I had no idea about the biases and political persuasion of the duo, and I had chosen to see the show merely because I knew of its "magical" and comedic properties. I respect Penn & Teller a great deal now, though I cannot help but meet some of their suppositions with a bit of skepticism. They "debunked" some of the techniques psychics/mediums (media?) use when "reading" people, including hot reading and cold reading. Since I am as of yet undecided about my stance on the supernatural, I was a bit upset by the allegations that all such material is completely bogus. I like to think myself reasonably intelligent (if not incredibly forgetful), so it's frustrating to think that I've been "duped" by people who claim to have extrasensory perception.
I'm curious, faithful readers, as to your take on such things. I've wanted to be open to spirituality, religion, and so forth, but find it increasingly difficult. Do you think that there is some basis (however small) for "supernatural"/"ethereal"/"spiritual" beings and events, or is all a hoax? Do you think that there are actually people who can communicate with the dead, or are we being tricked by our own vulnerability? How should be trusted to make sound decisions of something that is hard to truly prove one way or the other? Any thoughts or comments are welcomed; in fact, I'd love it if you (a stranger, friend, acquaintance, whomever) would comment on this issue. A lot of people feel very strongly (one way or the other) on such a topic; what do YOU think?
To close, I shall leave you with my pictures of Penn, Teller, my friend, and myself. (They were REALLY good about meeting audience members after the show for some free PR!) :)
Me with Penn, the verbose member of the duo. He was most friendly and was great with the crowd!
My friend, Charlie, and me with Teller, the mostly silent member of the two.
No comments:
Post a Comment