Just wanted to pat myself on the back.

[NorthernSoul]

Well, I just wanted to pat myself on the back, as well as get some critique on the a-mail I just sent to the General Manager at the Grimsby Auditorium (oh yes that's the dingey corner of the country in which I reside).

I was browsing through some old local newspaper stories (as you do) and discovered that Sally Morgan would be performing at the Grimsby Auditorium in March, so I decided to e-mail the auditorium, mainly in the hopes that they would at least make it clear to people in the audience that it was an act with no scientific basis (I wont hold my breath)

Here is the e-mail I sent, if anybody could suggest ways I might have improved it or if it is inaccurate in any way that would be appreciated.

Ms Belding,

I was recently saddened to find that self-proclaimed psychic medium Sally Morgan will be "performing" at the Grimsby auditorium in March, 2009. I was further disgruntled when I discovered that the Grimsby auditorium official website's description of Ms. Morgan's act had no disclaimer stating that, firstly, psychic powers have never been proven and, secondly, that the show is for entertainment purposes only (it should be second nature for organisations such as yours in the entertainment industry to have such a disclaimer when promoting an act of this type).

As you are most likely aware, psychic powers have never been proven under proper testing conditions, and what is more is that the performances of so called psychics such as Ms. Morgan are completely recreatable through the technique of cold reading, which I would urge you to research. It is not my intention however, to convince you to cancel this act, I recognise that that would be an unrealistic request, though from my point of view it would be a moral thing to do in light of the harm charlatans, like Ms. Morgan, can do. If you fail to see how Ms. Morgan's unproven claims I ask you to consider this list of people: What the Harm: Psychics Link who were in some way harmed by psychics.

In writing this e-mail I hope to encourage you to place a disclaimer on your website, stating that psychic powers, which can be tested, have never been proven. I also hope that you will think carefully, and critically, before booking any similar acts in the future.

Here are some reviews of Ms. Morgans prior performance at the Grimsby auditorium that you may or may not be away of:
Bad Psychics Link 1 [I can't post links yet]
Bad Psychics Link 2

Furthermore the following link is to an analysis of a supposedly psychic reading carried out by Ms. Morgan:
Bad Psychics Link 3

People like Ms. Morgan prey on vulnerable people who have lost love ones in varying circumstances. People like Sally Morgan lie and cheat and trick people, using their hopes against them. People like Sally Morgan avoid being tested because they would never be able to pass a fair test of the abilities she claims, such tests often come with huge rewards, like the "Million Dollar Challenge" (James Randi MDC Link) If Sally Morgan has any paranormal power why doesn't she take such a test, take a substantial amount of cash and prove to the world she can do what she says she can.

Ms. Belding, I am a resident of Grimsby, and I sincerely hope you will consider this e-mail and think long and hard about booking psychic acts in the future. In March I will be volunteering in East Africa, if this was not the case I would protest this performance and I will encourage other Grimsby residents to take such action, the people paying money to see this charlatan need to be told the facts, I hope you will take the initiative and produce a show that is very entertaining, but has appropriate warnings and information so that vulnerable people are not hurt by such an event.

Warmest regards,
James Aisthorpe

Oh and whoever finds the most spelling errors will win my contempt

[Dubious Dick]

Consider yourself well patted! Good on you for taking action. You may wish to follow this up with an email to Trading Standards for the area. If you check back over threads about Consumer Protection Regulations you will see that the new law requires that the average or vulnerable consumer not be mislead.

It seems that although there is more than adequate scope under the law for prosecutions of these scam artists, and potentially the promoters/theatres, TS does not have the resources to take them on.

However, you will see that Glasgow TS have insisted that the Pavilion Theatre in Glasgow has been obliged to put up disclaimers for a forthcoming performance by Derek 'THE BIG MDC FAILURE' Ogilvie. As others here have pointed out, these disclaimers are often unsatisfactory and far from prominent. Hence, if you do go to TS, may be a good idea to try to gently prompt them that the disclaimer needs to be prominent to have any value, and ideally short and to the point.

I have proposed a version along the following lines:

'This performance is for entertainment purposes only. There is no credible scientific evidence that anyone has the ability to make contact with the dead.'

The 'psychic' community really do not like this as they say that they cannot in good faith call their 'readings' entertainment only when they believe what they do. They are trying to muddy the waters with faith in general, and this has had some effect in making the Government nervous to take them on, in the same way that they have been wobbly over clamping down on Scientology (or scifiology as I have taken to calling it)

Once again, all hail your efforts to expose and diminish these purveyors of baloney, and to undermine their preying on the vulnerable, the sad and the gullible.

Of course, if you can persuade someone to go along in your absence, and get them to make a complaint after the event to TS that it was just cold reading then that may have an even greater effect! Ideally they should try to record the performance.

Finally, you may wish to remove your name from posts in future. The 'psychic' community watch these boards and can get quite vitriolic in support of their fantasies!

DD

[Nasib]

You'd make a good team, DD and NS.

[Dubious Dick]

Thanks Nasib. One day you might want to join us. Of course, you'll have to see the light first!

In the meantime, have you come up with your champion yet? Or will you again be evading the challenge?

[Sarama]

One of the moderators may be able to remove that portion of your letter that reveals your name. It certainly would not hurt to ask!

Excellent letter!
I hope you get a better response than those who wrote the Trading Standards office recently regarding a woo practitioner in Victoria.

[Dubious Dick]

Hi Sarama, can you point to the Victoria TS stuff please. I think that now we have the precedent set by Glasgow, we might be able to use it elsewhere as at least some breakthrough.

It is definitely worth pursuing this. Legal advice suggests that there is a chance that the CPRs may be able to be used, and that disclaimers are no defence. Just for now a means of at least potentially getting people to think twice and question.

Love and light to believers by the way! Beauty is truth and truth is beauty!

[NorthernSoul]

Hypothetically, if a "psychic" reading was recorded and could be shown to be no more accurate than cold reading, what would the reaction from TS be do we suppose?

[Dubious Dick]

I think that it may give them something to latch on to and use as evidence for taking further action.

I may be wrong but it seems it might be worth a try in testing what they would do.

The fact that these people claim they can contact the deceased by calling themselves mediums is by definition misleading since they cannot prove their claims. If there is evidence that they are simply cold reading then this further undermines there explicit and implicit claims.

If, in addition to getting a recording someone can find a member of the audience who went along because they had recently lost a loved one and was hoping to make contact, but was disappointed because of the obvious guessing/generalisation then that may form an even stronger basis for a complaint.

[NorthernSoul]

After an extended e-mail exchange with the lady I e-mailed originally and half of her staff they have finally agreed to put a disclaimer up. Available here: http://grimsbyauditorium.org.uk/prod...090&VenueID=95

Disclaimer: Due to the introduction of recent European legislation we would like to make you aware that this performance is intended for entertainment purposes only and has not been scientifically proven. Running time:approx 2 hrs 20 mins, includes interval

It is fairly pathetic and the reference to the legislation being from the EU, I believe is untrue and an attempt to discredit the disclaimer, many people are opposed to the EU, for one reason or another. Throughout the exchanges I was lied to (at least it seemed to me I was being lied to) I was told they never received my e-mails, before they directly referenced the contents of the e-mails they never received...go figure.

They have said they will contact Sally Morgan's promoters to see if she will agree to be scientifically tested (I added this as a P.S. on a whim) I won't get my hopes up but I'm also in touch with a journalist with the local newspaper who also intends to push Morgan's agent for something to support her claims, so who knows, either way I won't be here to see it.

[Trinoc]

It is fairly pathetic and the reference to the legislation being from the EU, I believe is untrue and an attempt to discredit the disclaimer, many people are opposed to the EU, for one reason or another.

You are correct. It is a piece of UK legislation based, I think, on EU recommendations, but it is not something forced on us by the EU. This is not the first time I've seen this appeal to anti-EU prejudice to try to discredit the law. I think you should email them again and point out the factual error in the disclaimer, and that they should refer not to the EU, but to the UK "Unfair Commercial Practices 2008" legislation.

(If you want legal chapter and verse, I suggest you contact Jack of Kent.)

[Dubious Dick]

Sorry. Further clarification. Believe it is due to having to come in line with EU wide Consumer Protection Regulations. So what? Does that make them bad? Of course not. We're not talking bendy bananas here (which I believe was an urban EU bashing myth anyway).

Good work. More pressure the better.

[Mulder]

Hypothetically, if a "psychic" reading was recorded and could be shown to be no more accurate than cold reading, what would the reaction from TS be do we suppose?

Cold readings can be quite accurate if there is good 'feedback' from the audience. Perhaps a competition between a psychic and a cold reader would be more informative.