"Does Paranormal Perception Occur in Near-Death Experiences?" Defended Page: 261

                                
"Does Paranormal Perception Occur in
Near-Death Experiences?" Defended
Keith Augustine, M.A.
Internet Infidels, Colorado Springs, CO
ABSTRACT: Four preceding commentaries present a variety of criticisms of
"Does Paranormal Perception Occur in Near-Death Experiences?": that most
near-death researchers do not interpret near-death experiences (NDEs) as
evidence for life after death; that near-death researchers never appeal to NDE
accounts incorporating predictable or uncorroborated details as evidence for
veridical paranormal perception during NDEs; that reliable data contradict
my critique of near-death veridicality studies; that it is unscientific to suggest
a role for embellishment in NDE reports; that the patient in the Maria's shoe
case reported veridical details that she could not have learned about through
conventional means; and that my critique of the Pam Reynolds case amounts
to an "a priori dismissal" of features suggesting veridical paranormal
perception or consciousness in the absence of brain activity. I respond to each
of these and other criticisms in kind.
KEY WORDS: out-of-body experiences; survival hypothesis; veridical para-
normal perception; embellishment; anesthesia awareness.
According to Bruce Greyson, my critique of near-death veridicality
research - particularly my claim that the majority of near-death
researchers interpret NDEs as evidence for survival after death - is
founded on "unsubstantiated speculation from the popular media"
rather than any scientific data or scholarly literature. In fact, the
claim is an inference based on the explicit comments of prominent
near-death researchers themselves, including the very researchers
Keith Augustine, M.A., is Executive Director and Scholarly Paper Editor of Internet
Infidels, a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to defending and promoting
metaphysical naturalism on the Internet. Reprint requests should be addressed to Mr.
Augustine at Internet Infidels, PO Box 142, Colorado Springs, CO 80901-0142; e-mail:
kaugust@infidels.org.

Journal of Near-Death Studies, 25(4), Summer 2007   2007 LANDS

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