I'm a psychic who finds missing children

[Max]

Thanks Sid. Hope you're having a cool day (unlike those of us sitting working...! :)

Robert, although it's no guarantee, the quality of a journal can sometimes be assessed by checking out who reviews its articles. For example, I might not give the same credibility to a physics journal peer-reviewed by George Bush as I would if it were Stephen Hawkin.

Sid, do we have any idea who the reviewers are? Are they from credible institutions? And can we at least see a link to the article to which Robert refers even if we can't see the content? Perhaps you could post it here?

Cheers

Max

[Sid_Rodrigues]

Hi Max,
Hope the thesis is going swimmingly [If not it maybe a feaces]!
I think you may have got the wrong end of the stick concering Le Journal de Montreal.
It's actually a newspaper, not a scientfic journal. The article dates "Journal de Montreal 22/2/97" on Robert's website, but you'd need someone with fluent french to translate the scanned article.

Sid

[Max]

Hey Sid, a lot of work and a lot of stats. But it's not bad once you actually get into it. It's trying to finish by year-end that's the killer.

Robert, the article to which you refer is a newspaper article. Newspapers do not use the same set of scientific rules to test claims in the way that skeptics or scientific journals do. Since this is a skeptics website, we'd welcome to test your claims using our process rather than what we read in the newspaper. As you know, newspapers often get it wrong. Not that skeptics don't get it wrong of course, but we try to introduce specific controls to minimise the chances of this happening.

If you're up for it, and to work in a language that most people in the UK understand, could you describe a typical case here please? It could be one of which you are particularly proud or where you provided particular help, or one for which you believe you have the most proof. What we will then do is to ask questions and sometimes ask for "proof".

When I listen to myself there, it sounds like we don't trust you. But it's not that - we do it to each other too because we want to use scientific method to reduce the possibility of any error that may have crept in. It might also uncover abilities of which you were unaware.

We'll try and be gentle in our questioning. Skeptics are not always noted for being polite - that's because science sometimes precedes social niceties in scientific environments. We'll try to remember that we're not in our university departments challenging each other when we explore your case study.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes

Max

[N=1]

Pay me the 10,000 bucks U.S. James has owed me since 1993, certified check please, and I'll do it.

Do it, and the $10,000 will seem like peanuts to you. ;)

That's a very weak excuse for not backing up your claims.

The ignorant dismisal of 2 certified news articles (Le Journal de Montreal May 31 & June 1 1998) only depicts how far your group is willing to preach denial when the "proof in the pudding" has already been set.

Newspapers print stories that sell newspapers. That's all they're bothered about.

E.g.

Last year there was a psychic evening in a local pub where I live. A psychic picked up on several murders that had been done in the pub around 100 years ago. She even gave names, and a description of a young girl who was murdered. On investigation they found a lock of hair and a girl's shoe in a disused area of the pub.

This was reported in local papers as factual, and more weight was given to the story because the police got involved.

I recently contacted the police to see what they made of it all. The answer was zilch and they are no longer looking into it as none if it checks out.

Of course that doesn't get reported as a "psychic was wrong" headline doesn't sell.

Robert, the fact that your story appeared in a newspaper doesn't mean a thing. You're placing a lot of weight on something that has zero value as evidence. Your claim is not being ignorantly dismissed; you just need to supply some more reliable evidence than a newspaper article.

Are you willing to do that?

[Max]

Robert, some newspaper stories e.g. like yours, may well be true. How does one decide whether what reads in a paper is true or not? The example above was false, but there may equally be examples of stories like yours that are true.

Before anyone can make a decision about truth (whatever that complicated concept is :), we need some more of the facts. I'm hoping that we can confirm your powers as I'd love to see you helping more people with your ability.

Looking forward to learning more

Kind regards

Max

[Guest]

Robert,

I respectfully asked some simple questions "Is there a specific reason it is only children? Up to what age? Are there distance or time limitations?" that you didn't bother to answer.

Based on your responses to others. I feel that you are just trying to pick a fight an call people names. Are you feeling stressed or do you just have a chip on your shoulder?

[Max]

Robert, don't get stressed out :) One thing I've learned about skepticism is that skeptics get quite heated about their subject :)

Take your time and give us the information if you want to when you're ready.

[Guest]

Is there a copy of the article available online please?
Max

Here are the articles.

Journal de Montreal 31/5/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id8.html

Journal de Montreal 1/6/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id9.html

[Guest]

Unless Robert has a scanned version of the article he'd be willing to share.
:?

Here they are

Journal de Montreal 31/5/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id8.html

Journal de Montreal 1/6/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id9.html

[Max]

Thanks Sid. Indeed they are newspaper articles and they are in French.

Robert, even if the newspaper articles were in English, they would probably still not contain sufficient information required to test your claim. The information we would need will depend on the specific events surrounding the incident. Awaiting your response on these.

Best wishes

Max

[Guest]

The Le Journal de Montréal articles certify the incident.
The article dated May 31, 1998 stated what I told the parents.
The article dated June 1, 1998 reported the results of the search based on my information certifying that I was correct on a case involving a child whom I've never met in an area over two hundred miles from my home which I've never been to.
The only communication I had with the parents was when they called me that Saturday morning concerning the case of their son who had been missing for 6 weeks which took me two minutes to solve.

[roblindblad]

The Le Journal de Montréal articles certify the incident.
The article dated May 31, 1998 stated what I told the parents.
The article dated June 1, 1998 reported the results of the search based on my information certifying that I was correct on a case involving a child whom I've never met in an area over two hundred miles from my home which I've never been to.
The only communication I had with the parents was when they called me that Saturday morning concerning the case of their son who had been missing for 6 weeks which took me two minutes to solve.

[roblindblad]

Here are other articles

Save Our Souls
http://www.tv-asahi.co.jp/telechika/con ... ex.html#f1

The Ottawa Sun 9/16/05
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id11.html

Journal de Montreal 22/2/97
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id1.html

Derniere Heure 3/5/97
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id2.html

HotGossipUK 7/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id7.html

[Max]

Many thanks Robert. Certification certainly contributes to legal proof and perhaps for some newspaper journalists. However, instead of using certification, skeptics (the group represented on this web site) use other methods to test claims. We'd love the opportunity to test yours.

The story in the Ottawa Sun is certainly intriguing and you seem to have provided a lot of help and good service to the community.

I notice that you are the only person that the journalist interviewed in your newspaper articles. A good start for skeptical exploration is to hear them one more than one independent source. Unfortunately the police spokeswoman in the Ottawa Sun said that she had not heard of you. Do you have any other independent third parties who can confirm the events you describe? It's always good to hear them from multiple perspectives. Without a third party perspective, my colleagues here (who have very skeptical natures!) tend to disbelieve!

Look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes

Max

[roblindblad]

You are in error as I was never interviewed for these articles

Journal de Montreal 31/5/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id8.html

Journal de Montreal 1/6/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id9.html

The parents called me and what I stated to them was printed in the paper by investigative journalists who quoted directly from the parents what I stated to them. The investigative journalists then printed what I had stated to the parents in the newspaper

Journal de Montreal 31/5/98
http://childsearchpsychic.tripod.com/id8.html

the day before the body was found.