My best friend can predict the future (seriously)

[majorburt]

reading the title, you may think i'm just trolling, pranking, or just board but i'm telling the truth here!

my best friend, call him Joshua (known him since i was 6), is able to predict the near future (about a day max) with accuracy that amazes me! he predicts the good and bad, the big and the small. he sees "visions" of what is about to happen.

Joshua predicted that one of our "bros" would drive his truck into a ditch on a certain road.... and it happened about a day later!!!! (cars a little messed up but he's alright)

Joshua was riding in a car for about 70-100 miles with his dad to get the car his dad just bought. he was starring out the window, then he predicted that "two girls would get out of a pickup truck, walk to the side, and kiss each other. a few miles passed, then he saw the EXACT same pick up truck. he looked at it and sure enough, the EXACT same two girls got out of the truck, walked around to the side, and kissed!!!!


all this just seemed like rather cool stories.i didn't doubt him or his "powers" as stranger things have and did happen that day. then, he made a prediction about me...

it was a small, kinda dumb prediction, but still very cool.

he saw me pointing over by the mantle by the fireplace. i didn't think much of it. a few hours passed, then one of the clocks started to chime and i didn't know what it was. i POINTED TOWARDS THE MANTLE and said "what is that?". he said with a smile on his face "its a clock... and you pointed."



i don't know what to make of this.

is there anybody who can shed some light on this or share some stories about their own "powers"?

[nothingspecial]

Closed.

[nothingspecial]

And re-opened. :)

[Elfy]

Bet your friend didn't predict that ...

[Stuie675]

Does he have his own telephone hotline?

[mips]

Please PM me his email address, I'll mail him on Thursday even for the Friday UK, Euro & SA Lotto numbers. Whatever I win I will split 50/50 with him.

[Dragonbite]

Sounds pretty cool.

I've know of one person who has a relative that is psychic. When their cat went missing they called their relative (the psychic was in CA while the cat was in CT). The relative called back with accurate description of WHICH tree in their yard the cat was stuck up in.

Don't discount his abilities regardless of what people may think or say. Some people won't believe trees exist even after they walk headlong int one in the middle of a forest.

Be patient with him, too. This friend's relative used to do some form or readings (I don't know what kind) and after some experience she then refused to do readings or predictions for friends and family. I imagine she saw something not-so-nice in a friend or loved one's prediction once.

:guitar:

[Grenage]

Must... resist....

Must....... resist.......

[haqking]

There is no spoon.....the end !

[wojox]

We have found a witch, may we burn her? :p

[zombifier25]

PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN :p

[stinkeye]

We have found a witch, may we burn her? :p
Only if she floats.

[drmrgd]

Only if she floats.

What floats, apart from witches?

[stinkeye]

Bread?

[QIII]

Does your friend weigh as much as a duck?

So, here's the thing.

People tend to remember the times when a psychic was "right", and people also tend to put detailed events back into "predictions" that were either vague or not at all what actually happened.

What people forget are all the "predictions" that failed to materialize.

So, keep a log. Details, details. Log all predictions. What percentage actually materialize? What percentage of events that do happen fit the prediction exactly? Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. A miss is as good as a mile for "prophets".

Did the thing occur exactly as predicted, or just sort of if you squint a little and hold your head to the side a bit?

[Dragonbite]

Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

And Atomic Bombs.

Does it really matter how many times one is right and one is wrong? It isn't like he's trying to classify "oh you are 9/10 correct so you are not "psychic", you are "good guesser".

This, of course, assumes that he can verbalize or write down the prediction that may come in the form of visuals and not so easy to put down.

A visual can have tremendous details but is it like waking up in the morning where as time goes on the memory fades?

It would be interesting to see what his log would show, but I would hesitate on being harsh if the details are not there because of fading visuals or not being able to "shift gears" from visual to auditory.

[3rdalbum]

Psychic ability does exist, no doubt in my mind. Most of the people who call themselves "psychics" are phoneys, though, IMHO.

It seems that we all have a kind of mental link with our god, which is like a direct communications link to a small subset of our god's abilities. Some people can only use the link for the most basic things - thoughts and feelings go to god, god can influence person to a small extent.

However, other people can use the link for much more. There are people who have dreams that come true - I believe these people, while in an unconcious state, can access a predictive function of god, or can see god's vision of what god would prefer to happen. Sometimes these dreams lack details, or we lack the knowledge to interpret them properly. God's not perfect, and I'm sure it's difficult to keep good mental communications going across long distances, much like wifi.

Then there's people who can use this mental link even when conscious, with little interference or fuzziness - and if you're reporting fairly what has happened, then congratulations; your friend has a much closer link to god than most people. It's my belief too that the link goes two ways - if your friend can access more of god's functions, then god can also have more of an altruistic/benign influence on your friend. That's a good thing!

Sorry if this gets construed as a "religious discussion" and jailed. I'm not really talking about religion, but sharing a personal beliefs system that I hold that already explains this situation. Not dissing anyone else's beliefs or trying to prompt debate or acceptance about my own - if this crosses the line please just remove it and let me know.

[Bandit]

While I don't discount not being able to see the future per se, to get into a really good debate on this would bring in many religious and philosophical point of views that would go against our COC here on the forums. So I will avoid those points of this and hope others do the same.


I will however like to point out a flaw in the human brain.

Lets say said person of no name can see the future. How does he or she know when they are viewing things in the future? If they are like me, I day dream constantly and think of things non stop. If I was able to get glimpse of the future, it may not appear no more important or any different then my vision (day dream) of being rich and driving a Bentley 30 seconds before. Thus how would that person know when they see the future or just daydreaming until the event they for seen is or just occurred? And if thats the case, how helpful is being able to even see the future?

[monkeybrain2012]

Yeah maybe he can make a million bucks.

http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/1m-challenge.html

[deadflowr]

How come people who can see the future never win the lottery?

[Dragonbite]

How does he or she know when they are viewing things in the future? If they are like me, I day dream constantly and think of things non stop. If I was able to get glimpse of the future, it may not appear no more important or any different then my vision (day dream) of being rich and driving a Bentley 30 seconds before. Thus how would that person know when they see the future or just daydreaming until the event they for seen is or just occurred? And if thats the case, how helpful is being able to even see the future?

It could be that the vision "feels" different than a daydream in some way. Ever have a Deja Vu? I've even thought I had a Deja Vu only to find it happening just the way I "saw" it before yet at a later time. It felt like it was the 3rd or 4th time through that exact experience. It's hard do describe it, though.

[Linuxratty]

Bet your friend didn't predict that ...

:D Elfy,your too cool for words!:biggrin:=D>

So glad I'm not superstitious.

[QIII]

How come people who can see the future never win the lottery?

Because there is a conveniently universal rule that good psychics can never personally profit from their gift.

Otherwise you might be given to wonder why it is that a self-proclaimed psychic doesn't pick winning lottery tickets any more often than anyone else.

If that rule is not enough, then please refer to the rule that says the psychic cannot choose what he/she sees.

The Universe is large and its mysteries many. I cannot disprove the existence od psychic powers. However, there being no evidence strong enough to compel me to posit its existence, I do not need to posit its existence to explain anything.

Bring me peer reviewed clinical or laboratory data that indicates anything greater than pure chance and I will consider that evidence.

[Jakin]

"psychics" Simon Baker is the Mentalist on CBS :P

Nah i suppose there could be some legit psychics out there, probably not those who publicly claim to be though.

[KiwiNZ]

I predict the future on a daily basis, right before a thread is closed or the Ban Hammer swings :P

[lisati]

The Universe is large and its mysteries many.
^^^ This.

There are many things we do not know. One such mystery is why I have five mobile phones for my own use, Mrs Lisati has another, and two more that would have connected to a network that was switched off about 6 months ago. (Part of the answer lies in "upgrades" over the last couple of years....)

[KiwiNZ]

^^^ This.

There are many things we do not know. One such mystery is why I have five mobile phones for my own use, Mrs Lisati has another, and two more that would have connected to a network that was switched off about 6 months ago. (Part of the answer lies in "upgrades" over the last couple of years....)


The biggest mysteries in the universe are.....

1. Where do all the socks go?
2. Why do women go to the bathroom in pairs or more? nothing in there is a group activity.
3 where the heck are my marbles?

[moster]

Come on people, there are 7 billions of us. Someone is born to heal, someone to make tons ofmoney, someone to see future.. what is NOT to believe*!

ps. My "gift" is to see how small I am in terms of universe hehe

[lisati]

1. Where do all the socks go?
Our house has a resident gremlin who gets the blame when near-new socks go missing, leaving only socks that are old, full of holes, or otherwise unusable.

3 where the heck are my marbles?
I don't know where mine are either! :D

[QIII]

My question about the universe is: Why, as we become older, and presumably wiser, does it take longer and longer for us to look for our trifocals before we realize they are on our faces?

[KiwiNZ]

My question about the universe is: Why, as we become older, and presumably wiser, does it take longer and longer for us to look for our trifocals before we realize they are on our faces?

because as we grow older our thoughts are beyond the trivial:P

[rg4w]

Weird planet. Some say prognostication happens among those sensitive to tachyons.

[Linuxratty]

Because there is a conveniently universal rule that good psychics can never personally profit from their gift.

Oh but they do profit.
They are also often proven wrong.

http://www.csicop.org/si/show/psychic_defective_sylvia_brownes_history_of_failur e/



And if there were real psychics,they would have told us long ago where the socks go.

[forrestcupp]

I have the psychic ability to discern what your bank accounts and social security numbers are based only on your Ubuntu Forums user name. PM me that info, and I'll let you know if I was right. :D



1. Where do all the socks go?Strange! I was wondering where all of these socks are coming from. ;)

[leclerc65]

Our house has a resident gremlin who gets the blame when near-new socks go missing, leaving only socks that are old, full of holes, or otherwise unusable.
I buy few dozens of the same socks at the same time, in only one color (white), to be sure that they last for a while.:P

[leclerc65]

Weird planet. Some say prognostication happens among those sensitive to tachyons.
Maybe our mind doesn't have to follow Einstein's Relativity Law, it can move back and forth through time.:P

[prettysum]

So, did your friend ever mention anything about dec21? do we really have to evacuate earth? :D

[mips]

1. Where do all the socks go?


That question has been answered, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEnUK-prqNo
Version that got screened on tv http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3vkmkGt-0M

[forrestcupp]

So, did your friend ever mention anything about dec21? do we really have to evacuate earth? :D

He only predicts a day in advance. I guess we'll have to wait until Dec. 20th to find out if we're all dying the next day.

[haqking]

So, did your friend ever mention anything about dec21? do we really have to evacuate earth? :D

The Mayans couldn't predict their own demise, I don't put faith in any future predictions ;-)

[zombifier25]

The Mayans couldn't predict their own demise, I don't put faith in any future predictions ;-)

1. The Mayans DID NOT predict the end of the world. December 21st, 2012 simply marks the beginning of a new cycle.

2. The Mayans were NOT DESTROYED, unlike the Aztecs. They simply disappeared around the 8th or 9th century, and there sure weren't any Spanish conquistadors around that time. Countless theories were proposed, but none were really convincing.

If I missed any hidden humour, then dismiss this post.

[rg4w]

Maybe our mind doesn't have to follow Einstein's Relativity Law, it can move back and forth through time.:P
But there's the rub: that's a theory, not a law.

While I don't believe faster-than-light particles have been proven to exist, there seems to be growing interest in the possibility.

Of course even if there were faster-than-light particles, any relationship between them and alleged prognostication would - and IMO should - be highly suspect.

And yet there remains a wide range of weird things that happen on this planet that we don't yet understand the underlying principles of. Every generation we discover new things that were previously mysteries.

While most prognosticators are easily proven to be fakes, I can't completely discount the possibility that some may exist.

[haqking]

1. The Mayans DID NOT predict the end of the world. December 21st, 2012 simply marks the beginning of a new cycle.

2. The Mayans were NOT DESTROYED, unlike the Aztecs. They simply disappeared around the 8th or 9th century, and there sure weren't any Spanish conquistadors around that time. Countless theories were proposed, but none were really convincing.

If I missed any hidden humour, then dismiss this post.

it was hidden ;-)

Peace

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Maybe some people have an ability to subconsciously determine probability or likelihood that something will happening; however, that is not predicting the future in my opinion.

About half a century ago, I dated a woman that was a witch. She made a living predicting the future, casting spells, etc.

For example:


She did Tarot card readings. She didn't actually predict the future in my opinion.

People would come to her and ask if their spouse was cheating on them, and what to do about it.

That question told the witch that the spouse was either cheating or the persion asking for advice was a jelous suspecious type.

The witch would do a Tarot card reading and ask questions as the cards were laid out. The witch used the answers to supliment logic with intuition in order to determine if the spouse was likely to be cheating or the person themself was just likely to be a jelous suspecious person.

It wasn't a determination of fact. It wasn't based on mathematical probability. It was based on a likelihood through the combination of logic suplimented with intuition.

The witch would offer a spell as a solution; however, those details are off topic.

[Jakin]

1. The Mayans DID NOT predict the end of the world. December 21st, 2012 simply marks the beginning of a new cycle.

2. The Mayans were NOT DESTROYED, unlike the Aztecs. They simply disappeared around the 8th or 9th century, and there sure weren't any Spanish conquistadors around that time. Countless theories were proposed, but none were really convincing.

If I missed any hidden humour, then dismiss this post.

Yep the Maya were subject to social decline. Competing nobles gone insane for total control of the empire. It had gotten to the point where they had ignored everything else, the cities began to wither, trade was upset, eventually they could not sustain themselves, or their vast cities and empire- they (over time) just plain abandoned their temples and cities. By the time spanish conquistadors had arrived in the area, everything was in such ruin, the spanish thought noone must have been around for centuries, found nothing of "worth"... and pressed on. Meso american's died more of germs carried by the europeans, they were so weak, it make it easy for the spanish to crush them. Maya were spared this gruesome fate, but their ultimate fall might have been concidered worse.

Maya believed time was cyclical, there were never any mention of an end of the world.

[pissedoffdude]

What you have to do is ask him to give me the winning lotto numbers :P

[chmegr]

We have found a witch, may we burn her? :p


A WITCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:x

[Linuxratty]

[INDENT]She did Tarot card readings. She didn't actually predict the future in my opinion.

Mine as well. What so called psychics, card readers,etc. actually do is called cold reading.



Cold reading is the ability to gain information about someone without that person realizing that they are actually giving up the information themselves. This is achieved using a series of tricks and psychological manipulations to coax information out of the interviewee, and then to pass it off as being generated by psychic powers or other means. These tricks are combined with selective reporting or clever editing (of televised readings) to give the appearance that the reading was very successful, and almost magical. If done right, a cold reading leaves a person, or at least most of the audience, completely unaware that they revealed the information themselves.

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Cold_reading

[majorburt]

didn't get back to this thread for two days.... and it EXPLODED!!!

no, i will not give anyone his phone, email, or anything like that.
i won't ask him to do "readings" as it doesn't work like that either.

didn't think this would reopen either, cool.

...

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Mine as well. What so called psychics, card readers,etc. actually do is called cold reading.


http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Cold_reading

I disagree with the content of that link.

Most of the people I have met that predict the future are not trying to mislead/manipulate people. They believe in their ability.

They just don't realize that they are determining the likelihood of an event by combining logic with intuition gained by the answers to questions arising from the method of deviation they employ; such as, Tarot card reading.

I don't think most of them have any misleading/manipulative intent.

[neu5eeCh]

I've gone from uninformed enthusiast, to strict skeptic, to informed open-mindedness.

Though the OP could be pulling our collective leg, I do know that individuals have seen and can accurately see the future (though I've never met anyone who could selectively do so - as in selectively predict a lottery number). I myself have accurately "seen" the future on occasion. (I also know that strong evidence suggests that consciousness is non-local.)

What interests me about this particular "psychic" ability (foreseeing the future) is not so much that it happens, but what it says about free will, fate, and destiny. On the one hand, we're led to believe (by some accounts) that life is about making choices. On the other hand, individuals sometimes see quite specific predictions concerning events that will (and do) occur days, years, and sometimes decades in the future. If they're to be believed (and there is veridical evidence to back up some of these claims), then these visions seem to imply a knowledge of each tiny, minute, lilliputian decision we will make between the stated prediction and when it will occur. This suggest that all our choices are made or that we really don't make choices at all, but simply bounce through life like billiard balls.

If what the OP says about his friend is true, then this too implies that our lives are predetermined (or would seem to be). Strangely enough, to ability to predict (or see) the future argues in favor of materialism and reductionism, (and determinism in particular). :popcorn:

[majorburt]

I've gone from uninformed enthusiast, to strict skeptic, to informed open-mindedness.

Though the OP could be pulling our collective leg, I do know that individuals have seen and can accurately see the future (though I've never met anyone who could selectively do so - as in selectively predict a lottery number). I myself have accurately "seen" the future on occasion. (I also know that strong evidence suggests that consciousness is non-local.)

What interests me about this particular "psychic" ability (foreseeing the future) is not so much that it happens, but what it says about free will, fate, and destiny. On the one hand, we're led to believe (by some accounts) that life is about making choices. On the other hand, individuals sometimes see quite specific predictions concerning events that will (and do) occur days, years, and sometimes decades in the future. If they're to be believed (and there is veridical evidence to back up some of these claims), then these visions seem to imply a knowledge of each tiny, minute, lilliputian decision we will make between the stated prediction and when it will occur. This suggest that all our choices are made or that we really don't make choices at all, but simply bounce through life like billiard balls.

If what the OP says about his friend is true, then this too implies that our lives are predetermined (or would seem to be). Strangely enough, to ability to predict (or see) the future argues in favor of materialism and reductionism, (and determinism in particular). :popcorn:

i'm not pulling anybody's leg with this one. if i was, i would have had alot of fun messing around with the doomsday believers (not ripping on anybody. you can believe what you want) back a few pages.

i don't believe your theory about our life being predetermined. if that were true, than why do some people do all he horrible things that they do (but that another topic entirely).

i'll explain my theory like this: have you ever had a gut feeling that someone was watching you? you look back and theirs someone watching you.
what about that time you decided not to cross the street at that time because you felt paranoid about something? than, about three seconds later, a car shoots past you going 98 being chased by 12 cop cars.

another way to put it that most people can relate to is how you "shine" when you are truly happy and how you feel dark and cold when you are really mad. and you can "feel" this and tell if their in a good mood or not.

what i'm getting at is that humans are VERY perceptive creatures.not bound to an eternal fate or destiny if that what you were getting at.
some people lust learn to trust their gut as most of the time its right. other people can just "feel" whats going to happen. than, very rarely, you find someone who is so good at this "feeling" thing that their brains automatically just tell them whats going to happen.

its all about the theory of the "aura" and how sensitive you are to them in my opinion.

[Jakin]

i'm not pulling anybody's leg with this one. if i was, i would have had alot of fun messing around with the doomsday believers (not ripping on anybody. you can believe what you want) back a few pages.

i don't believe your theory about our life being predetermined. if that were true, than why do some people do all he horrible things that they do (but that another topic entirely).

(For sake of argument, and maybe not quite what you mean anyway) ----Unless our fate IS predetermined, but not ultimate. Say, if the choices we make, cause our fate to alter course of our future constantly, or even if you believe in parallel universes, cause parallel timelines to split, where your parallel self is still headed on the "old" course, but that parallel self can do the same, thousands of parallels... yadda yadda. Just like the theory that states if we could go back in time, and were to change something, we alter the future, small things, or many orders of magnitude.
If time is elliptical, then for sure our future must be predetermined- it has surely happened before, but because of timesplits into parallels, time is looping back, and then offsetting at the time of a choice; Leading you off course constantly, and so time becomes a spiral rather than a repeating ellipse... a paradox.. :shock: :lolflag:

In a sense we can predetermine our goals in life, and many of us do reach those goals, and it was all thanks to the choices we made leading there :)

However, i totally agree about your theory of ESP.

[asifnaz]

Well I cant say I can see in future but it has happened many times to me , for example I see a car accident and just remember, previous day, I was thinking about absolutely similar accident with similar details .

I don't discuss this with anybody because I am afraid of being ridiculed an . And further more I have no control what to see . And I only realize it when event is actually occurred .

So its useless to prevent or take advantage of anything

[RichardUK]

Maybe all the big lotto winners are psychic but don't tell anyone because they are frightened that they would be kidnapped and forced to pick LOTO numbers for an evil genius.

In he's volcano
In space
with sharks under a trap door
and a monkey butler
and a clone mutant army..........

Maybe Steve Jobs was psychic? Apple did seem to be able to patient other peoples inventions????

You never thought of that....


):P

[majorburt]

(For sake of argument, and maybe not quite what you mean anyway) ----Unless our fate IS predetermined, but not ultimate. Say, if the choices we make, cause our fate to alter course of our future constantly, or even if you believe in parallel universes, cause parallel timelines to split, where your parallel self is still headed on the "old" course, but that parallel self can do the same, thousands of parallels... yadda yadda. Just like the theory that states if we could go back in time, and were to change something, we alter the future, small things, or many orders of magnitude.
If time is elliptical, then for sure our future must be predetermined- it has surely happened before, but because of timesplits into parallels, time is looping back, and then offsetting at the time of a choice; Leading you off course constantly, and so time becomes a spiral rather than a repeating ellipse... a paradox.. :shock: :lolflag:

In a sense we can predetermine our goals in life, and many of us do reach those goals, and it was all thanks to the choices we made leading there :)

However, i totally agree about your theory of ESP.

interesting. are you talking about the butterfly effect?

[Linuxratty]

its all about the theory of the "aura" and how sensitive you are to them in my opinion.

Years ago there was a program where people's abilities to see auras was tested...The end result was that no one could in fact do so irl.And people who really can apparently were not on the program (see links).
Keep in mind, at any one time,sometime in your area,there will be a car accident...

More on auras:

http://www.skepdic.com/auras.html

The real explanation of so called auras is really quite interesting and has to do with synesthesia.

http://doubtfulnews.com/2012/05/a-possible-scientific-explanation-for-healers-seeing-auras/


http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-scientific-evidence-healers-aura-people.html

Do I believe people have special powers and can predict the future,see auras (unless they have synesthesia),talk to the dead,etc.? Of course not.

You won't convince me and I won't convince you,however.

[majorburt]

Years ago there was a program where people's abilities to see auras was tested...The end result was that no one could in fact do so irl.And people who really can apparently were not on the program (see links).
Keep in mind, at any one time,sometime in your area,there will be a car accident...

More on auras:

http://www.skepdic.com/auras.html

The real explanation of so called auras is really quite interesting and has to do with synesthesia.

http://doubtfulnews.com/2012/05/a-possible-scientific-explanation-for-healers-seeing-auras/


http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-scientific-evidence-healers-aura-people.html

Do I believe people have special powers and can predict the future,see auras (unless they have synesthesia),talk to the dead,etc.? Of course not.

You won't convince me and I won't convince you,however.

not trying to convince you, just making a few points and clarifying things here.

when i said "aura", i meant that there is a certain "feel" someone gives off according to their mood. have you ever had someone walk up to you when your mad or sad or whatever and ask "is there something wrong" or "you look down"? that's sort of what i meant with the aura thing.

another way to put the "aura" thing isn't so much a person, but a house. have you ever been in a seemingly normal house and thought it was creepy? did the hair on the back or your neck stand up? some say that is the fight or flight response starting to kick in. your brain scenes something is up and tells your body to prepare to take Acton.

i'm guessing that some people just have more range (think wireless router) than others when it comes to feeling the "aura" or whatever than other people.

i didn't know there were studies on the effect of auras or anything like that nor do i know how true it is, but it looked pretty cool.

[greatsirkain]

Love is the law! Law under will!

It's easy to claim a power nobody else can experience, it's even easier to deny a power you don't have. Your reality is my delusion. Anyone read about the psyops guys? Before George Clooney made a film about it and ruined it?

I know enough to know that I have neither the dimension, wisdom of intelligence to define other peoples reality

You may quote me...Except on the top line 'cause I stole that off a possible nutbar (Crowley).

Edit:
An 'aura' is an electro-magnetic resonance and scientific fact

[majorburt]

Love is the law! Law under will!

It's easy to claim a power nobody else can experience, it's even easier to deny a power you don't have. Your reality is my delusion. Anyone read about the psyops guys? Before George Clooney made a film about it and ruined it?

I know enough to know that I have neither the dimension, wisdom of intelligence to define other peoples reality

You may quote me...Except on the top line 'cause I stole that off a possible nutbar (Crowley).

Edit:
An 'aura' is an electro-magnetic resonance and scientific fact

correct me if i'm wrong, but you have the wrong type of aura dude.
i'm talking about the aura people give off, not the electromagnetic waves that breaker boxes give off. that is called EMF (Electromagnetic Frequency, not aura.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Love is the law! Law under will!

...

You may quote me...Except on the top line 'cause I stole that off a possible nutbar (Crowley).


WOW, Aleister Crowley, Liber AL vel Legis. I didn't know anyone read his works anymore. Crowley wrote that about 100 years ago.

[neu5eeCh]

i'm not pulling anybody's leg with this one. if i was, i would have had alot of fun messing around with the doomsday believers (not ripping on anybody. you can believe what you want) back a few pages.

Okay.


i don't believe your theory about our life being predetermined. if that were true, than why do some people do all he horrible things that they do (but that another topic entirely).

Right... first of all, it's not "my theory". I really don't have a theory one way or the other, not even a hypothesis. I'm utterly baffled. I'm just telling you what I observe, what the evidence is, and what you yourself have stated (which let's accept as evidence).

Look at it this way: Skeptics love to counter predictions by coming up with the "odds" of X,Y, or Z happening. At any given time of the day, they say, the odds will be X that your mother, who you were just thinking about, will call. How skeptics quantify these odds are never revealed by the way, (their own "god in the gap") but let's just say that during every second you could make a choice that could have a butterfly-like effect on the next 86,399 seconds (one day), that's a flip-load of choices because each choice exponentially influences the next.

So... let's just say you're on the level about your friend. Let's say he accurately predicts what someone is going to do 24 hours from the time he makes his prediction. Not only does he have to know (at some level) every choice the concerned individual (X) is going to make during the next 86,400 seconds (that's 86,400 choices), but he also has to know the choices that every person (A through Z) is going to make who influences X by their own choices! Are you following me? The arithmetic starts to get frighteningly complex and large.

How do you explain it?

The simplest way to explain it is that the universe is deterministic and that choice is an illusion. Your friend can, in a sense, occasionally see the fourth dimension (time), the way we mortals see height, length and width; and what he sees (knowingly or not) is that the future is like the past -- fixed and decided.

The alternative is that your friend accurately guesses or predicts choices that an individual (along with all those who interact with him or her) will make on the order, possibly, of 1 in 10 to the 100th or 1000th power.

What's going on? How do you explain it? Some skeptics simply refuse to acknowledge the evidence exists (fingers in the ear approach), but it actually argues in their favor. They're just too ideological to realize it, I guess.

[majorburt]

Okay.



Right... first of all, it's not "my theory". I really don't have a theory one way or the other, not even a hypothesis. I'm utterly baffled. I'm just telling you what I observe, what the evidence is, and what you yourself have stated (which let's accept as evidence).



sorry. didn't mean to make what i said sound like that. i guess i chose the wrong word there :(

i understand what your saying. i just really don't believe that the universe is deterministic or fixed in some way. if it was, would it not have stopped any and all evil from ever happening as it is counter-intuitive to the "plan" for the universe? what if that person that just got killed in the alleyway had the cure for, say, cancer? he died and the cure was never able to save the one person who could have saved the entire human race from total annihilation from a nuclear war.

but then, the argument must be made that, it was time to go according to the "plan" and so the man HAD to die.

like i said, i just don't like that outlook on life. i want to at least think that i could save that man(whether he cures cancer or not) and just feel good about it rather than think that it was all just some plan that i was following. you know, free will and all that.

not mocking or anything, just making a scenario.


he could just be able to determine the odds of something happening one way or another. this explains everything he predicted about me as well as his other friends.

the only thing it doesn't explain is the girls kissing in front of the pickup truck as he has never been out that way before and has never met those two girls.
how would he have predicted that? i know when he's lying and he wasn't.


just to clarify this.
i don't mean to offend or insult anyone or their beliefs. and just as i try (and sometimes fail), i ask anyone to please try to do the same before you decide to jump others for what they believe.

[Jason80513]

How come people who can see the future never win the lottery?

See, I knew you were going to say that.

[pissedoffdude]

Okay.

How do you explain it?

The simplest way to explain it is that the universe is deterministic and that choice is an illusion. Your friend can, in a sense, occasionally see the fourth dimension (time), the way we mortals see height, length and width; and what he sees (knowingly or not) is that the future is like the past -- fixed and decided.

The alternative is that your friend accurately guesses or predicts choices that an individual (along with all those who interact with him or her) will make on the order, possibly, of 1 in 10 to the 100th or 1000th power.

What's going on? How do you explain it? Some skeptics simply refuse to acknowledge the evidence exists (fingers in the ear approach), but it actually argues in their favor. They're just too ideological to realize it, I guess.

I'm not entirely sure that's the best way to look at it. First of all, you're confusing determinism with fatalism. On determinism, every event is caused by something. For instance, me typing this response was caused by some kind of neuronal activity in my brain. From here, we could either accept or reject free will. On a view called compatibalism, free will and determinism are not mutually exclusive. We can debate the validity of this claim, as it's not obvious and it's a huge issue in contemporary philosophy. But the point is, compatibalism states that there's no logical inconsistency between free will and determinism, so just because events obey physically laws, it doesn't follow that we are not in control of anything.

Now, fatalism is the view that event will happen, regardless of what we try to do, so we're not in control. But if determinism is correct, from earlier, all we can conclude is that we either have free will, or we don't have free will. So regardless of whether it's true or false, determinism itself doesn't imply anything about fatalism. Now suppose fatalism, as I defined it earlier, is true. Why does fatalism have to follow any deterministic laws? Couldn't it be the case things are destined to happen because a God determined them to happen? What we have then is this:
1) Determinism implies free will, or no free will
2) Fatalism implies no free will

On 2), it's important to note the converse is not true. Therefore, regardless of 1), 2) does not follow because no free will doesn't imply fatalism

And now let's suppose the stuff I just mentioned is false anyway and fatalism is true. Is it really the case that the more probable outcome when people "predict" the future is that they are psychic? There are a ton of explanations. To name a few:
* They're lying (probably not the case here)
* Chance (I'm aware of what you said earlier, but that pertains only to cases where you flat-out guess. If you have a reason to guess, the chance of you "predicting" it is higher. For instance, if you make an argument for gay marriage, it's not that hard to "predict" how some people will respond to it)
* Emotional Intelligence. Some people are just naturally good are reading others, so they're more likely to tell you what will happen next

I still don't think that fatalism implies we have psychics either, so if someone claims to be psychic, I'm going to need something pretty convincing to make me think otherwise. Why don't psychics ever win the lottery, why do they have you to ask you for your name? Maybe next time someone claims to be psychic, punch them in the face and then ask if they saw that coming. Haha, jk :P

Edit: I also wanted to add that many physicists reject determinism, as we can't predict things at the quantum level. Maybe someone here who's well versed in that area could elaborate on this point.

[neu5eeCh]

Great response.


I'm not entirely sure that's the best way to look at it. First of all, you're confusing determinism with fatalism. On determinism, every event is caused by something.

I don't think I am, though you're certainly right that there are different takes on determinism. Here's what Wikipedia has to say:

Determinism (in a nutshell): "a philosophy stating that for everything that happens there are conditions such that, given those conditions, nothing else could happen." This is the reason Descartes could excitedly state that if all causes were known, then all future effects could be known. (Prior, as you say, to QM.)

Fatalism: "the idea that everything is fated to happen, so that humans have no control over their future. Notice that fate has arbitrary power."

So... I'm sticking with Determinism rather than Fatalism, though the ability to predict the future could also suggest fatalism. The "problem" with the latter, though, is that Majorburt's friend, in a fatalistic universe, must also predict the choices of the "arbitrary power" "fate". And this further muddies the waters because it suggests that fate is also subject to determinism (in the classical sense).

You know, it's not like I'm a fan of determinism. All I'm saying is that this is what the evidence suggests. That's all. The ability to predict over a twenty-four hour period (and longer) also argues against a 'compatibilistic' spin on determinism (unless you're willing to suggest that Majorburt's friend can read someone else's mind in the future; and that begs that question...




But the point is, compatibalism states that there's no logical inconsistency between free will and determinism, so just because events obey physically laws, it doesn't follow that we are not in control of anything.

All true; but it does follow that if Majorburt's friend can predict the future, then the evidence argues that we are not in control of anything.


...let's suppose the stuff I just mentioned is false anyway and fatalism is true. Is it really the case that the more probable outcome when people "predict" the future is that they are psychic? There are a ton of explanations. To name a few:
* They're lying (probably not the case here)
* Chance (I'm aware of what you said earlier, but that pertains only to cases where you flat-out guess. If you have a reason to guess, the chance of you "predicting" it is higher. For instance, if you make an argument for gay marriage, it's not that hard to "predict" how some people will respond to it)

It could certainly be Chance. As others have pointed out, Majorburt hasn't told us (or doesn't know) whether or how many times his friend's predictions haven't worked out.


* Emotional Intelligence. Some people are just naturally good are reading others, so they're more likely to tell you what will happen next...

Yes, but (normally) any prediction involves variables beyond considerations of "emotional intelligence", so I would be apt to dismiss this suggestion pretty much out of hand.


Maybe next time someone claims to be psychic, punch them in the face and then ask if they saw that coming. Haha, jk :P

Ha! That made me laugh. If you decide to follow through on this experiment, will you have a control? ;)


Edit: I also wanted to add that many physicists reject determinism, as we can't predict things at the quantum level. Maybe someone here who's well versed in that area could elaborate on this point.

Yes, QM wrecked the 19th century's dreams of a deterministic universe. But, ultimately, we don't care what physicists say. It's the evidence that counts. If you have some character running around accurately making predictions about people a day (or days) in advance, then that says something about the universe -- mainly that Richard Carrier is right and that the fourth dimension is as decided and fixed as a table top.

[neu5eeCh]

i understand what your saying. i just really don't believe that the universe is deterministic or fixed in some way.

OK.


...if it was, would it not have stopped any and all evil from ever happening as it is counter-intuitive to the "plan" for the universe?

On the contrary, a deterministic universe would be indifferent; and that's exactly how the world seems to work. The universe, according to the evidence, couldn't have cared less about Hitler, Stalin or their millions of victims. If we all wipe ourselves out tomorrow, the universe indifferently goes on. Your question implies an arbitrary power (fatalism) with an interest in setting up a universe favoring "good" over "evil".

So... what your friends "powers" seem to evidence is that time is fixed, free will is an illusion, and that the universe is utterly indifferent.




...what if that person that just got killed in the alleyway had the cure for, say, cancer? he died and the cure was never able to save the one person who could have saved the entire human race from total annihilation from a nuclear war.

One could certainly read previous events in history in precisely that way. There was a recent book published on WWI arguing that if one person hadn't been killed, the entire war may have been averted.


...like i said, i just don't like that outlook on life.

I don't either, but evidence is evidence. I prefer to understand the world as it is (to the best of my ability) rather than how I would like it to be.


...he could just be able to determine the odds of something happening one way or another. this explains everything he predicted about me as well as his other friends.

No it doesn't. That explanation only works if he is sometimes wrong. So... that's what you need to find out. Ask him and get back to us. Does he ever see the future or make predictions that fail? It's your only hope (in a sense). If he is playing the "odds", then sometimes one would expect him to be wrong.


the only thing it doesn't explain is the girls kissing in front of the pickup truck as he has never been out that way before and has never met those two girls. how would he have predicted that? i know when he's lying and he wasn't.

Right, and that eliminates "emotional intelligence" as a possible explanation.

[majorburt]

I don't either, but evidence is evidence. I prefer to understand the world as it is (to the best of my ability) rather than how I would like it to be.

that would be Hitler. he fought (correct me if i'm wrong) in the first world war and a billet shot (according to historical accounts) a couple inches from his head.



Right, and that eliminates "emotional intelligence" as a possible explanation.

what is "emotional intelligence"?

[tech291083]

i don't know what to make of this.

is there anybody who can shed some light on this or share some stories about their own "powers"?

I have this thing as well, but not that regular and so strong as your friend.

I generally come true in sensing the bad, which always make me sad, and I am ashamed to say that it is death.

I would love to know if there is a science to this.

Some people have special powers/talent to predict far and near future with amazing accuracy. Its a two-edged sword though as bad predictions make the person sad well in advance and he simply can't stop them from happening, despite all the powers he feels powerless.

Life is just too cruel I guess, alteast that exactly what I have learned the hard way in the last decade or so as I turned into an adult. There is a lot of pain around us, folks living miserable lives, not wanting to live any more.

I wish technology could help us one day, may be super computer will be able to sequence our DNS in the right manner. Thanks. Good luck to your friend.

[neu5eeCh]

I generally come true in sensing the bad, which always make me sad, and I am ashamed to say that it is death. I would love to know if there is a science to this.

You're not alone in this "ability". Here's a cat who seemed to know:

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2007-07-26-foreboding-feline_N.htm


Life is just too cruel I guess, alteast that exactly what I have learned the hard way in the last decade or so as I turned into an adult. There is a lot of pain around us, folks living miserable lives, not wanting to live any more.

Yeah, but why be so maudlin? It's a bit like concluding that Thanksgiving is a tale of woe and worry because of a tummy ache after the feast.

[greatsirkain]

Can't be bothered to quote ppl :P
guy that started the thread, thats exactly what I mean an aura is your electromagnetic field there's actual physical power/properties in your personal em field

guy that thought nobody reads crowley, I read anything of interest, the philosophy was sound but then he decided drinking cats blood was cool

ok I scrolled what an effort:
old gray wolf (b) and majorburt (a)
:)

[majorburt]

guy that started the thread, thats exactly what I mean an aura is your electromagnetic field there's actual physical power/properties in your personal em field


huh, i didn't think/know that counted as an aura... cool.



guy that thought nobody reads crowley, I read anything of interest, the philosophy was sound but then he decided drinking cats blood was cool

cats blood?...

fun fact: the human body can produce and run between 10 and 100 millivolts!

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

guy that thought nobody reads crowley, I read anything of interest, the philosophy was sound but then he decided drinking cats blood was cool


I didn't mean any disrespect for his work. I was just surprised that people still read Aleister Crowley. I read his works about 30 years ago. I agreed with some of it and disagreed with some of it. It is the same with other writers of the time.



...drinking cats blood was cool...


Don't believe everything that was written about Aleister Crowley; however, some of it is true, and his personal life can distract readers from seeing his philosophy for what it is. If I posted some of the things that Aleister Crowley supposedly said or did, I would have to ban myself from the forum. :)

[Chdslv]

Well, being a Civil Engineer, I was skeptic all the time, until it happened to me. Everything I made was supposed to be under the Laws of Physics, but in 1999, I had a situation, where those laws didn't apply. Even then, I was skeptic and lost a lot of time, because of this unnecessary skepticism.

People can predict the future, the only difference is the future considered from this moment is not the future in the next moment.

Okay, all of you know about atoms, electrons and positrons, neutrons. The electrons move at a hectic pace around the nucleus and between the nucleus and the electrons, there is only vacuum. In other words, there is a void inside an atom. In this void, electrons are moving at a terrific pace.

Now, how many such atoms in a 70 kg human being? Its calculated as 7,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 by the Jefferson Labs. That is so much voids in a human body with electrons moving at a terrific speed. We are made of so many voids, in other words, we are a void, although we can touch and feel our body. And, inside our body there is such a motion, that could fuel few rockets-- we are bundle of energy. Yes, energy in a void.

And there is a mind, which every human being posses and there are whole lot of minds about us. We cannot exactly place our mind to a certain part of our body. It is everywhere.

That person's mind, who predicts catches up energy produces by other minds and that way, he gets the information. So, he tells what he feels at the given moment. If he would know someone, who could guide him to perfect his mind, he could be an asset to the people around him.

I've been helping people, sick people too all my life. I've been sick too, but now I am absolutely healthy. Strange? Yes, it was strange even for me. Okay, I had asthma since I was kid, but now its gone. I had sinus troubles all my life, but now it has gone. Joint pains, eye troubles, stomach puffiness, gassiness etc all had gone away. How? Meditation and mind power.

Let's try something. One of you, or few of you, who has some kind of sickness, let me know through a private message. And, I will heal him or her. Yes, without seeing her or him. Mind you, I can gauge the problem, and also I can feel the person, of the person's integrity. And, as far as the person becomes healthy and so, happy, I'd be glad.

Good day!

Ch

PS: 3-4 months ago, I was only a user of Linux distros, but today I dissect them to parts and make all kinds of new distros. One day, I thought why not and concentrated and the ideas flow in continuously.

PS2: Since last September, I had stopped eating fish, chicken, meat and any kind of animal flesh. I had stopped even drinking beer.

[ikt]

And there is a mind, which every human being posses and there are whole lot of minds about us. We cannot exactly place our mind to a certain part of our body.

There's just one, and it's in the brain.

[Grenage]

You really should not go around telling people than you can heal them of illnesses over the internet; it's cruel, and completely unsuitable. You'll just make people very angry.

[Jakin]

Let's try something. One of you, or few of you, who has some kind of sickness, let me know through a private message. And, I will heal him or her. Yes, without seeing her or him. Mind you, I can gauge the problem, and also I can feel the person, of the person's integrity. And, as far as the person becomes healthy and so, happy, I'd be glad.


Well alrighty :) I seem to have a cotton throat this morning, and some kinda sinus inner ear blockage has been bothering me the last few days... Give it a go :)

[Chdslv]

You really should not go around telling people than you can heal them of illnesses over the internet; it's cruel, and completely unsuitable. You'll just make people very angry.

Not my problem!
Anyone has the right to get angry and that's their personal problem.

Anyway, I suggested this try out as this thread was going on and on, making fools of all of you. Does it matter to me, if people get angry? They can smash their laptops desktops, or kick the wall, or get drunk. That's still their problem.

I said I can feel the person, didn't I?

Anyway, there is a person, who all you know, who is suffering from a brain tumour. He was supposed to die last year, or in the beginning of this year. He is still alive and releases distros. I won't name him, at any cost.

You don't know my real name, but only my login name, so you wouldn't know, who am I. He knows my name. His girlfriend too. There is another developer in Europe knows me by name. And, he knows about the abilities too. I've made few other developers think again and release their distros.

Right now, you are afraid, not angry. I know why too! Okay, if you are ill, that you are, PM me. Let's talk. I don't hurt people, I only help them. And, I don't ask money. Never taken a cent. Its a gift and what I got, I give away. If you are a Christian, read the Bible; it says give what's given to you. I am not a Christian, but I know the Bible very well.

Not only you, but someone in your family--I know who that person is--is sick too. For the sake of argument, you might say no, but I know. There is no reason to fear your sickness, for it can be healed. Ask and will be given. Its that simple!

Good day!
Ch

[sffvba[e0rt]

I predict that no-one else will post in this thread. Less drama more fun m'kay?!


404