Navajo Skinwalkers

"There is little documented information about the details of “witchcraft” among the Navajo—or Diné, as they call themselves. What is relatively well known is their term “Skinwalker,” or “yee naaldlooshii,” which means, “with it, he goes on all fours.” This is a reference to the special ability to transform into a four-legged animal. While there are many self-published books and websites that offer some insight into this world of Navajo witchcraft, much of the information is obscure and does not provide any sort of real account for how these stories and their details came into being." (Nez 2012)

I have written a few articles for the Skeptical Briefs ranging in subjects from cryptozoology (the study of hidden animals) to witchcraft. I try to offer a more critical look that is often not found as another resource for those interested in putting together a more accurate representation of what the evidence suggests and what Native American beliefs actually depict. The excerpt presented above was based from the full article that originally appeared in Volume 22.1 of the Skeptical Briefs 2012 spring edition, which is now available over on the CSI website simply titled, Skinwalkers.


Not only does CSI offer a network of people interested in seeing paranormal investigations (or anything considered to be "fringe" ) using science appropriately, but it also publishes an official journal, Skeptical Inquirer magazine. The list of founding members of CSI includes some rather well known scientists, academics, and science writers such as Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Philip Klass, Paul Kurtz, Ray Hyman, James Randi, and Martin Gardner. If you needed another reason to join, CSI also offers the Skeptical Briefs, a special newsletter with articles featuring regular columnists and different skeptical groups from around the world, exclusively to its' *Associate Members. Those at CSI have graciously made some past articles available online, not just from the Skeptical Inquirer magazine, but the Skeptical Briefs newsletter as well! 

Sharing Native American Culture and Offering a Unique Brand of Skepticism

Recently, I was privileged with an opportunity to share some insight into Native American culture and offer a unique brand of skepticism to the associate members of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), a nonprofit scientific educational organization. 

 

 

Not only does CSI offer a network of people interested in seeing paranormal investigations (or anything considered to be "fringe" ) using science appropriately, but it also publishes an official journal, Skeptical Inquirer magazine. The list of founding members of CSI includes some rather well known scientists, academics, and science writers such as Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Philip Klass, Paul Kurtz, Ray Hyman, James Randi, and Martin Gardner. If you needed another reason to join, CSI also offers the Skeptical Briefs, a special newsletter with articles featuring regular columnists and different skeptical groups from around the world, exclusively to its' *Associate Members.  

 

I have written a few articles for the Skeptical Briefs ranging in subjects from cryptozoology (the study of hidden animals) to witchcraft. I try to offer a more critical look that is often not found as another resource for those interested in putting together a more accurate representation of what Native American beliefs actually depict. Some topics covered include; Navajo Skinwalkers, Native American Legends, and the New Age Mysticism that shows up around Native American Spirituality.  

 

Those at CSI have graciously made some past articles available online, not just from the Skeptical Inquirer magazine, but the Skeptical Briefs newsletter as well! So, for those of you who are not Associate Members of CSI and have not been able to read any of my past articles, here is your chance to check one of them out, Thunderbirds.  

 

  

*How to become an Associate member of the Committee for Scientific Inquiry

Downwinders

Half of the crew and eight people in the cast of the movie, The Conqueror, starring John Wayne, died of cancers that some people claim were a direct result of being exposed to radiation after the A-bomb tests held at the now infamous, Nevada Test Site.

A popular newspaper column that carries the motto, "Fighting ignorance since 1973 (it's taking longer than we thought)", written by Cecil Adams is called, “The Straight Dope”. This question-and-answer column, which is also available online, gets syndicated in both the United States and Canada. The author takes on questions from the general public surrounding a variety of subjects such as history and science, even reaching out to superstitions and urban legends. Mr. Adams often boasts to being able to answer any and all questions. In the article from 1984, Did John Wayne die of cancer caused by a radioactive movie set? a reader inquires about an incident regarding John Wayne, cancer, and a Nevada A-bomb test. The following is the actual question posed in the original article,

“My girlfriend says that half of the film crew and eight of the cast of the movie The Conqueror starring John Wayne died of cancer after an A-bomb test in Nevada. It can't be the truth — that many people — can it?” (Adams 1980)

However, there is nuance hidden in between the lines of that question posed by the reader which must be carefully examined, or there might be an impulse to draw connections based on assumption, rather than evidence.

Penn Jillette Discusses Skepticism and the JREF on the Nerdist Podcast Episode #195!

In the Nerdist Podcast episode #195, Penn doesn't just discuss life behind the scenes of Las Vegas, but he reveals how "The Amazing" James Randi has had a profound influence on him and a little about what it means to be a skeptic. He also talks about the skeptical movement and the the work that the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) does with their annual conferences celebrating science, skepticism and critical thinking called, "The Amazing Meeting" (TAM).

Oh, and a spoiler alert...

he also explores the mind of a psychopath through Dean Martin, and argues why it is advantageous in Hollywood.


-Visit the Nerdist Podcast, "...a place where we nerds come together and share the nerdery that we find."

Classic Skepticism From Orson Welles

Check out this YouTube clip displaying a classic bit of skeptical insight featuring famous actor and director Orson Welles speaking about "cold readings" during an interview with Sir David Frost back in the '70's.

As it it stated on the Skeptic's Dictionary, regarding the nature of 'cold readings',

"...salespersons, hypnotists, advertising pros, faith healers, con men, and some therapists bank on their subject's inclination to find more meaning in a situation than there actually is. The desire to make sense out of experience can lead us to many wonderful discoveries, but it can also lead us to many follies." (Carroll 2012)

Where some people see special powers...

I see a whole lot of practice.

Source:
1. Carroll, Robert T., cold reading. The Skeptic's Dictionary. Last updated April 2, 2012. http://www.skepdic.com/coldread.html. Retrieved April 26, 2012.

Two well-known "psychics" or “spiritual mediums” coming to the valley of the sun

The amount of suffering that individual can experience with the loss of a family member or close loved one can be truly unimaginable. Consider that there is a business or business person making the claims that they can provide a specific service to these people and their plights (even when the claims themselves have never been proven). Now, take that a step further and include the details that some of these cases involve people with prior convictions in fraud and grand theft.

For example, Sylvia Browne calls herself a "psychic" and claims to be able to communicate with the dead. However, there is no reason to believe that anyone, let alone this one person, is doing anything other than performing simple acts of deception. Matter of fact, she is so good at deceiving people that she has been convicted of investment fraud and grand theft. *For more on this, see the story of Sylvia Browne's 1992 felony conviction in a case involving charges of grand theft and securities fraud.

Browne is quite popular among the known psychics in the world, James Van Praagh and John Edwards are a couple more known, and even amongst the people with less familiarity with psychic phenomena. Even just her name can produce strong reactions in people. To some of her devoted fans, she is a "true psychic-medium" that utilizes the help of a "spirit guide" named Francine. This is how she is able to see the future, diagnose illnesses, find lost children, and of course, communicate with the dead. To some others, she has never been able to prove any psychic or supernatural abilities. While using the stage tricks of magic like "cold-readings" to simulate psychic abilities isn’t in itself a ethical concern. Using this as a means to prey on the grieving, the ill, and the spiritually vulnerable is another thing all together. It is quite often during these readings that people selectively remember certain things and forget others, like the things the "psychic" got right, as opposed to the things that were wrong. This is often referred to as, "remembering the hits and forgetting the misses." We are not accustomed to seeing the "misses", however, Van Praagh demonstrates what this looks like in the following YouTube clip from the Australian television show, "The Circle" on "Channel Ten".

A computer programmer named Robert S. Lancaster started up a site called, “Stop Sylvia Browne”, dedicated to helping people make up their own mind about this very subject. Mr. Lancaster makes it quite clear what his site and campaign are all about with the following response from the ‘frequently asked questions’ main page,   

“Because I strongly believe that Sylvia Browne needs to either prove her purported ‘psychic abilities’, or stop pretending to have them.”

One very important message gets relayed from the readers’ inquiries when he is asked, “Why should we believe you?” This is a legitimate question, and good enough that it has me puzzled to why nobody ever poses it to the psychics. Instead, Lancaster gives his own answer, and at the same time, provides a much better explanation of the reasoning process by stating,

“You shouldn't. You should read and consider the contents of this site. You should dig around the web and see what you can find. If you can, find out what Sylvia's justifications are for some of the things you read here. Then, you should make up your own mind.”

This is excellent advice and a stance that all critical thinking citizens should utilize to protect themselves from the subtle and not-so-subtle nonsense that permeates our society. This is not just to serve as protection for the consumer, but to empower individuals through the knowledge of reason. Take this last part from Lancaster’s home page as he leaves us with an invitation to explore reason before investing anything emotionally or financially.    

“But here is a further comment, regarding TV/Celebrity psychics in general: It is important to remember that the producers of a TV show which claims to be about a ‘true psychic’ have a financial interest in making you believe that person is psychic. Because of this, you should never assume that what you see on the show is an accurate and unbiased representation of facts and events.”

Two "psychics" or “spiritual mediums” are coming to the valley of the sun. The first, James Van Praagh, will be appearing this week at an event put on the "Changing Hands Bookstore" in Tempe, Arizona on Thursday March 26, 2012 at 7:00pm. The event to follow features, Chip Coffey, next month on Friday April 20, 2012 at 7:30pm. The Phoenix Area Skeptics Society will be outside of these events to hand out flyers and some general information. Any questions or comments can be sent to: phoenixskeptics@gmail.com