How do you feel about Ouija boards?

Harmless toy. Fun, though.

The parents of many kids I grew up with were absolutely terrified of ouija boards and believed they were pure evil. I remember not really understanding the big deal and thought Guess Who? and Clue were infinitely more fun.

Meh…benign. I never had any netherworldly moments the few times I tried to play with one way back when.

We had fun with them as very young adults. We knew there was always someone controlling the thing you push around the, I forget what you call it. We never took it seriously.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideomotor_phenomenon

Like all other wooden boards, they are most powerful when you bash someone over the head with one, or nail it over a hole in the roof. Like all wooden boards, they are least powerful when you ask then questions and expect to get some accurate presage from them. The best you will get is the unconscious guidance of the users guiding the pointer.

Utterly ridiculous, to the point of being offensive to my intelligence.

The alphabet and some numbers on a board…<spooky sound>.

Of course they are real because everyone knows that Parker Brothers holds the market share on the netherworld.

Mine was a dud when it came to connecting with the netherworld. Two years ago, it was given to a nursing home along with the rest of my board games. I occasionally imagine a group of senior citizens gathered around it and chatting with their dearly departed.

C R A P

Mind numbing shite designed for the pemanently bewildered.

They are very useful for determining the true name of meth cooks when talking to a mute ex-Mexican drug cartel kingpin at a nursing home.

I had an aunt who late in life began declining and absolutely swore by them. One night I watched her “talking” to her late husband. She was, of course, talking herself into believing his hands were moving hers around the board. It made me very sad for her.

Stupid. I feel that they are stupid.

Ouija boards were burned (!) by evangelical christians in New Mexico in around 2007, saying that the boards were “creatures of the devil”.

(link: http://www.donaanacountyhistsoc.org/HistoricalReview/2013/SNMHR2013art_book%20banning.pdf)

The way I see it, if the nutty christians are against it, it’s probably something worthwhile.

Hahahaha Ok!
Maybe I watched Sylvia Brown one too many times when she was on the Montel Williams show.

The only time you need to be afraid of them is when the salesman tells you what they cost. ;-)

P.S. You might want to Google Ouija Board if you’d like to know what other people say about them.

@Pachyderm_In_The_Room Glow in the dark, no less! lol

If you pronounce “Ouija” very slowly, and add just a bit of a Southern drawl, it really does sound like “Oh, you idiot!” Now close your eyes and clasp your hands in prayer-like fashion and say it three times. Come on, I dare you ;-)

@Pied_Pfeffer, if my aunt were still alive, she’d surely be one of them!

But @Pachyderm_In_The_Room, it is both mysterious and mystifying! That’s practically a two for one deal.

@picante The word “Ouija” is two words for “yes” put together: oui + ja.

Ah, yes, yes. I see—it is all mysteriously and mystifyingly clear to me now.

Dangerous portal. They were never and will never be allowed in my home and I have never played with one or stayed in a home where they were welcomed. Talking to witches or hanging out is not harmful, but participating in anything like pentagrams or spells, etc…is not for me.

Mom says if you open the door to evil, it may just come in and stay. Whether it’s true or not, I’m not willing to take the chance.

Requisite clip from QI.

I just realized my link above was a mobile link.
Here is a link to an explanation of the ideomotor phenomenon on regular Wiki.

@KNOWITALL Don’t worry, it’s not evil. It’s just a toy. If you don’t want to read through the article, basically the people touching it unconsciously move it around. It has nothing to do with spirits. It’s no more evil than legos.

@katniss Sylvia Browne is a dangerous fraud.

@Rarebear I’ll pass, but thanks! I had to move out of my mom’s before I could even watch the Exorcist. We just don’t have anything to do with anything occult-ish.

If you’ve ever read anything about the Ozarks, you’ll know we’re slightly superstitious about thing’s like that.

@KNOWITALL I’ll pass too, but only because I think they’re stupid.

Actually a Ouiji board is how I started on my road as a skeptic. When I was a kid, we were playing with one and asking it silly questions. One of the questions was, “Who do you like?” (I was playing with two girls on the street). The Ouiji board spelled out my name, but spelled it wrong. It was then that I realized that it was the ideomotor effect (although I didn’t know what it was called. If there were really spirits, they’d know how to spell my name right.

A child’s toy. Or a tool to extract money from gullible idiots.

About the sane as I feel with all nonsensical woo.

We know why it ” works ” so it is just a harmless toy if you are so inclined in your play.

Harmless. Are they fun? I guess, I only tried once with some friends, and one girl didn’t even try to be subtle. She was totally moving it.