:17:53Z")
> [@IntelliQ](#): > > It’s no more dangerous than Chutes and Ladders, to anyone. (with the exception of using the pointy end of that “floating” thing as a weapon) The floating thing is called a planchette. You’re welcome. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Furious\_Marmot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@Furious\_Marmot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Furious_Marmot)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/36 "2012-01-12T16:28:31Z")
Maybe I’m being whooshed, but… An on-the-fence person has a better chance than either the believer or non-beliver of developing a delusional belief that he is ‘posessed’, and here’s why. The skeptic is completely safe because, by definition, he knows there is nothing to be afraid of, and is forearmed with a perspective and set of facts that will enable him to form rational explanations for seemingly supernatural phenomena. The believer may or may not have fanciful defenses against demons, such as magic words or items. Being that the supernatural threat is imaginary, the equally imaginary defenses may “work” and give the believer a feeling of security. The undecided person is unlikely to know of any magical defenses and, therefore, if they develop the delusional belief that they are under demonic attack, may succumb to it because they are unlikely to have the mental safety blanket that some believrs have. On the other hand, if we consider the potential for infection with supernatural beiefs to be the real danger posed by Ouija boards, then the skeptic is immune, and the believer is already screwed. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/37 "2012-01-12T16:30:15Z")
> [@freckafree](#): > > The floating thing is called a planchette. > > You’re welcome. > > 🙂 Oh, I \*loved \*her as Bob Newhart’s wife! ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/38 "2012-01-12T16:33:56Z")
> [@Furious\_Marmot](#): > > Maybe I’m being whooshed, but… > > An on-the-fence person has a better chance than either the believer or non-beliver of developing a delusional belief that he is ‘posessed’, and here’s why. > > The skeptic is completely safe because, by definition, he knows there is nothing to be afraid of, and is forearmed with a perspective and set of facts that will enable him to form rational explanations for seemingly supernatural phenomena. > > The believer may or may not have fanciful defenses against demons, such as magic words or items. Being that the supernatural threat is imaginary, the equally imaginary defenses may “work” and give the believer a feeling of security. > > The undecided person is unlikely to know of any magical defenses and, therefore, if they develop the delusional belief that they are under demonic attack, may succumb to it because they are unlikely to have the mental safety blanket that some believrs have. > > On the other hand, if we consider the potential for infection with supernatural beiefs to be the real danger posed by Ouija boards, then the skeptic is immune, and the believer is already screwed. dead on. the only “demonic” experiences occured in our church parsonage when i was in 4th grade. i overheard a decon tell my father “there were loose demons in this place” and after that, every time it got dark i remembered that quote. i was “tormented” by “demons” in that house until we moved out. no other parsonage has been 1. said to contain demons nor 2. had any “demons” that bothered me. another example: my girlfriend’s house had mice that made noises in the night. until the night-of-and-first-week-after she watched Paranormal Activity 3. THEN she had GHOSTS. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/39 "2012-01-12T17:33:35Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > Shouldn’t the OP be encouraged to consult the laws of his or her state first? AFAIK, where the OP lives demon possession could be completely de-criminalized. 😉 > Granted, using cheap zip-lock baggies may piss them off… Man, I remember the day when you could get a whole ounce of demons for only $15. Ah, the 70s. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269/40 "2012-01-12T17:37:44Z")
Another safety tip: Always brush your teeth and floss after playing Candyland in order to avoid cavities. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-safer-playing-with-the-ouija-board/609269.md?page=3)