Best explanation I could find in writing ... Reasonable explanations offered with the following provided by Word Detective:
"The best guess I've seen is that while any child may face abuse or neglect from a step-parent, one with a notable feature (such as red hair) reminiscent of the departed former spouse may be a particular target in such a situation. It is also true that red-haired children are often the butt of jokes by their peers, especially in Britain (where they are called 'gingers'), and in several European cultures red hair has historically been considered an unfavorable characteristic." Cassell's Dictionary of Superstitions (1995) tells us that red-haired children are reputedly born to unfaithful mothers, and that meeting a red-headed man or women is considered unlucky. A Dictionary of Superstitions (1989) by Opie says that to be red-haired has been considered unlucky since at least the 12th century. So there you go. :) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Create robust enterprise, web RIAs. Upgrade to ColdFusion 8 and integrate with Adobe Flex http://www.adobe.com/products/coldfusion/flex2/?sdid=RVJP Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/message.cfm/messageid:243614 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5
