I have been informed that due to some problems with the auction it was taken down, but a new one will be posted shortly.
I have just been informed by Alison Smith from Randi’s organization that they are auctioning off a tour of Penn’s house, The Slammer, and a dinner with Penn his own self. This is very cool; Penn’s house is… well, you just have to see it. I had wanted to go for years, and got my chance a while back. It’s very, very fun.
The money goes to Randi’s Educational Foundation, a worthy cause if there ever was one, and one which is sorely needed. The auction ends on April 10 at 18:10 Pacific Time. So bid early and bid often! Maybe Penn’ll dance for you. Though probably not.
April 4th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
[jealousy]Damnit, wealthy skeptics have all the fun.[/jealousy]
April 4th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Darnit, if I could go to Las Vegas I’d bid for this.
I saw that show where they toured Penn’s house… Awesome place!
April 4th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
This would be great, unfortunately the wealthy have an unfair advantage here with more disposable income than I will see in a long, long time.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
@angrynight
I hear ya. Well, my birthday is on April 10th, so I would be very happy if someone just happened to get the tour for me as a present. Takers? Anyone? Beuler? Beuler?
April 4th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Who is Penn? Scientist?
April 4th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
We should a bunch of us put in $10 a piece and then if we win, have a drawing to see which one of us gets to go.
Or is that a silly idea?
April 4th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Sometimes being poor sucks.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Damon B.
If you want to organize it! I don’t envy you though.
April 4th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
The “winner” is the one who can afford to spend the most money. Perhaps a more accurate discription of this blog entry would have been “Pay for dinner with Penn”.
April 4th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
RAF isn’t that the american way.
April 4th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Damon B., that’s actually not a bad idea. I admit that finances aren’t the only thing keeping me from it (Damn obligations and responsibilities!) but if you run this little thing, I suspect even more money could be raised than before.
That said, I’m not sure if that would violate some kind of internet lottery laws, not to mention the task of opening some kind of bizarre escrow account just to return the money in case the pool loses. Unless the pool agreed to donate the loss to the Randi Foundation if that outcome arose). In which case we could count it as a tax-deductible (?) raffle of sorts which wouldn’t violate any gambling laws.
Or not.
April 4th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Penn Dancing, *Shudders* …
If we Pay him MORE, Can he Not …
I’ve Seen The Show!
April 4th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
t8m8r:
Penn Jillette, of Penn & Teller. Magician.
April 4th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Darn. The listing has been pulled. Guess now I have to find something else to do with my time.
April 4th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
Lucky for Penn. If I got in there I’d spend the whole time on his case about the logical errors he made in his Showtime programme, (BS), and radio show. He’d wind up having to kick me out like I was a zealous Jehovah’s Witness or something.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the big lug, but that doesn’t mean he’s right all the time, and not in need of correction.
For example, it’s still bugging me that he was bragging on his radio show that he kissed Dean Caine on the lips during a shoot just to rile the guy. Yeah, sure it’s no big deal, (for him and most everyone else), but I’d like to see him tap dance his way to making that fit with his Libertarian philosophy.
He painted what he did as about the equivalent of getting two men to kiss in front of Fred Phelps, (which I can appreciate the humour in, and the nature of such a thing as a Free Speech issue). But getting physical with a non-consenting person like that, just to get a similar reaction, or make a similar point, is another thing entirely.
If I saw it coming I’d feel perfectly well within my rights to punch him in the nose in self-defence.
April 4th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
At the second Amazing Meeting, I visited the Slammer. Penn was a fine host. He showed us the pickled punks, Liza Minelli’s underpants, his patented hot tub (U. S. Patent 5,920,923), his knife-throwing practice area, the goofy fish, among other things… plus he played a few harmless practical jokes on the group.
The big thrill for me was to get to “touch the tire” (which, I understand, no longer hangs in Penn’s home). Penn and Teller did a TV special many years ago called “Don’t Try This At Home,” the climax of which showed a semi truck running over Teller. After doing the trick, they explained how they did it. The truck was rigged, and the tire that ran over Teller was foam rubber. This tire hung in Penn’s living room, and Penn invited us to touch it … but only I was tall enough to do so.
April 4th, 2008 at 10:35 pm
Huh, Dean Caine? Or Dean Cain? What’s that about? Are we talking about the Lois and Clark Superman guy?
April 5th, 2008 at 1:48 am
Sometimes being poor sucks.
Try making enough so that the government *thinks* you are rich, but you’re far from it. The IRS agents wear strap ons when they audit someone like me.
April 5th, 2008 at 1:57 am
Will we get to see his creepy creepy electric chair ’sex play’ S&M chamber that he showed off on A&E? ewwww.
April 5th, 2008 at 7:09 am
Now wait a minute “teller”, I think that’s one of the best parts of the tour
It’s a must see.
April 5th, 2008 at 8:55 am
IRONMANAustralia:
I’ve often thought that the series finale of “BS” should be “BS: BS!”, in which they’d cover all their own errors. It might take more than one episode, though.
April 5th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
My kids and I have just watched the first episode of the new season of Dr Who! WAY COOL! Great to see Bernard Cribbins back again (As well as appearing as a cameo in one or two of the last few episodes he was in the second Dr Who film with Peter Cushing in 1966) This series looks to be on top form. No spoilers phil but YOU WILL LOVE IT!
April 5th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Beelzebub asks why Penn doesn’t see the need for teaching evolution in school (for kids who aren’t growing up to be scientists.) No idea, and every kid I’ve ever known (at least up to the age school gets a hold of them… coincidence?) is a born scientist, and should know this stuff. But anyway, maybe he has a trick planned (drink a glass of toxic bacteria?) where what the audience doesn’t know is that he’s rigged the environment so that there is a huge survival advantage to bacteria which don’t produce the toxin, and the generation time is just a few seconds, and the trick works much better if the audience doesn’t understand natural (or in this case, artificial) selection. IOW, he’s got an ulterior motive.
April 5th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
No idea, and every kid I’ve ever known (at least up to the age school gets a hold of them… coincidence?) is a born scientist, and should know this stuff.
Weren’t dinosaurs really HUGE with kids just recently? What happened to that?
April 6th, 2008 at 4:23 am
@angrynight: Yeah, that guy who got to suck face with Teri Hatcher and who unfortunately isn’t me.
“Cain” is it? Okay. Damn sketpics and your pedantries. I should have listened to my psychic John Edwards when he warned me about you guys …
@Quiet Desperation: No. Being poor always sucks, (no matter what that Ad Lazarum-spewing hack Charles Dickens would have you believe).
And what happened to kid’s interest in dinosaurs? Ummm … Pokemon? I dunno. But whatever it is, I’m sure the Hovind family will be building a lame-o backyard theme park connecting it with Genesis anytime soon.
I just got a mental image of God about to cast Satan out of the Garden of Eden, and doing a big Dragonball Z powerup …
Where was I …?
Oh yeah.
And speaking of Hovind, have you guys read his, (from jail), blog lately?
http://www.cseblogs.com/?p=132
I’ve been saying it for a while now, but I really think he’s losin’ it. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him come out of jail with a Koresh-style manifesto to start his own sect. He’s been comparing himself to biblical figures, and we went way past Job a long time ago …
@Nemo: Just such a final episode of BS has been mentioned by P&T and is pretty much public knowledge in skeptical circles. And most everyone strongly agrees that it’s a good idea.
@Beelzebud: It’s my understanding that interviews aren’t anything like just dropping in to shoot the breeze. As P&T make a point of in their movie – you’re usually there to get a plug in for whatever junk you’re peddling at the time. I’m guessing that jumping down Beck’s throat could really queer the deal.
I think your handle is cool by the way.
And yes, the extra “s” in “Edwards” was intentional, so start deleting your hasty response now.
April 6th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
And what happened to kid’s interest in dinosaurs? Ummm … Pokemon?
At least Pokemon has the concept of evolution. For example Pichu evolves into a Pikachu which evolves into a Raichu…
I’m 42 and I know that. I am not proud.
I admit it’s a made up form of real time, same-creature “evolution” but it’s STILL better than the the big buddy pal in the sky… who will make you BRUN FOREVER if you don;t toe His line.
http://yoshijr50.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/johnc130.gif
April 6th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Off-topic: I would so like to go to town on Penn for the B.S. episodes on gun control and “Holier Than Thou”, but Penn & Teller do not provide a blog to which I can respond, nor an email address on their “Contact Us” page, other than to book them for appearances, and I would rather not do it here.
On-topic: Why doesn’t Penn just save us all some time and give Bill Gates the tour?
April 7th, 2008 at 8:22 am
I just went to re-visit the eBay page (to see how high the bidding went) and saw this:
Anyone know if it’s been relisted?
April 7th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
As people begin to age the gods employ corrupting tactics. They ultimately begin to look down on the children and the wisdom they recently understood:::
They voluntarily turn their back on their opportunity to ascend and instead embrace evil.
It’s not old people who go to heaven. Old people must come back because of the mistakes they’ve made throughout their lives. Children are the ones who have the opportunity to ascend.
Children are discounted by adults in society. The gods corrupt people as they age, use trust-building tactics and soon adults view the children as ignorant, yet to understand the god’s system, and subsequently look down on the children. This is one of the most bitter, painful ironies the gods employ, for people consciously turn their back on and lose their opportunity to ascend::::
Religions teach that old people to go to heaven when they die. They don’t. Old people are reincarnated. It’s the children who go to heaven.
The wisdom the gods impart to children, either through their innocence/purity or religious-based educational pursuits are the gods sharing the truth with their most favored people::::It’s the children whom the gods teach the right way for it is the children who have a chance. For example, they teach children to have faith, for understanding the god’s geographical clues hurts people by illustrating negative things, opening the door for the god’s to employ deceptive tactics.
Old people don’t go to heaven. Old people must come back because of the mistakes they’ve made throughout their lives. It’s the children who have the opportunity to go to “heaven”. They must behave apprioriately, think correctly and be genuinely god-fearing. Their innocence and lack of desensitization ensures they have a real opportunity to achieve this goal.
This is charecteristic of the gods methodology::::The big prize gone early, compelling people to chase something that already has been decided. They sent this clue with boss as well. It is also a clue supporting my claim RW&B’s german is in fact Christianity’s Anti-Christ. Logic also dictates, considering the definition.
The confusion over this multi-dimentional positioning will serve as an effective tactic, eliminating many additional disfavored in the process.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:33 am
@ reinstate@nonsequiturspamorama.com
That’s amazing! You must be looking directly into my soul. I swear that’s verbatim what I was about to say.
April 8th, 2008 at 6:07 am
reinstate posts:
[[Religions teach that old people to go to heaven when they die.]]
WHAT religions? Certainly not Buddhism.
[[ They don’t. Old people are reincarnated. It’s the children who go to heaven.]]
The Bible says there is no reincarnation. We each get exactly one chance at life prior to the resurrection. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” -Hebrews 9:27
You can say that’s just what my religion (Christianity) says, but if you can post your religious beliefs, I can post mine. [[Shadow-boxes impressively]]
April 8th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
@reinstate – you’re a bot!
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22As+people+begin+to+age+the+gods+employ+corrupting+tactics.%22&hl=en&filter=0
April 12th, 2008 at 8:33 pm
Dinosaurs Popularity.
There was just an exhibit in Houston about dinosaurs in Houston called “Walking with dinosaurs”
http://www.dinosaurlive.com/