And the red flag means that it is considered to have a non-neutral point of view. So I have to wonder why in the world would my bio have a non-neutral point of view? And the reason is because it says in their debts I've been president of the Parapsychological Association, which is a AAAS affiliate, and people don't believe it.
I timed, I actually timed how long it would take to verify that the PA is in fact, a member of the AAAS, and it took 10 seconds searching on Google. So this is obviously frustrating, because myths that are repeated often enough take on an aura of truth, when that's simply not the way it is.
WTB - And yet the majority of educated individuals, not the intelligentsia, necessarily, believe in some sort of psi effects.
Radin - They do. Even in the intelligentsia, when you talk to them in private. In private, there's a big big difference between public and private stance. The public stance for people in a position of holding the public wisdom have to respond in a certain way. I have met very, very few vocal skeptics, who in private would not admit some interest. But they also then, will immediately as soon as they go back in front of the public, will say what they think they are expected to say.
You see again and again in mainstream meetings that if anybody in that audience raises a question about something psychic date immediately become an outcast. But privately afterwards, people will come up. And after a Barrett's who will start talking about their interesting stories. And so it becomes quite a frustrating bridge to straddle, because, the other side of the bridge are people who might be called over enthusiasts, who believe everything is psychic - they see signs and omens everywhere, which is not true either. So I always try to maintain, and most of my colleagues in the PA, try to maintain this middle ground, where you are doubtful. And you remain doubtful at all times. On the other hand, you don't want to be so doubtful that you can't pay attention to actual interesting data. And you can begin to gain confidence about something. But we don't then collapse into black and white world. We remain in interesting shades of color, where you have confidence in some things and less confidence in others.
WTB - Towards the end of your book you point out that perhaps the level of human consciousness over time - has moved from basically the unconscious towards the conscious through stages of awareness that could be classified as superstitious, then mechanistic, currently more involved in black and white logic; do you think understanding and embracing the existence of psi, and actually being able to demonstrate psychic abilities is a potential demonstration of advanced consciousness for humanity?
Radin - Yes. But in the same sense that any advancement of knowledge, does that as well. So the history of humanity is the struggle away from superstition. What is superstition? It's simply ignorance about the way the world works. So every time we take a step away from ignorance is an evolution of the mind. Next > 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
