I’ve mentioned this before in other threads: I have the innate and absolutely useless psychic ability to predict what’s going to be on television. I don’t even know if it’s an “ability.” I’ll be reminiscing about some episode of some show I enjoyed, and then lo and behold–that episode’s on television.
It happened again tonight–twice.
I was musing to myself about this scene on the Simpsons where Burns has a fire drill at the power plant. There’s a funny moment I was particularly remembering where this guy runs around in circles yelling “firefirefirefirefire.” So guess what the 7 p.m. Simpsons was tonight?
Same thing’s happening right now. For some reason, the Seinfeld episode where George lost an apartment to an Edmund Fitzgerald survivor popped into my head the other day. That episode is running as a type this.
Sigh. I was watching Unbreakable the other day, and the scene where Sam Jackson and Bruce Willis were discussing Bruce’s precognitive abilities stuck out in my mind. Particularly where Sam asks, “have you ever tried to develop it?”
I’m annoyed. I wanna know if I’m just subject to some weird repeat coincidence, or if this is something I can actually develop. Maybe for good. Maybe to tell Dopers the winning lottery numbers in their state in exchange for a 10% cut. (Also, I’m a Catholic…I’m probably going to hell just for thinking that I’ve got powers. :rolleyes:)
What gives? Are any Dopers out there psychic? Precognative? Can you move crap around with your mind?
You say that things you think of show up on television? Since the broadcast schedule is pretty much pre-set, I can only come to one conclusion: The mind control device we installed in your set is defective, because if it was working properly you wouldn’t have noticed the “coincidence”.
I do a lot of things that might be defined as psychic, but I don’t know if “psychic” is the right word. For example, I am very good at reading people- their personalities, their moods, and sometimes even their thoughts. But I don’t know if it’s correct (or advisable) to call it psychic. That word means a lot of different things to different people and the “superhero powers vs. fraud” thing can get kind of nasty at times.
I know what I can do, but I’m not sure why I can do it. There are always subconscious clues to a persons feelings and thoughts, and it may be that I pick up on the merest twitch that gives hint to underlying thoughts. That doesn’t explain the way that I’ve been able to sometimes read objects, though, so I don’t know- but I try to not jump to conclusions about any of it.
As to using this to get money- that goes against my religious beliefs. I view this knack I have as being a spiritual thing. It is my belief that spiritual gifts should not be traded for money. To do so mixes what is spiritual- this “intuition” that enables me to help other people with their emotions, life dreams, etc. with what is material- cold hard cash. If that just sounds like New Agey-type crap I’d like to remind you how repulsive televangelism “Send me five bucks for Jesus!” really is.
Sorry, but I don’t think your magic tv predicting abilities have anything to do with psy. Heres what usually happens:
Your bored your sitting around, your mind wanders to The Simpsons. Wow, they are funny. Ha, ha , ha…ha. Poochie was a bad episode, Ralph is funny, Fire fire fire fire! 4 hours pass
Oh look the fire thing is on! I must be psychic!
(sorry i’m not trying to sound mean I’m just trying to make a point)
Anyway, whats happening is that your thinking of a number of things and just by coincidence one of them relates to a future event. For example, if you were thinking of the Poochie episode and you didn’t see the episode later you shrug it off and don’t even think about it. However if the episode does come on you think, Oh wow! I must have predicted it! I should start my own psychic buddies hotline! It’s just a coincidence. However, there is the 1 in 50000000000000000 chance that you are actually psychic. In which case, AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! RUN FOR THE HILLS! Please don’t smite me Mr.Telepath man, I promise I won’t doubt your divine and amazing, spectacular powers ever again.
If there were, wouldn’t they have e-mailed you already?
As Ianzin said, there’s $1,000,000 waiting for a single demonstration of psychic abilities.
But not one psychic success.
Ever.
Fairblue,
I too don’t like people who claim to have psychic abilities and take money of gullible people.
But it’s completely different to give a demonstration of an exciting new power. I can assure you that the Randi Foundation will happily pay you the money for a morning’s effort.
And I give you moral clearance to apply.
Think of it as a bet.
Us scientific types bet you $1,000,000 to nothing that you don’t have psychic powers.
Are you going to apply?
P.S. Wearia,
you considerably overestimate the chance of psychic powers existing!
You could start the first really good psychic information service.
Only you could avoid a lot of the expenses, and do it fairly cheap, since you are really psychic, and not interested in ripping off credulous fools.
See, you do it this way.
You call them, at the precise moment they need some particular piece of information, and tell them about it. You give them your name and home address, and since you only call honest and responsible people, you don’t need to worry about billing and such. And, you can make long term plans, because you will always know just home much money is going to come in, in a given time period.
Man, you are gonna be one rich psychic sucker. Who needs James Randi?!
Tris
Rule of Reason: “If nobody uses it, there’s a reason.”
I think you misunderstand. Where did I say that I have “an amazing new power”? I thought I was being quite reasonable in my analysis. There are those who can observe other people and know what’s going on in their heads as far as what they’re feeling, what they’re thinking, if they’re lying, etc. I’m sure everyone on this board has had the experience of being able to tell what someone’s thinking just by looking at them. It’s something I’m really good at.
As I said, I don’t know why, but I speculated that perhaps I’m much better at picking up subconscious clues than other people. Does that seem unreasonable to you “scientific types”? Triskadecamus
Thank you for a fine example of the “superhero powers vs. fraud” thing I was referring to. And you got just the right shade of nastiness in there, too. Good job.
I’m a teacher, and I am fairly good at telling when pupils are lying to me. Their refusal to look you in the eye, shuffling of feet, mumbling - these are good pointers.
By contrast a honest pupil will usually display signs of indignation etc.
Now this certainly isn’t perfect (there are some sneaky bare-faced liars :eek: ), but it is perfectly scientific.
Body language, your knowledge of the person, the strength of their story - these are all known to exist.
So I concur that you may well be a good ‘reader’ of people.
But I bat zero on reading objects. And so does everyone else - unless they are psychic.
Incidentally, the reason I mentioned morals was because you posted
You may not know, but people who claim psychic abilities, but resolutely refuse to try for Randi’s money, use a range of excuses.
Alas, this is one of them.
(I’m not saying you don’t have abilities - I just don’t understand why e.g. dowsers refuse to take the money.)
I tried to post this before, but the hampsters ate it.
[homer simpson] stupid hampsters! [/homer simpson]
Okay, you quoted me, but nowhere in that quote do I see myself saying “I have an amazing new power!” I did mention “I’ve been able to sometimes read objects”- you may interpret that as a “psychic power,” but I do not. In fact, in the last half of that sentence, which you did not quote, I said “I dont know, but I try not to jump to conclusions about any of it.” “Psychic” and “amazing new power” are both a jump to a conclusion that I don’t necessarily agree with. As it stands- I don’t know.
I understood your reasons for mentioning morals in connection with Randi’s contest. I would just hope you understand how very crass and arrogant you sounded telling me to ignore what I believe.
As for Randi’s game, aside from my moral objections, I can’t see what the point would be. I don’t claim to be psychic, as the contestants do. Nor do I need it pointed out to me that the explanation for it is most likely simple and scientific- I am already aware of that. (Of course, you can view that as an excuse also if you choose to. )
I do spend time occasionally on the JREF website, and while Randi himself is a puzzling person to me, his methods of testing are consistant in their logic. The thing I don’t understand about Randi is the scorn and ridicule that I see him engage in with his editorials. I know he has every right to do so. It’s just that I would consider those strong emotions to be a bias within myself if I had them, and would then be reluctant to engage scientifically on the same subject. It’s not my business, though, so shrug whatever.
I’m curious, then, as to why you would bring this up in a thread about psychic claims. If you do not believe that your abilities are psychic at all, why point them out here?
I’m not psychic, but I think you’re backpedalling.
So what is it you do when you ‘read objects’ ? (As Kamandi said, you’re in a thread titled ‘psychic dopers’.)
Well if what you ‘believe’ is scientific, I probably believe in it too. But I still think it’s a psychic claim…
Putting up $1,000,000 for a simple demonstration is a game to you? Wow! Can I have a go on your yacht?
Randi doesn’t do the testing, so it doesn’t matter what his attitude is.
You have to remember that there are masses of claims for psychic abilities - there is even an American Society of Dowsers. :wally
The fact that no dowser has ever succeeded in passing a test doesn’t seem to matter to them. They come up with a lot of excuses why they won’t even try for the money.
[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Triskadecamus *
Who needs James Randi?!
Tris
[QUOTE]
You may not need Randi, but maybe you need the million. If you don’t want it, I’ll help you with that problem. But following Randi’s career for the last 20 years, I think the money is safe.
It’s that whole “fighting ignorance” thing. As others have pointed out to the OP, what appears to be psychic can be explained more easily by science than by the supernatural. My ability to read people is a case in point. It is something that at times makes me appear to be psychic, when actually the most likely explanation (and the one that I subscribe to) is that I’m just very good at picking up on subconscious clues.
glee:
According to his own words in his editorials he does, at least on some occasions.
If you think that my calling the challenge a “game” is incorrect, why don’t you just say so?
Again you misunderstand. My moral beliefs are not a psychic claim, nor do I think they could be considered “scientific.” However, it is still arrogant of you to tell me to ignore them.
I’m not answering this question because I would really like to be done talking to you. I had to shake my head and laugh when I read this in the same post with your sarcasm and name-calling. Do you really think I want to give you more information when you have demonstrated such a lack of understanding up to now? As I said, I hope this conversation ends pretty soon.
Yes, I think I would have to agree with you on that.
)