For whatever reason, boredom, greener skeptic pastures, who knows, Lancaster has now put his energies into stopping medium James Van Praagh.
What started this all was the news that JVP was to appear in Grants Pass, Oregon on June 25th. I was startled to find that such a rabid skeptoid lives not far from me! Apparently Lancaster lives around the Salem area and can't tolerate a woo visiting his state spreading that woo that he do.
Lancaster writes letters and joins the JVP message forum, back and forths ensue, you know, the usual non-productive fanatic skeptic in your face routine. What's scary about all this isn't the expected skeptoid response to a medium, or even a few attempts at engaging the woo of the day in "debate," and so on. No, it's not that, it's the incredible depth of the ... what do we call this? Obsession, certainly, stalking? Harassing? Investigation? Whatever it all is, it's very intense. It's creepy and pathological.
There are several separate threads, or "chapters" devoted to Lancaster's attacks on JVP. I think this is all of them but there might be others, but in any case, you get the idea:
StopJVP - RSL in JVPLand - All Chapters?
StopJVP - RSL in JVPLand - Chapter 2: Q&A
StopJVP - RSL In JVPLand - Chapter 6: Grant's Pass?
StopJVP - RSL In JVPLand - Chapter 7b: Pink Panther Answer?
StopJVP: RSL in JVPLand - Chapter 5: The Two Jameses
StopJVP - RSL in JVPLand - Chapter 8: Epilogue
In the last thread ("Chapter 8: Epilogue") Lancaster comments how, after spending weeks on pro JVP message boards, exchanging emails and posts with JVP, he's ready to wrap up. Part of this summation includes the StopJamesVanPraagh website:
"I know that when I open StopJamesVanPraagh.com it will upset many of them, and that saddens me - but not enough to keep me from going ahead with it.
In a delisicious moment of irony, of kettle calling pot black, of point! zoom! right over your head!, of sigh, this just sums it all up doesn't it, Lancaster posts, on the JREF:
One of them [poster on JVP message forum] posted in one of my threads "I can't help but notice that you show such PRIDE when you use the word "skeptic."
I guess that I do. It's an odd concept to them, since, more often than not, the word "skeptic" to them has meant "insufferable know-it-all jerk." I'd like to think that I showed some of them that "skeptic" can sometimes mean something else, but perhaps, with my "Pink Panther" question, I just confirmed their earlier definition!
4 comments:
Robert Lancaster here.
Found your page while Googling references to my "JVPLand" posts.
A few comments:
1) The URL of my "Stop Sylvia Browne" site is "www.StopSylvia.com". The previous domain name expired while I was in a coma follwing my stroke in 2008, and was purchased at auction by a man who now uses it to host his pro-psychic web site.
2) Van Praagh's appearance in Grant's Pass was not what brought my attention to him. Read the first few chapters of my "JVPLand" story if you're interested in the real reason.
3) I don't consider what I do on my "Stop" sites to be "bashing" or "attacking". I put the acts about people such as Browne out there for the public to view. If those facts are unflattering to Browne, whose fault is that?
4) Yes, your comments about my JREF posts were indeed over my head. If you would like to spell them out for me, in a way even an "uber-skeptoid" could understand, I would be interested. Please email them to me at RSLancastr@aol.com.
Best regards,
Robert S. Lancaster
Against my better judgement, I'm calling into the void of a dead blog to ask for explanation, because I too don't see anything "deliciously ironic" about Lancaster's quoted remark.
He appears to be hopeful that he acted as a polite emissary from another school of thought, but acknowledging that he may have failed to do so. Perhaps you could very concisely explain how this is a "point! zoom! right over your head!" moment?
hillmyu: this is not a "dead blog" though often inactive.
Other than that, thanks for stopping by and leaving your comment. I don't play with skeptibunkies however. Unless, on those days I feel like it. Today isn't one of those days.
What does 'I don't play with skeptibunkies' mean? That you are unable to discuss? I'm kind of confused, you know.
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