News coverage: http://opinionjournal.com/best/?id=95001074 http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20010906/3606563s.htm http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2001/09/05/national1303EDT0599.DTL http://www.washtimes.com/national/20010906-1048762.htm Quote from Rep. Dorothy Pelote's floor speech: "I want you to know that I can prophesy. I can communicate with the dead. The last person who visited me was -- I don't know if I need to call her name. Maybe I should not, because it's a controversial death now. She's missing. You know who I'm talking about. She has visited me. She has." And we take politicians seriously, and let them regulate and legislate our lives? Sigh. If this Georgia politico really was having a tete-a-tete with Chandra, why didn't she ask where the ex-intern's body was? -Declan ******** From: Kevin Christopher <kchristopherat_private> Subject: CSICOP on GA Rep Dorothy Pelote Date: Fri, 7 Sep 2001 12:27:03 -0400 PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Kevin Christopher Phone: 716 636 1425 x 224 Fax: 716 636 1733 E-mail: pressat_private Her "Constituents" Are Dead People Amherst, NY (September 7, 2001)-Georgia State Representative Dorothy Pelote claims she was visited by the spirit of none other than Chandra Levy, according to stories from the Associated Press, The Macon Telegraph, and USA Today. Pelote announced her encounter with an anonymous spirit during a morning devotional message before her colleagues in the Georgia House of Representatives. She later confirmed to the Telegraph that the ghostly visitor was Levy. She also claims that her psychic experiences began after she was nearly drowned as a child and had a vision of a fireball and spirits of the dead. Joe Nickell, who is the senior research fellow at the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), has been studying claims of channeling the dead for two decades. "Belief in mediumship--an ability to communicate with the dead--has been growing in popularity recently, though this is the first instance I'm aware of where a politician has proclaimed having this sort of ability in public." Nickell says that whatever Pelote is experiencing, she has not made contact with Chandra Levy. "I don't necessarily doubt that Pelote has had some sort of 'experience,' but there is no evidence whatsoever to back up her claims that she can speak with the dead--or that anyone can. People like Representative Pelote, who've had repeated psychic experiences and contact with special entities--such as angels, spirits and extraterrestrials--often turn out to be what psychologists call 'fantasy prone.' I've also investigated the techniques of popular mediums like John Edward and James Van Praagh. They use techniques like cold reading--a method of very subtly extracting information from people to convince them that they are in touch with deceased loved ones." For more information on channeling, cold reading, mediums and spiritualism, visit CSICOP's Web site at www.csicop.org. Representative Dorothy Pelote's Web page can be found at http://www2.state.ga.us/Legis/2001_ss/house/gash149.htm. ### The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) a non-profit organization dedicated to science literacy and the examination of controversial claims. It publishes the magazine Skeptical Inquirer six times a year. The magazine features articles on paranormal claims and pseudoscience from a critical, scientific perspective. For more information about the magazine or CSICOP, contact Kevin Christopher at pressat_private or (716) 636-1425 ext. 224. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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