Now, I have yet to hear someone telling me exactly why they are bothered by Jim Callahan. I'm not bothered by him. On my watch, he hasn't hurt anybody. He doesn't affect my magic, as our material isn't very related. He claims to speak with dead people. Catholics ALL OVER the world claim to do the same by saying they speak to Jesus, Virgin Mary and saints through their prayers.
I am also anti-religious. Aaaaaaaaand I'm going to leave it at that.
Now I've answered that several times over in this thread, but Steerpike put it much more elloquintly than I have:
The danger posed by spirit mediums is not always direct. If people can be persuaded to believe in psychic phenomena, that makes them infinitely easier to con. For every person out there who genuinely believes that they have some sort of supernatural ability, there are 50 more who are natural born predators.
And if anything, a genuine belief in one's alleged abilities actually makes the "psychic" even more dangerous because their absolution and resolve is genuine instead of a con. They will go to greater lengths to prove their abilities and they will amass followers as well.
Callahan's actions undermine the safety of others from con artists. He tells people who are on the fence to make up their minds for themselves. That should tell you right then and there that the man is not a paranormal investigator in a true sense of someone exploring unexplainable phenomena. Because anyone with a true scientific interest in their investigations will tell you without hesitation that the truth is not democratic. We don't get to vote on which scientific theories we like best. We don't get to vote on whether our solar system is heliocentric or geocentric. We don't get to vote on whether gravity is a physical property of matter or whether it's caused by gnomes living in the center of the earth operating a giant magnet.
By telling people that they can make up their own minds, Callahan is giving gullible people the wrong idea and conditioning them to be fooled by creating the illusion of skepticism and empowerment in their minds.
With that mindset, they're the perfect prey for con artists all over the world because their sense of objectivity has been stifled.
Uri Geller poses less of a threat than Callahan in this regard because he's not offering people tempting secrets to the mysteries of life. He's bending phallic objects. I still think he's a dick, but the threat he poses is a drop in the bucket compared to the damage that people like Jim Callahan can create when he offers potential answers to the greatest mystery of all: death.
Now, again, you may hate Criss for all I care. But Jim is crossing a line for exactly the reasons stated above, a line which Criss has never crossed. That's why I have more respect for Criss than for Jim.
....personally, I think Criss is the better magician, but that's only opinion.....
Now, in response to your answer:
Jim does not have supernatural powers. He made a stage performance, which, like Uri mentioned, has a flair of honesty on it.
It had no honesty. He lied about having "powers". You yourself don't believe he does. He continues to claim that he does even though he continues to lie about having them. Therefore, there is no "flair of honesty", otherwise, you would believe he does.
Uri claimed to have "powers" too, for a long, long time before he had to stop because he was being exposed as a fraud too much. He made a fortune using his "powers" to help sports teams in Europe keep from losing (He failed), he sued everyone he can when he was shown that his "powers" weren't real (failed mostly on that too), and he siddles up to Jim, another fraud, saying he has a "flair for honesty". One fraud calling another fraud "honest" means nothing.
It makes you want to believe what he's doing is real. That is why I found it entertaining.
That's fine to make it seem real. But as I said before, someone in the magic arts has the responsiblity to not mislead people into believing that we have "powers". As Steerpike said, and as I've stated over and over, there are many, many varnerable, gullible and desparate people who will grasp at any straw, any hope, even a false one.
Saying you have "powers", or never denying you don't, preys on those people. I don't care if you are saying "I'm only using my powers for entertainment", you are feeding off on people more deparate emotions and giving them hope that is just not real. That's expolitation.
We are meant to make people wonder, maybe give a little scare, surprise, delight and maybe think a little bit. Not make them think you are superhuman and at any give false hope of something that just doesn't exist.
I wasn't bothered one bit by the fact that he didn't admit to being fake, especially with the fact that most of the other contestants were doing the same.
Then those contestants should be brought out in the open, just like Jim was. Now I didn't watch the show at all, just saw the clip. And simply, I do not trust the youtube link you posted. Did the other contestants do "talking to the dead" tricks? Do the other contestants have websites that claim they really do have powers and challege people to prove them wrong? Do the other contestants sell book filled with bullpucky "paranormal" babble of Numerology and claim it to be true? Do the other contestants call themselves "paranormalists" or do they use "illusionist", "magician", etc.? If the other contestants were interviewed, and if they were asked specifically if their "power" was real, did they say no, or did they emphatically say "wellllll you decide"? (Which is a very clever way to say "yes". I'm a hypnotist, I know how to speak in suggestive phrases).
And it should disturb you that someone does that. I don't know if it's ever happened to you, but it's a horrible, horrible feeling when someone thinks you have "powers" and is so desparate for help that you know cannot give. And no matter how much you tell them that you can't give them that help, they are still convinced that you can.
It takes a real low-life person to not only lead people that desparate around like that, also try to convince other people who might be able to see reason, that you can provide help, when you can't simply for your own gain.
That's what Jim is doing. "For entertainment purposes" or no, Jim is doing that.
Sorry this went on so long. I had a lot to say.
