Why does James Randi really look for paranormal proof?

Question

Why does James Randi really look for paranormal proof?

Answer 1

As Carl Sagan often sad "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proofs". Do people deserve any protection from fraud? If there are people that can do these things, no problem, just do it.



The real truth is that the paranormal is a fraud. Not one person, no matter if it is no money or even a billion dollars can produce evidence of the paranormal. Randi has debunked many claims, some got a lot of press. Peter Popoff was and still is a money hungry "preacher". Randi found was using a hidden radio receiver, nothing paranormal in that. High tech fraud happens all the time. In the 70's there were people that went on national (and international) television stating that they have "powers" and the media was eating it up. Is not a professional magician the BEST person to prevent cheating? Casinos are not worried about psychics. Just the card counters and cheaters.



The biggest name was Uri Geller. He bent spoons, stopped watches, moved compass needles, and more. Wow! How can such a man do this? Geller had to be one special human. Once again, James Randi a professional magician, stepped in. On TV he showed that he could do anything Geller could do and how. When Geller was to appear on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, precautions were taken. See link. This man claimed powers, and failed. But that did not stop Geller to file lawsuits against Randi. None were won by Geller but Randi still paid a lot of money in legal fees.



Randi went on many television shows with a $10,000 check of his own money. It was never a wager. Not one person was forced to prove their powers. Just do what they claim they can do. Later on he formed The James Randi Educational Foundation. It is a NOT-FOR-PROFIT organization founded in 1996. Donations were added to Randi's own money now totaling one million for the challenge.



Its aim is to promote critical thinking by reaching out to the public and media with reliable information about paranormal and supernatural ideas so widespread in our society today.



Why it better to be credulous instead skeptical? Why is belief better than knowing? Tell me what is more likely to be true: psychic ability or a pill that can greatly enhance a certain part of the human male?



Edit: The Challenge has been offered to non paranormal claims as well. In 2002 on homeopathy, see third link for results. If you notice, he does not participate in the test but he is willing to put up the money for the BBC. Also in 2007 about electronic cables for stereo systems. To significantly differentiate between a set of $7,250 Pear Anjou cables and a good set of Monster cables, or between a set of $43,000 Transparent Opus MM SC cables and the same Monster cables. The manufactures first agreed then backed out.

Answer 2

I have read that Randi originally started with his Challenge after being challenged to put his money where his mouth is by a claimed psychic. I think it was a matter of his weak ego that developed his making the Challenge not to find proof of anything paranormal but rather to discredit any and all claims. He aims for the big names to back his Challenge and has developed a following because of it. He may have started out with good intentions but so did Hitler. After a while it went to his head and now it seems more like a power trip and as the saying goes "power corrupts", again similar to Hitler.

Before the pseudo skeptics get all bent out of shape, I make a comparison but am not calling Randi the Hitler of paranormal. Actually I would place him more in the area of Rush Limbaugh and his following of Limbots. Decide for yourself if you classify yourself as one of these pseudo skeptics, I am not referring to anyone in particular although there are a few here that consistently use the Randi Challenge to back their lack of argument.

I have 2 sons that were in the Gifted and Talented program in the 70's and the younger one was a little different in the way he saw things and did tend to have a gift of being able to often know things before they happened or before he was told. Through this program he was given a mentor which his brother did not have. when he was in High School the program was no longer available for him but he did become a new mentor which I got suspicious of. His father and step father were with different local law enforcement agencies and his grandfather was a Federal Marshall so I asked that they check out this "mentor". What they found is that he had no record of existing. My son would never speak of his activities and later I found my son had background checks with a couple of the better known government agencies. All he has said about it is that he has been trained with the government and works with a lot of the alphabet in different combinations. He does not say more but when his older brother had some problems he said he would make a phone call and things would be taken care of so not to worry. The problems did end quickly. I do not know what my son does and he says not to ask but he does comment about and explain paranormal things like it is a normal thing.

With politics we have different opinions but he says it doesn't matter because what we see and hear in the news is just eyewash anyway.

I don't think Randi works for the government but they probably do work him.



Motivation for Randi - around $200,000 a year salary, not including book and appearance profits since his foundation started. That is nearly $3,000,000. That would motivate a lot of people.

It also is a reason to deny letting anyone "win" the "Challenge" which he has said he will always have a way out of letting anyone win. Donations to a NOT-FOR -PROFIT "Educational" organisation is a way to get some tax credits and NONE of the current million are from Randi's money. The million was a lump donation.



Randi promotes CRITICal thinking, to think like a CRITIC, not skeptical thinking in order to find the truth.



Dr. C.S.N.G. Randi may be old but when he dies it does not mean everything stops, L. Ron Hubbard died and Scientology has done a lot of expansion since then.



Ron you have posted the challenge as a regular part of your answers and you have not seen ANY good reasons not to accept the challenge? Apparently you do not consider privacy a good enough reason? I have seen that reply given to you.

Even if Randi is not personally judging, the judges are still paid by his foundation which makes them not totally neutral and he has refused actual retired federal judges.



If the government is using Randi, he probably does not even know it.



As for the government listening in on or reading communication here or through any other medium, it is not a wonder that the NSA has a back door to access private Windows programs. It is listed as an NSA file in the programs.

Answer 3

(Houdini also spent the greater part of his career exposing frauds and "psychics", I don't see you accusing him of a cover-up. )



All I have to say, is that my wife works with the Dept of Homeland Security and has high level security clearance... and she rolls her eyes at government conspiracy theories, she is flattered at the idea that the government is really that organized.



You clearly have a high opinion of the competence of government intelligence agencies, clearly you've never met one of their employees in person. (No offense to my wife, even though she leaves for work without her cell phone at least twice a week)

Answer 4

I always thought the Randi challenge was to prove the paranormal does not exist. I am a believer and I know it does but Randi does not believe as far as I know.

Answer 5

>is there an ulterior motive for his challenge?

No



>The government spent millions ... trying to use psychic abilities

No they didn't



>What does the information that was not declassified say?

That this "information" doesn't exist



>"Gifted and Talented Program" ... That took a lot of resources that had to be kept secret

The government can't even keep a lid on its own CIA agents identities, the idea that they could cover up a multi-million dollar program is pretty ridiculous



>Some funding to universities for paranormal research

What funding? Also, quite a lot of research money is government funded, this doesn't make it a conspiracy



>The government has signal intercept facilities that monitor all sorts of communication

The best they can do is a keyword filter through some e-mails and this has very limited results, the government is just plain old not very skilled at this one



>The government denies a lot of information and keeps a lot of things classified when they do not want it to be publicly available or possibly get in the hands of enemy states.

Yes, so does every government. So does Apple, Ford and my local University.



>The Randi Challenge could be seen as bait for anyone who actually had any abilities

The Randi foundation is totally non-government and the publicity it generated from a testing would be more than enough to ensure no candidate disappeared



>and the contract gives all legal control to the Randi Foundation

Where does it say this?



>I know these are rumors and conspiracy theories with no evidence to back them but is it possible there is some truth to them?

No. These claims are spouted by people who know that they would be made a laughing stock if they actually took the challenge

Answer 6

To prove it doesn't exist.

Answer 7

Thank you for your question.



It is likely that James Randi actually works for the Ministry of Magic to hide the truth from Muggles (people with no magic ability). He is good friends with Harry Potter and doesn't afraid of anything.

Answer 8

If you don't give them the list you will be cut off. This is a necessary component of unemployment, that you are actively looking for a job to get off of unemployment. You seriously can't put together a list of places you sent a resume to or filled out an application for??? Or a list of places that interviewed you but didn't hire you??? If you can't do that then you haven't been trying very hard to find a new job.

Answer 9

Randi thinks you guys are idiots and he's mostly making fun of you.



Hope that helps.

Answer 10

His followers seem to believe he is really looking to find proof to show to the public but is it possible he has found it and is working to hide it from the public.



-> What would be his motivation?







The government spent millions experimenting and trying to use psychic abilities and the information that was declassified for the years of research was that it was a failure. What does the information that was not declassified say?



-> that they were really stupid to waste so many million $ in such stupid endeavor?





The government is rumored to have had a program that was looking at school children with unusual talents that may have been useful in their psychic research program. This is rumored to have some focus on highly intelligent children and reviewed those in the "Gifted and Talented Program" back in the 70's & 80's. That took a lot of resources that had to be kept secret.



-> there are also rumors that Elvis is alive on Mars (or something like that). Any truth in that one?





Some funding to universities for paranormal research was rumored to have been from the government and they were to control the results no matter what they were.



-> again, rumors. But let's remember that Ronald and Nancy Reagan used to consult regularly with 'astrologers'. They may not have been the worst cuckoos in the government. But spending into such baloney does not prove anything except that some government officials are not playing with a full deck.





The government has signal intercept facilities that monitor all sorts of communication and rumored to even have people who watch forums like this one for various information. Of course this is labeled as for homeland security.



-> Yeah, sure they do. And if they find out you claim to have real powers, they will come for you and offer you $1 million to work with them and identify terrorists remotely or something?







The government denies a lot of information and keeps a lot of things classified when they do not want it to be publicly available or possibly get in the hands of enemy states.



-> they will also, understandably, deny anything that IS actually FALSE. Or do you think they should admit to fake stuff, like that there are invisible unicorns and flying elephants?







The Randi Challenge could be seen as bait for anyone who actually had any abilities and the contract gives all legal control to the Randi Foundation. Is it possible that the government has found a clever way to have people who could be potentially useful, dangerous or a threat to homeland security to come to them.



-> Do you have a hobby? Perhaps you need one.





I know these are rumors and conspiracy theories with no evidence to back them but is it possible there is some truth to them?



-> none whatsoever.

Answer 11

Of all the conspiracy theories this has to be the silliest I've heard for a long time! Why does he look for proof?



Let him tell you himself.



"Magical thinking is a slippery slope, sometimes it's quite harmless, other times it can be quite dangerous. Personally I'm opposed to that kind of fakery, so I have no reservations at all about exposing these people and their illusions for what they really are"



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9w7jHYriFo



The application form is quite unambiguous, anyone who has a claim should be able to understand it quite easily and evidence of the $1,000,000 is available for all to see.



http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/1m-challenge/challenge-application.html



I've posted his challenge hundreds of times over the past three years in this and other categories like alternative medicine, I've never had ONE decent excuse as to why any supposed claimants haven't applied.



Are all these people part of the conspiracy also?



1. Association for Skeptical Enquiry is offering a £13,000 prize.



2. Australian Skeptics offers AUD $100,000 for proof of psychic or paranormal powers.



3. Abraham Kovoor's challenge, an award of Rs. 100,000 for proof of supernatural or miraculous powers.



4. The Independent Investigations Group offers $50,000 to anyone who can show, under proper observing conditions, evidence of any paranormal, supernatural, or occult power or event.



5. Indian Skeptic 100,000 Paranormal Challenge Indian Rupees 100,000 ($2,500). Sponsored by Basava Premanand.



6. Prabir Ghosh of India is offering $50,000.



7. Tampa Bay Skeptics $1,000 Challenge US $1,000.



8. North Texas Skeptics Paranormal Challenge US $12,000.



9. The late Philip J. Klass offered US $10,000 for proof of an extraterrestrial visit to the Earth.



10. After investigating psychic phenomena in 1922, Scientific American made two US $2,500 offers: (1) for the first authentic spirit photograph made under test conditions, and (2) for the first psychic to produce a "visible psychic manifestation." (Christopher 1975:180).



11. The Swedish Humanist Association is offering a prize of SEK 100,000 that will be awarded to anyone who can demonstrate beyond doubt that they possess a paranormal or supernatural talent that cannot be explained by conventional science.



If so, it's the best kept secret since the D Day Landings.

Answer 12

You have just stated the exact stuff I've been thinking. It does make sense. If the government funded for all of these experiments to be worked out and used against enemies, and if something was found out to be true, do you really think they would tell the whole world? Just to have enemy nations gather people and use it against them? Don't you think the smart thing to do would be to keep it a secret and make it seem to be a waste of money so other nations won't attempt it? Do you really think they'd tell the public and have other nations find out just to use it against them? Of course not, it makes perfect sense. Of course it's a possibility, and a likely one also.



Also, as for Randi, I think even if someone did pass his test and it were found that someone actually had psychic powers, he'd try to prevent the truth from spreading. I don't think he even wants to find out if psychic powers are real in the first place. It's just a challenge to hold his position, prove himself right, and have more evidence to support his idea that nothing paranormal exists. It would be really humiliating for him if something were found true as he would be proved wrong. Everything he protested against would be wrong. I don't think he'd allow this to happen, and do everything possible to sabotage the test results. Also, I think if something were found out, he'd never be able to accept it and would come up with some kind of excuse or explanation for the results.

Answer 13

I believe you're on to something, but it's far worse then this one senior citizen. This conspiracy to keep the paranormal a pseudo science is world wide. Look at the link, there are rewards and prizes all over the world from many organizations. That's not even considering, the fame and wealth from books and TV that await the person brave and powerful enough to foil this conspiracy.

Hopefully, it will come from one our friends right here on Y/A. After all we have telekinetics. remote viewers, intelligent demon hunters even military appreciating folks willing to fight the good fight.

Randi is 84, he can't last forever, once he's gone we'll take down this conspiracy you've exposed like a row of dominoes.