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Breaking Free From Psychics and Mediums 33

Breaking Free From

Psychics and Mediums

by Eric W

I’ve always known that mediums and psychics
are all con artists who make their livings
exploiting the bereaved. Now that I’m a
widower, I’ve begun to take their acts of fraud
personally. Their victims are my new peers, my
new friends.
After many discussions with my fellow
widows, I’ve learned that it is almost impossible
to convince anybody that mediums are all
frauds. It’s easy to explain the well-documented
tricks mediums use to create the illusion that
they have any sort of special abilities. The hard
part is getting people to let go of the hope that
they can still talk to the people they love. That’s
why, even when presented with evidence, most
believers will only concede that “some”
mediums are fake... “but the one I saw was the
real deal.”
That’s part of what makes being a
medium such a great con: the victims prefer the
fabrication to the truth. First, one of the reasons so many people The psychic problem isn't the only evidence that
Since debunking mediums never seems do believe in mediums is because many major suggests people overestimate their own
to change any minds, I’d like to try something religions already teach their practitioners to trustworthiness. In one study, French and his
different. If you’ve written me off as a “skeptic,” believe in an afterlife. Once you believe in that, team had participants watch a video of a psychic
then I’d like you to offer me the opportunity it’s a small leap to believe you can communicate supposedly bending a metal key with his mind.
share with you three reasons why you shouldn’t with the departed. I fear that when anyone tries In some versions of the experiment, the psychic
even want to believe. to debunk mediums that many people somehow (actually a sleight-of-hand magician) concluded
take this as an attempt to undermine their faith in by putting the key down on the table and saying,

1. Mediums Are Slandering The People heaven. This is not the case. You do not have to "If you look closely, you can see it's still
believe in mediums in order to believe in the bending."
You Love
afterlife. The key was not still bending. But 40
Second, your religion may actually percent of people who heard the verbal
If you want to make a widow angry, try telling
disapprove of mediums. (For example, the Old suggestion that it was bending reported seeing it
them what their husband or wife would have
Testament says, “Do not turn to mediums or move. By contrast, no one in the group that
wanted. We hate it when people say things like,
spiritists; do not seek them out to be defiled by didn't hear the verbal cue said it had moved,
“He would want you to (be happy/start
them.”) French said.
dating/move on/get out of the house).” Even And multiple witnesses don't necessarily
though this line usually comes from a well-
3. There’s a Better Place to Find make a report more believable. When another
intentioned friend or relative who actually knew
Comfort person in the room said they'd seen the key
the departed, it bugs us because they don’t really
move after hearing the psychic suggest that it
KNOW what the departed would want, so they was still bending, the percentage of people who
shouldn’t say that they do. A lot of people go to mediums looking for some
kind of reassurance. When faced with a tragic said they'd saw movement jumped from 40
percent to 60 percent, French said.
Why do we make an exception for loss, they understandably want to feel better at
any cost. If feeling better is what you really "If you've got one very confident but
mediums? actually inaccurate witness, it can influence the
want, don’t go to a psychic or a medium — just
memory of other witnesses," he said.
look within. Ask yourself if he would miss you.
Mediums say things that are far more specific Studies find that people with paranormal
Ask yourself if he loves you. Ask yourself if he’s
than any friend ever dared. Mediums are beliefs tend to have particularly rich
no longer suffering.
claiming to QUOTE your loved ones. (“He is imaginations and are inclined to become easily
You already know the answers. You
telling me that he loves you and that he wants engrossed in tasks, French said. They're also
know your loved ones best and you’re the best-
you to know he is alright.”) I don’t know about more prone than average to false memories. For
qualified person to answer those questions. You
you, but if somebody were to go around making example, people prone to false memories might
know they love you, you know they miss you,
up quotes and attribute them to me, I would be say they remember clearly where they were and
you know they don’t want you to suffer, and you
angry. I don’t like being misrepresented. I’d who they were with when they saw a video of
know their pain is over.
want to take action. Now imagine that the Bali nightclub bombing of 2002. But that
Know that that is true. Let that truth
somebody is making up lies about you after bombing was not captured on video.
make you feel better. If you need to have a
you’ve died and after you can no longer speak "Presumably, what they're doing is,
stranger validate that truth... well, I’m a stranger,
for yourself. It’s slanderous. they're remembering the time they imagined it,"
and I’m telling you it’s true. []
French said. "[And] when they're imagining
2. Rejecting Mediums Is Not The Same something, it's so much like the real thing —
Thing As Rejecting Religion Science of the maybe more so than it would be to the likes of
Paranormal: Can You me — they're more likely to make a false
Although I’m not personally one to turn to memory."
religion to find truth, I know that many people Trust Your Own Mind? In other words, the possible explanation
are. If you’re an atheist like me you should skip for spooks and spirits might be scarier than
to the next section, but if you happen to be actual ghosts: You can't even trust your own
Continued from Page 32
religious, consider the following two things: mind. []