Your thoughts on fortune tellers: do you go to them and why?

Up-n-atom!

I thought I'd post this here since it seems to be a big thing with my female friends, and I'm guessing if I posted elsewhere it would descend into big debates about religion and god knows what else. So anyways, I really don't get it. From what I hear they're kinda expensive (I've heard of people paying €50 or thereabouts) and basically they're telling you things about yourself that you already know or stuff that's going to happen in the future - which in time you're going to find out about. This doesn't seem to stop my friends, though, and by all means I don't judge them. It's just what they're into and my participation in these conversations begins and ends with 'I don't believe in that sort of thing'.

Anyway, I'm just curious to know if any of tLL ladies go to fortune tellers and why. As I said, it seems to be a particularly female thing. And again, I don't want this to descend into a big slagging off of the beliefs of people who do go, I genuinely want to know what the thoughts behind the facination with going to these people on a regular enough basis are.

intouch44

I've been to a fortune teller. To be honest my reason for going was I'd been through a break up and I just wanted reassurance I'd be ok! It was almost 6 months after said break up, suppose I just wanted to hear I wasn't gonna end up old and lonely!
I love hearing what others have been told as well though so nosiness is another factor too!!!
I'd be fairly superstituous so I do believe in them and while I wouldn't live my life by what I had been told, it did offer me comfort during a rough and uncertain time of my life!

Blush_01

I've been once, and I've booked to go again shortly.

I have a degree of scepticism, but when I went the first time I was at a fairly low point personally, and I left feeling very positive. Fortune tellers, mediums, tarot card readers - they all sell a commodity, whether their skills of intuition and prediction are any good or not. That commodity is positivity - they allow you to believe that the things that are currently crap or frustrating in your life can be turned around and that there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

To be really honest, the €60 I paid was well worth it for the feeling of empowerment and positivity I left with. I've started reading The Secret, and I do genuinely believe that it works - which I think is part of what makes some fortune tellers so successful. They read people, find out their subconscious desires, and then reflect them for us to see. We envisage the things out of what they "predict" happening, focus on their manifestation, and then they happen. I know that's a very simplistic way of looking at it, but the more time I spend thinking about it, the more real it seems.

I know lots of people are sceptical about The Secret too, but I can only go on how things have changed in my life in the past 6 months. I went to the fortune teller in late Autumn / early Winter, and I was told that there would be some fairly dramatic changes in my professional and home life in a short space of time. Since then I've moved nearly 300km and completely changed career. I made a decision that my life was going to change dramatically, that I was going to live a different life, and that I was going to be happier - I was very unhappy with where I was and what I was doing with my life. I'm already so much happier, and I'm looking forward to improving that even more over the coming months and years.

I used to have a little bit of a victim mentality - I was subject to everyone else's whims and following the decisions they made was how I lived my life. Now I sort-of do what I like - not in an aggressive way, I just make my own decisions. I still go along with people when I want to, but I am a bit more subtly assertive (I often appear quite assertive to complete strangers, but I'll normally go along with most things for a quiet life) and I'm in control now.

There's nothing malicious in fortune telling. At worst, it's a bit of fun, and at best it's a kick up the ass to sort the things in your life that have been stagnating out. In my opinion anyway.

krudler

Utter con artists, these "psychics" prey on people who have suffered bereavement or illness and use basically carnival techniques to "predict" everything will be ok, Derren Brown is a perfect example of someone who shows you how easily peoples psychology can be read and altered with suggestion.

or have a read of this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_reading

Azureus

I've been to one with a friend once. Waste of €50 for the mostpart but it was a bit of craic and Im glad I went at the same time.
Told me nothing I didnt already know/nothing that freaked me out. The only thing that caught me was ''dont start driving anytime soon-its not the right time for you'' and I was in the process of looking for a car/looking into getting my licence at the time. But sure thats hardly earth shattering.
He also told me that I would break my boyfriends heart in a year because I would grow tired of hm and get bored. Over a year since that day has passed and we are still happily together, going on 4 years. Cant remember anything else he told me because it was all a bit waffly.

Have heard of one that is apparently amazing, and I would definately not rule it out in the future, but itd be curiousity for what they come up with rather than a genuine belief.


There is a guy I used to work with that does palm readings / courses on phychic-babble stuff, and is actually 'trained' to read your aura etc. Apparently mine is purple (a good thing according to him??). Just reminded me of Almost Famous

mydearwatson

I can absolutely understand why these people adverstise themselves as "mediums" or "fortune tellers" etc etc etc. (Fair enough, it's a recession, everyone needs money.) And I can understand how unfortunate people of very very low intelligence might end up falling for their complete and utter ****e.

What I cannot understand is the fact that there is the odd semi-normal semi-intelligent person who believes in this crap.

If a person turned around to me and said that they were going to a "fortune teller", they might as well say that they believe in the tooth fairy, or the easter bunny, or santa. I would consider them to be an imbecile - I don't mean that in a nasty way, I would pity their condition.

Thankfully in this day and age there seems to be very very few idiots who actually believe in that sort of crap.

rainbow kirby

Absolute, complete and utter rubbish.

Up-n-atom!

Another friend was telling me how her sister (who is expecting twins) went to a fortune teller a little while ago who basically told her that she wasn't going to end up with 2 babies - who says stuff like that? Do fortune tellers normally tell you the bad stuff as well as the good?

The verdict so far seems fairly positive - I'd be a bit wary that some psychics might prey on vulnerable people, but if a visit can encourage someone who believes to make positive changes in their lives then that's great.

krudler

rainbow kirby wrote: »

Absolute, complete and utter rubbish.

Its akin to using crystals to heal ailments or wishing lifes problems away. ie hogwash

MissFlitworth

No, wouldn't go to a fortune teller (although I did in my late teens/very early 20s), you're basically giving a liar money to make up a story about you.

There's nothing malicious in fortune telling. At worst, it's a bit of fun,

I completely disagree with this, at the very worst fortune telling is messing around with the minds of vulnerable people. We had a situation in my family a couple of years ago where someone went missing and their Mother went to a fortune teller/medium about it. To say that what this 'psychic' did was damaging is to put it in the softest possible way. They took advantage of a women in a very, very vulnerable place, put their own (lying spin) on what had happened to her child and sent her off on a wild goose chase. Disgusting.

Dudess

Load of twaddle - you can't see into the future. It defies logic. I did go to one once though and she did have certain insights concerning my present, and that of my friends, but these could have been good guesses or easily pieced together, going by our personalities and stuff we said.

That said, if someone gets comfort or guidance out of going to them, more power to them.

RacoonQueen

I do think it's a load of rubbish, however, my great aunt reads cards and she read mine a while ago - shortly after a bad break up and she could tell how we broke up. I had told no one this so she definitely wouldn't have known. She also said ''you shouldn't worry about your dad so much, he will be fine'' so it is a bit weird...never told me anything really about my future, that I remember anyway, but she keeps mentioning an engagement ring to my mum anytime she reads her cards and I'm hoping to god thats not about me. :pac:

My cousin and my aunt went to one years ago after my other cousin died and she could tell how she died. Weird stuff...

Standman

I've always wondered what the appeal is to these fortune tellers telling you things that you already know. I mean yea it might be impressive like any good magic trick but apart from that whats the point?

boomkatalog

I find the whole thing fascinating but I don't know anyone who's actually gotten a good reading.

My uncle went to one and was told that someone he loved would be killed in a red car. Eh, right... Not yet anyway. Red is an extremely popular car colour, especially with boy-racer cars. Of course my mother went bananas when my boyf bought a red car :rolleyes:

I think I remain sceptical until I witness something myself. And not something vague and applicable to any person in the street e.g that they've probably lost a grandparent or are worried about something (isn't that exactly when a lot of people would go to see a psychic anyway?)

ToniTuddle

Three of my closest female friends have gone to a fortune teller(each one complete different fortune tellers and different times so in no way connected).

The first was dealing with some serious grief and even though I know they play on body language and suggestive stuff....she came out with a weight off her shoulders so it was money well spent.

The second told her alot of things about her current boyfriend but I'm not sure how that worked maybe my friend was nodding or some body language that she didn't even realise she was doing.

The third was dealing with the serious guilt and unresolved issues over a fight with a loved one and then they died. Again a weight was lifted off her.


So I can see why some people are curious and if it eases their pain then I have no problem with it. But for me I don't want to go as I don't want nobody messing about with my brain and feelings!!

--LOS--

Load of BS, total scam, lots of girl seem to be into this though

lrushe

I've been to a few and most I haven't thought much of most of them except for 2.
I saw them 5 years apart but gave me almost idenical readings.
They both said I'd never have loads of boyfriends, just 2, one with dark haired who'd break my heart (boy did that happen :rolleyes:), the second fair haired guy (not blonde) who would 'worship the ground I walked on', my current boyfriend (and soulmate ) has light red hair and is a joy to be with .
The second fortune teller I got to know because he drove a taxi which my friends mother took while bringing (artifical) flowers to her mother's grave. He said to my mother's friend "I hope you don't mind me saying this but your mother just told me to tell you she asked you never to put artifical flowers on her grave", this is something my friends grandmother had said when she was ill :eek:
He told me I'd have the keys to my own house soon, I laughed, I was 21 and all my money went on clothes, but low and behold 3 months later my parents moved to a new house and left my their old one. He told me the first letter of my current boyfriend's name and the age I would be when we started going out, all were spot on :eek:.
There are alot of phonies out there but I think there are a few who are the real deal, that's just my 2 cents worth.

Sibylla

I wouldn't go to a fortune teller, I think we all make our own choices and are not necessarily pre destined to do anything, While I would like to believe otherwise I think it is generally a scam. I've seen vulnerable people lose thousands through putting their faith in these people.

krudler

Sibylla wrote: »

I wouldn't go to a fortune teller, I think we all make our own choices and are not necessarily pre destined to do anything, While I would like to believe otherwise I think it is generally a scam. I've seen vulnerable people lose thousands through putting their faith in these people.

I've seen customers of ours with bills in the hundreds and thousands from ringing tarot lines constantly, people afraid to do anything without getting a reading from a "psychic" phone line (probably some woman called Mary in a flat in Dublin doing her ironing while telling you random stuff like "luck brings a red door today" or " new career is on the horizon" or other randomly applicable to anybody crap) highest bill I've ever seen? just shy of 11 grand. 11 fcuking grand. you could put a deposit on a house for that ffs.

Wibbs

--LOS-- wrote: »

Load of BS, total scam, lots of girl seem to be into this though

Women are more likely to believe in this sort of thing. They're also more religious than men http://www.livescience.com/7689-women-religious-men.html I dunno why. Certainly it's pretty obvious in everyday life too. Way more women read horoscopes etc. Buy into stuff like "The secret" which has zero evidence and is full of scientific nonsense. Express statements like "love at first sight/fate/what's for you won't go by you/etc. None of which has any basis in observable reality. Maybe because women run more on "gut" instinct as well as conscious thought in certain scenarios*? IE subconscious thought processes that come to the surface all at once, but with no obvious step by step reasoning. That stuff that makes sense and appears to be connected just happens so "magic" is more believable to more women than men?









*nothing wrong with that either. I've tried to learn to listen to my own subconscious "gut" more. I'd recommend it to all blokes if they don't already do it.

beks101

This sh1t infuriates me. I used to work on a tv show that featured a psychic personality once a week and the calls we used to get went from hilarious to downright disturbing but the main thing I remember was the lines would be FLOODED, literally pouring in all day from all across the country, people who were sick or grieving or had lost their jobs or were in some way vulnerable and emotionally unstable.

I just couldn't, and still can't understand how much people fall for this when it's blindingly evident that it's all a crock of sh1t. Especially now given how strapped people are for cash and the outrageous charges that these people charge. But that's the sad thing - I'd say lots of psychic/medium/fortune telling businesses are thriving now off the back of emotionally and financially distraught people who are falling prey because they can think of no other way out of their despair. I really think there should be more investigative reporting into these businesses and way way fewer ads. The ads seem to be everywhere.

HugoDrax

This is an example of a cold reading that supposed psychics and fortune tellers use:

Some of your aspirations tend to be pretty unrealistic. At times you are extroverted, affable, sociable, while at other times you are introverted, wary and reserved. You have found it unwise to be too frank in revealing yourself to others. You pride yourself on being an independent thinker and do not accept others' opinions without satisfactory proof. You prefer a certain amount of change and variety, and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing. Disciplined and controlled on the outside, you tend to be worrisome and insecure on the inside.

Your sexual adjustment has presented some problems for you. While you have some personality weaknesses, you are generally able to compensate for them. You have a great deal of unused capacity which you have not turned to your advantage. You have a tendency to be critical of yourself. You have a strong need for other people to like you and for them to admire you.

This video shows a psychic getting caught out!:)

Confidence tricksters of all kinds use these techniques all the time to draw people in.

HugoDrax

lrushe wrote: »

I've been to a few and most I haven't thought much of most of them except for 2.
I saw them 5 years apart but gave me almost idenical readings.
They both said I'd never have loads of boyfriends, just 2, one with dark haired who'd break my heart (boy did that happen :rolleyes:), the second fair haired guy (not blonde) who would 'worship the ground I walked on', my current boyfriend (and soulmate ) has light red hair and is a joy to be with .
The second fortune teller I got to know because he drove a taxi which my friends mother took while bringing (artifical) flowers to her mother's grave. He said to my mother's friend "I hope you don't mind me saying this but your mother just told me to tell you she asked you never to put artifical flowers on her grave", this is something my friends grandmother had said when she was ill :eek:
He told me I'd have the keys to my own house soon, I laughed, I was 21 and all my money went on clothes, but low and behold 3 months later my parents moved to a new house and left my their old one. He told me the first letter of my current boyfriend's name and the age I would be when we started going out, all were spot on :eek:.
There are alot of phonies out there but I think there are a few who are the real deal, that's just my 2 cents worth.

Any of the things she said she could guess because nearly any of those things could be said about any body.

I could wave my hands about and pretend to be channeling somebody's dead relative.

I could say I see 'an old woman with grey hair' and say 'I think her name is Maire or Mary' and say 'I think she wore a brooch' and 'she used a walking stick and she says she suffered from aches and pains.'

That could be any old woman but because the person listening really wants to believe it is real, they will try to make what I am saying fit their dead relative.

That's really how simple it works.

merlie

I went to a fortune teller a couple of times back once in the mid 80's and the last time somewhere in the 90's. Haven't been to any since then.

I went simply because a friend was going at the time and I thought 'oh why not'. I'm pretty open minded about these things and also apart from going with a friend the first time, the second time I went on my own because I felt at the time I would never meet Mr Right, who I eventually did but having said that, I do think they overcharge and the ones I went to, were ok but always seemed to want you to talk about yourself and to me that's like giving them clues, so it makes them appear accurate. But that's my opinion.

Wantobe

I don't believe in fortune-telling. I went to one over 10 years ago as a friend was desperate to go and begged me to go with her. At the time this fortuneteller was fairly well known. To me she was quite obviously trying to read my reactions and said nothing that wasn't just general rubbish at the time. One of the things she said though was that I would have 3 sons and they would be very sporty. I have two daughters...:rolleyes:

Abi

krudler wrote: »

Utter con artists, these "psychics" prey on people who have suffered bereavement or illness and use basically carnival techniques to "predict" everything will be ok, Derren Brown is a perfect example of someone who shows you how easily peoples psychology can be read and altered with suggestion.

or have a read of this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_reading

This in a nutshell. I know my sister has been to one a couple of times, and some friends also. People who aren't content with an aspect of their lives, or as Krundler said have suffered a bereavement are more likely to consider going to one, as they are after comfort and hope.

I don't believe in them, and would never go to one. That said, if I'm told by a family member or a friend that they are going to be 'consulted', I'd never make fun or break out into a debate that they're full of shit. If they can provide some temporarily solace (assuming it's not extortionate) then, leave them to it imo.

Giselle

lrushe wrote: »

There are alot of phonies out there but I think there are a few who are the real deal, that's just my 2 cents worth.

Do you accurately remember all the things you were told that didn't wind up having some tentative link with reality?

There are only two types of psychic or mediums : The downright delusional, and the manipulating liars.

For all those who think they provide solace for those in need, it would be a lot less dangerous for vulnerable people to find their solace with trained therapists or councellors.

shinikins

I'm not sure where i stand on fortune tellers. I would be pretty open minded but i think for the most part fortune tellers tend to be shyster's who are out to make an easy living off vulnerable people.

Having said that I did have my palm read a few years ago and was pretty shocked by some of the information I was given, extremely accurate and detailed knowledge of a family member that she couldn't possibly know, down to their name, date of birth and the exact manner they passed away. She also made predictions about the type of man I would meet, again very detailed. I was told i would meet a tall, fair, green eyed man, who was not totally of an Irish background, and we wouldn't meet in the usual manner. My OH is tall, green eyed, and fair and is not totally of an Irish background, and the way we met is very unusual!

I still consider myself a sceptic though, one encounter with a good fortune teller is not going to sway me, but just because the majority are swindlers, doesn't make every single one a swindler!

goocachoo

Yes, there are swindlers out there in the the world of mediums and crystal ball gazers, but there are also some very genuine ones as well. <snip> is an example of the genuine. Unfortunately with all of this, interpretation can be everything. I've always felt ripped off and a relation who is a serial-visitor doesn't seem to feel the need to stop when they never tell her anything that comes true. For all that, I am certain there exists in the ether of our existence another existence which some genuine soothsayers, like Nuala can 'receive'. Indeed, one lady I visited in England called Betty, made me jump when she suddenly opened her eyes which had been closed throughout the visit, and said "they're laughing at you". I had become bored - well you do after an hour - and I was dropping off. SO with that I straightened myself up and said uh! huh!? She said they want me to give you a message to prove they are there.

Believe me the message she gave me was indecipherable/meaningless to her but it put the hairs on the back of my neck straight out. And everything she told me I could vouch for and since happened.

So there are genuine ones but there are a lot of swindlers as well. You have to go on recommendation

squeakyduck

I had my tea leaves read once and it was all general stuff. Still it was kinda cool!

dearg lady

Yeah, seems like complete nonsense to me. An alarming amount of people saying, I'm a sceptic BUT..... You either are or you aren't!
I could understand it being a laugh for some people, but wouldn't interest me at all. And I would second Giselles suggestion that people would find better solace in tough times with a trained counsellor

SparkyTech

I think its unethical and wrong. If you have problems or grief work through them with a trained counciller. Don't place your trust and false hope in someone charging you for pure profit.

candy-gal1

I went to one back when i was 17, not really believing anything like that and still not really, and looking back there were names, places and things ive done the past few years since that which were mentioned by her.
maybe coincidence, maybe not, who knows! All i know what she said was true for me.

Raze_them_all

I don't go to them never will, If I'm going to throw away money I'll go on the beer and play some poker, least I'll have a bit of fun then rather than being told a story

lrushe

HugoDrax wrote: »

Any of the things she said she could guess because nearly any of those things could be said about any body.

Really???
He could have guessed at 21 I'd be given a house, that's a pretty big jump, even I couldn't have predicted that. How many people would that situation apply to?
He 'guessed' my current partners first inital, the fact that he would have fair hair but made of point of saying it wouldn't be blond (it's red) and the exact age I'd be when we'd meet, 5 years before it happened.
If he'd come out with crap like 'Mary says hello' I'd have saw through him in an instant, but his information was so exact. He was even able to tell me my mother didn't like the colour of her headstone, I was young when she died (2 years old) so I asked my Dad about it and he said that there had been a fight between her family and him over the headstone but her family ultimately won and got her a grey headstone even though she'd told my Dad she wanted a black one, how does someone make that up, even I didn't know that
Just for the record this fortune teller didn't charge anything I got to see him through a friend of a friend, so what had he to gain? He wrote everything he said down and I still have it somewhere, in foresight it's scary to see just how accurate he was. Would love another reading from him if I knew where he was now

lrushe

lrushe wrote: »

Really???
He could have guessed at 21 I'd be given a house, that's a pretty big jump, even I couldn't have predicted that. How many people would that situation apply to?
He 'guessed' my current partners first inital, the fact that he would have fair hair but made of point of saying it wouldn't be blond (it's red) and the exact age I'd be when we'd meet, 5 years before it happened.
If he'd come out with crap like 'Mary says hello' I'd have saw through him in an instant, but his information was so exact. He was even able to tell me my mother didn't like the colour of her headstone, I was young when she died (2 years old) so I asked my Dad about it and he said that there had been a fight between her family and him over the headstone but her family ultimately won and got her a grey headstone even though she'd told my Dad she wanted a black one, how does someone make that up, even I didn't know that
Just for the record this fortune teller didn't charge anything I got to see him through a friend of a friend, so what had he to gain? He wrote everything he said down and I still have it somewhere, in foresight it's scary to see just how accurate he was. Would love another reading from him if I knew where he was now

The fortune teller was a friend of a friend and knew about a family dispute?
And red hair in ireland?

lrushe

Giselle wrote: »

Do you accurately remember all the things you were told that didn't wind up having some tentative link with reality?.

I don't need to remember, he wrote it all down and it was all scarily accurate.

lrushe

bluewolf wrote: »

The fortune teller was a friend of a friend and knew about a family dispute?
And red hair in ireland?

No I got to see the fortune teller through a friend of a friend. My mother died 28 years ago in a different county.
The thing about the red hair is that I didn't even know my boyfriend had red hair until I was going out with him for a month, he shaves his head

lrushe

lrushe wrote: »

No I got to see the fortune teller through a friend of a friend. My mother died 28 years ago in a different county.
The thing about the red hair is that I didn't even know my boyfriend had red hair until I was going out with him for a month, he shaves his head

Right, but he still had red hair in ireland regardless of whether you knew it or not...
I'm not really convinced here

desertcircus

The problem with being open-minded is that if you're too open-minded your brain will dribble out.

It drives me insane that people adopt an attitude of "well, what harm can be done" when talking about frauds and delusionals who take money from frequently emotionally damaged people, "see" a bunch of stuff that always happens to be entirely decipherable by anyone good at cold reading, make up some bull**** about the future, give these people advice on what to do and then send them out the door.

People make big decisions on foot of what they're told by these frauds and delusionals. They're not regulated, they're not tested for basic competence; they're allowed to charge whatever the hell they want to manipulate people who are often in a state of intense grief or worry and advise whatever random nonsense they feel like.

When Derren Brown does it, it's harmless fun, because he makes it clear that he's doing it through cold reading and never pretends to have any idea of an afterlife. When spiritualists do it, it's someone taking money to pretend to be someone's dead relative.

Next time you go to a reader, stick on a black mask, don't talk, and keep completely still. See how far they get.

LegacyUser

SparkyTech wrote: »

I think its unethical and wrong. If you have problems or grief work through them with a trained counciller. Don't place your trust and false hope in someone charging you for pure profit.

Woah there for a second - do you think counsellors do it for hugs? Or that they donate everything that comes in to some charity? A counsellor runs a business in the same way as a hairdresser does, even if their business is to help people to deal with their issues. I'm not running down counsellors, but there are good, bad and ugly ones of them too. All professions have a mixed-bag in them.

In 2002 - 2003 I went to a counsellor for about 6 months. I've never felt worse in my life than I did when I was seeing him - not before I went to see him, but while I was seeing him. He charged me €90 a session to make me feel like I was a horrible person, and the night I went to tell him I wasn't coming back he used my own mother as a pawn to try to bully me into continuing to avail of his services. I've only been to a fortune teller once, but I left her feeling on top of the world. She didn't promise me anything outlandish, she didn't tell me I was going to win the lotto the next weekend or find the man of my dreams around the next corner, the things she said may or may not happen over the next decade (some things have already happened, and I'm happy with the outcome), but I felt optimistic and happy leaving. It might have been a temporary fix, but I needed a lift - better than going out getting sh!tfaced, which would have cost me a darn sight more, and left me feeling a lot worse.

I wouldn't consider myself "damaged" or gullible. I was as sceptical as many of the posters on this thread for years - although perhaps not vocal about it. I know a lot of what I was told could easily have just been vague presumptions about the way things might have been, or might be into the future in approximate terms, given my age, appearance and attitude on the day. I went in there for a bit of fun and all I can say about her reading was fair play to her - I'd love to be able to do that myself for the laugh. There were signs on the wall and counter as I went in, and in the room the reading was held in too, stating that the readings etc. were for entertainment purposes and not to be taken too seriously.

People with problems have to acknowledge them and deal with them through the right channels - just because they happen to choose the wrong channels doesn't mean those channels are wrong for everyone.

lrushe

bluewolf wrote: »

I'm not really convinced here

That's kinda how it is with subjects like this though. Non believers will poke holes in it no matter what is said because lets face it it's going to be pretty hard to prove and believers will believe everything no matter what is said because they have blind faith in it. It's hard to find a middle ground.
I'm not so far in that I can't see a faker when it's in front of me but what I experienced was bang on the money and I can't dispute that.

Raze_them_all

lrushe wrote: »

That's kinda how it is with subjects like this though. Non believers will poke holes in it no matter what is said because lets face it it's going to be pretty hard to prove and believers will believe everything no matter what is said because they have blind faith in it. It's hard to find a middle ground.
I'm not so far in that I can't see a faker when it's in front of me but what I experienced was bang on the money and I can't dispute that.

Houdini proved it pretty well. Him and his wife agreed on a phrase before his death, not one so called medium could repeat it in all their attempts

lrushe

Raze_them_all wrote: »

Houdini proved it pretty well. Him and his wife agreed on a phrase before his death, not one so called medium could repeat it in all their attempts

Doesn't mean they don't exist, just that Houdini's wife hasn't found one yet

Raze_them_all

she spent years trying you can't say that she somehow only went to shams and never a real one...actually you can as they're all shams

Dudess

Heavens2Betsy wrote: »

Woah there for a second - do you think counsellors do it for hugs? Or that they donate everything that comes in to some charity?

No, but a lot of them chose the field because they are genuinely passionate about helping people. In my opinion, it's a calling - like nursing or teaching. Anyone who's solely in it for the money won't be long getting miserable or getting the hell out - the road to being qualified and finding employment/setting up your own practice alone is arduous and long enough as it is.

lrushe

Raze_them_all wrote: »

she spent years trying you can't say that she somehow only went to shams and never a real one...actually you can as they're all shams

In my (small) experience the shams are usually the ones who shout the loudest, the ones with a true gift don't advertise it. Like the guy who I went to, if I tried I'd probably never find him again.

Dudess

Years ago I did go to a girl who was my age (only 20s), friends of friends, that kinda way - seemed genuine. I don't know what she was capitalising on - a few lucky guesses which caused her to feel she had a sixth sense perhaps? While she was spot-on about a lot of present stuff, most of what she predicted didn't happen. :pac:
But to be fair, I don't think she was a ruthless scam merchant or anything.

The whole sixth sense, paranormal thing, another dimension etc - I wouldn't fully rule it out as I can't fully know what's out there. I'm mostly skeptical though.

desertcircus

lrushe wrote: »

That's kinda how it is with subjects like this though. Non believers will poke holes in it no matter what is said because lets face it it's going to be pretty hard to prove and believers will believe everything no matter what is said because they have blind faith in it. It's hard to find a middle ground.
I'm not so far in that I can't see a faker when it's in front of me but what I experienced was bang on the money and I can't dispute that.

But you can. Testing indicates that people remember fortune-tellings as being far more specific than they actually were. People who specify loudly and clearly that they're doing nothing supernatural are able to match any supposed psychic or clairvoyant. Every attempt to test whether people have psychic ability - by blocking out the non-psychic sources of information - has resulted in ignominious failure for the advocates of psychic powers.

You're talking about a field in which people have difficulty coming to terms with the fact that Derren Brown fakes it despite the fact that he says so, and even includes basic explanations for the tricks he does. If you think someone might conceivably have psychic powers, you can't spot a faker.

A ring of pale skin on a ring finger? Relationship fell apart recently. A woman in her fifties? She's probably had a parent die, or at least an aunt or uncle. Well-cut suit looking a bit worn? Recent money problems. You give off dozens of tells in everything you wear and do, and the skilled hucksters are just good at spotting and using them.

amacachi

desertcircus wrote: »

But you can. Testing indicates that people remember fortune-tellings as being far more specific than they actually were. People who specify loudly and clearly that they're doing nothing supernatural are able to match any supposed psychic or clairvoyant. Every attempt to test whether people have psychic ability - by blocking out the non-psychic sources of information - has resulted in ignominious failure for the advocates of psychic powers.

There was a clip on Youtube I can't find now of James Randi where someone had gotten a reading and was delighted with it and said it was accurate. Randi then read out a list of about 30 names that were mentioned in the reading and only 11 were hits but the guy who got the reading still defended the fraudster. It was pretty funny :P

Faith

I went to one a few years ago as a gift from a friend. My friend swore she was the real deal and that she'd had loads of accurate readings herself. Off I went with an open mind... And it was shíte. Absolute shíte. She kept talking about dead people I had no knowledge of - "John says he's proud of you" kind of rubbish. Then she kept talking about babies. I remember her saying "Don't worry, the baby will be fine". I hate kids, and she made me freak out until I got my period a few weeks later. The one thing she said was that I'd meet an older man who would take me out to dinner and that night tell me he loved me. The night before the reading, my boyfriend who was 5 years older than me, had taken me for dinner and had told me he loved me for the first time.

On the whole, while I'd like to believe in them, I can't. Sure, right now I feel like grabbing one and shouting "Will I ever love again?!?!", but I honestly don't believe that they're genuine.