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Debunking the Arguments of PseudoSkeptics
and Debunkers
Revised
and Updated 2009
By Vinstonas Wu (scepcop@debunkingskeptics.com)
Praises and Reviews
“Winston
Wu has now written an essay that brilliantly and decisively rebuts the general
skeptical arguments against the paranormal. This
is among the best essays ever written on this subject, and deserves extensive
study. The essay carefully moves through the entire skeptical lexicon of
arguments, rebutting each in turn.
- Whitley
Strieber, Author and Radio Host of UnknownCountry.com
“Your treatise
"debunking pseudoskeptical arguments of paranormal debunkers" is the
best refutation of pseudoskeptics' arguments, tactics and fallacies to reject
the evidence for paranormal phenomena. I've recommended your article to every
person that I know.”
“I'm Jürgen and I
write you from
“Your article
"debunking pseudoskeptical arguments on paranormal debunkers" is a
must read to any person who seeks to understand the nature of
pseudoskepticism.”
Table of Contents
How this treatise
came to be written
Defining the PseudoSkeptic
vs. the True Skeptic: Behaviors and Tactics
Section I: General arguments against the paranormal
Argument # 1: It is irrational to believe anything that hasn’t been proven.
Argument # 2: Extraordinary claims require extraordinary
evidence.
- Extraordinary evidence for 4 phenomena
Argument # 3: The Occam’s Razor rule.
Argument # 4: The Invisible Pink Unicorn / Santa Claus
gambit.
Argument # 5: The “anecdotal evidence is invalid” argument.
- Factors measuring
degree of reliability in anecdotal evidence
- The Ebay feedback challenge where a skeptic failed and was caught lying red-handed
Argument # 6: The memory malleability argument to dismiss
anecdotal evidence.
Argument # 7: Automatic dismissal of paranormal claims as
due to Mistake, Lying or Hallucination.
Argument # 8: There is no evidence for any paranormal or
psychic phenomena.
Argument # 9: Science is the only reliable method.
Argument # 10: Paranormal phenomena aren’t possible because
they contradict known laws of science.
Argument #
11: Unexplainable does not mean
inexplicable.
Argument #
14: Believers in the paranormal are
thinking in primitive, irrational and childish ways.
Argument #
15: Skeptics are defending science and
reason from a rising tide of irrationality.
Section II: Arguments against specific paranormal
phenomena
Argument # 16: Psychics and mediums use cold reading tricks
and lucky guesses, not psychic powers.
Argument #
18: No psychic phenomena has been
demonstrated under controlled conditions.
Argument #
19: Alternative medicine and practices only
work due to the placebo effect.
Argument #
20: Miracles are impossible and defy everything we know about science.
Argument #
21: The Skeptical explanation for
answered prayers.
- My own theory on how and why prayer works
Argument #
22: The Skeptical explanation for
precognitive dreams.
Argument #
23: The Dying Brain Hypothesis for Near
Death Experiences.
Argument #
25: Spiritual experiences only exist in
your mind, not in external reality.
Argument #
27: There is no evidence to support the
existence of UFO’s or Aliens.
Argument #
30: The James Randi Million Dollar Challenge
argument.
Latest Developments
and Research
Links, Blogs and Books on PseudoSkepticism
and Paranormal Research
Appendix
A: My Presentation Outline – Skepticism
vs. Psi
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