A Question…
I’m going to start this one by asking a question:
Should the police use Psychics and Mediums during Investigations? Specifically to help find missing persons?
Today I have been mostly talking to what some (quite wrongly) would expect me to refer to as ‘The Enemy’
I got into a discussion which spanned three forums and facebook about whether or not Psychics or Mediums should be used in missing persons cases – specifically a current case of a missing child in America – which made me examine my own feelings on the subject, how I as a mother would feel if it was my little girl who was missing.
No matter who you are, what you do or how you slice it the evidence remains the same. No amount of hope, desperation or any other negative emotion will change the fact that there is no evidence of the existence of spirit. Okay, so maybe there have been cases of accurate information being received from Psychics in police cases, but just how many letters and phone calls do we not hear about? How many times are the police prevented from pursuing a legitimate lead because the resources they have are being used chasing up a lead provided by a misinformed medium? They are after all human, surely even mediums will admit to getting it wrong sometimes?
Is it better to look for a missing person using proven and scientific methods, or an unqualified person using an unproven skill to gain unverifiable information from an unknown source?
Even more surprisingly, the mediums and their supporters agreed that the first choice was definitely better, but they agreed that the second could give a lot of comfort.. Granted, but for how long? And..
Doesn’t that just make the whole thing a placebo?
Again.. a resounding agreement.. surprisingly. The general feeling was that a placebo isnt a bad thing, if its used correctly – I wholeheartedly agree that placebos are fantastic, conventional medicine relies on them, as do the majority of alternative medicines and therapies.
Being me I did a little more digging. Apparently the police actually have a register of psychics and mediums who can be called upon to assist in cases – allegedly, don’t know how true that one is because it came from a newspaper website. Problem I have with that is that anyone can call themselves a medium in this country without having to prove their worth, or even be licensed. Hopefully the petition will rectify that one..
http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/PsychicTesting/
If you havent signed it already..
So off I wandered, pondering as I went.. got distracted by other conversations, got called closed minded minded again again..
I came back a little later to a conversation about the Swine Flu epidemic, which is quite scarily getting closer to home. Curious, I asked ‘If you had to travel to a place where the ‘Flu was virile, would you consult a medium or psychic to find out if you were likely to become infected?’
The answer? a resounding ‘No! I wouldnt dream of it’
It disturbed me to find that the people who would place the responsibility of helping to find a lost child in a psychics hands would not take the advice of the same psychics when it concerned their own wellbeing.
I didnt need to ask why, the people involved wasted no time in informing me that the advice or information given by psychics is.. well, sometimes inaccurate, and as such shouldnt be taken that seriously – remember, these people are actually mediums.
In this country, its illegal to charge for this possibly inaccurate information unless you say its for entertainment. You can give inaccurate, misleading information you claim is directly from the dead though – thats okay, as long as you give it for free. No matter how sensitive it is.
I went on to ask a medium specifically if she ever had to give information that was sensitive? how did she deal with it?
She replied that she would withhold information if she thought it would cause heartbreak, and that she only used her gift to bring happiness to others.. Im not condeming her, I like her honesty.
It does pose the question however, as well as the scientific testing for mediums and psychics that we are currently campaigning for, should we also ask that psychics and mediums undergo some kind of counsilling training?
So, I ask again:
Should the police use Psychics and Mediums during Investigations? Specifically to help find missing persons?
I’ll leave you to think about that one..
The Petition for Scientific Testing of Mediums and Psychics By Law`
The Petition for Scientific Testing of Mediums and Psychics by Law.
The segments of society today who procure the services of an individual who allegedly ‘communes with the dead’ have a very good reason (in their own mind, at least) for doing so. This reason undoubtedly varies between individuals, but will at least touch on one of the following:
1. Grief. The need for closure after the loss of a loved one. Many people feel the need for one last conversation, or need an answer to a question or maybe even to say things that were left unsaid during their loved ones lifetime.
2. Advice. Psychics are often called on to give advice on all manner of very important issues, including personal, financial matters etc.
There are far too many other reasons to list here, but after making enquiries counseling and advice appear to be the most common.
In 1951, a new Act of Government was brought into Law in the United Kingdom. The aptly named Fraudulent Mediums Act 1951 aimed to curb the multi-million pound psychic and medium industry from taking advantage of, and generally exploiting the naive, the vulnerable and desperate and the grieving. Very few people were brought to justice under this law, and therefore in October 2008 The Fraudulent Mediums Act was abolished, and the industry was then ‘governed’ by the new Consumer Laws.
For the unenlightened, (which again through my own enquiries I have found to be just about everyone in the country, including the officials that are meant to enforce the laws) the part of these laws that actually deals with psychics and mediums is the Unfair Commercial Practices Directives.
Mediums, Psychics, Clairvoyants… Call them what you will, allegedly offer a service for financial gain. For a Medium, Psychic etc to not actually breaking the law they must prove they are really providing the service they claim to be.
I would never claim to be a scientist. I have, however being studying unknown phenomena for over three decades. This does not in any way make me an expert, but does mean I have taken the time to find out a lot of facts. One of the most important facts I have found is that most people who fall into the category of Medium, Psychic etc. claim to speak to the dead. Another Fact I’ve also come across on a regular basis is that in all the years of research into the existence of any part of the psyche, personality, soul etc. AFTER the death of a living organism has come up with absolutely no evidence whatsoever, medically, psychologically or otherwise. This quite obviously means that no person practicing within the realms of psychics, mediums etc can prove they are providing that particular service, and therefore cannot legally charge for it.
There is, however, a loophole, and this loophole is now used extensively throughout the industry. All anyone need do is provide a disclaimer that the service, be it clairvoyance, tarot reading or any other type of psychic or mediumistic activity is actually for entertainment only. This then covers anyone under the current directive to basically say and do whatever they want.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t protect the consumer. As detailed before, the main reasons why people seek the assistance of psychics and mediums are grief and for advice. This means that the consumer in these cases are vulnerable and desperate, and in truth in most cases desperately hoping for a message from a loved one that has passed over. This in itself leaves the medium or psychic in a position of power that is all too easy to exploit.
Apart from the instances of cold and hot reading, and the instances where consumers have actually been researched before given a reading, there is the possibility that accurate information may be given to a consumer during a reading that would suggest that the reader had some means of gaining this information from an unknown source. This however does not rule out the possibility of some form of Extra Sensory Perception coming into play.
Another field where mediums and psychics have found a foothold is the area of paranormal investigation. It seems that the world is awash with unregistered and unmonitored individuals who are free to conduct whatever tests, ‘vigils’, and investigations whenever and however they choose to. Usually the most important source of information or piece of equipment these groups have is their resident psychic, medium or sensitive. The really scary aspect to this is that under present law anyone can gain access to peoples homes, inform them that there is an ‘evil’ presence, a ‘grounded soul’ or even a ‘Demon’ in their homes. Sound far fetched? Then read on…
During my years as an investigator I have come across many horror stories, enough in fact for me to now refer to them as ‘clean up cases’. A case that springs to mind is a public house in South Yorkshire where a medium had claimed that an upstairs cupboard was a ‘portal to the other side’ and ‘negative energy was cascading back into the house’. The medium then claimed to be able to close this ‘portal’ and charged the manager for the ritual. On another occasion, I was contacted by a lady from Rotherham, who having suffered from a variety of serious and very painful gynecological problems for which she had undergone surgery had ended up on strong painkillers and antidepressants. Due to a number of hallucinatory experiences she had, she contacted a medium who claimed the ladies fourteen year old daughter was harboring a demon. I referred her back to her GP, where her medication was altered and up until me losing touch with her last year she was receiving counseling and progressing very well. The case I’m working on currently involves 23 separate alleged paranormal phenomena, one of which is reputed to be a demon. When asked why the client thought there was a demon present, he replied that a mediums face had changed during a ‘trance’, and he had been told that the demon had caused this. He also claims this demon has influenced his moods since then…
I have no evidence to suggest that among the many frauds real mediums don’t exist. What I do know is that within the industry individuals are operating with less than average morals. Giving the vulnerable and naïve false information for financial gain is illegal. Psychologically damaging the already vulnerable and naïve for free is, it would seem, acceptable under current law. We propose a change.
From April 2009, The Petition for Scientific Testing of Mediums and Psychics By Law is available to sign on the British Government Website
http://number10.gov/PsychicTesting/
This petition is also being promoted nationally via the media and websites and similar causes, and calls for government legislation for scientific testing of all individuals who work or refer to themselves as mediums, psychics, healers or spiritualists etc. for financial gain.
The wording of the petition is as follows:
“We the undersigned petition Her Majesties Government to initiate an accreditation scheme for mediums, psychics, healers and other paranormal practitioners, which would determine whether a ‘psychic’ individual truly exhibits abilities unexplainable in terms of current scientific laws.
While the request for such assessment seems both outlandish and Draconian, we ask to raise this petition in recognition that many psychic practitioners charge substantial sums of money for their services to an often vulnerable customer base; most notably the elderly, the bereaved and the seriously ill.
It is noted that the Office of Fair Trading deems false psychic readings to be a major area of fraudulent activity – costing its victims around £140 million per annum…”
Please support this petition. It takes two minutes to sign at http://number10.gov/PsychicTesting/
And as it’s a petition we actively encourage everyone to support it in any way they can, or link to the sites.
More information can be found on the UPIA website or by contacting Dave Sadler, Kirst D’Raven or Steven Mera at the contact details available at www.upia.co.uk
Kirst D’Raven.
