Friday the 13th

Superstitious people have always held Friday the 13th with certain significance. Many believe the date to be one of bad luck and have developed an actual phobia of Friday the 13th, known as friggatriskaidekaphobia. The earliest known documented in English occurs in Henry Sutherland Edwards' 1869 biography of Gioachino Rossini, one theory says that it is a combination of two older superstitions, that 13 is an unlucky number and friday being an unlucky day.

I found out browsing through wiki that hundreds of millions of dollars is lost in business on Friday the 13th due to superstition, and that is just American trade.

Source:Wiki
According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, an estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this day. Some people are so paralyzed by fear that they avoid their normal routines in doing business, taking flights or even getting out of bed. "It's been estimated that [US]$800 or $900 million is lost in business on this day". Despite this, representatives for both Delta and Continental Airlines say that their airlines do not suffer from any noticeable drop in travel on those Fridays

It was also very interesting to find out that fewer accidents and reports of fire and theft occur on Friday the 13th, but that there are higher traffic related incidents.

Source:Wiki
There are conflicting studies about the risk of accidents on Friday the 13th. The Dutch Centre for Insurance Statistics (CVS) on June 12, 2008, stated that "fewer accidents and reports of fire and theft occur when the 13th of the month falls on a Friday than on other Fridays, because people are preventatively more careful or just stay home. Statistically speaking, driving is slightly safer on Friday the 13th, at least in the Netherlands; in the last two years, Dutch insurers received reports of an average 7,800 traffic accidents each Friday; but the average figure when the 13th fell on a Friday was just 7,500." However, a 1993 study in the British Medical Journal that compared the ratio of traffic accidents between Friday the 6th and Friday the 13th stated that there is a significant increase in traffic-related accidents on Friday the 13th. There are indications that there are more accidents on Fridays than average weekdays (irrespective of the date) probably because of alcohol consumption. Therefore it is less relevant for this purpose to compare Friday the 13th with any other 13th day of another month.

Now the reason I made this thread is because I have always had a strange link with the number 13, constantly noticing 13 everywhere and significant things happening in my life on the 13th. I have never been superstitious myself, moreover I have often taken the mick out of people who believe in 'silly' superstitions so it has never really meant anything to me, but recently this suddenly changed and I am really intrigued by the correlations of 13 I see all around me, and the Friday the 13th itself. I have found a strange synchronicity with this date, this year the superstitious types are going to have to endure Friday the 13th 3 times, all 13 weeks apart.

Coincidence it may be but I find it very interesting and will be looking forward to seeing what happens on these dates.

Personally I think its all mind games when people start seeing numbers all the time!

I myself use to see the number 33 every wear, clocks, tv, advertisements, pg numbers, but I dont I dont notice it any more I think I almost conditioned my brain to see it, like I think I subconsciously trained my brain to check the clock every hour exactly at 33 mins past.

I think the same thing goes on with the 11:11 seers.

reply to post by Unvarnished


I hope so, I've always wanted to meet Freddy

reply to post by Unvarnished


little confused are we? freddy lived on elm street.
as for the op, interesting yet not a surprise. i believe its all a result of paranoia. thanks for sharing.

Think I'll look up wiki for my next post too - seems to help the narrative somewhat....sayin'

reply to post by Dionisius


"I found out browsing through wiki that hundreds of millions of dollars is lost in business on Friday the 13th due to superstition, and that is just American trade. "



Oh thats very interesting , i thought the numbers would be lower but did not think by that much.


What a great way to play into profits by fiddling with peoples , friday the 13th fears haha


friday 13th is just another day , but i wonder if collective energy from all the people who fear it , cause events to to occur because of there expectations , and placebo effect. More data needed on that but im sure there is some sort of correlation



p.s who is that awesome chick in your avatar my god that is one nice pair of ....

earrings

Most people I know that have any idea or opinion on its origins believe it is this.

On Friday, October 13, 1307 Templar Grand Master Jacques de Molay and several Templar Knights were arrested by King Phillip of France. Most were eventually tortured to death.

from the above Wiki article

Originally posted by RandalFlagg
Personally I think its all mind games when people start seeing numbers all the time!

When we all realize this is true of everything... then we can really start playing.

Gee... both my kids were born on Friday the 13th over 3yrs apart. And the first was also a full moon. So, no complaints from me.

I think it's just a number that has been glorified/mystified over the years through modern history, maybe even longer than that. It's become a pop culture type phenomena.

It sure makes great movie themes though

oh so this is why the salt shaker has fallen, three black cats have been in my window. time to see if they cross my path when i go out for a walk.

reply to post by yourboycal2


thats Cheryl Cole, what a beauty ey, she was on your side of the pond briefly as a judge on the X factor but got boyed off because of her jordie accent.... Shes the UK's sweet heart or some #


Thanks for your thoughts.

Hm...that's strange. Friday the 13th has always been my lucky day. Good things always happen on those days, that and 13 has always been my lucky number. I just think people blow things out of poportion, like everything else in society.

Nice thread, interesting to see how much money is lost on those days. And the 3 13ths all 13 weeks apart. This is gonna be a fun year...

Friday 13th has always brought good luck to me and my family..whether it be a bigger paycheck.. good news.. getting hired.. etc etc.. we've yet to have Friday 13th be bad or unlucky.

Friday the 13th is the day the Roman Catholic Church set out to destroy the Knights Templars. It was April 13th but I cant remember the year I think it was in the 1100s.Friday the 13th has been considered bad luck never since.

reply to post by vogon42


Yeah! I did hear that before. Infact lots of superstitions come from stories like that. Let's take the 7 years of bad luck if you break a mirror thing. Back in the day when servants happen to break a mirror, the cost would come out of their salary. At the time where the phrase was coined, mirrors were the equivilant to 7 years of pay for those servants.

never mind- sorry

Originally posted by starseed33
Friday the 13th is the day the Roman Catholic Church set out to destroy the Knights Templars. It was April 13th but I cant remember the year I think it was in the 1100s.Friday the 13th has been considered bad luck never since.

To build on what Starseed said, the Church set out to destroy them on this particular day because it was a holy day to the Knights. It was a known time of prayer for the Knights, and the Church knew they could catch them in their religious services.

13 is also considered a divine number. That's why in stories and in the Bible there are 13 people ie, King Arthur and the 12 Knights of the Round Table. In the Bible it's Jesus and his 12 Apostles.

On a personal note my youngest was born on the 13th and he will turn 13 on Friday the 13th. It's been my favorite number since he was born.