In continuation to my article series about the fakery of supernaturalism, let’s delve into 2 cases about psychics showing off their “alleged superpowers” to desperate people.
Case 1 : Bernard, a struggling student lost a huge amount of money. His wallet, which contains the amount intended as payment for his incoming exams, was stolen by one of his boardmates, he believes. He can't exactly say who took it and he desperately wants his money back, or at least prevent the thief from striking again.
His course of action: visit a psychic who can allegedly, employ clairvoyance to pinpoint the real perpetrator. The usual drill would then follow: the psychic would ask a few questions, Bernard would give some answers, they would exchange words, Bernard leaves the psychic's place, armed with the knowledge that the thief is:
A friend, or someone he really knows
A man with a slightly thin build
A friend who's in great financial need
Days passed and nothing seems to happen. Fueled even further by his desperation, Bernard would act as his own detective and conduct his own investigation, which eventually, led him into greater confusion. In the end, he didn't get his money back, and he has an even greater problem – he lost some of his closest friends who were deeply hurt by the fact that they are suspects in the search for “that slightly thin friend who's in great financial need.”
Case 2 : Mellanie, a regular in amateur beauty pageants, misplaced a box of jewelry that she used as props for a recent event she joined in. While dressing up for a segment, she iterated that there were lots of people backstage, her co-participants and their respective aides. It is impossible to tell who actually took it. She just borrowed the expensive items from a friend who would be willing to even send her to jail if she fails to return those items or at least pay half of the amount. Desperate like Bernard, she went to the same psychic that he consulted. Mellanie was told that:
The one who took it is a homosexual
The thief is on a high vanity level
This person is equipped with limitless 'salestalk' abilities and is...
linked with prominent people
We will use some logical reasoning to understand these unfortunate events. Now let's get back to Bernard and Mellanie. We can't give him back his money or give her the jewelry box, that's too bad for both of them. We can however, save them from gripping into false hopes that supernatural powers can help them catch the thieves.
Let's examine the psychic's statements to Bernard:
Statement 1 : the thief is a friend – according to Bernard himself, he and the thief live in the same boarding house, they know each other. It's of a great likelihood that they talk on a regular basis and must have shared resources like food and personal things. Therefore, the perpetrator can still be categorized as 'a friend' or a part of some social acquaintance. The psychic wasn't lying after all. However, it's not a prediction, is it?
Statement 2 : a man with a slightly thin build – Although I wasn't there, I'm pretty sure that the psychic emphasized the word 'slightly'. Why? So he can be right or moderately wrong about the physical stature of the thief. If he is right, then good for him, but if he is moderately wrong, then he is still on the safety margin– his reputation wouldn't be greatly damaged.
'Slightly thin' could mean any of these: average build, not too fat, or not too thin. Bernard's boarding house would most likely have young men like himself who could fall into these categories. That makes them easy suspects in the search for that slightly thin friend who's...
Statement 3 : in great financial need – Bernard is a student. His boardmates would most likely be students too. Colleges generally have the same month and week of enrollment, and therefore would definitely have the same week of exams. If he is in great financial need due to his approaching exams, then so would be the guys around him. It's basically a resonance principle and some manifestation of natural laws. Furthermore, in the eyes of a thief, addressing greed is also a need, thus the act of stealing gets manifested.
The statements for Mellanie:
Statement 1 : The one who took it is a homosexual – Beauty pageants are mostly organized by members of the third sex so, during the culmination of the event itself, they would surely bring in the birds of the same feather. Even if you've never been a pageant participant, you would have certainly known that there is a great convergence of homosexuals on the backstage where contestants are getting fixed, beautified, and prepared.
No offense against gays, but I'm pretty certain they wouldn't dispute the fact that they are swindled even by their own kind. I'm not saying that gays are generally thieves. The point is that since there is a great number of them flocking on an area where there are lots of expensive items, the consulting mind-reader would exploit this fact and make Mellanie think that the suspect is a homosexual.
Statement 2 : The thief is on a high vanity level – Because Mellanie has been hooked already to the fact that the one who took the box was gay, it's quite natural for anyone to think that the thief is vain on the physical aspect. In terms of physical beautification, some of them are even more meticulous and touchy than women. This can make us easily believe that the thief is in fact, on a high level of vanity.
Statement 3 : This person is equipped with limitless 'sales talk' abilities – This is natural and predictable. Gays are mostly attention-grabbers. How else could they convince and ensnare people if they don't master the art of sales talk? Homosexual or not, the thief would most certainly be gifted with 'social engineering' skills since he is known to frequent events related to show-business. If this is the case, it is probable that this person is...
Statement 4 : Linked with prominent people – Event organizers need to raise funds in order to make an event happen. By doing so, they would solicit amounts from businessmen, politicians, and the ones who belong to the influential class. Obviously, these are the type of people who can give them the favors they need so that they can facilitate entertainment-related activities.
It is unlikely that they would never ask these people for help again whenever the need arises. Therefore, they would really do everything they can so that they can have a permanent connection with these powerful figures.
The psychic is right... but not in a supernatural sense.
We just understood that Bernard's and Mellanie's psychic are not really supernatural after all. Now, let us dig deeper into the root of the problem. Why did Bernard and Mellanie consult that mind-reader? Why do people in the same level of desperation resort to that aspect of supernaturalism?
They may not directly admit it, but if we are to read between the lines, we can declare that it is because of the fact that some people have the habit of deflecting the blame into someone else when some unpleasant event happens. Nobody wants to be blamed. By all means, most people would do anything they can to let someone else take the fall... everyone has the habit of looking for a scapegoat.
Coined by Literary critic and philosopher Kenneth Burke, 'scapegoat mechanism' is often used by everyone and has been happening ever since. Subconsciously, Bernard may not want to be labeled as negligent or careless by his parents because he lost something valuable, he wants to redirect undesirable comments away from him.
Mellanie on the other hand may not want the people to think that she just swindled the jewels away. She wants people to still trust her with whatever object she may borrow from them, that's why she has to do anything she can to pinpoint the real perpetrator.
Maybe I'm just over-analyzing. What if Bernard and Mellanie simply just want their stuff back? Yes, that could just be the simple truth. But let's be factual and realistic. Has any thief been actually caught or prosecuted because some psychic or fortune teller says so?
No matter how convincing a psychic's words may be, no court or lawyer would ever take them as solid statements or evidence. The only real advantage to it is that Mellanie and Bernard felt a temporary sigh of relief, knowing [in themselves] that the mystery is somehow solved.
At the end of it all, a sum of money and a jewelry box is still missing, spent, and used by some joyous bastards who felt they are so talented for successfully pulling off such a thrill of taking something so valuable. They could still be caught or punished in the future when exactly remains to be answered.
We can't be certain as to the fate of the thieves. However, we can be sure that the psychic, is the real winner of the game. She is just the provider of a set of information. What the clients like Bernard and Mellanie does with that information is no longer her problem.
Bernard may lose some friends, Mellanie may never be able to join beauty pageants again, the thieves may become victims of their own stealing and could be killed in the process. All of them may suffer unfortunate events. But the psychic remains untouched... ever the gentle deceiver... ever the lenient false guardian.
Here's a real event that took place in one of my supernaturalism-debunking adventures. Maybe you wanna check it out.
Thanks for reading. Excelsior!
