| Subject: Re: A Definition of UFO Skeptic |
| From: "Dr. Flonkenstein" <admin@localhost.localdomain> |
| Date: 08/01/2005, 01:28 |
| Newsgroups: alt.paranormal,alt.paranet.ufo,alt.alien.research,alt.alien.visitors |
On Fri, 07 Jan 2005 20:52:56 +0000, altheim wrote:
"Mike Combs" <mikecombs@nospam.com_chg_nospam_2_ti> wrote:
"altheim" <altheim@freeuk.com> wrote:
Randi is a charlatan. He's not stupid but he IS a charlatan.
he knows as well as any parapsychologist why psi doesn't
work on demand
Even if it doesn't work on demand, why doesn't a psychic occasionally get
lucky with a confluence of psychic ability and working through the Randi
challenge? Why is it that the application of proper blind protocols
INVARIABLY makes ALL paranormal phenomena evaporate WITHOUT
EXCEPTION?
Why do you believe that all paranormal phenomena evaporate
with the application of proper controls (there might indeed be
a problem with all blind protocols)? "Invariably" and "without
exception" would be hotly disputed by parapsychologists.
Because they have no leg to stand on.
You have to explain why paranormal abilities are so shy around
proper protocols.
That is not in the least difficult and, as I remarked above, the
reason is well known to Randi himself. Whether or not he accepts
it I do not know but it has certainly been pointed out to him by
well qualifed psychologists. Anyway, he is an adequate
psychologist himself so he will hardly be ignorant of it (I suspect
you know it too and you know what I am going to say):
In other worrds, there is no proof, just baked air!
paranormal activity is a mental phenomenon and like many
mental processes is inhibited by close scrutiny, especially
sceptical scrutiny.
There is no paranormal acitivity, but people suffering from paranoia or
MPD.
What is more, despite the claims of
so-called psychics, psi cannot be performed on demand.
So, what is there to claim?
The best that can be done to invoke psi (some believe) is to
relax and get as close as posible to hypnagogic trance.
Pseudoscience babbel would be more appropriate.
All very difficult when you are being watched. The laboratory
Ganzfeld is supposed to facilitate optimum conditions but
the results from Ganzfeld are statistical - which is not what
Randi wants to see.
Randi has a mathematical correct view of the statistics involving
"paranormal" phenomena, and he knows they're unfounded.
--
altheim