| A
Word About Scientific Evaluation
Question:
This
wasn't actually a question from a reader, but I received an
envelope yesterday which invited me, by name, to join CSICOPS
(the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims
of the Paranormal). Inside was a form letter which had a list
of names down the left side of the page, obviously designed
to impress me. It was a rather impressive list of leading
scientists. In the center, the letter started with recent
"National Inquirer"-type headlines, one of which was:
"BIGFOOT
SIGHTED IN OREGON, LEAVES UNMISTAKABLE TRACKS".
Below
that, the letter to me began to "debunk" each of the headlines
in what attempted to be a scientific-sounding manner. The
one about Bigfoot was debunked with the following statement:
"The
Bigfoot tracks in Oregon were either planted by a Forest Service
patrolman who reported the sighting and admitted to previously
faking Bigfoot footprints or by a human with very large feet."
Answer:
I
didn't get the sudden urge to send a lot of my money so
I could join.
Controlled
Remote Viewing is "scientifically based", but in light of
the above, I would like to stress that it is not the same
"scientific" as that evidenced by CSICOPS - which is, in fact,
no science at all. I hope that the reputation of Controlled
Remote Viewing never drops to the level shown in their letter.
However,
I continually hear people saying that they are Remote Viewers
"like those used by the CIA", and upon questioning, find
that they haven't the slightest idea what CRV actually is.
One person wrote that he had learned "Military Remote Viewing
like the CIA used to use". His teacher's name is probably
only known to the US government through tax returns. Just
today, I received an email asking about a person in Washington
State who is teaching a Remote Viewing course and is evidently,
by inference, if not by direct claims, trying to tie his
training to the "CRV which was used by the US government."
Another
teacher is a student of someone who was proven to be most
decidedly unscientific in his training and protocols, and
yet is calling the offerings "controlled remote viewing"
(Not capitalized, so it supposedly doesn't violate Ingo's
proprietary ownership), and is even calling the group of
graduates "The Unit" - making it sound like it has ties
to the government project because that is what the ex-military
members call the military unit which existed at Fort Meade,
MD.
Please
bear with me while I once again mount my soapbox and yell
for all to hear: "Remote Viewing and Controlled Remote Viewing
are not in any way the same thing!" "Remote Viewing" (RV)
is the modern buzz-word for "psychic", and includes clairvoyance,
mental telepathy, dowsing, palm reading, aura reading, and
the whole gamut of other psychic disciplines. CONTROLLED Remote
Viewing is one form of Remote Viewing, and one of the disciplines
within the range. However, that doesn't mean that all forms
of Remote Viewing (RV) - meaning being psychic - are the same
as Controlled Remote Viewing (CRV).
The
differences between CRV and the other forms of RV are as
vast as the differences between day and night.
What
then, are those differences? CRV differs from "normal" (if
you can call paranormal normal) psychic functioning in several
ways, only a few of which are given here:
- Every step
of the CRV process is STRICTLY controlled and must follow
a set, established, formal structure.
- CRV does
not depend on natural talent, but on training. It can
be performed by anyone off the street, after proper
training.
- The CRV
process is formalized. It is performed the same by all
CRVers with such regularity that a CRV analyst can take
the session transcript of a CRVer he/she has never met,
and instantly understand the session content and analyze
it for hidden information, for answers to tasked questions,
and for errors.
- The STRUCTURE
of the CRVer's transcript indicates where the CRVer's
errors are. The analyst is not left to LOGICALLY figure
out what fits and what doesn't.
- The CRVer
is not allowed to have any contact with the person whose
question must be answered.
- If there
is any "frontloading" at all, it must be so neutrally
worded as to give no information about the target or
the question being asked about the target. For example,
the monitor may start the session by saying, "The target
is a location.". The monitor would NEVER tell the viewer
anything more than that.
- The CRVer
is NEVER allowed to ask questions, and is rarely ever
given any other starting information than a target number.
For example, "The target is target number 960011 / 123456.
Describe the target." The CRVer must gain all information
from there on, no questions allowed, and nothing more
is told to the CRVer about the target throughout the
entire span of the session.
- Practioners
of other forms of RV often try to tell the person who
has come to them what the perceptions mean. This is
not so with the CRVer. If, at any time, a CRVer draws
a conclusion, the session must be stopped while the
CRVer clears the conclusion out of his/her mind, and
that information is set aside and later held in question
by the CRV analyst.
- CRV is not
a "feel good" or "get in touch with the universe (or yourself)"
kind of process. It's primary purpose is for gathering
valuable and practical information, for answering questions.
CRV is real-world and real-life oriented, not ethereal
and universe oriented.
- RV attempts
to retrieve concepts. CRV attempts to retrieve facts.
An RVer, using another discipline, may tell you that
you will meet a tall, dark stranger. A CRVer tries to
tell you when and where, and what his name will be.
- While natural
psychics were found to be helpful by various branches
of the government and military, they were also found to
be largely undisciplined, non-standardized, and were found
to have widely fluctuating dependability ratings. Little,
if any, statistical analysis of their results was capable,
so evaluations of their "track records" were generally
made by the feelings and undisciplined estimations of
those who used them, and who tended to remember the successes
and forget the failures. CRVers, by their very definition,
are disciplined, their work was standardized, and their
dependability ratings can be known from databased track
records which include both successes and failures, accurately
analyzed and scored to two decimal places.
- Other forms
of RV deserve the praise and credit which they have
rightfully earned. In spite of what the CSICOPs would
try to trick you into believing, other forms of RV have
a proven track record in laboratories which have rigorously
and scientifically studied the phenomena. I have never
known a CRVer to belittle true natural talent, and such
will not happen on this page. I have yet to meet a CRVer
who has not wished that he/she had more of this natural
talent. While CRV does use a person's natural abilities,
it brings it out through scientifically controlled means.
- In short,
other forms of RV are art- or talent-based. CRV is a
DISCIPLINE. Anyone who is willing to stick with the
practice can do it.
- CRV doesn't
depend on the illogic of believers or the illogic of
disbelievers. It is databasable, and each viewer's track
record stands on cold, hard, well-proven records.
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