I met remote viewing pioneer Paul Smith at the recent Archives of the Impossible conference in Houston, TX in March. We hit it off immediately and I suggested he come on RM.

Smith has been teaching remote viewing (RV) techniques to the public for longer than anyone in the business. He was recruited to the U.S. Army’s State Gate RV program in 1984 as one of the first class of students under the tutelage of famed psychic Ingo Swann. Paul said that there were no “psychic tests” used for choosing who would be tapped for training, and candidates were chosen for their scores on tests that included questions about their artistic interests and talent. The idea being that a developed right brain/ creative mind would be more apt to possess the characteristics needed. Smith recalled that the US Military was worried that the Soviet Union had spent about $220 million on psychic research before the Americans had even started, and that this was the impetus for Star Gate. The U.S. ended up investing only $25 million over 23 years.

We spoke about the history of Swann’s development of the program from the beginning, and how he “mixed art and science” in his techniques. Smith pointed out that the human mind is very fond of making sense of incomplete input and that the training “gives the left brain something to do that it’s good at,” namely categorizing and logging input and letting the right brain concentrate on receiving sensory impressions and shapes and forms.

We also discussed the history of the RV program and some of the personalities involved, such as Lyn Buchanan, Joe McMoneagle, Ed Dames, and a little-known early RV recruit named Tom McNear, whom Swann called his “best ever student.”

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Photo: Smith asks a question at the Archives Of The Impossible Conference on 3/5/22.

Outro music: “Sacrifice of a Hero” by Paladine.