[MR] pentagrams in devices

[Steven Chang]

It is very enlightening how things have changed. This goes to show
just how much hollywood has influence on public opinion. Maybe it was
all of those Harry Potter movies.

About 20 years ago, the thoughts were not so open. Some schools banned
games like dungeons and dragons because they had satanic overtones.
Even 10 years ago, there were talk of schools banning magic the
gathering cause magic was associated with the occult. I knew a church
that had one of its stained glassed windows replaced because there was
a Pentacle on it. This pane of glass had been with the church since
it's creation about 100+ years ago. Yet it never occured to anyone
that it was more of a Christian symbol than pagan.

The other day just on cable, I saw this silly movie portraying a
wicked teenager who was abusing magic, and the other students labeling
her as a practitioner of the religion Wicca.  If they knew anything
about the religion at all, they would have noticed that the very first
tenant of Wicca is harm none. It has always been hollywood that has
caused these misconceptions, and I suspect that sensationalistic films
will still sell, as long as there are gullible people who watch them.
Luckily for us, people are starting to get smarter.