# Paranormal, telepathy, one million price from James Randi, telepathic Vinko and spoon bender Uri Gel **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 9, 2012, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345 "2012-02-09T21:21:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![neurostudop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/74df32/32.png) [@neurostudop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neurostudop)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/1 "2012-02-09T21:21:11Z")
James Randi is offering 1 000 000 US$ to any person that can give evidence to paranormal. Things like telepathy , moving and bending objects using brain power. Over 50% of people believe in paranormal , some people like Vinko Rajic can use telepathy all the time and they are many others but scientists do not want to do research on it. Why all this madness scientist do not want to accept telepathy and some other things to be possible and normal, big percent of Schizophrenics believe in telepathy? File Brain\_Scan\_Images\_Vinko\_Rajic.zip contain images on telepathic Vinko Rajic’s brain. Very fascinating, new brain scanning. Why is he still offering this price if there is evidence that some people can use telepathy( Vinko Rajic , Uri Geller and others telepathists) ? What you think what James Randi wont? Do you know any person that can use paranormal powers? Do you believe in telepathy? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/2 "2012-02-09T21:24:31Z")
Because, nobody (_ **nobody** _) has ever been able to demonstrate any of these abilities in a controlled environment, in a double-blind study that makes cheating unlikely. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/3 "2012-02-09T21:28:54Z")
Any of these people can go collect the prize if they can demonstrate their ability in a controlled environment. They don’t try to collect the prize, because they can’t. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/4 "2012-02-09T21:31:43Z")
So far, I don’t believe any self-professed psychic has taken Mr. Randi up on his offer. And in this economy, who could say no to an easy million bucks ? It’s as if they’re compelled by some unknown, mysterious \*force \*to keep claiming they can read minds or see the future or whatever, but not prove it under scientific conditions in an environment controlled by someone who knows every trick about pretending to be able to read minds or see the future or whatever. Uncanny ! ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/5 "2012-02-09T21:32:20Z")
There’s a very common excuse used by many of those who profess to be magic as to why they don’t enter the competition: apparently they’ll lose their powers if they use them for profit. No explanation as to why they can’t give the million dollars to charity, but there it is. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/6 "2012-02-09T21:35:29Z")
Let’s see, I’m getting a vision… I see you at a computer. You’re writing a message, very much like this one. And you’re posting it on a forum. A forum that mentions science. Your name… your name starts with, hmm, I see it, with V, right? Is the letter R important? ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/7 "2012-02-09T21:40:55Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > Some people like Vinko Rajic can use telepathy > all the time and they are many others but scientists do not want to do research on it. > Why all this madness scientist do not want to accept telepathy and some other things to be? This is absolutely false, the world of science would love nothing more than to be able to experiment with someone who can perform paranormal feats. Every time they have tried the subject turns out to not be able to produce the desired results under controlled conditions. Many “abilities” are little more than what most of us would call magic tricks, thats why people like Randi, or Penn & Teller, are so vocal about paranormal activities, they know how to perform many of these “feats” but they have no special abilities beyond their skills as magicians. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/8 "2012-02-09T21:42:35Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > There’s a very common excuse used by many of those who profess to be magic as to why they don’t enter the competition: apparently they’ll lose their powers if they use them for profit. No explanation as to why they can’t give the million dollars to charity, but there it is. All they will lose is their credibility, which in this case means they no longer get to fool people. ---
**Author:** ![neurostudop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/74df32/32.png) [@neurostudop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neurostudop)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/9 "2012-02-09T21:42:45Z")
What about Vinko Rajic : [Evidence for Telepathy - thought transmission - YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOuuuvvKae4) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/10 "2012-02-09T21:51:36Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > What about Vinko Rajic : [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOuuuvvKae4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOuuuvvKae4) Has submitted to the controlled conditions of James Randi? No? Why is that? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/11 "2012-02-09T21:58:13Z")
**neurostudop** , please meet **[Lizzyerd](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=638787)** and 96 posts earlier this month on this question. ---
**Author:** ![neurostudop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/74df32/32.png) [@neurostudop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neurostudop)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/12 "2012-02-09T22:00:56Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Because, nobody (_ **nobody** _) has ever been able to demonstrate any of these abilities in a controlled environment, in a double-blind study that makes cheating unlikely. Vinko Rajic can give evidence to telepathy. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/13 "2012-02-09T22:02:54Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > What about Vinko Rajic : [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOuuuvvKae4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOuuuvvKae4) Well I’m convinced. A schizophrenic mumbling on video is incontrovertible proof of telepathy. And you can’t fake that you know. Only a telepath could actually appear to be mentally ill. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/14 "2012-02-09T22:08:16Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > Why is he still offering this price if there is evidence that some people can use > telepathy( Vinko Rajic , Uri Geller and others telepathists) ? > [@neurostudop](#): > > Vinko Rajic can give evidence to telepathy. _What_ evidence, exactly? These guys are illusionists, showmen. There is exactly as much evidence that they have actual telepathic powers as there is evidence that David Copperfield can fly. Or, for that matter, that Luke Skywalker flew an actual spaceship and blew up an actual Death Star. Randi’s prize is about taking the showmanship out of it and proving that one can really do what one claims to be able to do. To turn your question around, if these guys are the real deal, why\* wouldn’t \* they step up and agree to have their powers tested under controlled scientific conditions? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/15 "2012-02-09T22:12:11Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > Vinko Rajic can give evidence to telepathy. Fantastic. Let him prove it. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/16 "2012-02-09T22:15:25Z")
[moderating] Moved thread from GQ to Great Debates. [/moderating] ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/17 "2012-02-09T22:19:55Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > Why is he still offering this price if there is evidence that some people can use telepathy( Vinko Rajic , Uri Geller and others telepathists) ? Because NONE of that evidence stands up to scrutiny. Every single person that has sat down in a lab to demonstrate their “abilities” has either failed to perform or been shown to be a fraud. > [@neurostudop](#): > > What you think what James Randi wont? I’m guessing here, but I believe he wants all of the scam artists to shut the hell up and stop bilking the public. > [@neurostudop](#): > > Do you know any person that can use paranormal powers? I have met quite a few that _claim_ to have paranormal powers. None of them really do. The vast majority I’ve met have actually fooled themselves into believing their own hype (through confirmation bias, misunderstanding probability, and generally being bad at both math and the scientific method), but some are flat-out frauds and scammers. > [@neurostudop](#): > > Do you believe in telepathy? Nope. ---
**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:** [February 9, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/18 "2012-02-09T22:20:06Z")
But it’s a You Tube video! That _alone_ show be enough to make James Randi hand over the million dollars without question, shouldn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/19 "2012-02-09T22:21:42Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > James Randi is offering 1 000 000 US$ to any person that can give evidence to paranormal. > Things like telepathy , moving and bending objects using brain power. > Over 50% of people believe in paranormal , some people like Vinko Rajic can use telepathy > all the time and they are many others but scientists do not want to do research on it. > Why all this madness scientist do not want to accept telepathy and some other things to be > possible and normal, big percent of Schizophrenics believe in telepathy? > > File Brain\_Scan\_Images\_Vinko\_Rajic.zip contain images on telepathic Vinko Rajic’s brain. > Very fascinating, new brain scanning. > Why is he still offering this price if there is evidence that some people can use > telepathy( Vinko Rajic , Uri Geller and others telepathists) ? > What you think what James Randi wont? > Do you know any person that can use paranormal powers? > Do you believe in telepathy? Cool story, bro. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345/20 "2012-02-09T22:29:21Z")
> [@neurostudop](#): > > Vinko Rajic can give evidence to telepathy. So what is stopping him? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paranormal-telepathy-one-million-price-from-james-randi-telepathic-vinko-and-spoon-bender-uri-gel/612345.md?page=2)