James Van Praagh
Psychic Readings Suck
[They literally don’t tell us anything.]
James Van Praagh is a professional psychic who makes his living by claiming to communicate with the deceased. I, nor anybody else, can prove that he isn’t really psychic.
But damn is he good at looking like he’s cheating!
The Trick
Communicate with the dead.
What follows is a video of James Van Praagh performing a psychic reading on the Joy Behar Show. I selected this reading from the many similar clips available online simply because of its brevity.
Following the video is a transcript of the reading. I have included my commentary on exactly how anybody, not just a trained magician, mentalist or “psychic,” but anyone can derive the same information which James Van Praagh claims to derive using his powers.
JVP: So the way I do a reading, I start, I just tune into your energy, when I tune into your energy, energetically you are very very nervous. So I go like this [hand motion] with you. [Completely unfalsifiable babble. Obviously she is nervous, you don’t need to be psychic to see that.]
Jenna: I am.
JVP: And in order for me to get through to you, you gotta calm down. So take a deep breath, okay. So I know your dad’s passed, you told me that he passed, and you told me his name was Tom. [This should send up warning signs. They have talked before. Praagh has admitted to being told the father’s name and that he is deceased- but are there other things she may have told him which he doesn’t admit to here?]
Jenna: Yup.
JVP: So this was established, I do that when I have a little bit of time to zone in. But the first person I get here is a lady, and I feel it is a grandmother- his mother, definitely over there, for him when he comes over. [Determining that Jenna’s grandmother has passed isn’t an earth shattering revelation. Judging by her age you can make a pretty good assumption that her grandparents are not with us.] I definitely feel with this man, that he needed a lot of rest when he passes over, because I feel he did not get rest right before he passes over, okay? [So we learn nothing more about the grandmother- instead we learn that an old man, near the end of his life, need a lot of rest. Again, information one can assume on their own without psychic powers!] I feel it came very surprising to him, and what he found was also very surprising as well, like when he passed over. [This is unfalsifiable. How does anybody know whether or not death or what one finds after death is surprising or not? It is a meaningless statement.] So I also don’t know, was he also a non-believer necessarily, in this sort of thing, didn’t believe in this, maybe was religious, but just feels like he was very surprised, when he passed. [Look at this statement carefully. Praagh calls the man a non-believer and religious in the same sentence, never determining which it was- and then just returns to the “he was surprised when he passed” non-statement.]
Joy Behar: And is that true so far?
Jenna: He was surprised. We were all surprised. [So we know Jenna didn’t euthanize her dad. Everybody was surprised, as most people are when death arrives.]
JVP: Okay. I also want to say that I feel I cannot communicate before he passed. I cannot communicate to you, before I pass to the other side, alright? So he cannot speak to you, he cannot verbalize, do you understand. [Very vague statements here. You can interpret this as a comma, as Praagh is about to, or just that an old man can no longer communicate as well as he once could. Again, this is obvious and unimpressive information.]
Jenna: [Nods]
JVP: So it is some kind of a coma, or was it some kind of a… he was not able to speak.
Jenna: [Not understanding]
Joy Behar: How did he die?
JVP: Well don’t tell me, was it a quick passing?
Jenna: Yes. [Dead wrong about the coma.]
JVP: Okay. Like a sudden type of thing.
Jenna: Yes.
JVP: It was unexpected. When I said surprised, I’m sorry, when I said surprised, passing over, he was surprised when it happened. [So Praagh is told that the passing was quick and surprising. He then reiterates this information with synonyms such as “sudden” and “unexpected,” before again returning to his unfalsifiable and meaningless statement that the passing was “surprising.”]
Jenna: Yes.
JVP: And surprised going there. I also think there is a brother, something about a brother that is really really strong. And I’m not sure if he means his brother, or your brother, but there is definietly something about a brother. [Switching away from the dad to a brother. Jenna’s parents, like most of ours, came from the time of the baby boomers. A guess that Jenna had an uncle is a pretty sure bet. Again, you don’t need psychic powers to do this.]
Jenna: Okay.
JVP: So he says, I’ve seen a brother. Don’t know what that means. And I’m seeing the name Jimmy or James, besides me, means something. [James is the most popular male first name, especially for the time period in which Jenna’s father and uncle grew up. If you are going to guess a name, there isn’t a safer bet than James.]
Jenna: His brother’s name is Jimmy.
JVP: Thank you. Okay.
Joy Behar: Very good James.
Jenna: Now I’m more nervous.
JVP: No, don’t be, no no no no no.
Joy Behar: Giver her something she can hang onto now. [Even Joy Behar has picked up on the fact that most of what has been communicated is less than impressive.]
JVP: [Shocked] Here my hand. I just want you to know that there’s a move coming up for you, there’s definitely a move, so don’t be nervous about a move, I know you’ve been wondering about it, worried about it, concerned about this move, and something happening. [You mean this not even middle aged woman is going to move at some point in her future and that will cause her stress? Incredible, you must be psychic!] Everything is going to be in place, Dad is in your corner, he is not away from you, he is in your corner. [Again, unfalsifiable babble mixed with wish fulfillment and bias. Hearing that your father is spiritually on your side isn’t just pleasing to hear- it is the only polite thing to say to another human being.] You didn’t see him before he died, you didn’t see him, and you always carry around the guilt. I did not see my dad before he passed over and I wish I could have seen him. Stop doing that. Does that make sense? [The not seeing her father before he died is the most impressive feat Praagh accomplishes here- except that Jenna already told Praagh the information. If we learned anything from this reading, it was that Jenna’s father’s passing was surprising. If it was sudden, quick, and unexpected, then why would Jenna be there before or as it happened? You can infer this from logic. No psychic powers needed.]
Jenna: Yeah.
JVP: Please stop that for him. [Unfalsifiable. Again.]
The Lesson
By the end of this reading we have learned that Jenna’s father passed away quickly and surprising. He had some trouble communicating towards the end of his life and required a lot of rest. His brother was named Jimmy, and his mother is around for all of this- but we learn nothing about her or why she even bothers to show up.
All of this information is either incredibly general, or was provided directly by Jenna. The advice Jenna receives about not worrying about a future move and to forgive herself for missing her father’s death (which surprised all of her family) are pretty much useless.
This is the information which the dead wish to send back to us? We already knew this stuff!
So Ask Yourself
If the messages and information divined by professional psychics is no better than the information that any hack magician can determine through logic- should we really accept the professional psychic as the real deal?
If James Van Praagh is truly psychic then why does it look exactly like he is cheating? Why can he provide no better information than the garbage listed above? How come he bothers with unfalsifiable babble? Why does he make contradicting statements such as calling a person both a non-believer and religious? These are exactly the tools which frauds use!