Let me be clear: the two reasons so many people come to The Amaz!ng Meetings are 1) we strongly feel that critical thinking and skepticism may yet save the world, and 2) we love Randi dearly. This little gnome of a guy is jam packed with energy, drive, and the ability to crush quackery, tomfoolery, hucksterism, and flimflammery across the globe. He’s so densely packed with skepticism it’s a wonder he doesn’t collapse into a black hole.
However, last year he nearly did. We almost lost Randi to a heart attack, and for a few months we weren’t sure he would pull through. But now he is back in fighting trim, and I decided to talk to The Man about what happened last year.
See why we love him?
In fact, Hal Bidlack worships him as you can see here:
Hal is pretty tall, and Randi is, um, not so tall. After Hal introduced Randi at the speaker dinner, Randi walked up to the mike and made a face when he saw it was well over his head. Feigning impatience and royal disdain, he crossed his arms and turned away. Hal saw this, leapt to the mike and lowered it for Randi, getting on his knees and cracking Randi up. It was a beautiful moment, and I’m glad I got it (even if it’s a little fuzzy).
After the meeting, a few of us went to the Peppermill, a sort of skeptic hangout at TAMs, and Randi joined us. That was a delight. We had conversations that were amazing (of course!). Rebecca (of Skepchick fame) took a picture of the two of them together and complained he never smiles in pictures. She showed him the picture from her camera, and just at that moment he grinned, and I was quick on the trigger of my camera:
I already miss everyone, especially that bald little guy. I am so, so proud to call him my friend. He’s little, but he’s a giant, a true giant among men.
Previous TAM reports:
Report #1: Name dropping and geekery
Report #2: Hanging with my bud Adam Savage
Report #3: Trickery with Jamy Ian Swiss
January 24th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
Phil,
Thanks for your TAM5 blog entries, I’m already so bummed that it’s over.
It was great to see you again, I enjoyed your presentation asmuch as I always have, and your just an all around cool guy too.
Thanks for signing my calendar, too. If you ask nicely, I’ll sign yours next year!
January 25th, 2007 at 12:23 am
Hey, there are ORBS in that mike pic..!
January 25th, 2007 at 12:56 am
So where do we send the money to?
January 25th, 2007 at 3:37 am
“Not a damn thing”..
At least now we know what to expect.
January 25th, 2007 at 5:13 am
That was great, Phil! But you need to fire your cameraman…
January 25th, 2007 at 7:09 am
Loving these videos of yours, Phil.
I liked how Randi went “Jedi” at the end. A fun guy indeed!
January 25th, 2007 at 7:44 am
Phil Plait and The Amazing Randi…
Here’s a nice little clip where Phil Plait (of BadAstronomy.com) interviews “The Amazing” James Randi on the final day of this year’s The Amaz!ng Meeting in Las Vegas.
I didn’t meet either of them at TAM 5, but PhilR…
January 25th, 2007 at 8:54 am
Off topic a little (apologies), but I was wondering, Phil, if you’ve considered a full debunking of the Privileged Planet nonsense? It’s being heavily promoted on Christian radio these days as an extension of Intelligent Design.
It’s not “bad astronomy” in the same sense as Hoagland’s Face on Mars nonsense–i.e. it doesn’t make outlandish claims about fake moon landings or Martian cities–but it’s all the more insidious because of it sounds so reasonable.
What triggered my question was Jay W. Richards’ appearance on “The Bible Answerman” radio show yesterday and today. Richards is the author of the Privileged Planet. He is well spoken, and tells a good story, but his general thesis of wanting to reverse Earth’s “trend towards insignificance” since Copernicus’s time seems to me to be built upon a lot of fault assumptions about astronomy and cosmology.
Here is a link yesterday’s interview:
http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/Bible_Answer_Man/archives.asp?bcd=2007-1-24
January 25th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Have been listening to this, and the first bit sounds like an exposition of Psalm 19:1 it also sounded very similar to the Anthropic Principle
January 25th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Is Rebecca wearing a kaballa string?
January 25th, 2007 at 11:52 am
>> Is Rebecca wearing a kaballa string?
Nah. Must be a super string.
(rimshot)
Thank you!
(bows)
Kind of leaning toward Loop Quantum Gravity myself, but that’s another thread.
January 25th, 2007 at 11:58 am
Many years ago, I read this book that must be one of your favorites -”Chariots of the Gods?, etc.”
It claimed that Jonathan Swift’s mention of the moons of Mars, in Pt 3 of “Gulliver’s Travels” precedes the discovery of these moons, in fact, that it precedes the invention of optical instruments capable of making them visible to the eye.
I am sure that this must be as much BS as most everything else in the book, but I do not know why.
January 25th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
“He’s so densely packed with skepticism it’s a wonder he doesn’t collapse into a black hole.”
Hahahahahahaha! This made me laugh:)
January 25th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Man, we JUST missed being in that picture. We were at the table behind. You can see Lee Graham’s arm with a watch on it just entering from the left of the frame. So close to fame.
January 25th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
We were all crossing available protuberances against the possibility that Randi would not survive his cardiac event. It is to the great credit of his medical team, his cardiologist, his constitution, and his general cussedness that he is still here with us. I am SO glad to see pictures of him hale and hearty (as much as you can be at that calendar age), and even more so to see pictures of him smiling in good company. That one is some evidence of mindset, and to see him still enjoying the world does me a world of good.
January 26th, 2007 at 1:25 am
Okay, is it just me (Heh! Sorry…) or does BA sound, at times, like Matt Frewer, the guy that did Max Headroom?
[I may be discouraging the video-blogging with that one]
January 26th, 2007 at 4:11 am
“We were all crossing available protuberances against the possibility that Randi would not survive his cardiac event. ”
There has been no scientific study to show that the crossing of protuberances in any way helps a patient recover fro ma heart attack, in fact, logic dictate that the crossing of protuberances may in fact harm a patient if in fact the surgeon who is operating on the patient crosses his protuberances hindering his digital mobility…
Also, I wouldn’t expect Mr. Randi to see pearly gates, or hear heavenly choirs, he doesn’t believe in that. And unless I misunderstand Mr Sagan, Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence?
Perhaps if Mr. Randi converted to a major religion of his choice and then had a heart attack he might see said sights? As a control, he could convert to different religions and through multiple cardiac arrests attempt to determine multiple afterlives? One day pearly gates, the next multiple virgins, the next, the warm noodly embrace of the flying spaghetti monster?
Perhaps he could convert to multiple religions at the same time and see what actually shows up on his return to the afterlife? However, I could see why religions are usually mututally exclusive since no one wants to go to the aftelife and have Jesus, Vishnu and Bhuddha all tugging at your soul.
I realize this may be taxing on the delicate frame of Mr. Randi but isn’t giving it all to science what its all about?
Just a modest proposal here…