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Originally Posted by Uplift  Brutha, how do you or I know that you are not hallucenating? Where's the evidence to prove it. How do you, or I know you are not brainwashed, or decieved? How will you or I know you have not read the wrong books, listened to the wrong 'experts' (Remember asbestos, ddt. 'Experts' prescribed heroin for babies)? Or that you have misconstrued the information, or that your memory is playing tricks on you? Have experiments been conducted to prove beyond doubt that you are not wrong, or that none of the above is true. Even then, how will you or I know that the experiments have used the correct measuring instruments? That was Michelson's and Morley's error. How do you or I know 'experts' are 'experts'? |
The same could be asked of you.
But if the hallucination is similar day after day, and cause and effect works reliably within that hallucination, encountering something or someone which doesn't would attract attention, wouldn't it? If an ability isn't observable and repeatable, what good is it? If I can't write good code that produces a working application when given a detailed specification, then I can't claim to be able to produce software, can I? Why should extra-sensory abilities be treated any differently?
If people want ESP to be accepted then it has to be treated the same as the normal senses, and related abilities treated as regular abilities. That means they must be able to be subject to appropriate and
objective review.
If someone claims to be able to communicate with the dead, they should be able to do so reliably and in a way that removes any but minor doubt. And if that ability is truly a natural human ability
some humans have (but not all), then all those who
do have it should be able to demonstrate their abilities with an acceptable degree of doubt relative to their skill and experience.
And there is an acceptable level of doubt regarding regular abilities. For example psychiatry or counselling (in this case the provision of services which are the application of the ability to provide therapy, which is a learned ability which does require some specific personality traits to be effective). Even a certified therapist won't be able to help everyone. What they do is highly personal and their methods won't work for everyone. But the study of psychology and the practice of therapy are well established, and there's a huge amount of knowledge available which covers all known aspects of the field. If the same can be done for ESP then it might become more widely accepted.
If worth of value can only be judged by the individual experiencing it, what incentive is there for someone who hasn't had such an experience to go searching for it?
btw Uplift, I have searched for the experience. Not finding it in places where people have made claims that it can be found has made me doubt the usefulness of continuing to search. I'll keep my senses and mind open, but I'd rather focus my efforts on searching that produces results...