I have to admit that I get some kind of sadistic pleasure out of seeing shows like South Park rip on John Edward for being, as they put it, "the biggest douche in the universe." However, it's nothing short of astounding that even with popular media doing everything they can to debunk this ridiculous practice, there are still people who eat out of the palm of this man's hand. My mother, for instance.
“The thing with John Edward is, not only is he not psychic, but he’s not even very good faking it.” - Timothy Campbell, an executive of the Ontario Skeptics Society for Critical Inquiry
At the end of the South Park episode that the clip above was taken from, Stan makes a point: "Is that really want you want after you die-- to just be floating around, talking to this asshole?" My mother wants so badly to believe in John Edward's show that, when asked that question, she actually answered, "Yes."
I've even gone so far as to show her sites such as this one, in which an investigation was done as to whether or not the studio was even rigged just for the sake of the show. Findings show that the overwhelming answer is: yes, John Edward is, indeed, a douche.
However, after mulling over it for a while, I've come to the conclusion that I should stop caring so much. Though John Edward may be a douche, and it might all be make-believe, in the long run, what harm is he really doing? My mother has never sent him money, never made an effort to up and leave to go see his show live and in person. If it gives her some semblance of hope, am I really one to judge so deeply?
After all, most religions ask for far more from people than this guy ever has. I can say for a fact that more of my mother's money has gone into her church than it has to John Edward. He is a nothing, a nobody, barely a blip on the radar of anything that truly matters in the real world. He doesn't deserve the energy I expend in trying to debunk him. For now, I propose we treat him and other psychics like him the same way we do that one creepy guy that always seems to come into the store when we're working: if we ignore him long enough, maybe he'll just go away.
“The thing with John Edward is, not only is he not psychic, but he’s not even very good faking it.” - Timothy Campbell, an executive of the Ontario Skeptics Society for Critical Inquiry
At the end of the South Park episode that the clip above was taken from, Stan makes a point: "Is that really want you want after you die-- to just be floating around, talking to this asshole?" My mother wants so badly to believe in John Edward's show that, when asked that question, she actually answered, "Yes."
I've even gone so far as to show her sites such as this one, in which an investigation was done as to whether or not the studio was even rigged just for the sake of the show. Findings show that the overwhelming answer is: yes, John Edward is, indeed, a douche.
However, after mulling over it for a while, I've come to the conclusion that I should stop caring so much. Though John Edward may be a douche, and it might all be make-believe, in the long run, what harm is he really doing? My mother has never sent him money, never made an effort to up and leave to go see his show live and in person. If it gives her some semblance of hope, am I really one to judge so deeply?
After all, most religions ask for far more from people than this guy ever has. I can say for a fact that more of my mother's money has gone into her church than it has to John Edward. He is a nothing, a nobody, barely a blip on the radar of anything that truly matters in the real world. He doesn't deserve the energy I expend in trying to debunk him. For now, I propose we treat him and other psychics like him the same way we do that one creepy guy that always seems to come into the store when we're working: if we ignore him long enough, maybe he'll just go away.
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He doesn't affect my life either, so like you, I don't really care about him. But after previously watching his show, how can you go up to the people in his crowd and tell them everything he does is a bunch of garbage and that it's all fake. Yea, I feel bad because they're paying him this money for nothing, but he's not hurting anyone. He's giving those people reassurance, which they are seeking by going to him for answers. He's a fraud, but there will always be people who will believe it so it's going to be impossible to stop him.
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