this post was submitted on 10 Dec 2025
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Mildly Interesting

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the link was posted in a comment here:
https://lemmy.ca/comment/20493193

and it brought back a memory or two.

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[–] Manjushri@piefed.social 47 points 2 days ago (4 children)

Others believe that lighting three or more cigarettes on the same match will bring on bad luck.

This started in World War I as a basic safety precaution. Some soldiers sitting in the dark on either side of the front decide to have a smoke. When the first one lights his cigarette, the enemy across the field sees the match light. While the second man lights his smoke, the enemy grabs their rifle and takes aim. When the third man lights his, the enemy fires.

[–] CmdrShepard49@sh.itjust.works 16 points 2 days ago

What if the first soldier has all three cigarettes in his mouth and lights them all at the same time? Haha checkmate, Athiests!

Fascinating. Thanks for the share. Lessons in everything.

[–] GlenRambo@jlai.lu 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Wouldn't he aim and shoot the second (or first) one he can see. Instead of following the match to where the third is? The third could be either side of the first or second.

[–] Manjushri@piefed.social 5 points 2 days ago

I can't speak to the mindset of people who are superstitious. I'm just repeating what the alleged basis for the superstition was.

The belief was that when the first soldier lit his cigarette, the enemy would see the light; when the second soldier lit his cigarette from the same match, the enemy would take aim at the target; and when the third soldier lit his cigarette from the match, the enemy would fire, and that soldier would be shot.

[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I could be missing something, but not getting shot sounds to me more like good than bad luck.

[–] Manjushri@piefed.social 3 points 2 days ago

It's being the third person on the match who gets shot, thus why three on a match is bad luck.

[–] eneff@discuss.tchncs.de 4 points 1 day ago

I have never heard of this, ever.

[–] arctanthrope@lemmy.world 28 points 2 days ago (2 children)

I'll save you a read, nobody knows. a theory that connects it to the 27 club (various celebrity musicians who died at the age of 27) is debunked. it's proposed that a white lighter could be more easily stained by cannabis resin, and thus be a giveaway

[–] Flickerby@lemmy.zip 5 points 1 day ago

27 club is the "woah dude trippy" version, the white corner being stained green by using it to pack down your bowl is the actual reason.

[–] hateisreality@lemmy.world 8 points 2 days ago

Thing is the bottom is always white and your caught if you smoke jazz cigarettes

[–] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 2 days ago (2 children)

My stoner friends back in high school wouldn’t let anyone get in their car with a white lighter for fear of being pulled over and caught with weed

[–] Grass@sh.itjust.works 7 points 2 days ago

that's so dumb. I bet anyone worried about that is super obvious for multiple other reasons too.

[–] Asidonhopo@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

Huh, wouldnt have guessed that. My theory was that people thought they might be older lighters that had printed wraps that weren't selling, so they were peeled off and relabeled for sale again, meaning they had lost some fluid over time.