# Ask the Psychic **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 1, 2006, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953 "2006-05-01T14:20:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/121 "2006-05-03T02:30:33Z")
Her’s a simple one I ask all psychics: What is the coin that I have on my computer desk? It never changes, it has been there for over ten years,and it is the _only_ coin that is ever on my computer desk. I don’t care if you read my mind, remote view, or teleport and peek at it-just tell me what the coin is. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/122 "2006-05-03T02:37:35Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Her’s a simple one I ask all psychics: What is the coin that I have on my computer desk? It never changes, it has been there for over ten years,and it is the _only_ coin that is ever on my computer desk. I don’t care if you read my mind, remote view, or teleport and peek at it-just tell me what the coin is. A bicentennial quarter? (And if it’s not, it _should_ be…) ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/123 "2006-05-03T02:42:24Z")
I think I’ve wandered into the wrong thread, but am not sure, and it’s really bugging me. Could you clarify? ---
**Author:** ![mrald](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mrald](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrald)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/124 "2006-05-03T05:52:00Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > I advise against it. It never works to combine friends/family and money. > > If you plan accordingly for it, you will. Don’t run up your credit to do this. > > Hmm…I’m not getting anything. I don’t think you’re wearing any. 😃 hmmmm, you might just be the real thing… how did he know I have a credit addiction problem? ---
**Author:** ![MissMossie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@MissMossie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissMossie)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/125 "2006-05-03T10:56:54Z")
**Lord Ashtar** , thank you for the wonderful thread! I’m enjoying learning about what it means to be a psychic. The distance reading concept seems really interesting. To clarify on it, if **Steve Wright** and myself were close friends and I were sitting in a room with you, would you have a better chance at knowing what number he rolled? Also, why did you decide to take that meditation class? Were you hoping to develop latent psychic ability, or were you just interested in meditation? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/126 "2006-05-03T11:58:05Z")
Lord Ashtar you say you are psychic. You say you are interested in conducting controlled testing of yourself. Frankly, my experience of others like yourself causes me to doubt this. If you are actually interested in conducting controlled testing of yourself, decide what you can do and then test yourself. If you don’t know how to test yourself, tell us what you can do and we will suggest a test for you. I suspect that if you were actually interested in testing yourself you would have done so long ago. I suspect deep down you know that testing yourself will destroy the enjoyment you get out of kidding yourself you are psychic. My experience is that many “psychics” are vague about what they can do because it allows them to use random results to define their abilities after the fact. For example, personally I have a freakish ability to hit the bullseye on a dartboard at certain times. I threw a dart last Tuesday and got the bullseye, so clearly I have the ability to do that. On Wednesday I threw another dart and missed, so clearly I don’t have the ability to hit the bullseye on Wednesdays. Unless you can say what you are able to do, then do it, you ain’t got nothin. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/127 "2006-05-03T14:17:34Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > I threw a dart last Tuesday and got the bullseye, so clearly I have the ability to do that. On Wednesday I threw another dart and missed, so clearly I don’t have the ability to hit the bullseye on Wednesdays. That’s funny. I would have predicted, you were a Friday non-bullseyer. But then, I’m no psychic. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/128 "2006-05-03T16:35:24Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > You know, this is really too bad. Consider for a moment that you could’ve taken this as an opportunity to ask questions and get a better idea of my mindset. Instead, you chose to attack me and to force me into your idea of what a psychic is. That, my friend, is the very definition of ignorance. > > You’re a skeptic. Good for you. I think skeptism is a positive character trait. But you’re acting like a jerk. Your behavior in this thread says a lot more about you than it does about me. > > You don’t believe me. I get it. Everyone reading this thread gets it. Do you have anything else to add, or are you just going to keep repeating yourself? Amen. Jesus, **Fishbicycle** , you clearly don’t believe in the existence of pyschic phenomena. Good on you (I guess). Why the hell did you even read this thread? **Lord Ashtar** , for what it’s worth, I get where you’re coming from. I’ve participated in some of the same exercises as you; I understand the feeling of how things “just come to you”. Often, the mental picture you get in your mind means nothing to _you_, but when you spout it out, it the subject knows exactly what you’re talking about. By the way, for the poster that suggested that the subject lied, my thought is why would she? The other participant was attending the class for presumably the same reason as **Lord Ashtar** ; to tap into / strengthen her psychic abilities. Or, she was just a jerk with too much time on her hands and nothing better to do than crap all over someone else’s beliefs. That happens sometimes. :dubious: I think your detractors here saw the word “psychic” and took it as an open invitation to take the piss. Of course, you had to have expected that (psychic or not). I also think some people don’t really understand what the term actually means. Do people think a big ol’ cartoon style bubble appears over your head with the winning lottery numbers in it ? ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/129 "2006-05-03T17:00:10Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > Why the hell did you even read this thread? Because I paid for the privilege of being able to do so. A guy claimed he was something, and spent three pages not being able to come up with the slightest glimmer of evidence to back it up. He was real good at taking umbrage, though. If I started a thread saying I was Tom Cruise, and did the same, I’d expect to get my ass handed to me, too. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/130 "2006-05-03T17:27:52Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > I also think some people don’t really understand what the term actually means. Well, this is rather the point at issue, isn’t it? What does **Lord Ashtar** mean when he says he’s psychic, and how can he demonstrate that he actually is … whatever psychic is? It shouldn’t be hard, really, though. Last week, I went to two job interviews and claimed to be a computer programmer. So the interviewers asked me a bunch of stuff about computer programming, to find out whether I knew what it was, and whether I could do it. If **Lord Ashtar** applied to me for a job as a psychic, how would he convince me to hire him? Seems simple enough. (And that number is still stuck to my computer, for anyone who thinks their mind-blowing abilities are up to the challenge.) ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/131 "2006-05-03T17:41:03Z")
> [@fishbicycle](#): > > Because I paid for the privilege of being able to do so. I’m hip to the " because I can " defense; I just meant why’d you want to read about something that you have no interest / don’t believe in. > [@](#): > > A guy claimed he was something, and spent three pages not being able to come up with the slightest glimmer of evidence to back it up. He was real good at taking umbrage, though. This probably wasn’t his most shining moment, judgement wise, in that the logical thing a sceptic is going to say first is “prove it”, and there’s no way for him to do that in this setting. In that sense, he opened himself up to the maelstrom that ensued (doesn’t penis ensue around here anymore? sheesh). I only came to his defense because I interpreted his “Ask the…” thread to be one he was trying to offer to people who believe in psychic phenomena and have questions he can answer, i.e. how does he feel about it, what his experiences have been, etc… I don’t think he meant it as an offer to “perform”. > [@](#): > > If I started a thread saying I was Tom Cruise, and did the same, I’d expect to get my ass handed to me, too. If you started that thread, you’d have your ass handed to if you _did_ prove you were Tom Cruise 🙂 Seriously, though, how would you go about proving it? I honestly don’t know how you would go about it from a remote location, just as I’m not sure what evidence you expected \*\*Lord Ashtar \*\* to provide. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/132 "2006-05-03T17:51:09Z")
It’s a ridiculous thing to claim regardless of of any ability to prove it on a message board. There is no such thing as a “psychic.” Starting a thread and claiming to have psychic ability is no different than claiming you can fly by flapping your arms. Both claims are equally ludicrous. equally impossible and equally deserving of summary dismissal. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/133 "2006-05-03T17:52:51Z")
A claim to be Tom Crusie would at least have a theoretical, physical chance of being true. A claim to be a psychic does not. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/134 "2006-05-03T17:59:59Z")
Well, it’s that old saw about how “my post is my cite” does not fly on this message board. If you’re going to make extraordinary claims, you have to be able to demonstrate at least some ability to explain what it is you mean, and also demonstrate your ability to follow through with your claim and show us what you do. If all you can come up with is evasive language and complete dismissal of all the people asking you to prove your claim, your credibility is reduced to nil. Just sayin’. I didn’t say I didn’t believe in psychic phenomena. Or that I did. I didn’t come into this thread to start a fight. But it was patently obvious that this guy had opened himself up to exactly what happened here, and when he got backed into a corner, he quit responding and logged out. “I’m (insert field of expertise here) because I say I am” with no further explanation, despite repeated requests from numerous people to clarify is just, well, stupid. Isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/135 "2006-05-03T18:01:43Z")
I’m not psychic now, but I know I will be in the future. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/136 "2006-05-03T18:04:25Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Her’s a simple one I ask all psychics: What is the coin that I have on my computer desk? It never changes, it has been there for over ten years,and it is the _only_ coin that is ever on my computer desk. I don’t care if you read my mind, remote view, or teleport and peek at it-just tell me what the coin is. I haven’t yet developed any clairaudience abilities, so I can’t see it. My guess is that it’s not an American coin, but that’s just a WAG. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/137 "2006-05-03T18:12:54Z")
> [@MissMossie](#): > > **Lord Ashtar** , thank you for the wonderful thread! I’m enjoying learning about what it means to be a psychic. The distance reading concept seems really interesting. To clarify on it, if **Steve Wright** and myself were close friends and I were sitting in a room with you, would you have a better chance at knowing what number he rolled? Probably not. But if you were close friends and **Steve** weren’t in the room, I might be able to tell you a few things about him. > [@](#): > > Also, why did you decide to take that meditation class? Were you hoping to develop latent psychic ability, or were you just interested in meditation? Initially, I just wanted to learn how to meditate to help deal with stress. I ended up learning more than I thought I would. In addition to your basic cleansing meditation, I learned a few other varieties (a grounding meditation and a Sacred Space meditation to name a few). I also learned how to make contact with one of my spirit guides (the New Age version of guardian angels) and did the chakra and distance readings that I spoke of earlier. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/138 "2006-05-03T18:19:27Z")
> [@fishbicycle](#): > > But it was patently obvious that this guy had opened himself up to exactly what happened here, and when he got backed into a corner, he quit responding and logged out. :rolleyes: Well, excuse the hell out of me for having a life outside this message board. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/139 "2006-05-03T18:25:46Z")
You’re excused. It looks like your space could use some cleansing of negative energy, huh? ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953/140 "2006-05-03T18:34:00Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > Probably not. But if you were close friends and **Steve** weren’t in the room, I might be able to tell you a few things about him. Any time you feel like telling me (or anyone else) things about me, that are verifiable, and that you couldn’t know by other means, feel free to go ahead and do it. As I said earlier. Oh, and isn’t “clairaudience” supposed to be a sort of “remote hearing” thing? (By analogy with “clairvoyance”, I guess.) If so, I don’t see how it’s going to help you ID **Czarcasm** ’s coin, unless he’s in the habit of dropping it on his desk, and you are really good at identifying coins by the sounds they make. (Which would be pretty impressive in its own right, really.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-psychic/354953.md?page=8)