Theos-Talk Archives (June 2004 Message tt00071)

I wrote:

"Yes, given the proper stage, the proper equipment,
and a number of assistants, magicians can
outperform most if not all mediums. But does that
mean therefore that ALL phenomena produced by mediums,
psychics and occultists are therefore fake, not real,
etc.?" 

Steve, you replied:

"You have set up a straw man here by asking an 
unreasonable question."

Why is this an unreasonable question? 

Many skeptics of the paranormal use this type 
of reasoning all the time to discount the paranormal. 

They say that if a magician can "perform" the 
SAME phenomena as psychics and occultist do, then
this casts doubt on the reality of the psychic
phenomena. The argument is that psychics
and occultists are only using tricks.

The same underlying assumption is made when the
argument is given that because some of Blavatsky's
phenomena MAY LOOK like magical tricks, therefore they
are magical tricks or that the phenomena is discounted
due to the fact that they look suspiciously like
magical tricks.

Daniel