Skeptics issue $1 million psychic challenge

Originally posted by Chadwickus
reply to post by thedoctorswife

 

The show above I linked to discusses Edwards and how he hot reads along with cold reading...

He can get personal information of people in the audience from when they buy tickets.

Really, seriously, what can you find out from someone buying tickets, how can you find out theyre grannys name, How?

reply to post by thedoctorswife


Google?

Well one way is to have the audience "staged". You "randomly" pick people in the audience, but little to their knowledge the person sitting next to them asking them their life story is apart of the show. Then said information gatherer gets up to go to the "bathroom" and spills his guts to someone else, then that person relays information.

And what you have is, the appearance of "psychic abilities", but really isn't anything more than a parlor trick. Plus the person that this was just "performed on" is none the wiser because the person that is claiming to be a psychic just did psychic things to convince that person.

Not saying that is the case, just that is one possibility how it is done, so to speak.

reply to post by Chadwickus


Chad im watching the vids at the moments il be back in about 20 mins with a challenge

reply to post by Timing


why do we always have this "google" response why cant we talk and get information from each other. Why do we hae to be so cold on the internet.

reply to post by thedoctorswife


The Google response was in jest to your post, as the rest of my post explained how one would go about obtaining an audience members name.

Originally posted by Versa
Looking forward to hearing the results but I guess I know what they'll be... 'inconclusive'

Randi again?

Tell ya what - - - you read his terms and tell me if you would sign them.

Well chad thank you very much, ive had my doubts about many of these psychic mediums for a while now, i think theyre just a bunch of f£$%^^^^^s , they say that they console those who grieving for theyre loved ones (at 25 quid a ticket).. I didnt know that about the form filling when one applies for a ticket to a john Edward show and frankly im suprised no ones taken it to the media,, cos i would as its well dodgy.
Lawrence Leung is a star, and seeing him at that new age convention made me realise that im SO NOT a new ager, so heres the challenge if your around tomorrow perhaps you could cold read me and tell me what i am ? and ill do the same to you Mr vegemite.
The Karaoke reading was mad, had i been in various parts of england a week ago i would most defintily have picked "i predict i riot".
Obviously Karaoke is the future of psychic reading.
and John Edward if its true you bad bad boy you.
And poor old amy you didnt have to be psychic to see that one coming.

Originally posted by Timing
reply to post by thedoctorswife

 

Google?

Well one way is to have the audience "staged". You "randomly" pick people in the audience, but little to their knowledge the person sitting next to them asking them their life story is apart of the show. Then said information gatherer gets up to go to the "bathroom" and spills his guts to someone else, then that person relays information.

How do you know this?

Did you work on the show?

Originally posted by Annee

Originally posted by Timing
reply to post by thedoctorswife

 

Google?

Well one way is to have the audience "staged". You "randomly" pick people in the audience, but little to their knowledge the person sitting next to them asking them their life story is apart of the show. Then said information gatherer gets up to go to the "bathroom" and spills his guts to someone else, then that person relays information.

How do you know this?
Annee i didt say this it was the other poster, i just cant believe that if you apply for a john edward audience they actually make you fill in a form with personal details, i mean, wouldnt you be a bit suspect?


Did you work on the show?

reply to post by Timing
OK Sorry friend, the trouble with typed words is that there is no feeling or expression so you dont really get what someone means i suppose that is the job of the emoticons. Im a bit suprised about john Edward i thought he might have been an ok guy, Oh well i still believe in an after life and i hope these people get s**t on when they get there.

Originally posted by thedoctorswife
Well chad thank you very much, ive had my doubts about many of these psychic mediums for a while now, . . .

But why are you so quick to believe the skeptics?

Are they telling you what you want to hear?

Originally posted by Annee

Originally posted by thedoctorswife
Well chad thank you very much, ive had my doubts about many of these psychic mediums for a while now, . . .

But why are you so quick to believe the skeptics?

Are they telling you what you want to hear?

No ive seen a lot of them on documentaries etc and feeling is that for ever 50 charlatans theres one genuine, i actually believe this because theres so much money to made out of it.

Originally posted by thedoctorswife

Annee i didt say this it was the other poster, i just cant believe that if you apply for a john edward audience they actually make you fill in a form with personal details, i mean, wouldnt you be a bit suspect?

Not really. My kid works in production. It is a TV show. It is for entertainment purposes.

I've had my own experiences - - so I know there is something that connects that can't be explained.

I personally have no problem believing some people are far more tuned in then me. That is not saying one way or the other that John Edwards is legit.

From my perspective - - personal information - - unless its pages of detailed data - - would have no bearing.

Originally posted by thedoctorswife
No ive seen a lot of them on documentaries etc and feeling is that for ever 50 charlatans theres one genuine, i actually believe this because theres so much money to made out of it.

Well true.

But for every talented carpenter - - - you get 50 who can swing a hammer and not much else.

Its a talent. Some are better then others. Some are just after your money. Just like any other talent.

reply to post by Annee
yeah thats what im thinking, some of the stuff he comes out with is so damn personal its bizarre, things that only the audience member and the deceased knew about, now how could this be put on a form or discussed in the loo's, and sometimes when your watching John edward he wont give up on a connection even if the audience member constantly denies it. As is said i dont believe many of them but i sort of believed in this guy, there was one show, this is a great example, he keapt pointing to the back of the audience and way convinced there was a connection there, but everyone denied it;.He mentioned education, motorcycles, waterfalls and the lone ranger, someone then from the production team brought a guy who worked in the car park in which was directly behind the area of audience he had pointed out, and this guy had been a teacher in Jamaica, his brother had been killed in a motorcycle accident, they lived in Dunns river falls and his brother was called Tonto. yeah it could have been set up but i had shivers down my back!!

First of all, this challenge came to an end on March 6, 2010

www.dailygrail.com...

James Randi has announced that the Challenge will come to an end in two years, on March 6th, 2010.

Second of all, JREF has been caught falsifying data in order debunk claims.

"An early controversy concerned the so-called Mars effect: French statistician Michel Gauquelin’s claim that champion athletes are more likely to be born when the planet Mars is in certain positions in the sky. In late 1975, prior to the formal launch of CSICOP, astronomer Dennis Rawlins, along with Paul Kurtz, George Abel and Marvin Zelen (all subsequent members of CSICOP) began investigating the claim. Rawlins, a founding member of CSICOP at its launch in May 1976, resigned in early 1980 claiming that other CSICOP researchers had used incorrect statistics, faulty science, and outright falsification in an attempt to debunk Gauquelin’s claims. In an article for the pro-paranormal magazine Fate, he wrote: "I am still skeptical of the occult beliefs CSICOP was created to debunk. But I have changed my mind about the integrity of some of those who make a career of opposing occultism"

manfromatlan.blogspot.com...

reply to post by Chadwickus


lol oh man that was funny. thanks for the post.

Originally posted by Versa
Looking forward to hearing the results but I guess I know what they'll be... 'inconclusive'

A non-profit organization called The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) has announced that it is publicly offering $1 million to celebrity "psychic mediums" including James Van Praagh, Allison DuBois, Sylvia Browne, Carla Baron, John Edward, and others if they can prove their abilities in controlled experiments.

source


This bit is interesting though, I'm sure I've seen cases of crimes where psychics had been of value

Psychics have reason to be cautious about putting their abilities to the test. The track record of psychics is abysmal, for example when it comes to helping police find missing persons. Despite claims to the contrary, there is not a single documented case of a missing person being found or recovered due to psychic information.

edit on 22/8/11 by Versa because: (no reason given)

 

Mod Edit: All Caps – Please Review This Link.

edit on 22-8-2011 by GAOTU789 because: (no reason given)

I'm not sure that's true. I knew one of the best psychics on this earth and she was sought after by so many people she didn't have a life of her own. Police called her all day EVERY day. It wasn't, until right before her death that she led police to a child that was still alive. The others were always dead when found. She would go through the actual steps leading up to the death of the person and experience it first hand.Many celebrities and doctors knew her, and I believe a book has been written about her life- Greta Alexander. She was also called to Scottland Yard on occasion. I actually went to a charity event given by celebrities to help her House of Hope.

These are the top 10 psychics of all time.brainz.org...

Originally posted by thedoctorswife
reply to post by Annee

 

yeah thats what im thinking, some of the stuff he comes out with is so damn personal its bizarre, things that only the audience member and the deceased knew about, now how could this be put on a form or discussed in the loo's, and sometimes when your watching John edward he wont give up on a connection even if the audience member constantly denies it.

Yes - - basically "I was born this way"

I pay attention to some things. John Edwards seems very legit to me.

I think if you've personally had these experiences - - it gives a better perspective in determining if someone is a fraud or not.

People who don't have these experiences - - don't understand you get images or impressions - - and then you have to interpret them. Its not like reading a book word for word.

As far as Randi goes - - - anyone would be insane to sign the terms of the contract he keeps touting.

Originally posted by The Cusp
First of all, this challenge came to an end on March 6, 2010

First, by popular demand this decision to end the challenge was changed, and the challenge is still running.

Originally posted by The Cusp
Second of all, JREF has been caught falsifying data in order debunk claims.

Second, JREF is not CSICOP and JREF was only founded 16 years *after* the events you're talking about.