And now for my next trick
Does it take a fool to be fooled? Can even the smartest people be tricked? Yes, even the best of us is susceptible.
There’s a time-‐honored trick used by illusionists: the diversion. The idea is, if you keep someone’s attention on a little thing -‐ that seems like a big thing to the audience -‐ you can manipulate some other more important variable without anyone noticing. The result looks like magic, because our brain can’t figure it out. Surprise always brings wonder. If you can keep people guessing and looking the wrong way long enough, you can conjure the feeling of amazement.
When I was younger, I remember watching a famous magician, David Copperfield, make the Statue of Liberty disappear on live TV. He even had an audience with him at the time. Of course, he was a great distance away from one of our nation’s beloved landmarks when he seemingly snatched it from its rightful place on Liberty Island. Just far enough so that no one present could really “check” to see if it was still there. The viewing audience of millions was amazed. So was I. No one could believe their eyes.
When your senses are tested (tricked) beyond their capacity to reason, it can give you the illusion of magic. Our brain actually has blind spots. Illusionists understand these blind areas and the best ‘magicians’ can use and manipulate our experience to astounding levels.
Years after I saw David Copperfield remove and replace the Statue of Liberty, I watched street magician David Blaine perform on TV. He levitated in front of passersby on a street corner, amazed groups of people with card tricks and even survived in a block of ice suspended over Times Square for 3 days. What is going on here? That has to be magic, right? Not likely. You see, our brain trusts what we believe to be evidence through the reaction of others.
When we can’t be present, someone else’s eyes, ears and senses will have to witness for us. These illusionists aren’t ignorant. They know we want to trust, want to believe and want to be amazed. Blaine and Copperfield pay some of their audience to be astounded so that the rest of us go along for the ride. There’s a reason that almost every street magician passes a hat after each performance. Most of them are broke. If they were truly magicians, why couldn’t they simply make more money ‘appear’ in their pocket?
Thing is, it’s not just stage or street magicians who are pulling the con these days. It’s our very own news channels that are controlling the flow and importance of information through timeless act of diversion. The word “control” is key here, because – similar to street illusionists
– news channels control how, when and the rate at which we receive information. As an audience, we lap it up. Ever wonder why a celebrity drunk-‐fest or death dominates the news for days? Or why the world waits for weeks to get a glimpse of the new royal baby from England? Or even why one single critical issue between nations or political parties (finally, important news) gets beaten to death by paid pundits? Does the world really screech to a halt when things like this happen? Or, is it just a slow news cycle?
Neither. It’s the choice of our news media – which also posts on our social channels – to deliver information that will keep us talking, and most times divert us from addressing even more critical current events. Like audiences watching an illusionist, we think this bombardment of news must be important because we trust these channels. Our brain equates ‘time spent’ with importance. And that’s precisely why they devote so much time to these stories. They want your attention, not because they are ready to deliver the raw and most important news. They want your fandom because, when it’s time to pass the hat, they’ll collect more money. The most popular news outlets can charge companies more money to run their ads. When you consume the nonsense news, you feed the channels that bring it to you. Welcome to the show!
So today, be discerning. Don’t trust everything you see, hear or feel. Step back and ask yourself what’s real. You might not be able to tell how they’ve fooled you, but that doesn’t really matter. Focus on what’s important, what’s relevant and what’s realistic. It’s fun to be amazed, but in the end, ask yourself if it’s real or simply a trick. Look for the truth in everything you do and see. You can always trust the truth. Have a great day! Love dad
Return to homepage
