Randi on Anderson Cooper 360

Lisa Simpson said:
No, there isn't. Anderson Cooper wrapped things up rather abruptly, then went on to talk about how another segment got bumped because they allowed this segment to go longer.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the links, what's a bit weird is the progress bar as the vid downloads seemed to show some more to come then suddenly jump to the end and stop. I'll retry sometime later.

On SB - Hit her on all fronts but I wouldn't underestimate the power of attacks on the fraudulent finance/business aspect - specially given her past - The general public might tolerate or turn a blind eye to her other faults but start involving money being charged with subsequent denials and they can identify with it. More lying. Death and taxes being the two certainties in life - unless you're Sylvia Brown of course.


remember how they finally got Al Capone.

-
 
Rrose, you stop being unfair, comparing Sylvia to Al Capone!

Al delivered a real product that people could actually hold in their hands, and then take home and drink. Only a few of them went blind, and Al couldn't help that.

No comparison at all.
 
I wonder when Montel will pipe up and run interference for Sylvia. I see today's show is yet another rerun.
 
Robert,

As for your appearance? Well you come across as a big like-able guy. You have that whole ghost-of-christmas-present vibe... (Francis De Wolff)-from that old 1951 version of Scrooge.

Having talked to you one can imagine you'd have that big laugh...the "joie de vivre"....why I bet you'd laugh Sylvia Browne right out of any debate.

Maybe I'm wrong...but this is the impression I get when I saw your interview. I do wish Randi had that quality...but he doesn't seem to.

Again, I hate to wallow in the shallows here...but tv is a shallow medium. You have very little time and appearances are king. Put Mr. Randi in front of a university lecture hall, or a Vegas audience and he's a star...put him on tv for a few mins responding to an apparent mad-woman and he just looks like a scowling old grump...possibly evil atheist...

Sad really...I think tv could be the vehicle which is driving society into a new dark ages.

-z
 
Last edited:
spiteme said:
Ok, Silvia's business manager, I'll play:

Leviticus 19:26-28
'Do not practice divination or sorcery.

Leviticus 19:31
'Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 20:27
27 " 'A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death. You are to stone them; their blood will be on their own heads.'

Micah 3:7
7 The seers will be ashamed and the diviners disgraced. They will all cover their faces because there is no answer from God."

Doesn't seem like god is that thrilled with Silvia's line of work.
Click to expand...

To be fair, I don't think she ever mentioned being a Christian or a Jew so I don't know those would apply.
 
"To be fair, I don't think she ever mentioned being a Christian or a Jew so I don't know those would apply."

There's another angle of attack: "You say you believe in god, but according to the Bible, god is against 'spiritists and mediums.' Or don't you believe in the Christian god?"
Sure, a strange tactic from most skeptics' viewpoints, but in this culture, going against the Christian god would cost Sylvia a lot of support.
If she replies in the affirmative, then she has to respond to the biblical quotation. She would be in a bind either way.
 
Brown said:
I suggest that we clear the air a bit by establishing the following proposition:

WHETHER A SELF-PROCLAIMED PSYCHIC CHARGES A FEE OR NOT IS IRRELEVANT TO THE QUESTION OF WHETHER THE PURPORTED PSYCHIC CAN GENUINELY ACHIEVE THE RESULTS S/HE CLAIMS TO ACHIEVE.

<SNIP>

Any self-appointed psychic who wants to tell parents that their child is dead SHOULD be damn close to 100% accurate, whether they charge a fee or not. And if they're dead wrong, they should be responsible for the harm that they caused, whether they charged a fee or not.
Click to expand...

Good point. I would suggest it points to her truthfulness though. If she can't even admit that she charges for her services, can she be truthful about her abilities at all?

valis said:
To be fair, I don't think she ever mentioned being a Christian or a Jew so I don't know those would apply.
Click to expand...

According to her website, she certainly seems to describe herself as a Christian.

http://www.novus.org/home/christ.cfm
 
What she charges is important if her spiel includes stuff like she is using her gift from god for the good of people.
 
valis said:
To be fair, I don't think she ever mentioned being a Christian or a Jew so I don't know those would apply.
Click to expand...
The transcript isn't up yet (they must be getting to it now, the first two stories from last night are done), but if the manager didn't say specifically that Browne was a Christian it was very heavily implied.
 
rikzilla said:
James I love you man. You are one of my personal heroes. Your intelligence, humanity, honesty, and talent are pretty awe inspiring.

Please keep that in mind when I tell you truly you are perhaps not the best face to put out there on the tv. You looked like a scowling cartoon villain. You had a kind of malevolent magician/mad scientist vibe going on.

Now, mind you, that idiot (rule8) you were debating last night pretty well self destructed into incoherent ad-hominum so she was a very unsympathetic character herself.

The problem is Mr. Randi that you cut a rather sinister figure on the telly and any photogenic well spoken opponent is likely to outshine you no matter the content of the argument they present.

I like you as you are sir....but if you are going to do this tv pundit thing more often you are really going to need to craft an image...a kindly image...like a Wilford Brimley, favorite grandfather kind of thing.

The point is that you are selling a message...and sadly tv is a image driven medium. The only point where I felt you did well last night was when you laughed at her silly ad-hom attack about your atheism. Your whole face changed and you looked really comfortable for the first time. You need to do more of that next time around. Actually I personally think that the most effective response to many of $B's claims is a hearty belly laugh coupled with one of your eyebrows tilted to that signature skeptical angle.

Sorry Mr. R...someone has to say it so maybe it must be me. Honestly the only skeptic I've ever seen debate in such a live format and do it well and sympathetically is Dr. Shermer.

But hey,...you're still my hero James.

-z

BTW: I also liked Bob Dole more than Bill Clinton in '96. I have been lucky enough to see both these men in person. Sadly though, Bob Dole gave off this Snidely Whiplash kind of vibe when he walked in the room. I knew at that very moment that his presidential bid was doomed....
Click to expand...

You know, I had thoughts along these lines earlier today after watching Lisa's (thanks Lisa) Youtubes on Randi's latest appearance on CNN

Randi has been my number 1 hero for about 20 years now and I love his curmudgeonly persona. But that persona is going to be more of a hinderance than a help in the MDC2. I was thinking that he should get himself onto some TV shows that may not be what we in this community might consider 'responsible reporting' type shows like AC on CNN, but would do his media profile some good.

I'm thinking about appearances on Leno - doing a few card tricks, and maybe appearing as one of the guests on other chat shows. Not confrontational ones, but conversational ones. Randi could regale the audience (and the other guests) with anecdotes about the places he has been and people he has known, once again throwing in a bit of conjuration - not for the purposes of de-bunking, rather for entertainment.

This, I feel, would let the people who don't know Randi as we do, see him in a much better light and the next time he is face to face with a rep of the psychic community, he may be looked on much more favourably by the public. At the moment his media persona is sure to make some people look at him and think that he looks like a mad old wizard so he must be deranged.

Having said that, I'll fight for that little man anywhere, any time, no matter how much a mad old wizard he looks.
 
Drudgewire said:
The transcript isn't up yet (they must be getting to it now, the first two stories from last night are done), but if the manager didn't say specifically that Browne was a Christian it was very heavily implied.
Click to expand...

She, "does a lot of spiritual work." She's very, "spiritual." Therefore, she should be respected over someone who is not, ""spiritual." Only, "spiritual people," can be moral.

We should probably leave her alone as she is very, "spiritual."

Does Bob have a great site or what?
 
mpeacock said:
The same warning bells went off for me as well. What with her church and prior securities fraud conviction, it's not much of a stretch to imagine that she might have some special tax status.
Click to expand...

My first thought, when Rossi said that Sylvia doesn't make a penny and that it all goes to her spiritual organization & corporation, was "how does she eat?"
 
Skeptic Guy said:
Thanks, LostAngeles, that's great. So she's kind of New Age Christian-like...
Click to expand...

In the sense that she takes a bunch of h'oss-sh**, dresses it up in robes and slaps long hair and a beard on it and sells it for nearly a grand a pop, sure.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom