If I believe in ESP, does that make me crazy or just open-minded?

Question

A more accurate phrasing of the question is: "Are you open to believing in the paranormal, or do you immediately deny everything that can't be explained scientifically?"

Answer 1

If you are open minded, that means you are open to the possiblity either way. That means your willing to accept that ESP doesnt  exist.

In light of the fact that there is no existing evidence for ESP, It would be crazy to blindly believe in ESP with out evidence to support your belief.

The skeptics, believe it or not, are not people who deny the existance of paranormal abilities, but people who require proof either way.

It just happens there is no body of substancial verifiable proof that paranormal abilities exist. The skeptics are skeptics, because they are looking for this proof.

Believers are simply people who are willing to believe anything anyone tells them without any evidence or very weak and iffy evidence. That is crazy to me.

Answer 2

Blindly believe? No, not when you have the power at your fingertips to investigate with the Internet.

If it has truth to it there must be evidence that can be tested along with independent statistics to back up such a claims. Not anecdotal or hearsay stories but solid evidence. If anything paranormal is real, belief is a not factor.

"It seems to me what is called for is an exquisite balance between two conflicting needs: the most skeptical scrutiny of all hypotheses that are served up to us and at the same time a great openness to new ideas.... If you are only skeptical, then no new ideas make it through to you.... On the other hand, if you are open to the point of gullibility and have not an ounce of skeptical sense in you, then you cannot distinguish the useful ideas from the worthless ones" - Carl Sagan, 1987.

Answer 3

Those are not the only options. I'd say there are three important ones:

Faith

Skepticism

Cynicism.

Faith is where you believe it to be true regardless of the evidence. One could argue that only difference between having faith and being crazy is political correctness.

A cynic will not believe "this c**p" at all. It is as dogmatic as having faith.

A skeptic will not believe it either, they will demand evidence. They will never deny something outright, but will not accept anything before it can be backed up with compelling scientific evidence. This is the healthiest position to take, on anything. But it is not halfway between faith and cynicism, but apart from both entirely.

There is a term called "perinormal". This refers to things that appear paranormal but are in fact quite material interactions that can be explained scientifically, even if we are unable to do so now. We can only call something perinormal in retrospect, because until then they are indistinguishable from the paranormal, which are always suspect.

Of course, once they have been understood, they are no longer perinormal, but normal.

And example of a once-perinormal phenomena is electromagnetism.

Answer 4

Open minded.

Yes, I am open mided from first hand experince.

ESP has been scientifically proven.  The US military admits it.

Answer 5

Regarding people who say "ESP cannot exist."

You cannot PROVE a negative except in two ways, neither of which applies to ESP.

1.  Prove that something is self-inconsistent.

For ESP, so far there is issue of consistency.

2.  Prove that something doesn't exist by visiting all of the places where it could exist and fail to find it.  

Since the population of the earth is fairly big these days, it might be a bit hard to find everyone and test them for ESP.

Just because something hasn't been shown doesn't mean it doesn't exist.  (Yeah, I know - too many negatives in that sentence, but it is what I wanted to say.)

This is slightly off subject, but consider the Dutch physicist Heike Kammerlingh Ohnes, who discovered the effect we now call superconductivity.  He literally threw conventional physics in the dirt by one fairly simple experiment.  (He also got the Nobel Prize for the discovery, if I recall correctly.)  But his finding was beyond comprehension at the time.  It flew in the face of every law of electrical flow then known.  The idea of reaching true-zero resistance was impossible.  Until Ohnes did it.

So when folks say "x is impossible" but don't give one of the the proofs I mentioned earlier, smile at them.  Pat them on the head.  Don't argue with them.  They'll just get more confused than they ever were before.

Answer 6

I'm open to it. So if you're crazy, then I'm completely wacked... cause not only do I believe in it, I have it.

Answer 7

no, it has something to do with your own belief, it's your own opinion

Answer 8

i believe it makes you normal.

there might be only a few people who believe so much crazy things to be true as i do, and still, i don't take it quite all for real just because i wish them to be true.

what i want to say is that i also try a lot of 'crazy' things and find out that they are possible.

you'll find out that some very intelligent people will deny any allusion to 'esp' here - that does not make them 'close-minded'. they just choose to deny it at all cost.

if pigs will really fly tomorrow they'll look at them in the air and they'll still say: 'it is not possible'.

Answer 9

Once again since the YA debunkers that loudly proclaim their interest of providing answers based on science since this is the Science & Mathematics section have failed to provide any such answers.

Crazy is not a term that is used in the law (insanity is a legal concept) or mental health (that would be a mental disorder). Thus, crazy is defined by the person using it and it is nothing more than a personal opinion. So, you get to decide if you are crazy and so do your friends (everyone is entitled to an opinion).

Like wise open minded is simply an opinon. In my opinion I am open to believing in the paranormal and I do so based on the existing evidence. Also, in my opinion most of the people on YA who declare themselves skeptics are debunkers and as you suggest immediately deny everything. For instance they proclaim no evidence when  parapsychology has provided evidence that exceeds all the requirements of proper controls and statistical significance in all other fields of social science and medical research.

To once again correct the misinformation (of no evidence) constantly repeated by the debunkers I have provided links to the evidence below.

Answer 10

I don't think you're crazy if you believe in ESP.  I honestly don't care what you believe.  However, if you claim as fact that which has not been factually established then I do mind.

The term "open-minded" is a tricky (and often abused) term.  Am I open-minded if I honestly and objectively consider a claim and then reject it?  I think so, but many people who use the term seem to think disbelieving anything is closed-minded.  So, does it go both ways?  Are you open-minded to the consideration that ESP does not in fact exist?

There is a limit to what sort of claims deserve serious consideration.  If someone told me Big Bird was in fact a real bird I would be open-minded toward that claim but, supporting evidence lacking, I woudn't stay that way for long.

Answer 11

i'm open to most things, it makes life much more interesting

Answer 12

for me,  if you believe in ESP well it's great but it doesn't mean you are crazy, it is just the judgement of the other person who don't believe ESP that really exist.

ESP can also make you as open-minded in a sense of you believe of what you had felt and had sense (let's say a premonition, you had saw or heard or felt something over your mind that will happen in the future or just as a warning you receive) the are a lot of form and types of having an ESP. This makes you open-minded in a sense of you or there is a willingness to understand, guided or to be help by what you had felt, saw in a dream or  heard or predicted as what you fell that will be coming or happening.

ESP makes you crazy when you got an obsession from  over believing and bulgar of what you are encountering, most esp. when you share your experience and feelings to those persons who really don't believe ESP. Makes you crazy when you are about unable to control your self believing what is appropriate and inappropriate.

ESP in psychology is a part of science an example of this is:

Superstitions belief - in psychology this superstition is applicable in a way of in decision making (either you will pursue or not in a particular matter ) if you had a doubt don't continue. And this is effective, this also considered as a way of ESP and this is not only in psychology.

Me myself, I do believe in ESP and had an ESP, you may ask how? well, in a way of I just knew it (good or bad thing) before it will happen on the very same day. Why I knew? because I observed that every time I feel.... oh there would be a good/bad thing/news that will happen, because of observation and experienced.

If you believe in ESP it means that you are somewhat open-minded but a broad minded because, all the person experience something in connection of or having an ESP mind it nor ignore it.

Answer 13

If it really worked it would be simple to prove it in a controlled experiment in a lab situation.  The fact that no one has tells you it isn't real.

Answer 14

It makes you mis-informed.  Not crazy, because plenty of smart people have investigated it over the last few hundred years.  But they never found anything.  Not once.  There is absolutely no evidence for ESP, so science finally gave up on it.

While open-mindedness is generally a good thing - something all people need - don't leave your mind so open that people throw trash in it.

Answer 15

I don't immediately deny everything.On the other hand I don't immediately believe everything.It doesn't have to be explained scientifically either.I'd believe it if someone would actually do it.So far that has not happened.To answer your question I don't know.You may be crazy I've never met you.Probably you're not.If you believe in ESP absolutely,never having seen it.You are not open-minded.If you thought it might be real but may not be.Then you would be open-minded.

Answer 16

Here is the best answer you can ever recieve!: No You are not crazy and don't judge yourself. .... Esp means extrasensory perception: perception or communication outside of normal sensory capability. That is what the dictionary declares it to be. But it is really extrasensory communication beyond the 5 senses. The six sense, which science refers to it being paranormal. Esp is real. Paranormal is word that I don't use because it is normal to an entity like me. The prefix para means beyond or above. And you know what normal means.  You brain processes throught through a stream of consciousness formed into a holographic picture.  A thought is a stream of consciousness processed into a holographic picture. And that stream of consciousness is information. Just like a television.   And to answer your question..... To really have an opened mind is to believe in nothing and know everything!!! And knowing everything comes from experience which you will find truth and thus finding truth you will gain something that is called wisdom. And that is to keep an opened mind.  (A just to note: what do you think de ja vu is? It happens to everybody. Then is it really paranormal or just normal. <THAT IS A PERCEPTION!