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Thursday, 1 October 2009 03:20 pm
(no subject)
Today's Express has a blurb about a psychic who claimed to have been assaulted by rival psychics. She got arrested for faking the allegations.
But consider the implications if it did happen. Couldn't she foresee the assault? Oh, wait, if they're psychics too, then they could foresee her defensive measures and plan around them. But then...
Okay, I see a few possible outcomes when psychics want to fight each other:
1. Permanent stalemate. Neither party ever makes a move, because they keep having to re-plan. There'd be fewer wars if governments hired psychics.
2. One party has a move so perfect that there's no getting around it. And no time to warn the authorities it's about to happen. This would account for the wars that proceed nevertheless.
3. One party gets tired and throws in the towel.
4. They're fatalists like Dr. Manhattan, not doing what they want but watching the puppet strings.
By sheer coincidence (or is it?), after thinking of all this, I followed an IMDb link to a discussion of fictional psychics being able or unable to change the future.
But consider the implications if it did happen. Couldn't she foresee the assault? Oh, wait, if they're psychics too, then they could foresee her defensive measures and plan around them. But then...
Okay, I see a few possible outcomes when psychics want to fight each other:
1. Permanent stalemate. Neither party ever makes a move, because they keep having to re-plan. There'd be fewer wars if governments hired psychics.
2. One party has a move so perfect that there's no getting around it. And no time to warn the authorities it's about to happen. This would account for the wars that proceed nevertheless.
3. One party gets tired and throws in the towel.
4. They're fatalists like Dr. Manhattan, not doing what they want but watching the puppet strings.
By sheer coincidence (or is it?), after thinking of all this, I followed an IMDb link to a discussion of fictional psychics being able or unable to change the future.