Penn and Teller's Bullsh*t

I've been watching this show the past few weeks. There are some interesting shows, like the one on Polygraph machines and why they don't work. Police agencies still use them even though they are very unreliable. There is a very good reason why they are inadmissible in a court of law.

It's a good show. For some reason, I can not watch it often. Although I know their schedule, I always tune in to their show a little too late.They're the ones who claimed Al Gore is full of shit with his Nobel prize winning documentary, 'an inconvenient truth". There was also this episode about the wall bulit along the Mexican border, how easy it was to break in. The last episode I watch was about Astrology. I think I have seen that polygraph episode but I was late tuning in.

One interesting episode was about women's boobs floating in water compared to implants which don''t float. They can be hilarious. That's one way to test women's boobs if theyre real or fake. edit this might be from another showw, Manswers, I get confused with all these TV shows

The last one I saw was about the Vatican and the Catholic church, pretty interesting.

I also like the random nakedness in the show. Suddenly, there is a woman completely naked for no reason at all. Not that I'm complaining but suddenly there's a naked chick. I am reminded of Maury Povich when he used to have men take polygraphs to see if they were cheating or not. After seeing the Polygraph episode, maybe some of the cheating men weren't really cheating after all. How many lives have been destroyed by a machine that isn't 100% accurate? Several serial killers have passed polygraphs, so why anyone still uses it is beyond me.

i remember watching one of there shows years ago, revealing how all was done. But 1 trick they didnt, exchanging bullets. Shooting at each other through a pane of glass and catching each others bullet in their mouths. Brilliant.

The bullet catch trick is a cool trick. The wand they use to pack the round into the old gun actually collect the bullet so there is no bullet in the old fashioned gun. What is funny is them describing how the trick went horribly wrong a few times. One time, a guy in the audience said "catch this bullet" and shot the magician with his gun. Needless to say, the magician didn't catch the bullet. Another time, a part of the magic wand broke off in the barrel of the gun, and the magician was shot with it. He didn't survive, as I recall.

I loved the one they did on Handicap/Americans with disabilities act. Thanks for posting, gotta set my DVR

DYasha wrote:

Theres always one

Also, theres a new show just hitting our screens,
'David Blaine: What Is Magic?'

Has it been aired in US? When he's good its good, when its not its POOR

I like Penn and Teller, been a fan of the time they appeared on the scene - the polygraph test is so true - one of the main reason that its not inadmissible in court, is that most seasoned criminals including police officers, who study in and outs of a test - can manipulate the outcome. The machine works by graphing ones breathing and blood pressure patterns. When a person is tested, they do a dry run. This run will set the basis pattern, in which they compare the two test. If one can change his breathing patterns and heart rate in the dry run, one can then set out and manipulate the main test by carrying out in the same way as the dry run. If one gets into a jam, and the police demand a polygraph test - tell them to stick it. They're just playing with your head. And never give up your rights.

Polygraphs simply don't work, yet a lot of cops and investigators still rely heavily on them. Serial killers pass them all the time. And blowhards like Nancy Grace makes a huge deal over people who fail polygraphs or refuse to take them. Countless lives have been destroyed by that machine. People have lost their jobs, marriages have been broken up, and serial killers pass the test and are no longer prime suspects.

It's kinda weird to read about duos like Penn and Teller and find out that they aren't really friends. Penn says that's why their partnership works.

Edgey wrote:

news to me, just business

Epitome of silent partner

One's funny, smart, and very eloquent, the other is Penn. Teller is actually quite funny and smart, but he doesn't speak on camera. He did on The Simpsons, and on this magic special I saw, with him in shadows, but that's their act for the past 20 years.

DYasha wrote:

DYasha wrote:

DYasha, do you have any personal reason for disliking them so much? You sound like someone with a grudge, who is crusading for a reason.

The sad fact is that live witnesses are even LESS reliable than polygraphs. And yet, we still use live witnesses, in trials. Without, I might note, even attempt at all to evaluate how good their powers of observation and memory are (which could be done, for example, by finding out whether they actually understood and can accurately remember stuff they saw on recent TV shows, movies, etc).

The other fact that DYasja declines to mention is that a WHOLE LOT of private companies use polygraphs, with generally good results, to screen employees, and to cut down on theft and other crimes against the company. Private companies do that, because about 80-90% of the time, they usually work reasonably well. Indeed, there is a LARGE class of inept and amateurish liars that give up quickly, and admit what actually happened, when told that they did not pass a polygraph test.

Can polygraph tests be faked, fooled, and fudged? Sure, some of the time. That's like saying that boats sometimes sink, and sometimes boats kill people. Sad, and true. So, should we stop using boats, altogether? No, because most of the time, they DON'T sink. And, they do a LOT of good.

Why do courts not allow the use of polygraphs? The hidden answer is, they would cut down on the amount of control that lawyers (who ALSO sometimes lie, and deliberately mislead, and hide facts, and fudge answers) would have, over a trial, and over clients. And, that would cut down on the amount of money lawyers make. And, after all, courts are run by (and for . . .) lawyers, so they are damned well going to use every reason they can, to oppose the use of anything that would reduce THEIR control over a trial.

Final comment -- there is a new type of brain imaging called "functional MRI". It is almost absolutely 100% foolproof, in being able to tell when people are lying.

So -- in all seriousness, try to answer this question -- why aren't lawyers, courts, and legistalures pushing hard to get it adopted and used, as the new standard type of lie-detectors in court proceedings, especially in murder cases?

You can damn well bet that just about any and every nations' intelligence and spying agencies have already started using it, quietly, without calling any attention to what they're doing in secret.

As for Penn & Teller -- I love 'em. They're great. And BTW, Teller also spoke, at the end of their movie.