As if we needed the Michael Jackson matter to get any stranger, spoon-bender Uri Geller, who describes himself as "a close friend" of Jackson, now claims that a few years ago he "hypnotized" the pop star, reached into his unconscious and extracted his own "indisputable" verdict on the child-molestation charges. Says Geller, Jackson is innocent. Is there no end to Geller's talents? Next thing we know, he'll be playing the kazoo and tap-dancing!

I guess that'll be the end of the Jackson matter, right? Geller breathlessly described to the UK media how he also "influenced" the tapes of Jackson's next music release, as well, by placing his hand on the tapes. That ought'a do it. So we now know that Jackson's income problems are solved, too. Really, it's about time that Geller actually did something real for someone, since his bending of spoons for the last 30 years seems not to have altered our lives in any significant way, at least not as far as I've noticed. Thanks, Uri!

Gee, Geller was rejected by David Blaine after showing up to steal the sealed-in-a-box thunder from him. The Jackson item came along just as Geller was running out of celebrities on whose shoulders he could ride. Who's next? I understand that a prince named Charles over there needs some help….

Reader Peter E. Petersen of Oslo, Norway, follows up on the news item we ran here about Lena Skarning receiving state funds from the Norwegian government to set up in business as a witch. Writes Peter:

I took the liberty to send an email to the minister in charge of such matters. Somewhat to my surprise I received a letter back from the Royal Norwegian Ministry for Trade and Industry, who explained that the "witch case" was approved by the relevant office for allocation of such state funds, following an evaluation by KPMG, one of the world's largest auditors and business consultants companies. Apparently, KPMG found the business concept and market potential promising. Their mission statement, according to their official website, is: "KPMG is the global network of professional services firms whose aim is to turn knowledge into value for the benefit of its clients, its people, and its communities."

I have not bothered to ask KPMG how they think the witch Lena Skarning turns knowledge into value for the benefit of people and communities. Neither have I asked KPMG if they have thought about the fact that Ms. Skarning's marketing of her "magic" products may violate Norway's anti-quackery laws. Although this witch case is "small fry," I see no reason why large players like the Norwegian government and KPMG should get away with sloppy attention to detail, and common sense. Should you by any chance meet a KPMG executive at a cocktail party, this little anecdote may cause both laughter and embarrassment.

Reader Walter Beals writes:

Often I get into a discussion with someone regarding my skepticism. When I do, I like to point out that when humans are taught, or devise on their own, an explanation to some element of the workings of our universe, and are comfortable with that explanation (i.e. it fits their pre-existing world view and personal logic) they tend to hold on to that explanation, and find no need to verify the validity of it. This is especially true if it is told by someone they trust and/or look up to. As an example I will ask them what causes the phases of the Moon. A majority of the people with much confidence tell me that they do indeed know what causes the phases of the Moon. And when I ask them what it is, they reply that it is caused by the shadow of the Earth on the Moon. This answer does not surprise me — I used to believe it was true.

If the person I am talking to does believe that it is the shadow of the Earth on the Moon, I quickly grab some juggling balls that I use as models of the Sun the Earth and the Moon in order to demonstrate what is actually happening. No, I'm not actually juggling the balls during the demonstration — but that does give me a good idea for a trick! Anyhow, after demonstrating what actually causes the phases of the moons, people are usually surprised that they believed something that was not true for so long. They generally seem pleased to be told the truth.

When I finally discovered that I had been wrong about what caused the phases of the moon, the revelation did not turn my world view up-side-down. Everything was pretty much the way it had been in the past, but I better understood my environment, this beautiful universe in which we live. Had I been of some random group of people whose core belief requires that the Earth's shadow fall on the Moon, I might have been a little more reluctant. I guess what I wanted to say is that we should pay a lot of respect to those who have managed to ask questions about their beliefs, and to change them even if it means turning their whole world topsy-turvy.

I agree with Walter. Bear in mind that some versions of religion require that absolute truth is represented by such statements as, for example, that the Earth — and everything else — is 6,008 years old, and that everything for these folks falls apart completely if that is not true. Thus, they cannot doubt any of it, or they've lost everything they believe in. That's not something that many people can do.

Science, though, thrives on being corrected and re-directed when its findings are successfully challenged. New data, new interpretations, new approaches, strengthen rather than damage science. Walter, too, seems to have been made better for his reversal.

(That age of 6,008 years is plus-or-minus a few, since James Ussher (1581-1656 C.E.), Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland — either through ignorance or perversity — went directly from 1 BC (B.C.E.) to 1 AD (C.E.), giving the year 0 a miss. And, when computing the birthdate of Christ, Archbishop Ussher forgot to carry over a few digits. As a result, he had Jesus born in 4 B.C.E. Life is complicated.)

Though you've been kept up-to-date on The Amaz!ng Meeting 2 in Las Vegas by webmaster Jeff Kostick, I must tell you that the reaction to the event has been beyond our hopes. We've yet to completely summarize the evaluation sheets that were handed in, but I get the feeling that topping this meeting next year will be quite a task.

Our sincere gratitude must be expressed to the sterling group of speakers who generously gave their time and their skill to make TAM2 such a resounding success. They came from Australia, the UK, and all over the USA. Our registered guests came from Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, the UK, and the USA.

Our volunteers who hustled about the Tuscany hotel finding impossible things, arranging unusual and difficult conjunctions, and generally accomplishing a variety of small miracles for us, deserve our thanks in abundance. I'll single out just one, Lisa Kiefer, who was also present last year and jumped in again for us this year with her expected enthusiasm. We are grateful to all of you folks, and we hope to see you next year, too.

The JREF staff — Andrew Harter and Linda Shallenberger — were very ably assisted by Karl Shallenberger, who proved to have astounding and hitherto-unrecognized talents as an auctioneer!

Former JREF interns Kelli Kirkle and Jonathan Pritchard were there, helpful as always. And no Amaz!ng Meeting could take place without buddy Jerry Andrus holding court in his special way. Thanks, Jerry!

Hal Bidlack, as last year, was everywhere. He brought along his son Chris, and together they nailed down the hosting duties and the general tasks of rounding up speakers and getting them up to the microphones. Chris also served as the official photographer, and will be making his photos available shortly to those who may be interested.

My most excellent friends and colleagues, Penn and Teller, were all over the place. The tour of The Slammer, the auction of some P&T souvenirs, and their very generous donation of more than 300 tickets to their highly successful Las Vegas show, raised a very significant sum of money to help support the JREF. As if we didn't get enough magic through P&T, Master Magician Lance Burton gave us tickets to his show and a live in-person sample of his prodigious talents, as well. I've always considered Lance to be a prince among men, as well as among magicians.

I can hardly give a summary of the meeting without mentioning Fred Durant III, who both last year and this year was the first person with his registration for the happy event. It's so good to see Fred there, smiling ear-to-ear at everything taking place. He knows how to have a good time, and we're thrilled that he chose TAM1 and TAM2 for that purpose! But Fred, where's the registration for TAM3….?

I just don't have the time or energy at the moment to thank every individual that helped to make our event such a success. However, I must tell you that Michael Shermer of Skeptic Magazine has agreed to be the keynote speaker for next year's meeting as well, and Julia Sweeney — who was roped into being a speaker at almost the last minute — declared that she wasn't going to miss any subsequent meetings staged by the JREF. Julie was the absolute charmer of the whole affair, and even Hal Bidlack agreed that allowing her to go beyond her allotted time was a wise decision. She was funny, passionate, and extremely important to us as she expressed her involved conversion from total believer to skeptic. What a gal!

We were very, very, fortunate to have such a stellar group of friends working for us and with us, a group whipped into shape by ever-dependable Linda Shallenberger. As I write this, she's bent over a stack of paper, trying to balance the JREF books and bring some sense into the pile of receipts that are all around her. Linda gave her all, as usual, and we're very grateful for her dedication and hard work. Kudos!

Though we've not decided yet on the venue for TAM3, pending examination of those evaluation sheets, that will be announced very shortly — so that Fred Durant can get his registration in first, as usual!

Folks, as I warned you last week, this week's update has to be rather short. We've just too much work to catch up on after being away for a whole week, but I promise I'll make it up to you in the coming few weeks. Stay tuned!