Gary,

  I have occasionally engaged my students in the discussion of psi
ability as well.  I've asked them to imagine a world full of blind
people, but a few are able to see. What would their lives be like?
They would be immediately recognized as having extraordinary powers.
They would be easy to test and would rarely fail. Their abilities
would propel them to positions of great importance and prestige.
They would literally be like Gods among mortals. Yet our psychics
make livings by doing gypsy-style readings and operating phone
services...hardly the kinds of pursuits one would expect from
individuals with such awesome capabilities!

  One argument I would anticipate from psychic advocates is that
psychic abilities are ethereal and not totally controllable. The
history of investigation seems to show that the ability becomes
inaccessible in proportion to the legitimacy of the test conditions.

Randi refers to this as the shyness effect.  Skeptics need to counter
this evasion somehow.

           Brant

