Julia Assante is an author, medium
and spiritualist
who claims to have been a medium
and psychic
since 1977. She also appears to be somewhat successful – her fees are steep – presumably,
in part, because she also happens to possess a doctorate in Archaeology and Art
History of the Ancient Near East from Columbia University, something that
shouldn’t give any credence to her inane rants but does make some people think
she is smart. She has also given lectures on a variety of silly crackpot paranormal
topics, including remote viewing
and energy healing.
Among Assante’s books are The Last
Frontier: Exploring the Afterlife and Transforming Our Fear of Death, well
known for its thick and obtuse layers of quantum woo
and endorsement of various fraud “psychics”
who have claimed to have scientifically proven the afterlife. The book claims for instance that
the infamous Helen Duncan
and her ectoplasm
“spirits” were the real thing (they were really made from cheesecloth –
this is not really a matter of controversy), as was the Irish medium Eileen Garrett,
who purportedly channeled
information from deceased persons from the R101 airship disaster, something
that has has been thoroughly refuted. Assante doesn’t engage with the
refutations. She also claims that reincarnation
has been scientifically proven.
But then, she has also said that
“I don’t care about delineating imagination from reality,
because for me reality’s a pretty slippery thing too.” Indeed.
Assante is also involved with past life therapy,
and believes such therapy can cure many ills. Needless to say, it cannot.
Diagnosis: Yup: Riding the postmodernist
train straight into Alex Jones country with the clown flag proudly flying. Yet
people actually listen to her (probably mostly because she is ready to confirm,
in an authoritative voice, whatever nonsense they wish were true.)
Hat-tip: Rationalwiki
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