John Edwards

I've not heard of him nor watched the show.

Sounds like nothing worse then what passes for entertainment on other channels. What makes his different from something like the Jerry Springer Show?

He is a fraud alright. What he is doing is unconscionable but not criminal.

He is so last week. On the Animal Planet, they have a woman who reads your pets minds.
Now thats entertainment.

Many of her animal subjects are quite good at abstract thought and they apparently understand her english accent.

file this along with Feng shui, St Johns Wort, and copper bracelets.

I don't believe in that stuff.

He's no more a "criminal" than an astrologer is.

When it was really fashionable (1860's through 1920's) people of his ilk would pray on little old rich widows and the like. Now he can get the idiots on television to lend him an air of credibility and he makes his money without the usual confidence schemes blackmail and embezzlement

What I find interesting is that he's not particularly good at his thing. It's called cold reading and it works like this. You sit some people down and you ask some apparently inane and apparently unrelated questions and watch their reactions, you listen carefully to who says what, and after a while the people have revealed a lot that you then feed back to them, and dumb sheep they are, they think you read their mind. You only paid attention, which most folks don't really know how to do. When I say he's not good, I mean his cold reading has a heavy handed and obvious way about it. He is to psychic shite what David Blaine is to magic. Someone mediocre who's been hyped into popularity.

When it was really fashionable (1860's through 1920's) people of his ilk would pray on little old rich widows and the like. Now he can get the idiots on television to lend him an air of credibility and he makes his money without the usual confidence schemes blackmail and embezzlement

What I find interesting is that he's not particularly good at his thing. It's called cold reading and it works like this. You sit some people down and you ask some apparently inane and apparently unrelated questions and watch their reactions, you listen carefully to who says what, and after a while the people have revealed a lot that you then feed back to them, and dumb sheep they are, they think you read their mind. You only paid attention, which most folks don't really know how to do. When I say he's not good, I mean his cold reading has a heavy handed and obvious way about it. He is to psychic shite what David Blaine is to magic. Someone mediocre who's been hyped into popularity.

The double reply of course is an example of a doppleganger.

John
I feel that of course he is a Fraud. But i go one step further and say that it may even go into the realm of criminal. How is he different than a con artist?? He lies to people, presents himself as something that he is not, and takes their money!! The average astrologer can not be arrested because its almost impossible to PROVE that they are frauds. But if John Edwards is ever caught in trickery (which he actually already was on one occasion last year when he pulled a stunt by pretending to pick up a signal from one of the camera men on his show...later the camera man admitted to talking to John previously about his deceased relative), then I feel he should be punished by law.
Yes, most of what he does is Cold Reading. And he's horrible at it. One of the writer's of Skeptical Inquirer magazine sat in on the taping of one of his shows. He counted that John Edwards made over 500 predictions during the show. Less than 50 were correct!!! That means he had NINE misses for every ONE hit!! But then when the show is edited, they of course only focus on the correct hits.
In addition, i'm not completely convinced that all of what he does is Cold Reading. I think he may also use Hot Reading, which is even worse. Hot Reading is when a psychic gains previous knowledge about a client, either by listening to their conversations before the show tapes, or by gathering information about them from the answers to their questionaires (all guests on the show must answer a 4 page questionaire before being allowed to be in the audience). Now, this, to me, IS definately criminal.
Although I agree to some extent that if people are that dumb...they deserve it.
Greg

I agree the guy's a fraud, but who's making the real money? Television networks and their greasy executives... and nobody questions the validity of the shite they put on the air. If you want to string johnny boy up, there are plenty of people who are riding on his coat tails who will never take the heat but deserve it none the less.
Ceili

Good Point
Point well taken, Ceili.

Actually, I think the show executives (and probably John himself) would get off on a technicality. At the end of his show, there is a disclaimer that is long and rambling and states that show is for entertainment purposes only. However, it is only on the screen for about 2 seconds. The only way to read it is to tape the show and pause the tape. But it might be enough to get them off the hook in a court of law.
I hope my dead grandmother scolds John, like she used to do to me for getting muddy before dinner.
Greg

Psychics
I just had one other thought before i turn in for bed. By logic, ALL psychics are frauds. If they could really speak to our dead revatives, why would their facts be so vague?? I doubt my dead cousin Jimmy is sitting somewhere in the underworld telling psychics things like..."OK, my name starts with a J.....it has a definate J sound...maybe like John...or Jamie.....and I have a strong male vibe.....i think i might be male...and I died in some sort of accident.......or suddently somehow...maybe by a sudden medical illness....or a stabbing...something sudden...."

I mean think about it...if psychics could really talk to the dead, wouldnt they be saying things like...."your cousin Jim is here. Ok, he just told me he died in a bus accident on June 12, 1997. He wants to know how your dog, trixie is doing, and says he misses your mother's house, the one at 125 Chestnut Street."

I've never seen that before! At least not in a controlled setting.

Greg

one of us believes in john Edward. I get a B... yep, definately a B... maybe a C or D, But a B keeps coming up on my psychic keyboard.
(I can communicate with the living) Its a gift.

B, hmmm , could it be Bosco? Yes Its a chocolate, a vice of the dark variety, Bosco.
Wait, no , its somebodys PIN number, I didnt know you could have PIN numbers with names., Thats why they call them pIN NUMBERS.

I acknowledge a BOSCO.... and its a he, maybe a she

Re: John


Sounds like the average politician to me.