The blue star tattoo legend is an urban legend which states that a temporary lick-and-stick tattoo soaked in LSD and made in the form of a blue star, or of popular children's cartoon characters, is being distributed to unknowing children in any given area.
The legend commonly surfaces in American elementary and middle schools in the form of a flyer which is distributed to parents by concerned school officials. In the past it was often in the form of poor quality photocopy, clearly many generations old, but it has now also become popular on Internet mailing lists and websites.
The legend states that a temporary lick-and-stick tattoo soaked in LSD and made in the form of a blue star (the logo of the Dallas Cowboys is often mentioned), or of popular cartoon characters, such as Mickey Mouse and Bart Simpson, is being distributed to children in the area in order to get them "addicted to LSD" (even though LSD is rarely addictive). [2]
Generally some attribution is given, typically to a well-regarded hospital or a vaguely specified "advisor to the president", [1] [3] and instructions are given that parents should contact police if they come across the blue star tattoos.
The legend possibly originated from the fact that an LSD solution is sometimes sold on blotter paper with various designs, including cartoons. [4]
No actual cases of LSD distribution to children in this manner have been documented. Although LSD does not penetrate through skin in sufficient quantities so as to induce a psychedelic experience, the concern was over children licking the tattoo paper before transferring to the skin.
The legend has surfaced in many other places, including:
Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD, and known colloquially as acid or lucy, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages, LSD manifests primarily mental, visual, and auditory hallucinations. Dilated pupils, increased blood pressure, and increased body temperature are typical.
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Urban legends is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not.
Poisoned candy myths are urban legends about malevolent strangers intentionally hiding poisons, drugs, or sharp objects such as razor blades in candy, which they then distribute with the intent of harming random children, especially during Halloween trick-or-treating. These myths, originating in the United States, serve as modern cautionary tales to children and parents and repeat two themes that are common in urban legends: danger to children and contamination of food.
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Body painting is a form of body art where artwork is painted directly onto the human skin. Unlike tattoos and other forms of body art, body painting is temporary, lasting several hours or sometimes up to a few weeks. Body painting that is limited to the face is known as face painting. Body painting is also referred to as "temporary tattoo". Large scale or full-body painting is more commonly referred to as body painting, while smaller or more detailed work can sometimes be referred to as temporary tattoos.
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A Tootsie Pop is a hard candy lollipop filled with a chocolate-flavored chewy Tootsie Roll candy. They were invented in 1931 by an employee of The Sweets Company of America. Tootsie Rolls had themselves been invented in 1896 by Leo Hirschfield. The company changed its name to Tootsie Roll Industries in 1969. The candy made its debut in 1931 and since then various flavors have been introduced. The idea came to be when a man who worked at The Sweets Company of America licked his daughter's lollipop at the same time he was chewing his Tootsie Roll. He loved the idea and pitched it to everyone at the next snack ideas meeting.
Strawberry Quik meth was a drug scare which primarily took place in 2007. Drug dealers were allegedly using coloring and flavoring to disguise methamphetamine as Strawberry Quik, thus making them more appealing to children. The story was widely reported in the media, but no cases of children using flavored meth have been verified.
Many urban legends and misconceptions about drugs have been created and circulated among young people and the general public, with varying degrees of veracity. These are commonly repeated by organizations which oppose all classified drug use, often causing the true effects and dangers of drugs to be misunderstood and less scrutinized. The most common subjects of such false beliefs are LSD, cannabis, and PCP. These misconceptions include misinformation about adulterants or other black market issues, as well as alleged effects of the pure substances.
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The "Momo Challenge" was a hoax and an internet urban legend that was rumoured to spread through social media and other outlets. It was reported that children and adolescents were being harassed by a user named Momo to perform a series of dangerous tasks including violent attacks, self-harm, harming others, and suicide. Despite claims that the phenomenon had reached worldwide proportions in July 2018, the number of actual complaints was relatively small and many law enforcement agencies have not been able to confirm that anyone was harmed as a direct result of it. Moreover, the Momo Challenge sparked global panic and prompted urgent warnings from authorities and child safety advocates. Reports of children encountering Momo's disturbing messages circulated widely, causing heightened fears among parents and caregivers.
