PETER HUBINKSY, I WALK THE LINE

I was, of course, only refering to the pennies that are actually on the track. According to my very deliberate and accurate calculations only one out of every hundred coins would actually be 'on the tracks' and therefore only those coins would cause the train to derail...

:p
 
That would still be a million pennies on the track. This would be the number required for him to win the prize. Of course if JREF demanded one dollar coins (do you have them in the USA?) then only one million coins would be needed and 10 thousand would land on the track.

Of course all coins found would be the property of JREF.

No trains need be derailed if unused tracks were used.
 
rjh01 said:
Of course if JREF demanded one dollar coins (do you have them in the USA?)
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We have three sorts of one dollar coins that are legal tender in the US. Old silver dollars still legal, but are worth more than a dollar to collectors, so have disappeared from circulation. Then there are the Susan B. Anthony dollars, very uncommon and unpopular. They were just a little larger than the quarter, and often mistaken for one. Currently in mint is the Sacajawea dollar. It's larger than the Suzi B. and gold tinted, to more clearly differentiate it.
If your going to squash any of them on the railroad track use the Suzi B's.

Robert
 
Advice for Peter's witness

Back in November, I wrote this email to Peter:
Peter,

I saw your discussion with Kramer on the JREF Forums.
forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=45017 It appears that you need a professional to sign an affidavit of your ability.

I live in Rochester, NY and I am a professional (software developer). I'd be happy to observe your ability and sign a statement for you. And you don't even have to bribe me with lunch! :)
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Today, I received this email from him:
Dear Mr. Stein,

Hello, my name is Peter Hubinsky, and some time ago you offered to be a witness to my paranormal ability for the JREF paranormal challenge. I was delayed and I put off the challenge until recently. I was wondering if you were still willing and able to be one of the witnesses for the demonstration. I am planning a demonstration on July 8th, which is a Saturday. I have one other witness lined up, my lawyer, and I still need to find one more, a medical professional of some kind ( doctor or nurse ). I am going to put an ad in city newspaper if I can't locate one. Perhaps you know a medical professional. If you do, maybe you could interest them in being a witness as well. The demo will be at my apartment, the building hallways , and the railroad track area in the back of village gate mall. We plan on some pizza and soft drinks, although as I remember you stated I didn't need to bribe you with the pizza. Well, I'll eat it if you don't. I will do the demonstration starting at about 1pm or so. I will come up with a more detailed plan and schedule, though the few event will take several hours, as I want to provide multiple examples in different locations. Please email me and let me know what's up. In case is wasn't clear, I claim to be able to make small objects and debris appear through a form of telekinesis, randomly, and obviously. There will be provided the opportunity to inspect the sites for any " rigging " or other deception, although the results will be obvious and conclusive upon observation. I want to also add that I am not a hoax of any kind, and despise people who make false claims. Please email me, and I'll get back to you with more details.
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I can't understand how anyone could really believe that he will be able to demonstrate this sort of a claim. Is he mentally ill? Does he plan on some sort of trickery? I'm not sure what to expect. I have a friend who is a medical doctor; I hope he will be willing to attend with me.

I'd like some advice on the following:
  1. Should I avoid entering his aparment? There should be two others with me.
  2. Is there any sort of trickery I should be watching for?
  3. If he is unable to demonstrate his claim, how should I tell him? If he's mentally ill, I'd like to be careful in how I do this.

Thanks!
 
Hi, and welcome to the forum!

This is a first, I don't think I have ever seen a post by someone who intended to be one of the notarized witnesses before.

Wow, how to respond. I guess I would just be very cautious in dealing with him. I suspect that if you go through with this, and do not see a demonstration that you are willing to sign an affidavit about, you will be in a very tricky situation. And I think this is the most likely outcome. Backing out gracefully could be very difficult.

I am curious as to why you agreed to be a witness.

IXP
 
JeremyStein said:
1. Should I avoid entering his aparment? There should be two others with me.
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I do not think you have anything to fear. After al, you are an anonymous skeptic out of thousand on this board. The chance that he wants capture you and ask for a ransom is very small, especially considering that contrary to you, he is not anonymous.
2. Is there any sort of trickery I should be watching for?
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This is not a test, but a demonstration. Just relax and enjoy the show. Bring a camera.
3. If he is unable to demonstrate his claim, how should I tell him? If he's mentally ill, I'd like to be careful in how I do this.
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Tricky one. Any psychologists here?
 
IXP said:
I am curious as to why you agreed to be a witness.
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A combination of curiosity and a desire to help JREF in a some small way. When I saw that this applicant lived near me, I asked Kramer if it would be helpful to volunteer as a witness and he said it would.
 
JeremyStein said:
A combination of curiosity and a desire to help JREF in a some small way. When I saw that this applicant lived near me, I asked Kramer if it would be helpful to volunteer as a witness and he said it would.
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I applaud your initiative, JeremyStein.

From Mr Hubinsky's appearance via his correspondence in the Million Dollar Challenge Applications Forum, I do not consider him dangerous, aggressive or violent.

However, bringing your friend would make sense to me. Put 911 on the speed dial of your cells. If it makes you more comfortable, bring some self-defense stuff. If Mr. Hubinsky proposes a specific timetable for the test, adhere to it and do not tolerate any impromptu changes. I think you get the idea.

I suggest you behave the same way as any reasonable person should: Act rationally and respectful - and if starts to pull some [feces], get the heck outta there. Same with telling him about the "test results".,

No one in his right mind will blame you if you walk away feeling uncomfortable about anything.

Again, kudos for your initiative.
 
JeremyStein, it might be helpful to have a discussion with Mr. Hubinsky about how both of you would define the role of witness. This has very little to do with JREF requirements and everything to do with the social situation you will find yourself in, which has some tricky elements already noted in this thread.

For instance, you might say "I see my role as witness as a mere observer. I do/don't intend to communicate to you, immediately after the demonstration/at any time after the demonstration, what I perceived and what conclusions I drew. I will communicate my perceptions and conclusions to you/JREF by X date." Etc.

If the two of you find yourself disagreeing about exactly what is expected of a witness, then you might approach the situation one way, and if you find yourselves agreeing about the role of a witness, you might approach the situation another way.
 
Paul2 said:
For instance, you might say "I see my role as witness as a mere observer. I do/don't intend to communicate to you, immediately after the demonstration/at any time after the demonstration, what I perceived and what conclusions I drew. I will communicate my perceptions and conclusions to you/JREF by X date." Etc.
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Please notice that JeremyStein's role here is solely to sign an affidavit that he has witnessed the demonstration and could not rationally explain what he saw. This is no test. No controls are necessary. If mr. Hubinsky is a skilled magician who can fool the witnesses, that is fine for the affidavit purposes.

There is also no need for rules like "stick to the timetable" or any specific protocol. Leave all that for the test, if it ever happens.

The affidavit needs to be signed in front of a public notary, and it would be logical to do this immediately after the demonstration. The witnesses will have to quickly decide if they want to sign the affidavit or not.

The biggest problem I see is if the witnesses do not see any stuff being teleported to the site, or if they believe they have noticed obvious trickery. How mr. Hubinsky will act on a refusal to sign is the big question.
 
I would take some obvious precautions against simple tricks.
1. Get him to put his socks on the outside of his trousers. This will make it impossible for objects to fall down his trousers. If he is wearing shorts no need to do this.

2. I would also get him to empty his pockets. If he wants to keep anything in his pockets let him put them back in his pockets after he has emptied them. This is to stop him taking things out of his pockets and dropping them.

3. If you find objects he has teleported one of the witnesses collects them. This is to stop him finding the same object several times. Then you know what has been teleported.

4. If you suspect trickery or feel uncomfortable for any reason, leave. Agree with the witnesses beforehand, if one leaves all leaves. I would not take any self-defence weapons with you. Unless you have had training in how to use them they will be useless or worse.

If he is using some complex trick that you do not see that is OK.

But what you do or do not do is up to you. All we can do is to put ideas in your head.
 
JeremyStein said:
If he is unable to demonstrate his claim, how should I tell him? If he's mentally ill, I'd like to be careful in how I do this.
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Just tell him you want to take some time to write up what you have seen, and that you'll send him the notarized affadavit in a couple of days.
 
Some conclusions so far

I guess I need to remember (as steenkh pointed out) that my job is not to test Peter, but rather to act as a sanity check (literally). I would like to avoid being caught by any obvious trickery, lest I appear the fool when a formal test reveals his method. I like rjh01's simple suggestions for this.

If Peter is a wacko who insists that I see what he sees, I don't need to sign anything right there. As politas pointed out, I can have write and notarize a statement later.

Thanks for the suggestions so far.
 
JeremyStein said:
I guess I need to remember (as steenkh pointed out) that my job is not to test Peter, but rather to act as a sanity check (literally). I would like to avoid being caught by any obvious trickery, lest I appear the fool when a formal test reveals his method. I like rjh01's simple suggestions for this.

If Peter is a wacko who insists that I see what he sees, I don't need to sign anything right there. As politas pointed out, I can have write and notarize a statement later.

Thanks for the suggestions so far.
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If you do not see the phenomenon he is trying to demonstrate, you need do nothing. A notarized affidavit stating that nothing happened is not required. You need only prepare one if you do see the phenomenon he is demonstrating.
 
JeremyStein said:
I guess I need to remember (as steenkh pointed out) that my job is not to test Peter, but rather to act as a sanity check (literally). I would like to avoid being caught by any obvious trickery, lest I appear the fool when a formal test reveals his method.
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Yup, not to worry. If the average Joe couldn't be tricked by misdirection, gimmickry, and the like there would be no work for professional magicians. =^_^= Best of luck for a smooth demonstration.
 
July 8 July 8, hmmmmmmm, isn't that the day it is supposed to snow in Rochester? or Oakland? or Kansas? or someplace?

OK, July 8 is good, I double-checked, and found that it was July 27th that could perhaps have a snowfall interfere.
 
JeremyStein said:
I would like to avoid being caught by any obvious trickery, lest I appear the fool when a formal test reveals his method
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Well, I would be perfectly comfortable signing an affidavit stating that I can't explain what I saw, after witnessing James Randi bend a spoon for example.

I mean, it IS trickey, but I can't explain how he's doing it. So there's no shame in being fooled by Mr. Hubinsky, IF he's fooling you.
 
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