# 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:** 3
**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, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/41 "2012-12-30T23:56:10Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > 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. If this is indeed what she/he is talking about, then I withdraw my snark. ---
**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, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/42 "2012-12-30T23:58:17Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > 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. Yes, I realized that after I posted but was too late to edit. :o ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/43 "2012-12-31T00:32:01Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > I haven’t studied the Long Island Medium, but I’ve seen bits of her work. At her best (and this is true of every medium, channeler, fortune-teller, etc.) she offers common sense advice packaged with some supernatural trappings for showmanship (or showwomanship as the case may be). Some people will accept advice at face value. These people are the ones that take their medicine straight regardless of the taste because they know it’s good for them. Some need the cherry flavoring (or woo flavoring as the case may be) before they will listen. We’ve butted heads on other subjects before but that is very good insight from someone who should know. Also from what I have seen of her she uses classic cold reading techniques along with heavy editing on her own show. > [@Chefguy](#): > > 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. That’s how I read it too. ---
**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 31, 2012, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/44 "2012-12-31T05:08:05Z")
That might indeed be what he meant. Even so, I see no evidence to support the claim. ---
**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 31, 2012, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/45 "2012-12-31T14:05:27Z")
> [@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. No-the only fact of life when it comes to mediums is that they brag about advising the police whenever and wherever they think gullible people listen to them, otherwise you wouldn’t have it in your head that they pull this crap in the first place. If you’ve got a cite that shows the police getting reliable information from a so-call “psychic”, please come forth with it. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/46 "2012-12-31T14:21:52Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > No-the only fact of life when it comes to mediums is that they brag about advising the police whenever and wherever they think gullible people listen to them, otherwise you wouldn’t have it in your head that they pull this crap in the first place. If you’ve got a cite that shows the police getting reliable information from a so-call “psychic”, please come forth with it. For what it’s worth, I googled his (her?) [ask the fortune teller](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=528597) thread, where ZPG Zealot claims several times to [have worked with law enforcement.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=11487045&postcount=138) So his post is his cite, in a way. ---
**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 31, 2012, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/47 "2012-12-31T15:03:46Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > For what it’s worth, I googled his (her?) [ask the fortune teller](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=528597) thread, where ZPG Zealot claims several times to [have worked with law enforcement.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=11487045&postcount=138) So his post is his cite, in a way. So much for “Mediums don’t want others to know they work with police.” :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/48 "2012-12-31T15:11:59Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > So much for “Mediums don’t want others to know they work with police.” :rolleyes: Well I didn’t know that anonymously posting on a message board years after the fact was the “bragging” you had in mind. You asked for a cite that psychics work with police, but now you’re going to dismiss any cite that’s given as bragging? Seems like a tough gig. ---
**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 31, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/49 "2012-12-31T15:16:54Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > Well I didn’t know that anonymously posting on a message board years after the fact was the “bragging” you had in mind. You asked for a cite that psychics work with police, but now you’re going to dismiss any cite that’s given as bragging? Seems like a tough gig. That wasn’t a cite. That was an anecdote from an anonymous poster containing absolutely no checkable information. ---
**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 31, 2012, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/50 "2012-12-31T19:05:40Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Well I don’t doubt her claims but looking at her page very very quickly I see it states she talks to the dead. I have that ability, but I really have very little reason to talk to the dead and really don’t see much point. The dead have not figured out the eternal life thing yet, so we are better off them them. > > I am also able to talk to those who have achieved eternal life, though they may have appeared to ‘die’ in our world - those are the ones to talk to IMHO. If she perhaps means the second on then OK, if the first, they would be better off opening a fortune cookie then consulting her (again IMHO). > > YMMV I just want to say: no, you don’t have any such ability. ---
**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:** [January 1, 2013, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/51 "2013-01-01T00:56:28Z")
> [@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. > [@AuntiePam](#): > > But they’re gold mines because their clients tell them all kinds of personal shit, not because they have psychic powers. That’s pretty much what she said, in post #20, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Ibby14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a698b9/32.png) [@Ibby14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibby14)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/52 "2014-03-18T18:48:45Z")
I totally believe it’s possible to do the things she claims to do. But her I’m not so sure about, she has those lines she says to absolutely everyone, it’s just too well practiced, why would she need to be that well practiced in something that comes to her in the moment? “They were with you at that exact moment” “Do you understand that?” What drives nuts are all the made up crap situations on the show;:smack: of course that’s with all those “reality” shows. Those damn fingernails of hers don’t help either. Spirits, ghosts, talking to the dead, no problem. Those crazy ass claws of hers? They really freak me out!:eek: ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/53 "2014-03-18T18:57:20Z")
Total bullshit. Several things: [ol] [li]Why didn’t the “dead” tell her about the pre-cancerous mole on her foot?[/li][li]Why don’t any of the “deceased” ever tell their loved ones any of the same negative crap they talked about when they were ALIVE?[/li][li]Why didn’t she take James Randi’s million dollars?[/li][/ol] Fortunately for Mrs. Caputo there are a never-ending supply of idiots to soak. She’ll be in my city next week and both shows are sold out. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/54 "2014-03-18T19:17:32Z")
> [@Ibby14](#): > > I totally believe it’s possible to do the things she claims to do. But her I’m not so sure about, she has those lines she says to absolutely everyone, it’s just too well practiced, why would she need to be that well practiced in something that comes to her in the moment? “They were with you at that exact moment” “Do you understand that?” > What drives nuts are all the made up crap situations on the show;:smack: of course that’s with all those “reality” shows. Those damn fingernails of hers don’t help either. Spirits, ghosts, talking to the dead, no problem. Those crazy ass claws of hers? They really freak me out!:eek: Why do you believe that is possible? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/55 "2014-03-18T19:24:54Z")
Zombie psychics. Shit just got real. ---
**Author:** ![Vita\_Beata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@Vita\_Beata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vita_Beata)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/56 "2014-03-18T19:29:53Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Zombie psychics. Shit just got real. Well, you knew back in 2012 that this thread would be back in 2014, and … is that 2016 as well? 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/57 "2014-03-18T19:38:59Z")
This is the perfect thread to highlight the impact the new rolleyeyes has on old threads. ---
**Author:** ![Ibby14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a698b9/32.png) [@Ibby14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibby14)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/58 "2014-03-18T23:44:08Z")
I’d rather talk with someone who thinks they can speak with the dead than a know it all asshole Mr. Personality James Randi. If Gandalf himself jumped out of the pages of Lord of the Rings, he could never jump threw enough hoops to satisfy what Randi needs to collect that million dollars. He’s no better then those that said “A rocket will never be able to leave the Earth’s atmosphere.” Scientists should stop telling us what’s impossible and do the work they should be doing, discovery! You know how many archeological discoveries are dismissed and called hoaxes because they were found by amateurs and there was no peer review? It’s sickening. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2014, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/59 "2014-03-18T23:58:24Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > Total bullshit. > > Several things: > > [ol] > [li]Why didn’t the “dead” tell her about the pre-cancerous mole on her foot?[/li][li]Why don’t any of the “deceased” ever tell their loved ones any of the same negative crap they talked about when they were ALIVE?[/li][li]Why didn’t she take James Randi’s million dollars?[/li][/ol] > > Fortunately for Mrs. Caputo there are a never-ending supply of idiots to soak. She’ll be in my city next week and both shows are sold out. I don’t know about the bullshit line as I never worked in veterinarian medicine and will defer to the experts on that who have, but for the rest, we all have gifts, she is not special just she knows her gifts. We all have them and they are meant to be done together. She is not given all the answers as she is suppose to be as dependent on others as they are to her. As for the JR million, it’s a joke, really for those who can understand it’s not worth the paper it’s printed on, totally uninteresting and unappealing. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2014, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446/60 "2014-03-19T00:03:03Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > This is the perfect thread to highlight the impact the new rolleyeyes has on old threads. Yep. New roll eyes makes baby Jesus cry.☹ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-medium/645446.md?page=4)