A Browne Fan Speaks Up

Also, didn't Sylvia Browne lie about having a Masters Degree in English from a University that doesn't exist? I know I've read that somewhere.
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You read that on www.stopsylvia.com Kudos for reading through Lancaster's site. Which is what this woman should have done. Maybe she has difficulty reading through English? She did a pretty good job with writing her email but I'm sure that much reading would be overwhelming.

Just thinking out loud, I'm wondering if SS.com could be translated into all the languages that Sylvia's books are translated into? (I'm not talking about those sites like bable fish) Then targeted to those countries?

Sounds like quite an endeavor, but why should Lancaster's eloquent words only be for English speakers? There is a world out there that needs to be educated.

I hear from skeptics all the time that want to help the movement but don't know what to do and arn't the type to confront someone. Firstly the SS site would need to be back in business (I know it is up, but can't be updated at the moment because of computer issues) But do we have some people out there who would be willing to translate? Wouldn't that be something wonderful?

Susan (the other one)
 
I am glad you run your site rob. I mean i like discourse as much as the next guy, but i couldn't help but asking the person who wrote this letter why it is those interested in psychic communication seldom have mastered normal methods.

Rob you have the patience of a saint.
 
Minarvia said:
Also, Robert, I believe you once stated somewhere that when you began your Site that you admired Randi even more because he's been practically a saint from what he's gone thru for so many decades. He's not snarky too often and I find that amazing.

And you and Susan are amazing at it, too. :bigclap
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I thinkI said that, while I think that Randi is snarky/curmudgeonly at times, I found that easier to understand after just a small taste of the negative emails he has been reading for decades. Randi has been a hero of mine for 30 years, but I still cringe sometimes at his words in his commentary, and in his TV appearances.

When my Susan met him in person, she was atounded at how kind and sweet he is. After having seen him on TV, that was not what she expected.

Now, she loves him to pieces!
 
Chris Hegarty said:
I've been reading StopSylvia for years (it's a regular on my bookmarks list through three different computers) and I've always been incredibly impressed with your ability to take down all this woo without getting acrid. It's definitely a skill and thank goodness for this. :)
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Thanks, Chris. You're very kind.
 
sgf8 said:
You read that on www.stopsylvia.com Kudos for reading through Lancaster's site. Which is what this woman should have done. Maybe she has difficulty reading through English? She did a pretty good job with writing her email but I'm sure that much reading would be overwhelming.

Just thinking out loud, I'm wondering if SS.com could be translated into all the languages that Sylvia's books are translated into? (I'm not talking about those sites like bable fish) Then targeted to those countries?

Sounds like quite an endeavor, but why should Lancaster's eloquent words only be for English speakers? There is a world out there that needs to be educated.

I hear from skeptics all the time that want to help the movement but don't know what to do and arn't the type to confront someone. Firstly the SS site would need to be back in business (I know it is up, but can't be updated at the moment because of computer issues) But do we have some people out there who would be willing to translate? Wouldn't that be something wonderful?

Susan (the other one)
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Interesting!

I had considered this with my Kaz site (especially after she started appearing in Korean-language churches), but had not with Browne.
 
EeneyMinnieMoe said:
I can't speak for Robert but I've done a lot of research for more than 3 years for the site and I found this task quite grueling, very emotionally taxing, very angering and very depressing. To say the least.

Yes, I did want to "blow the world to bits over this nonsense".

What works: being able to put them into the open for people to see, sharing the fruits of your labor on a forum of like minded people who appreciate your efforts, hitting a piece of furniture once in a while, taking long breaks from it until you want to do it again.
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Yes furniture. :)

RSLancastr said:
Thanks, Trent. I firmly believe that a calm and fact-based approach is the best way to reach people, and to get them to consider the evidence. I find the ability to remain (outwardly) calm by remembering that letting my rage show on the site would do nothing to further my objective. It would only serve to give Browne's supporters more reason to discount the evidence I present. And, while I try to show both sides of the coin, I make no pretense of being unbiased. The evidence long ago convinced me that Browne is a fraud, or I would not have created the site.

I try to see their emails as opportunities to reach out to them, further supporting the evidence. This makes any frustration easier to take.



I think my "method" is pretty obvious: Present the facts, back them up with sources, and invite the reader to come to their own conclusion.



Prior to creating my Stop Sites, I was far more sarcastic and snarky when discussing purveyors of "woo" and those who support them. When I created the StopKaz site, I chose the calm, fact-driven approach because I felt that a snarky approach would offend the very people I hoped to reach: members of congregations where Kaz had appeared, or would later appear. And, since my ownmother, who I would be showing the site, believed Kaz, I found I could not use the "what kind of idiots could believe this woman's nonsense" approach.

This made me examine other skeptical sites, leading me to wonder "Why do outspoken skeptics so often come across as such jerks?" Their approach seemed to only serve to alienate those who could most benefit from their message, and left the skeptic only "preaching to the choir."

Actually, this "kinder, gentler skeptical approach" had served me well even earlier, when I was the "token skeptic" on a John Edward fan forum. I was pleasantly surprised at the number of "believers" I got to thinking again about Edward, by simply being polite, empathetic, and presenting the skeptical viewpoint in a calm, rational and non-judgemental (towards his fans) manner.


I think you hit it exactly with what I highlighted above. knowing that blowing my top" would be to lose sight of my goal and my focus, keeps me from doing so.



Another large part of what keeps me "even-keeled" is the love and support of my wonderful "Better Half", Susan. Knowing that she once believed inBrowne's and Edward's "psychic powers" (see my "I Married a Woo" thread) helps me to keep a more generous attitude towards Browne supporters.

I hope this has answered your question.

If I may ask ...
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[/QUOTE] Beautiful answers :)
 
sadhatter said:
I am glad you run your site rob. I mean i like discourse as much as the next guy, but i couldn't help but asking the person who wrote this letter why it is those interested in psychic communication seldom have mastered normal methods.
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Thanks, 'hatter!

Rob you have the patience of a saint.
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Tell that to my cat
- I just yelled at her and pushed her away for head-butting my sore leg.

Sorry, Pounce!
 
I wouldn't mind helping out with translations to Swedish. There is a dedicated market for Browne in Sweden and I have noticed that the passive understanding of English unfortunately is on decline. (Personally I think it is due to changes in curriculum. When I was taught English we spent a lot of time reading novels and articles, but these days it is all about test scores so they train the ability to take a test instead of the ability to actually use English...) Unsurprisingly the people who fall for Browne are the same people who have a poor understanding of what they read so a translation might actually be of help to them.

I have no translation credentials, other than that I used to translate graphic novels for a while (I was young and needed the money), but I'm free and I'm here. Give me a shout if you decide to roll out the translation project.
 
My parents have a Swedish friend and she is a pretty big woo. Crytals, self help, pseudoscience, Eastern religion, "herbal teas and scented candles" type of woo, chiropractic, faith healers, other "alternative medicine", Dan Millman. Silly hocus pocus you can't believe an adult would believe.

Which is odd, since she is (I gather from some of the things she has said in conversation) probably an atheist and was raised in a very secular enviornment. She's not religious in the least and wouldn't take religion seriously for a minute but she's deep into "spirituality". :rolleyes:

I actually have more respect for theists who are skeptics about woo than for atheists who believe in woo. When a theist has basic common sense about astrology, conspiracy theories and psychics and so on and sees that it is fraud that can't be taken seriously for a nanosecond, I'm happy to have them on my side and respect their intelligence and good sense. I wish they were as rational about religion as they are about everything else in life- but allright. Cool. Great. Good for them.

When I meet an atheist who believes in this stuff, I automatically write him/her off as an idiot and want to shake him/her until they come to their senses.
 
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I replied to the email in the OP, and received a reply to it today. I don't have the correspondent's permission to publish it, but here is the gist of it:

She talks about how she read one of Browne's books when she was at a very depressed time in her life, and it spoke to her. (Of course, Browne's con is designed to appeal to just such a person.) The correspondent went on to say that she had examined the evidence on SSB, YouTube, and other sites, and had come to the sad conclusion that Browne was not what she clailmed. She said that she was shocked by Browne's behavior on the video clips, and found it hard to believe that the woman in the clips was the same woman who had written that wonderful book (I told her that whether Browne actually writes those books is a matter of debate). She went on to say that she still believes in psychic abilities, but not that Browne has them. If she gives me permission to publish this most recent email, I will place it, and my reply to her first email, on SSB, and here in this thread.
 
SCORE!

Wonderful news. Now if she will just use that same critical thinking to other psychics. One down....a zillion more to go.
 
Well done you, as the Brits say. What impresses me, however, is that she was willing to look at evidence. Sure, she started out firmly in Browne's court and sure she's not over believing in psychic bull pucky yet, but she looked at the evidence about Browne that you provided and that which speaks for itself (the videos) and came to a sane, rational and, hopefully, predictable conclusion: Browne's claims don't stand up under the most superficial scrutiny little less any sort of hard look. Now, your writer doesn't believe that Browne is a psychic.

Bravo you. Bravo her. Bravo for the small bit of hope it encourages me to have in humanbeings in general.
 
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