What Does It Mean to Believe Something?

2min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

i wonder if it betrays a kind of, a kind of arrogance. His lies seem to often gain him nothing. He just does it to see if the people will go along with it. There's a big overlap between cuanon and the trump phenomenon. And i think his world view is something like thata. Maybe it's just a constant demonstration of sorts to himself,. oh, look how smart i am. And look how stupid they are for believing it.

The most fundamental lesson that all magicians learn is that seeing is not believing. In episode 195, Michael speaks with internationally acclaimed sleight-of-hand artist and 35-year activist for scientific skepticism, Jamy Ian Swiss, about his lively, personal book, The Conjuror’s Conundrum, that takes readers on a magical mystery tour of the longstanding connection between magic and skepticism. Shermer and Swiss discuss: Swiss’s first encounter with fraud, the paranormal and supernatural, magic and mentalism, hot/cold/universal readings, pychics, talking to the dead, James van Praagh, belief, the afterlife, “the amazing” Kreskin, the Alpha Project, and more…