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Out Of Fortean Fashion

Horoscopes .. and astrology in general. Almost everyone, Fortean or not knew what star sign they were 'back then' but don't bother even trying to ask anyone 20 years old or younger these days ..
I strongly disagree here – a depressing number of 'millenials' and whatever the generation below is meant to be called swallow astrology hook, line and sinker. Along with 'witchcraft' (doing spells), it's very popular among the young.
 
Starlite may now be out of fashion because the old boy who invented it died. He left the formula to his daughter, but she hasn't a clue.
So... time passed. Now there are perfectly good substitutes, invented since.
 
Crop circles still occasionally "crop up", but seem to have totally lost all woo factor and are now merely admired for their artistic merit and the degree of precision with which they were constructed.
Terrific candidate.

So, what happened then - did they just become too prevalent, increasingly accomplished and ultimately no longer perceived as a 'mystery"?
 
Mothman? I know there was the recent Chicago flap (yeah , yeah), but has his/her/it's time come and gone?

I think so ... The Mothman phenomenon was so intrinsically linked to Point Pleasant that it never became generalized, even though there have been other reported sightings of flying humanoid figures.
 
Horoscopes .. and astrology in general. Almost everyone, Fortean or not knew what star sign they were 'back then' but don't bother even trying to ask anyone 20 years old or younger these days ..
It's probably on its way back with the upswing in youthful interest in witchcraft.
...a depressing number of 'millenials' and whatever the generation below is meant to be called swallow astrology hook, line and sinker. Along with 'witchcraft' (doing spells), it's very popular among the young.
I work at a college, and I haven't noticed any great popularity of astrology or witchcraft among young people today. Am I just out of touch?
 
I haven't noticed any great popularity of astrology or witchcraft among young people today.

Ten or more years ago, there was a vogue for pupils using online oracles and virtual ouija boards. It didn't seem to be taken very seriously and they soon recognized the rather limited range of reponses they would get. I don't recall any schools over-reacting or indeed reacting at all.

Is the supposed upswing in real or virtual life? I've yet to hear of any mass exodus from the keyboard to go all sky-clad in the woods but at least they would get a bit of fresh air! :hoff:
 
If you read issues of the Fortean Times from the 1970s, you will notice how “mysterious fires” was once a significant Fortean phenomenon. Strangely enough, it’s a phenomenon which seems to have gone out of fashion with the decline in smoking, and stricter product regulations linked to fire safety. Funny that...
 
If you read issues of the Fortean Times from the 1970s, you will notice how “mysterious fires” was once a significant Fortean phenomenon. Strangely enough, it’s a phenomenon which seems to have gone out of fashion with the decline in smoking, and stricter product regulations linked to fire safety. Funny that...

There was that town in Italy where the spontaneous fires kept happening (don't know if they still do) and reports of poltergeists from South Asia which set off fires, all mentioned in the recent years of FT. How good their fire regulations are, I don't know.
 
Just call the Loch Ness Monster a golden retriever with an eel in its mouth and you've pretty well covered all the bases.
 
Very few people believe God was an astronaut these days. The two things in combination, I mean - that reported behaviour of God (or gods) is down to extra terrestrials in the sci-fi sense. Said extra terrestrials would have had to have been as pee'd off as Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged to behave like the gods allegedly did.
 
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I spent most of my childhood and early teenage years being terrified that one day I’d spontaneously combust after reading too many lurid accounts in the Readers Digers book of the unexplained. You never hear anything about it these days.
 
Reports of orbs seem to have diminished, probably all but the more credulous ghost hunters, core believers and local papers on a slow news day, have realised that they're just specks of dust or water droplets reflecting the camera flash.
 
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I think table tipping still goes on, all part of the séance show, but of the levitation trick I have no idea. Wasn't there a variation where you pressed down on the volunteer's head to make them easier to lift, as well?
 
Good question ... I don't have much contact with kids nowadays, so I don't know who to ask ...

https://forums.forteana.org/index.p...-using-one-finger-lifting-a-person.480/page-4

Nor do I really, and those I do come into contact with can barely raise their eyes from their phones to acknowledge me enough to reply to any question I may ask. I'd assume sleepovers these days would be pretty silent affairs with most conversation taking place via sms and rather than sitting about watching a movie, each would be watching their own choice on said phone on one of many streaming services.
 
Good question ... I don't have much contact with kids nowadays, so I don't know who to ask ...

https://forums.forteana.org/index.p...-using-one-finger-lifting-a-person.480/page-4

Having just read through the post mentioned above, I asked about this because I recall playing this with my sister and her friends when we were young. It always worked.
We used the traditional method, having someone lay down on their back, with 4 others at their shoulders and knees.
I recall once trying it with someone sitting in a chair, although this did not work for us as well, balance being the problem.
It's a peculiar phenomenon. I can't explain how it works, but it can and does. For something so easily performed, all you need are willing participants, I would like to think it's still a common enough 'thing'.
 
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