Tampa Bay Skeptics Report - vol 14 no 4 - INCOMPLETE

Magazine Overview

Title: TBS Report Online
Issue: Vol. 14 - No. 4
Date: Spring 2002
Publisher: Tampa Bay Skeptics

This issue of the TBS Report Online delves into various skeptical investigations and news items, focusing on debunking psychic claims, exposing fraudulent practices, and reporting on scientific and legal developments relevant to the paranormal.

TBS "$1,000 Challenge" Claimant Disappoints

The lead article by Gary P. Posner (with Terry Smiljanich) details the failed attempt of Scott C. Frank to win TBS's $1,000 challenge for proof of psychic ability. Frank, who claimed to be able to discern the contents of sealed objects, was presented with a sealed box. Despite being offered a choice of four boxes and the option to read the mind of someone who knew the contents, Frank haphazardly selected a box. Initially, he claimed it contained a 'beret,' then changed his mind to a 'harmonica.' When pressed on his confidence level, he rated it a '3' out of 10. Upon opening the box, it contained a yo-yo. Frank, who had signed a protocol allowing for videotaping but refused to be recorded for personal/religious reasons, departed quickly. The article notes that this was the first time TBS had been unable to connect with a claimant on a rational level, unlike previous claimants who offered post-hoc rationalizations for their failures.

Miss Cleo Avoids K.O. (for now)

This section reports on the legal troubles of "Miss Cleo" (Youree Harris), the infomercial queen of psychic readings. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sought to shut down her companies, Access Resource Services, Inc. and Psychic Readers Network (PRN), alleging false promises of free readings, deceptive billing, and abusive telemarketing. The FTC complaint, filed in the Southern District of Florida, cited over 2,000 consumer complaints. A tentative settlement was reached, promising an immediate end to deceptive practices. The Florida Attorney General's Office also issued a subpoena to Miss Cleo to prove her identity and claims of being a Jamaican shaman, with an Assistant Attorney General stating they had no evidence of her genuineness. Her attorney argued she was an independent contractor, but the AG's office countered that her active role in deceptive marketing, including signing deceptive emails and letters, made her liable. The AG's office also sought to pull ads and obtain refunds for defrauded customers. Additionally, author Nancy Garen filed a complaint alleging that Miss Cleo's websites copied substantial portions of her book, 'Tarot Made Easy,' without permission. A judge in Pennsylvania also ordered Cleo and Co. marketers to stop calling customers who requested no further contact and to cease pressuring payment for contested calls, often related to advertised 'free' readings billed at $4.99 per minute.

Snippets

This section presents several brief news items:

• Satan Ban in Inglis, Florida: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) threatened to sue the mayor of Inglis, Florida, for a proclamation banning Satan from the town. The mayor drafted the decree on Halloween night, declaring Satan powerless and not influencing citizens. A town resident, Polly Bowser, was outraged by the alleged violation of church and state separation. The Town Commission later declared the proclamation the mayor's individual act.
• Potential Life on Mars: NASA reported evidence suggesting the possibility of underground life on Mars or the Jovian moon Europa. This is based on a study of hardy microbes in eastern Idaho's Lidy Hot Springs, which can survive without sunlight, requiring only carbon dioxide and hydrogen-rich water. The study, published in 'Nature,' detailed Archaea, potentially the most direct descendants of Earth's first living things.

Polaroid dowser requests TBS "$1,000 Challenge" retest

Bill Pierce, a septuagenarian who claims to find hidden gold coins by dowsing Polaroid photographs, has requested a retest of the TBS "$1,000 Challenge." Pierce had previously failed the challenge in Summer 2000, going 15 for 23, with a 1 in 10 chance of success by chance alone. TBS has since made the challenge ten times easier, changing the probability of winning by chance from 1 in 10,000,000 to 1 in 1,000,000. The report notes that other tests, like the one with Scott Frank, do not allow for the calculation of mathematical probabilities.

Quote of the Year (so far)

This section features a quote from Leon Jaroff's Jan. 16 Time.com "Skeptical Eye" column, regarding the NIH's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). Jaroff states: "The least we can demand in a time of growing budget deficits is that NCCAM appoint rational, qualified observers from outside the paranormal and quack communities to monitor the work of some of the eccentrics it so generously endows."

Letters / Readers' Forum

An editor's note introduces a letter from a reader dated January 16, 2001, which constitutes a "definitive fulfillment of the litter reported as prophesy." The letter references an article from the October 16, 2001, South Florida Sun-Sentinel about escaped prisoners being held hostage. The reader had previously speculated on "one or more escaped prisoners caught in a barn or bar" based on neighborhood litter observed on December 12, 2000. The litter included a Parliament cigarette pack and a 7-Up can (equating to "Prisoner") and a Barnie's Coffee & Tea Co. cup (equating to "barn" or "bar"). The article confirmed that two escapees were captured in a horse stable, precisely nine months after the litter observation. The number '9' is noted as significant because the article also mentioned a "nine-hour standoff." The reader also mentions that the article appeared adjacent to one referencing the federal Storm Prediction Center, which could account for the "prophesy."

Another correspondent, David Goldman from Miami, enclosed a letter dated January 19, 2002, sent to the "Terrorism Unit" in Washington, D.C., with a copy to the Israeli embassy. This letter warned of a potential "attack at or on the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, very possibly involving a light-haul truck." The basis for this prediction was neighborhood litter, including a saladitas wrapper and a GE Softwhite Light Bulb box (for "light haul"), a McDonald's ketchup near a Home Depot shopping cart ("Dome"), a Rough Rider Condom pack ("Rock"), and other refuse that almost spelled "Jerusalem."

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The Tampa Bay Skeptics consistently promote critical thinking and scientific skepticism. The magazine actively debunks psychic claims, exposes fraudulent practices in the paranormal industry, and highlights legal and scientific developments that challenge pseudoscientific assertions. The editorial stance is clearly against unsubstantiated claims and in favor of evidence-based reasoning and consumer protection from deceptive practices.