Law and Magic Blog

The History of the Paranormal in France

I just purchased two interesting books by Nicole Edelman from Amazon France: Voyantes, guerisseuses et visionnaires en France 1785-1914 (Albin Michel) and Histoire de la voyance & du paranormal du XIIIIe siecle a nos jours (Seuil). The first translates roughly as Female Clairvoyants, Healers, and Seers in France from 1785-1914 and the second as History of Clairvoyance and of the Paranormal from the Eighteenth Century to the Present. Neither has been translated into English as far as I can tell. The content is unusual, at least for English-speaking readers, so maybe some publisher will be tempted.

Homeopathy, Newspapers, and Law

Ben Goldacre drew the ire of the Society of Homeopaths with his column "A Kind of Magic?", published on November 16, 2007, in The Guardian. A Society representative filed a complaint with the appropriate British watchdog agency, the Press Complaints Commission. The Society thought that Mr. Goldacre had violated the PCC's Code of Practice. The PCC "considered" the complaint, and decided that, since the newspaper offered the complainants a remedy in the form of what we might call "equal space" the problem could be considered resolved.

"The Commission considered the complaint and recognised the newspaper’s argument that the specific claim had to be understood in the context of the article when read as a whole, noting its position that the reference sought to sum up the points made in a lengthy, polemical article about homeopathy. Nonetheless, the Commission was concerned that the article had moved from what appeared to be a legitimate argument (that homeopaths could be seen to be endangering lives, something with which others may have disagreed) to a serious claim which had not been fully substantiated.

"In the circumstances, the Commission took the view that the newspaper’s offer of an opportunity in which to respond to the allegation – in the form of a letter for publication – represented a sufficient form of remedial action. While the complainant did not wish to take up the newspaper’s offer, she considered that the complaint was resolved on this basis."

 

 

Twin-Gate

So the psychic got it a little bit wrong--all that pink and fluffiness was right for just one Brangelina twin. Never fear, however--the experts are already weighing in on the twin names. According to one such, who's "holistic" (?) the little boy's name, "Knox", will encourage him to be "very physical, very stubborn" and a kid who "wants to do it himself." Okay...but I don't know many little boys who don't. BTW, lots of little girls are pretty independent, too. Read more here.

The Juice That Refreshes...and Cures?

Tried Xango juice yet? I did, while sharing an afternoon with friends during last December's non-denominational gift giving holidays.  My friends got some as a present, so we read the label, then opened the bottle up, and tried the liquid, which is made from the mangosteen fruit.  Xango juice is all right as far as taste goes, but I still prefer pineapple juice, or apple juice, or grapefruit juice, or papaya juice, or any number of other juices. 

Here's more about the drink in a story from the AP. Notice that all the company really says about it is that it's made from a proprietary formula and that it contains xanthones. Otherwise, "These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease." The FDA did send a letter to the company about its claims in 2006.  The company replied that it didn't actually make those claims; they were made by third parties. Nevertheless, many people who pay high prices for the juice are still touting what they think are its amazing curative and wellness properties. Here's more from the Mayo Clinic discussing the unproven status of mangosteen juice as an anti-inflammatory.

Ghosts, Reincarnation, Spiritualism: New Books To Read

Some new acquisitions for that unread pile of books (and I've actually started reading these):

Owen Davies, Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007). Really entertaining and thorough.

John Warne Monroe, Laboratories of Faith: Mesmerism, Spiritism and Faith in Modern France (Cornell University Press, 2008). For the specialist; has a chapter on the spirit photography trial of Emile Buguet.

Lynn Sharp, Secular Spirituality: Reincarnation and Spiritism in Nineteenth-Century France (Rowman & Littlefield, 2006).

Melvyn Willin, Ghosts Caught on Film (F&W, 2007). Provocative photos of "ghosts" and "spirits" on film, some well-known and some not. I admit I'm not close to being an expert in photography. But since the author speculates, and invites his readers to do so, here are my speculations. I suspect that a lot of the phantoms in the photos are more likely to be tricks of the light or errors on the part of the photographer (or the camera) than documentation of visitors from beyond the grave. Still, food for thought. Compare with The Perfect Medium: Photography and the Occult (Yale University Press, 2005), a much more elaborate book prepared for a recent exhibition.

Only a Theory?

Here's a link to Talk of the Nation: Science Friday's June 13th podcast on the debate over teaching the strengths and weaknesses of evolution. Joe Palca welcomes Dr. Kenneth Miller, author of Only a Theory: Evolution and the Battle for America's Soul (Viking, 2008). As one reviewer (Francis Collins) notes about Dr. Miller's book, "...[M]ake no mistake, this is not some atheistic screed -- Prof. Miller's perspective as a devout believer will allow his case to resonate with believers and non-believers alike."

Weird Stuff and Psychological Tests

Check out Richard Wiseman's "Quirkology" website here. It's linked to his new book Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things (Basic Books, 2007) and includes a chapter on lying and deception. The website has tests and interesting facts. I'm not certain if I'm convinced by some of Dr. Wiseman's evidence, but it's fun and food for thought. He's also the author, with Peter Lamont, of the wonderful Magic in Theory (University of Hertfordshire Press, 2005).

Simon Singh on Alternative Therapies

Speaking of Simon Singh, he and Edzard Ernst have a new book out: Trick or Treatment (2008), on alternative therapies. Right now the book is pre-pub in the U.S. Here's a link to a podcast in which he discusses it. Here's an article by Dr. Singh from the Times on the subject of homeopathy.

New Acquisitions

Just added to my ever-increasing pile of books to read: Jim Steinmeyer's Charles Fort: The Man Who Invented the Supernatural (Penguin, 2008). I really do need to make that pile diminish, by magical or other means. The felines keep knocking it over.

A New Blog To Visit

Check out PodBlack Blog: some great posts, including this one on Friday the 13th.