Sunday, October 23, 2005

It's just a game, isn't it?

Then why is there such an outcry over the occultism of the Ouija board? It and similar talking boards have long been considered evil, probably because of their "ability" to communicate with spirits, ghosts, and whatever else your mind can come up with. Now, Parker Brothers bought the Ouija (from the French "Oui" and the German "Ja," both meaning "yes") board rights from the Fuld family, who had, during WWI tried to market the board as a scientific instrument to avoid paying a tax on shipping games, but the Government disagreed, stating that it was, indeed a game.

If the government says it's a game, then why would religious folk fear it as a tool of the occult? Is it any more dangerous than, say, Monopoly (another Parker Brothers game)? I don't think so.

I confess, my friends and I had our Ouija phase, as did my mom, my sister, and many of my other friends. As far as I know, none of us are in the occult, and most of us have gone on to have very wholesome, good lives, except for one of my friends, who's doing 72 years for murder. Oh well, let the complain.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Which one of your friends is serving 72 years for murder?!

English Professor said...

I fear I may blow my cover as an enlightened left-center free-thinker on this one, but I don't like Ouija boards. Yes, I played with one as a kid (I think in the year they were introduced), but I wouldn't get one for my daughter. Yes, it's just a game, but it still feels like dabbling in the occult, and I just don't like it. There are approximately 500,000 games on the market (at least it seems that way inside Toys R Us), so why buy this one?

Steve said...

Gramma,
I'll tell you another time.
EP,
I think you're allowed to be uncomfortable with something like a Ouija Board and still be a left-center free thinker. So long as you don't prohibit others from buying it, then you are golden.

Cassie said...

I'll tell Mom who is serving 72 years when I talk to her later...
Also I was terrified of the oijua boards. I'm very impressionable and it doesn't take much to scare me. I remember reading true ghost stories half the night and huddling in mom's bed the other half when I was about 12. I think it was just last month that I watched a ghost program on tv and had to drive to mom's in the middle of the night and climb into her bed.
I think oijua boards are nonsense but I don't want to play with one myself, just in case...

Michelle said...

I too think they are nonsense. I loved this post Steve, i had no idea where the original had come from.