# Long Island Medium **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 29, 2012, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446 "2012-12-29T01:01:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/21 "2012-12-30T04:45:57Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > If they can tell you the name of your grandmother, why can’t they tell the police the name of a wanted criminal? Or go to Afghanistan and tell the army where the IED bombs are hidden? > [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > Actually, there are a lot of people in the psychic business who are police informants, but this is not something either the psychics or the police want publicized. It could damage the flow of good information. **It’s not a matter of supernatual abilities however** , rather a matter of readers and spiritual advisors \*\*\*\*\*\*. Since the previous poster’s question was specifically ABOUT “supernatural abilities,” however, bringing this up is really a non sequitur, whose effect is basically to gloss over and obfuscate the fact that “supernatural abilities” don’t actually exist. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2012, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/22 "2012-12-30T05:41:15Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > Actually, there are a lot of people in the psychic business who are police informants, but this is not something either the psychics or the police want publicized. Absolute bullshit. There are many frauds that _claim_ to help the police on a regular basis, and almost all police departments hate having to put up with their publicity-seeking shenanigans. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/23 "2012-12-30T05:54:58Z")
I have become convinced that there is no value in talking to the dead. I had a very weird experience where I felt some other random unknown stranger’s death occur. What I felt was something like “It’s OK, don’t worry about what you haven’t finished, nothing matters now,” a tremendous sense of peace. From that, I have concluded that we are entirely irrelevant to anyone who is no longer living, and any advice we get to the contrary is just fabricated. (And **kanicbird** really meant to say “_than_ them”, not “then them”.) ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/24 "2012-12-30T07:14:28Z")
Many people have heard the Dead playing music, too, but most of them were hallucinating. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/25 "2012-12-30T07:20:59Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > Such people are collection points for information in the local area. What’s the word on the street Johnny? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/26 "2012-12-30T07:32:53Z")
I’m pretty sure she’s a fake. A few years ago a **real** psychic predicted that one day a Long Island woman with an “Italian type name” would get a TV show and then later be exposed by [James Randi.](http://freethoughtblogs.com/dispatches/2012/04/14/randi-exposes-another-psychic-scam/) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/27 "2012-12-30T07:52:18Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Absolute bullshit. There are many frauds that _claim_ to help the police on a regular basis, and almost all police departments hate having to put up with their publicity-seeking shenanigans. Not long ago, a woman who claimed to be a psychic her hometown police often consulted was on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire.” She blew it on the first question. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/28 "2012-12-30T09:52:25Z")
Yeah, but she knew she was going to beforehand. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/29 "2012-12-30T13:39:39Z")
My wife watches this woman for entertainment value. The family scenes are amusing. She does not allow me to comment on the “readings” anymore. (Cold reading all the way. “How is the number 5 significant?” “What is it about frogs?” And who knows how many other open questions that end up edited out because they didn’t get a hit.) ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/30 "2012-12-30T14:04:50Z")
Did you hear about the short psychic wanted by the police? She was a small medium at large. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/31 "2012-12-30T15:25:56Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > I am also able to talk to those who have achieved eternal life, though they may have appeared to ‘die’ in our world Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/32 "2012-12-30T15:57:27Z")
Cold reading can be freaky. I have an ongoing fantasy (not precisely a belief) that one of my possible past lives was in Armenia, and I was impressed as fuck by a psychic who seemingly managed to pull that fact out of thin air. But later, after thinking about it, what she _really_ had done was start with “Eurasia” and narrowed it down based on my unconscious reactions. _(Hmm, Persia? Macedonia? No…wait, I got it!)_ :rolleyes: > [@leahcim](#): > > Because she’s neither rare nor well-done? My first reaction when seeing the thread title was that it was about Long Island Iced Tea, with half the alcohol. (Dammit, now I’m thirsty again!) > [@Leaffan](#): > > What’s the word on the street Johnny? Remember, you wouldn’t be in this situation if you hadn’t traded Tommy John. ---
**Author:** ![ZPG\_Zealot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47c2d/32.png) [@ZPG\_Zealot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZPG_Zealot)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/33 "2012-12-30T17:15:30Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Absolute bullshit. There are many frauds that _claim_ to help the police on a regular basis, and almost all police departments hate having to put up with their publicity-seeking shenanigans. The ones that provide legitimate information as police informants will not be seeking publicity. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/34 "2012-12-30T18:11:59Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > The ones that provide legitimate information as police informants will not be seeking publicity. That’s convenient. I’m invisible but only when no one is watching. Prove I’m lying. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/35 "2012-12-30T19:35:28Z")
Regrading communication with the dead…why is a “medium” needed? If your late Uncle Al has something important to tell you, why can’t he contact you directly? In any case, if we assume that your sensory inputs end at death, what would a guy who’s been dead for 50 years have to tell you? Maybe that you should vote for Ike? How would he know about the details of your life? ---
**Author:** ![ZPG\_Zealot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47c2d/32.png) [@ZPG\_Zealot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZPG_Zealot)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/36 "2012-12-30T19:42:53Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > That’s convenient. > > I’m invisible but only when no one is watching. Prove I’m lying. No, it’s a fact of life for anyone that shares information on crimes with the police and wants to avoid retaliation. Google my old Ask the fortune-teller thred, if you want more information on the subject. Local readers can be goldmines of information on a neighborhood and there is no constitutionally protected medium/client priviledge. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/37 "2012-12-30T20:09:28Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > No, it’s a fact of life for anyone that shares information on crimes with the police and wants to avoid retaliation. Google my old Ask the fortune-teller thred, if you want more information on the subject. Local readers can be goldmines of information on a neighborhood and there is no constitutionally protected medium/client priviledge. But they’re gold mines because their clients tell them all kinds of personal shit, not because they have psychic powers. If any one person can communicate with the dead, then anyone can. But we can’t, so they don’t. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/38 "2012-12-30T22:16:20Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > The ones that provide legitimate information as police informants will not be seeking publicity. Psychics with legitimate information? That’s like “legitimate rape” – there’s no such thing. Except, rape does exist. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/39 "2012-12-30T22:21:57Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Regrading communication with the dead..why is a “medium” needed? If your late Uncle Al has something important to tell you, why can’t he contact you directly? The party line, I think, is that the dead are always trying to communicate with us, but only “special” people with “special” channeling powers are able to establish that link. Which is good for them (the mediums, not the dead) because it creates a monopoly on their services. Heck, even if dead-speak _was_ scientifically possible, they would still try and hold onto that monopoly. Capitalism rocks, man. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/40 "2012-12-30T22:26:30Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > Psychics with legitimate information? That’s like “legitimate rape” – there’s no such thing. Except, rape does exist. I’m pretty sure you all are misreading (ha!) **Zealot**. What he/she is saying is that people may confide all manner of shit to a so-called psychic that they wouldn’t ordinarily share with just anybody, and that the cops make use of that information via the cop-informant relationship, not through any ESP nonsense. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446.md?page=3)