================================================================ MindNet Journal - Vol. 1, No. 79 ================================================================ V E R I C O M M sm "Quid veritas est?" ================================================================ The views and opinions expressed below are not necessarily the views and opinions of VERICOMM, or the editors unless otherwise noted. The following is reproduced here with the express permission of the author. Permission is given to reproduce and redistribute, for non-commercial purposes only, provided this information and the copy remain intact and unedited. Copy formatted in ASCII. Netscape mail reader format: "Options/Mail & News Preferences/Appearance" = Fixed Width Font. ================================================================ REMOTE VIEWING TEST By Martin Cannon May 1996 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Hi. My name is Martin Cannon. About five years ago I annoyed researchers in various fields with a monograph called "The Controllers." The book-length update of this paper will include a few words about "Remote Viewing," which seems to be THE hot topic among both political and paranormal investigators right now. Ever since a CIA officer discussed the Agency's interest on Nightline, a sort of RV mania has swept over many people. This mania has been exacerbated by the recent book "Cosmic Voyage," by Courtney Brown ("PHD.," as he like to remind us) which has proven extremely popular -- some people revere it as a Third Testament. In the book, Brown uses RV to obtain interviews with Martians, Jesus, and Buddha. Now, if I were having a dialogue with a discarnate entity calling itself Jesus, I'd ask him to say a few words in Aramaic. And Buddha might want to predict the winner of next year's World Series in Sanskrit. But the RV advocates with whom I've spoken say that this response indicates a decidedly negative, un-groovy attitude, the sort of attitude that inhibits proper RV functioning. Now, let me quickly make one point quite clear: I am not completely skeptical of remote viewing claims. A few years ago, I got a call out of the blue from a lady named Shelly Thomas, who described herself as a remote viewer trained by the Psi-Tech organization. I tested her. Specifically, I asked her if she could describe the painting then hanging over my couch. As it happened, this was a particularly unusual painting (Jupiter as viewed from one of its moons -- I had done this airbrush work in my other life as a commercial illustrator). Shelly had a go at it -- AND SHE WAS SPOT ON! Very accurate. I made sure not to say ONE WORD -- I did not even breathe an audible breath -- while she delivered her description. The whole experience was genuinely uncanny. So I cannot dismiss all such claims. It's possible, of course, that she had spoken to someone who visited my home. This seems unlikely, since no-one I know appears to have met or spoken with Shelly. Despite this experience, I am becoming somewhat skeptical of the many remote viewing claims that I am now hearing. The whole thing has become rather too faddish for my taste. Moreover, I am finding it quite difficult to have a normal conversation with certain people -- they refuse to differentiate between information received via the normal five senses and information obtained psychically. It is annoying to have to constantly ask: "Wait -- just HOW do you know this?" Sorry folks, but data obtained through RV is NOT "just as valid" as data obtained via the eye and the ear. For example: I've met two people who "RV-ed" what happened in 1947 at Roswell, New Mexico, and neither story even "remotely" matches the other. Anyone out there want to prove me wrong? Okay, let's do it. I am quite sincere here. I'd like to offer a challenge -- in the TRUE spirit of inquiry, and not in the spirit of CSICOPian smarminess. I'll publish the results in my book. Instead of remote viewing things which cannot be validated, such as Jesus, Martians, Roswell, etc., let's have a go at things which CAN be validated. Specifically: The NEW paintings above my couch. I have two new paintings on the wall above my couch. I moved into this place only quite recently, and have had very few visitors. Thus, it is not likely that any hoaxer can determine the nature of those paintings using conventional means. Now, let's not have any rationalizations about why this is not a fair test. I've heard plenty of such rationalizations, and to be frank, they always sound to me like special pleading , or -- forgive my bluntness -- like whining. The point is this: Shelly Thomas did not rationalize. She faced the test fairly and squarely, and came through with flying colors. Maybe some of you folks can do the same? If co-ordinates pinpointing my home are necessary -- well, all I can tell you is that I live quite near the corner of Lankersheim and Laurel Canyon in North Hollywood, California. (A truly CRUMMY neighborhood.) Sorry, I don't have longitude or latitude for that location, but you can look it up on a map if you need to. I'd be very grateful to anyone who participates in this experiment. Any successful RV-ers who want to be mentioned by name in my book or radio appearances, will be. I promise to keep private all other names. And I promise NOT to make fun of, or to criticize in any way, anyone who honestly attempts this test, and fails. This challenge seems perfectly fair to me. C'mon, all you self-proclaimed RV-ers: Give it a go. Fame and glory to those who succeed, and no hard feelings toward those who fall short. If I can prove that Shelly's hit was NOT just a fluke, if I can prove that this stuff really DOES exist, I would love to state so in my book. I look forward to any replies... - Martin Cannon