When you hear the saying “hindsight is 20/20,” it feels especially true for the way many people have reacted to change—particularly when that change makes life easier, faster, or simply better. In this roundup we spotlight 10 even more modern conveniences that most of us now treat as essential, yet each of them initially ran into a wall of doubt, ridicule, or outright bans. Buckle up and travel through history to see how skeptics missed the memo and how these inventions survived the storm of resistance.

10 Cold Start for Ice Cubes

Living in icy climates meant you could harvest natural ice during the cold months, but turning ice into a worldwide commodity didn’t happen until the 1800s. Enter Frederic Tudor, a determined New England entrepreneur who spent years trying to convince people to buy blocks of ice he cut from frozen lakes. He eventually thought outside the box and reached out to the Caribbean, proposing that islanders might crave his frozen goods. When word got back to his Massachusetts hometown, neighbors laughed, calling his idea absurd. The Boston Gazette even mocked him, writing, “We hope this will not prove to be a slippery speculation.”

Undeterred, Tudor shipped a 130‑ton cargo of fresh and frozen water to Martinique in 1806. The islanders, bewildered, didn’t know what to do with the ice; they treated it as a curiosity rather than a commodity. Faced with melting blocks, Tudor improvised by whipping up as much ice cream as he could from the leftover water. Though his first venture cost him dearly, the experience taught him valuable lessons, and soon he built a thriving ice‑delivery empire that stretched from Louisiana to India.

Today, Frederic Tudor is celebrated as the “King of Ice,” though we like to call him the “King of Ices” for a snappier ring—think king of hearts, king of spades, king of ices. His story reminds us that what seems ridiculous at first can become a global industry.

9 The Skateboard Skates It to Stardom

The 1960s saw the birth of skateboarding, a pastime that quickly captured kids’ imaginations but terrified their parents. In 1965, Pennsylvania traffic safety commissioner Harry H. Brainerd warned in the Pittsburgh Press that skateboards were “an extremely hazardous fad,” urging parents to keep their children away until they learned proper safety rules. The fear wasn’t isolated.

By 1979, the liberal group Americans for Democratic Action petitioned the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to ban skateboards outright, claiming the design could never be made safe. Their argument fell flat as the sport grew, proving that the skeptics had misread the cultural tide. The skateboard survived the backlash, evolving into a global phenomenon and a staple of youth culture.

8 The Printing Press Prints Paper to Perfect Shame

When the printing press emerged in the late 15th century, not everyone celebrated its potential. Johannes Trithemius, a monk and scholar, penned an essay titled “In Praise of Scribes,” arguing that handwritten manuscripts were morally superior to printed pages. He proclaimed, “The word written on parchment will last a thousand years… the printed word is on paper… The most you can expect a book of paper to survive is two hundred years.”

Ironically, Trithemius’ prediction ignored the durability of rag‑based paper used in Gutenberg’s era, which has allowed copies of the Gutenberg Bible to survive for centuries. While he dismissed printed books as prone to spelling errors and poor appearance, the press proved him wrong, democratizing knowledge and reshaping society.

His lament serves as a cautionary tale: new technology often faces disdain from traditionalists, yet history tends to favor the innovators who broaden access to information.

7 The Cell Phone Calls on Reason

In 1981, telecommunications consultant Jan David Jubon expressed skepticism about the upcoming era of portable phones. Speaking to the Christian Science Monitor, he quipped, “But who, today, will say I’m going to ditch the wires in my house and carry the phone around?” Even the so‑called “father of the cell phone,” Marty Cooper, shared a similar doubt, telling a reporter that cellular phones would never replace wired systems because they wouldn’t become affordable in anyone’s lifetime.

Both Jubon and Cooper missed the memo. Within a decade, mobile phones became ubiquitous, reshaping how we communicate, work, and navigate the world. Their early misgivings highlight how even industry insiders can underestimate a technology’s disruptive power.

6 Sony’s Walkman Walks the Walk and Talks the Talk

When Sony unveiled the Walkman in 1979, many executives doubted its market potential. In his memoir Made in Japan, CEO Akio Morita recalled an engineer asking, “It sounds like a good idea, but will people buy it if it doesn’t have a recording capability? I don’t think so.” Even Sony’s own marketing team was skeptical, predicting the device wouldn’t sell.

Defying expectations, the Walkman captured the imagination of listeners worldwide. The Daily News of Bowling Green, Kentucky, reported in 1982 that the Walkman and its successors were “now clear… from Anchorage to Ankara” and had become a permanent fixture on people’s ears. Some municipalities even attempted to ban the device, fearing that headphones would distract pedestrians. In Woodbridge, New Jersey, a $50 fine still applies to anyone caught crossing the street with Walkman headphones, whether or not they’re playing music.

5 People Didn’t Want to Hear about Car Radios

By the early 1930s, the idea of listening to radio broadcasts while driving seemed futuristic. A 1992 article in Outlook praised the novelty, calling it “the very latest development of inventive genius for the amusement of the radio fan.” Yet the reaction wasn’t universally positive.

The New York Times highlighted concerns that car radios could cause drivers to miss critical sounds like horns or sirens, and imagined a chaotic scene where “fifty automobiles” broadcast a football game simultaneously. A 1934 poll of the Automobile Club of New York found that 56 % of members considered car radios a distraction and an unwanted addition to highway noise. Today, however, car radios are standard, and the idea of a silent commute feels almost absurd.

4 “Movies Don’t Need Sound!”

When talkies burst onto the scene in the Roaring Twenties, not everyone celebrated the new technology. Newspapers ran headlines such as “Talking Films Try Movie Men’s Souls,” and industry insiders labeled sound films “squeakies” and “moanies.” Director Monte Bell decided to test the market by commissioning three producers to create separate analyses—one championing silent cinema, another defending its continued relevance, and a third praising talkies as the future.

The experiment revealed a clear preference for sound; audiences and studios quickly embraced dialogue and audio effects. Critics who once decried the loss of silent artistry soon joined the chorus, acknowledging that movies without sound would feel incomplete in the modern era.

3 New York Times on Smartwatches: “Wearable Tech Could Cause Cancer”

In 2015, the New York Times published a headline suggesting that smartwatches might be as harmful as cigarettes. Nick Bilton, the technology columnist, initially framed the issue as a health crisis, prompting a flurry of criticism that forced the paper to soften the headline to “The Health Concerns in Wearable Tech.”

Bilton’s argument relied heavily on a 2011 International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) report that labeled cell phones “possibly carcinogenic.” He presented this as the definitive study, overlooking the fact that the IARC had merely noted a lack of conclusive data and urged caution. Subsequent research has not substantiated a direct link between smartwatches and cancer, and the initial alarmist tone is now viewed as a misstep in science reporting.

2 Motion Picture Association of America Tried to Get VCRs Banned

The MPAA launched a campaign in the early 1980s to curb the spread of home video technology. President Jack Valenti testified before Congress, warning that without protection, the industry would “bleed and hemorrhage” and likening the VCR to a “Boston Strangler” for the home viewer. The association initially pushed for legislation that would have effectively priced VCRs out of reach for most consumers.

Eventually, the industry settled on licensing rather than outright bans. By the late 1980s, VCR sales exploded, with 2.3 million units sold worldwide. The attempted ban serves as a classic example of how quickly the entertainment sector can misjudge consumer demand and the durability of new technology.

1 “Email Hurts the IQ More Than Pot”

A 2005 survey investigating the psychological impact of electronic communications revealed a startling claim: constant interruptions from emails, texts, and calls seemed to diminish concentration and even IQ scores more than marijuana use. Participants reported symptoms like dizziness, an inability to focus, and general lethargy. Some even described a drug‑like addiction to their devices.

Psychologist Glenn Wilson of King’s College noted that the participants’ biggest challenge stemmed from a lack of disciplined handling of electronic messages. One in five respondents admitted abandoning meals or social gatherings to answer a notification. While nine out of ten agreed that checking emails during meetings felt rude, many still considered it a sign of diligence—a paradox reminiscent of the Stanford Prison Experiment’s insights into human behavior.

10 even more: A Look Back at Resistance and Triumph

From frozen blocks shipped across oceans to tiny chips that fit in our ears, each of these ten even more conveniences faced a chorus of doubters. Yet history shows that when an invention truly improves daily life, it eventually overcomes even the loudest objections. So the next time you enjoy a cold drink, a favorite song on headphones, or a quick text, remember the skeptics who missed the memo—and celebrate the resilience of human ingenuity.

They say “hindsight is 20/20,” and when it comes to how people react to change—especially when something promises to be easier, better, or quicker—this saying rings especially true. That’s why we’ve assembled the top 10 modern conveniences that most of us now treat as indispensable, yet each of them once sparked fierce push‑back, bewildered skeptics, or outright bans. Keep scrolling to see how bizarre and stubborn public opinion could be, both in the past and sometimes today, toward inventions that ultimately reshaped our daily lives.

Why the Top 10 Modern Conveniences Matter

10 Vaccinations Were, Well Vaccines

Online harangues label today’s dissenters “anti‑vaxxers,” yet the opposition predates COVID‑19 by a century and a half. In the 1800s they were called “antivaccinationists,” a coalition that rallied against the small‑pox inoculation program and later against the very concept of deliberately introducing a harmless pathogen to provoke immunity. The movement sprouted in both the United States and England, spawning leagues that warned of bodily intrusion, loss of liberty, and even alleged health hazards. Even the ancient practice of variolation—deliberately infecting a person with a milder strain—was met with public alarm. While modern science ranks vaccination among the twentieth‑century’s greatest public‑health triumphs, the underlying fear of the unknown and a deficit of trust have kept the debate alive through the ages.

9 A Birthday Party Could Ruin A Kid’s Character

The Ladies’ Home Journal of 1913 ran a scathing editorial that warned parents that the burgeoning habit of children’s birthday celebrations was “a dangerous seed for the future.” The piece argued that such parties could corrupt a child’s moral nature, disrupt health, and even upset the whole physical system with sugary treats and excessive excitement. The author feared that the ritual would erode character, instill poor habits, and jeopardize happiness through needless indulgence. The tone was unmistakably alarmist, casting what we now consider a harmless rite of passage as a potential threat to both virtue and well‑being.

In today’s world, the same concerns sound absurd, yet the historical outrage reminds us how cultural norms can shift dramatically. From towering chocolate cakes to frosting‑filled chaos, the very celebrations once decried as harmful have become cherished family traditions.

8 The Bicycle Would Cripple You—Or Worse

During the Victorian era, the medical establishment launched a full‑scale panic against the two‑wheeled contraption, especially when women dared to ride. Physicians claimed that cycling would corrupt a lady’s graceful gait, turning it into a “plunging kind of motion,” and warned of bizarre ailments like “bicycle foot,” “bicycle hand,” and the dreaded “bicycle face,” allegedly caused by wind‑blown strain. They even suggested the sport would masculinize women’s frames, rendering them too robust for genteel society. In short, the doctors of the day treated the bicycle as a menace to health and propriety, refusing to recognize its potential for exercise and freedom.

7 A Refrigerator Cost A Fortune

An American couple in the early 1920s faced a classic dilemma: “Honey, should we buy a new refrigerator or a new automobile?” The husband argued that a fridge would spare them frequent trips to the market with a horse‑drawn wagon, while a car would grant them freedom to shop whenever they wished. Their wife suggested buying both, only for the patriarch to interject that the refrigerator would cost far more than the car. The reality was stark: a Ford Model‑T sold for about $260, whereas a Frigidaire refrigerator fetched roughly $450—nearly double the price. For a household earning $2,000 a year, the fridge alone represented a staggering 35 % of annual income.

Initially, ice‑harvesting businesses and vested interests resisted mechanical refrigeration, fearing loss of livelihood. Yet the technology eventually won out, ushering in modern kitchens and spawning frozen‑food empires such as Birds Eye. The anecdote underscores how a seemingly simple appliance once seemed a luxury beyond reach.

6 Coffee Was Satan’s Drink

When coffee first surged through the Ottoman Empire, its invigorating brew earned the moniker “Satan’s Drink” from Roman‑Catholic and Protestant critics, who viewed the caffeinated potion as a threat to moral order. Sultan Murad IV even threatened execution for anyone caught sipping it, yet the habit persisted. Pope Clement VIII, after tasting the beverage, famously declared it “delicious enough that it would be a pity to let the infidels enjoy it alone,” thereby granting the drink papal approval. From the hostile streets of Istanbul to the sanctified halls of Rome, coffee’s journey illustrates how a simple bean can become a flashpoint of religious and cultural controversy.

5 Taxis Were Deemed Necessary (By One Man)

In 1907, a disgruntled New Yorker named Harry N. Allen was slapped with a $5 fare for a quarter‑mile ride in a horse‑drawn cab—a sum equivalent to about $130 today. Fed up, Allen launched the New York Taxicab Company, importing 65 French gasoline‑powered vehicles, painting them a garish green‑and‑red, and deploying drivers across the city. The novelty soon sparked a rivalry with horse‑drawn cabs, and the fleet’s visibility led to the iconic yellow paint scheme we recognize today. Allen’s entrepreneurial spark turned a personal grievance into a lasting urban fixture, proving that a single complaint can reshape a metropolis’s transportation landscape.

4 The Umbrella Was Persecuted

When English philanthropist Jonas Hanway first appeared on London’s streets brandishing an umbrella, the public reacted with derision. In 17th‑century Britain, the device—imported from France—was deemed a feminine accessory, and crowds jeered Hanway as “effeminate” and even shouted “Frenchie,” the ultimate insult of the era. Cab drivers, fearing that a man with a “brolly” would forgo rides in the relentless rain, hurled rotten fruit at him. Undeterred, Hanway persisted, eventually normalizing the umbrella as a practical rain‑shield for both sexes. His perseverance turned a mocked oddity into a staple of everyday life.

3 The Airplane Was A Toy

In 1911, French General Ferdinand Foch—later an Allied commander in World War I—dismissed the fledgling airplane as “interesting scientific toys” with no military value. This assessment came despite the Wright brothers’ eight years of successful flights and the burgeoning use of aircraft for reconnaissance. Just eight years later, a Curtiss seaplane completed the first trans‑Atlantic crossing, shattering Foch’s skepticism. The episode highlights how even high‑ranking officials can underestimate revolutionary technology, mistaking a future cornerstone of warfare for mere frivolity.

2 The Laptop Would Die

Back in 1985, a New York Times editorial proclaimed “Laptops Are Dead—Or Will Die,” arguing that portable computers would remain prohibitively expensive and that no one would want to lug a machine while fishing or enjoying the outdoors. The piece failed to anticipate the coming explosion of the World Wide Web, Wi‑Fi, and ever‑dropping hardware costs. Ironically, Nikola Tesla had already conceptualized wireless communication decades earlier, yet the skeptics of the 1980s missed the impending digital revolution that would make the laptop an essential tool for countless professionals and hobbyists alike.

1 The Light Bulb Was Unworthy

In 1878, a British parliamentary committee was tasked with evaluating Thomas Edison’s incandescent lamp. The panel concluded that the invention was “good enough for our Transatlantic friends, but unworthy of the attention of practical or scientific men.” Their dismissal reflected a British bias that dismissed an American breakthrough as merely adequate for overseas use, ignoring its potential to revolutionize lighting worldwide. Had they embraced Edison’s work, the committee might have illuminated the path forward much sooner.

Top 10 American Inventions You Can’t Live Without

They say “hindsight is 20/20.” As with some clichés, this one couldn’t be more true when it comes to some people’s attitude towards change in the past, especially when it comes to something made easier, better, or faster. Well, here are ten more modern conveniences that most of us take for granted today, that we couldn’t live, work, or play without. When first proposed, some people must have never gotten the memo on some of these since they’re such no-brainers in hindsight, while others are just flukes that had to wait for technology to catch up. However, all the attitudes toward them are outrageous at best.

Please keep reading to find out just how amazing and outlandish the public’s attitude can be today—and was in the past—toward ten more of the most successful and important ideas, inventions, and innovations we still use today.

Related: Top 10 Modern Conveniences That Met With Sick Resistance

10 We Only Needed 5 Computers…on the Planet

Yesterday it was said nobody wanted them; today, we can’t live without them. And tomorrow, we might watch them build themselves. But in 1943, Thomas Watson, the one-and-only chairman of the giant computer magnate IBM, made the very unlikely and even more unprophetic statement, “I think there’s a world market for maybe five computers.” (Silence.) Maybe? Five? Really now?

That thing that you, the reader, are staring at. Yeah, that lightning-fast extension of your gray matter has already altered the history of humankind in more ways than the discovery of fire could ever have. Yet, the guy that chaired IBM at one time said that we could use “maybe” five? Well, if someone reading this added up all the computers they own now, they’d be absolutely amazed since they’d have to count their desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, smartwatches, smart TVs, game systems, cars, calculators, microwaves, clocks, MP3 players, etc. You name it; it has a computer in it. So sorry, Tom, but you were just a tad low. No memo for you today.^[1]

9 Trains Would Rip Women’s Uteruses Out

Some earlier opponents of the fire-breathing, steam-hissing, smoke-belching monstrosities they called locomotives (“loco” being the operative word since they were kind of crazy-looking) were apparently quite scared of those modern contraptions. It seems they were of the opinion that the female physique couldn’t withstand lightning speeds of up to fifty miles per hour. In fact, they feared that the women’s uteruses would be ripped bloodily from their bodies by the sheer acceleration and raw power of the fanatical beasts. Apparently, these people had never seen the beast in action.

This could be fear of the unknown, or better phrased, fear of the “new-fangled,” a phenomenon brought about by the Industrial Revolution and the rapid advancement in technology. What was not understood was often feared, especially if it seemed it might injure women and children. So how did the scientists of that time explain the mindboggling feats of engineering that early peoples accomplished? Nothing concrete; they mostly only gave rudimentary excuses for how they did these things.

So what were people to think when they first saw this great machine, a toxic, fire-breathing, steam-hissing, smoke-belching monstrosity? Not being sure, they believed the worst. It’s no wonder people are sometimes leery of things, right?^[2]

8 Plato Didn’t Approve of Writing or Books

During the Classical period in Ancient Greece—the 5th and 4th centuries BC—was born the great and famous Athenian philosopher Plato. He is considered to be one of the world’s most influential people. Plato started the Academy, the first institution of higher learning known in the Western world, and the Platonist School of Thought. Yet, his views on writing and books are downright weird.

This is because, well, to put it bluntly, he bashes the invention of writing “literally” in writing, and no, please do not excuse the pun because it was intended. Plato wrote a dialogue he had between himself, Socrates, and an interlocutor, or literary middleman, named Phaedrus, whom the work is named after. In this dialogue, he attacks the invention of writing and the books it’s written in. It seems as though he felt that if people simply just wrote everything down and had books, they’d just forget everything they’d written and read and continuously need to refer back to the books to refresh their memories. Speaking of the invention of writing, Plato said, “What you have discovered is a recipe not for memory, but for reminder.”

Well, yes, isn’t that the general principle here, Plato? Oh, and Plato, we mustn’t forget learning, since books can travel, allowing others to read them. But in all fairness to the great man, to him, it was simple: Writing was not as effective as talking face-to-face. He implies just that when speaking on the invention of writing again, he says, “And it is no true wisdom that you offer your disciples, but only the semblance of wisdom, for by telling them of many things without teaching them, you will make them seem to know much while for the most part, they know nothing.” An old Chinese proverb goes, “Tell me, and I’ll forget; show me, and I may remember; involve me, and I’ll understand.” Apparently, Plato got that memo instead.^[3]

7 Computers Caused Miscarriages

A common fear provoked questions such as this one in the 1980s and 1990s: “I’m pregnant and work on a computer all day, so is it true that computer monitors emit radiation and can hurt my baby?” Many people back then believed this, and maybe still do today since computers using CRT (cathode ray tube) monitors could still be in use. They mistakenly thought that these devices were emitting dangerous levels of radiation, and although CRT monitors do emit low levels of radiation, the electromagnetic field (EM) that produces it is weak.

So there is no danger whatsoever to unborn children, or to those who used them, or who may still be using them today. They can, though, cause other problems not related to their technology, such as eye strain and back pain, and can worsen varicose veins. This is why you should always give your eyes a break, and stretch out your legs occasionally throughout the day, no matter what type of display or device you use or how long ago it was made.^[4]

6 The Answering Machine Was “Worthless”

Can you believe it? At one time, AT&T, of all companies, stated publicly, “There is no need for answering machines.” It sounds like some sort of strange mantra, right? Well, the history behind the machine is sort of strange too. For starters, it was actually quasi-illegal to own them in the late 1960s and early 1970s since they could supposedly be dangerous to telephone repairmen, leading to some telephone companies banning their use altogether.

It was in the 1950s, though, when AT&T went out on a skinny limb and made their bold statement about there never being a need for answering machines in the future. However, their use was eventually permitted by the FCC in 1975, and by 1983, a good consumer model was available on the market. “Nope, we’ll pass on that. No need for voice mail.” Too bad, since AT&T may have gotten that memo on their answering machine.^[5]

5 Telephones Were “Instruments of the Devil”

The telephone took Sweden by storm. By 1885, no other country on the planet had as many phones connected as they did, so news obviously spread fast. Not everybody was so excited about the new-fangled thing, though. For many, it was met with skepticism, superstition, and even fear. It seems there was something entrancing about sounds emanating from a tiny wire, which some thought could somehow “spill out” of it if it was broken.

People were also legitimately afraid of being shocked by them, too, and for a good reason, considering the susceptibility of telephone lines to lightning strikes. Superstition took hold when people started thinking that evil spirits could enter their lives through the fragile wires. Many clergymen considered the telephone to be an instrument of the devil himself. In the real world, landowners such as farmers did not want the lines intruding on their property, and many even resorted to sabotage by destroying them. In the end, the truth was apparently phoned in, and Sweden embraced the technology with open arms along with the rest of the globe.^[6]

4 Cheeseburgers Were “Weird”

At times, don’t people just love to poke fun at the press. I sure do, and this time is no exception. In an article printed in The New York Times in October 1938, the cheeseburger was first mentioned in the paper. It was included in a list containing flippant statements about the “whimsy” of California restaurants (I hear you—it could still be true today).

The Times stuck their foot in it again nine years later, in May 1947, when they said, “At first, the combination of beef with cheese and tomatoes, which sometimes are used, may seem bizarre.” Luckily for them, their savvy journalist on the scene could see the forest despite the trees when he reported, “If you reflect a bit, you’ll understand the combination is sound gastronomically.” Today, over 80 years later, you can not only drop $300 on a gourmet cheeseburger, with your choice of gourmet cheese of course, but they now also have their own holiday. National Cheeseburger Day is celebrated every September 18th.^[7]

3 Fingernail Polish Was “Just A Fad”

The closest thing to modern fingernail polish was invented by Cutex in 1917, but it took quite a while for it to take off into the huge industry it is today. In 1926, Viola Paris, writing for Vogue magazine, said there “seemed to be doubt” about its safety and quality. A year later, The New York Times called it a “London fad.” In questioning how long the “fad” would hang around, the Atlanta Daily World, on March 31, 1932, exclaimed, “Dame fashion, whimsical and wayward as the wind,” as they ironically scoffed about its rising popularity.

Well, we’re quickly nearing a century later since that article was written, and this “whimsical and wayward fad” is doing a lot more than just hanging around. It’s now a staple in a global industry with almost ten billion dollars worth of sales in 2019. And with enormous advances in manufacturing techniques, advances in mass marketing, and countless advantages over the antiquated pastes and powders of old, it’s hard to imagine the global fingernail polish market crashing anytime soon. You’d think the media would’ve gotten the memo on this “fad,” written in pretty colors of fingernail polish.^[8]

2 The Car Was “Impractical”

Again, our friends at The New York Times are up to their old tricks again, this time calling the automobile “impractical” back in 1902. Talk about sticking your foot in it. One critic of the car likened the automobile’s future to the “demise” of the bicycle “as a sport and an industry [that] will be followed by a collapse as complete and as disastrous as was that of the cycling boom” not long before. In 1902, The Times chimed in by complaining that the price of automobiles would never be low enough to make them even as popular as bicycles were—which in their minds, they weren’t.

Early farfetched ideas such as an auto-centric transportation system and the steel highway system that the Steel Roads Committee of the Automobile Club of America was lobbying for didn’t help matters much either. These further drained the public’s confidence in the invention. So it was hard to believe that cars would ever succeed, but succeed, they did. In a short time, Henry Ford learned how to mass-produce them, and the rest is history.^[9]

1 Teddy Bears Would “Cause Race Suicide”

This one is complex, as you can imagine. But in short: In a 1907 Press Democrat editorial, an opinion was revealed in answer to the atrocious claim of a Michigan clergyman that if little girls didn’t play with dolls that looked like babies, then they’d lose their desire to become mothers. His name was Father Esper, and he pleaded with all the parents in America to encourage their girls to play with dolls and throw away their little teddy bears—forever.

The “race suicide” angle comes in from then-President Teddy Roosevelt, who inspired the invention of the teddy bear five years earlier. It was named after Teddy Roosevelt due to his hunting prowess and became extremely popular. The preacher saw the toys as a threat to the continuation of the human race, stating, “The very instincts of motherhood in a growing girl are blunted and oftentimes destroyed if the child is allowed to lavish upon an unnatural toy of this character the loving care which is so beautiful when bestowed upon a doll representing a helpless infant.” Too bad the good Father didn’t get that memo since it may have saved the hearts of some little girls who had their beloved teddy bears thrown away—forever.^[10]