Spell Caster Scams Online: Radio Interviews for 1290 CJBK and the CBC

On Halloween day I had a very interesting experience. It was the day for radio interviews. In the morning I was interviewed on The Shauna Rae Show on News Talk 1290 CJBK (London, Ontario) at 11 am. (http://www.cjbk.com/). The topic was Spell Casters Online. Once I got past my nervousness, I enjoyed talking to the host I found her to be friendly, and interested in the topic. The whole interview maybe lasted about 5-7 minutes but it was a great experience!

It was excellent practice for later that afternoon when I was asked to talk to different hosts cross Canada for CBC Radio via Nationally Syndicated Interviews. (http://www.cbc.ca/) Over about 2 and half hours, I spoke to 10 different hosts from St. John’s to Winnipeg about the subject of “Spell Casting Scams”. This experience was fascinating because I was in a studio booth for the most part by myself waiting for each of the hosts to call in. Although I was unnerved the studio people were great! They made sure I knew what to do and prepared me for each host.

Each host approached the topic in a slightly different way and my feeling is that the women were more openly interested in the topic then the men. I wonder if this is because women are more likely to consider checking out Spell Casters on the internet when their relationships are in trouble. My sense from the men is that they could not believe that Spell Casters on line is a thriving business. In spite of the male hosts’ disbelief the figures quoted in the Globe and Mail article on the same topic that appeared in the Saturday paper under the title “Love Spell $99.99” says that “more than four million sites pop up”. Anyway, once getting past the shock it was easy to tell the hosts both male and female how the scams work and how the exchange of money for spells in illegal in Ontario.

Basically when the seeker goes to the spell caster they are told that the spell is going to cost X amount of dollars. Sounds straight forward right? Well no… then they are told that there is more to the spell casting procedure and that it is going to take several more sessions for the spell to be ready to use. Of course this means more visits to the spell caster and more money spent. So that love spell for $99.99 will actually cost the seeker will into several thousands of dollars by the time they realize that they have been taken to the cleaners.

Another common spell casting scam happens when the seeker goes to a psychic or palm reader and is told that they have an evil spell on them that only the said psychic/ palm reader can remove for a cost of course. Now for a reader to do this to the public is manipulation and extortion through the use of scare tactics. They make the seeker think that they are cursed and convince them to spend their hard earned cash to have the spell removed. This is illegal in Ontario. It is illegal because the reader uses fear and threats to get money out of the seeker who is coming to the reader for a promised service and is persuaded under false pretenses to spend more money than they were prepared to because they are now under pressure.

When a seeker comes for a reading they should know the total cost of the reading, the length of the reading and they should have the choice to stop the reading at any time before the end of the session and not have to pay for it if they are not comfortable. There should be no extra pressure to spend more money or to continue with a session with witch the seeker is not comfortable.

Reputable readers well:

1. Take the time to answer your questions before you book the appointment.

2. Advise you of the cost of their services and what these services include before you book or as you begin the session.

3. Allow you to ask questions as you go along.

4. Allow you to direct the reading with your questions or the area of focus you would like to have the reading take.

5. Record the sessions for you or allow you to take notes

6. Allow you to stop the session and cancel payment if you are not happy with the session as long as you let them know before the end of the session. Most honest readers know when a reading is not going well for some reason and will usually stop the reading themselves and advise the seeker to find another reader and offer to assist them in some other way if possible. If you stop the session the reader keeps their tape and you keep your money and that is that.

Whenever you are going for a psychic reading you have the right to be comfortable. You also owe it to yourself not to leave you common sense behind. Go with your gut! If something feels wrong it usually is!

Another 15 minutes of Fame it seems….

To my surprise I actually was interviewed and quoted in this article below for the Globe and Mail! Quite frankly I thought that the interview was a ruse on the part of the reporter to get a free reading. I get many folks calling and saying that they work in the media and that if I do a reading for them that they will promote my site for me.

As the interview continued I realized that Rebecca Eckler was a serious reporter and enjoyed the interview with her. For your convenience I have included the complete text of the article below:

Love Potion $99.99

REBECCA ECKLER

From Saturday's Globe and Mail

Are you unlucky at love? Desperate to get your man back? Or do you just want to see the jerk squirm? For some broken-hearted women, the dark arts promise more consolation than a trip to the spa. And there are plenty of practitioners out there offering vengeance — for a price.

Just Google “spell casters” and more than four million sites pop up. It seems the best revenge is not living well, but a well-cast spell.

Internet spell casters offer a range of services from “Return my Lover” and “Break Them Up” to “Stop a Divorce” and “Revenge Spells.”

I decided to go spell shopping on behalf of a friend, whose five-year, on-again, off-again romantic obsession had ended in disaster. But most of those I contacted seemed more interested in my credit-card number than my friend's love life. Sister Zhana at lovemiracles.net spent two seconds on the phone explaining she specializes in “love, career, family and enemies,” before cutting short the call.

One of the more intriguing services is offered by Spell Master Tony, at extremespells.com. During October, his “custom revenge spell” was on sale for only $99.99, down from $329. For that, Tony will not only see that your ex is fired from his job, he'll ensure that his dog runs away too. (If he could just make all his hair fall out, I might be sold.)

Catherine MacDonald, a psychic reader outside Toronto, says most Internet spell casters “are rip-off artists. There is no such thing as spells or quick fixes. The Internet has spawned a whole generation of people who believe in spells. I get about one call a week asking if I do spells. I don't. They all know about them from the Internet.”

According to MacDonald, the women seeking these services are not nut cases. Often they're professionals who should know better.

“They prey on people who they know are desperate. They are making a ton of money and it pisses me off. A fool and his money are easily parted, as the saying goes. I've seen sites that cost up to $1,200 to cast spells. It amazes me people just aren't good at using common sense.”

MacDonald says she counsels women to consider why they would want someone who came back just because of a spell. Sensible advice, yes, but for many women in a state of romantic desperation, it doesn't really matter why their lover comes back — as long as he does.

These are the women that Internet spell casters are after.

Angel Carra at supernaturalservices.com offers a “Stop a Divorce” spell for $59.90. However, as she writes on her site, her “top love spell” is the “Super Love Spell,” which costs $99.90.

“If your main goal is to get your lover to return fast, with new feelings for you and to keep you together in love for ever, this is for you,” she writes.

All her spells are guaranteed to work or your money back — “100-per-cent guaranteed.” If you read the fine print, however, you get your refund back only after nine months.

The appeal of surfing the Net fantasizing about revenge or getting him back is understandable. It can also be addictive, and most sites are skilled at convincing you they really work, with client testimonials like this one from spellsthatwork.com: “I wanted to let you know I am seeing great results as from your previous work. Frank is admitting and calling and coming around to see that he misses me tremendously and needs to be with me.”

At www.worldsmostpowerfulspells.com, High Priestess Katherine Uhls warns that she is so busy she may “stop taking clients at any time. . . . If you are serious about ordering, don't delay.”

Emagickspells.com offers a “bad luck spell,” which will “target one person's life and make it a living misery of the most terrible misfortune possible.”

MacDonald thinks this is bad karma. “If you put negativity out there, it will come back to you. That's the basic principle I follow. Basically, if you are seeking revenge or trying to mend a broken heart, you must trust that it will happen on its own.”

Which, of course, is not as much fun as searching for spell casters.

As for my friend, I'm taking her to the Stillwater Spa. At least I know their facials work.

Special to The Globe and Mail

Source: LINK

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/

If you enjoy discussion you can go to the Globe and Mail website and join the discussion attached to the article.

From this article I was also asked to do several other interviews!

A Radio Interview on the subject of "Spell Casters Online" for The Shauna Rae Show on News Talk 1290 CJBK (London, Ontario) on October 31, 2006—11 am. http://www.cjbk.com/

I also have an interview with CBC for a number of shows from 3-6 pm on Tuesday, October 31, 2006.

And as I mentioned in an earlier blog, I did an interview about “Spiritualism" on the Rogers Cable cast show 3 D Dialogue. Show aired October 23, 26, and 28, 2006. LINK

I am so thankful for all these opportunities to share my experience of the psychic aspect and psychic industry with the public.

Love Potion #9 another Popular Scam!

Source: https://insmkt.securesites.com/vday.htm

It never ceases to amaze me the extent some psychics will go to when trying to make money. Now I do know that there are material needs to be met and like everyone else I have money constraints as well but that is no reason to gouge the seeker and fill their minds full of nonsense just to keep them on the line or to keep them coming back for the next reading. Yes we enjoy and appreciate regular customers but the focus should be to help folks to sort out their lives and to find their own strengths. The focus is not to create reading junkies.

What do I mean by reading junkies? Well these are those clients who are constantly emailing, calling or meeting with you for readings and for whom it does not matter what you say because they are not hearing you anyway. These are the folks who are so psychically addicted that they cannot make their minds up without consulting their advisor or advisors as the case may be. Now not all the blame can be placed on these confused and needy folks. In fact if truth be known the blame should be placed squarely in the shoulders of the psychic industry that is so motivated by money.

The worst part of the industry is the psychics who promise magic cures and potions that will fix people’s lives. This is common in the area of romance and relationships. While it is tempting to think it would be great to have a wonder drug that makes life work as we want the reality of something like that happening is doubtful at best. I have one friend when he and his partner broke up who was directed to a psychic who told him that he could give my friend a magic potion that would make his wife come back. While my friend was momentarily tempted he had the good sense to question the ethics of using such a method to fix his broken relationship. He asked himself “Why would I want to force someone to come back via a potion if they chose to leave in the first place?” He figured that he would always wonder if he did use such means if she came back and really did love him or only came back because of the potion that was used.

Now it worked out right for my friend who was sensible even when he was devastated, but let’s examine at what happens if the seeker is desperate enough to give the potion scam a try. If they do fall for it this then tells the unscrupulous psychic that they have a ready and willing sucker whom he or she can bleed dry financially. I mean not only can you convince these folks they need the potion but you can convince them that they need to keep buying it to keep the so called magic spell on the desired loved one working as it should. Now chances are that even with the potion the partner who has left the relationship will not return regardless of the potion used and the seeker soon finds out that they were ripped off.

It is important that folks understand that the idea of a psychic reading is simply a snapshot of the seeker’s situation and concerns at the time of the appointment. We all have Spirit influences around us and different guides, guardians and teachers come forward at different times to assist with various aspects in our lives. That in mind then it is important to know that a reading is not cast in stone and that the future is changeable. The spirit guidance that comes forth are meant as guide posts and not as cast in stone details that are guaranteed to be laid out for us the way we want. While we do get glimpses into the situations of our clients no psychic can or should guarantee 100% accuracy. Anyone who dares to do so is either delusional or scamming the public.

What a reputable psychic will offer you are some explanation of his or her experiences and possibly some references who can attest to their work as a psychic. Now bear in mind no one is ever going to choose dissatisfied clients to give references for them, but from the references you will get a sense of how that psychic conducts themselves ethically and professionally when they are doing readings. The psychic should be willing to address informational questions about his or her work, the workings of a reading and methods of payment and meeting for an appointment. It is not fair to expect the psychic to give you a freebee reading to prove his or her talent. While you will find that most will attune and demonstrate to show they are connected to you as a potential client, usually the psychic knows when a caller is looking for freebees and has no intent to book them and will not continue. I mean it is only fair that the psychic does not want to spend hours of time talking to folks who have no intention of booking a reading.

In my case I do try to treat people with respect and try to spend some time helping folks decide what it is they really need. Sometimes they call wanting a reading but this may not truly be what they are seeking at all. While I am in the business to do readings I also try to help folks find what they are looking for even if that means I do not book them for a reading. Chances are by taking the time to talk to them I will eventually end up doing a reading for them at some future point in time.

Now as much as I try to take time with folks there are times when I am tired and can be human and just want to make a quick booking and not have to get into a detailed discussion with folks. There are times when dealing with folks on the phone, online, in email and in person can be taxing. For example today I took 3 calls for folks just information seeking within a 45 minute time period and by the last call I just wanted to say did you read the details on the web site?? Did you even bother to check out what was there or did you just see my ad and dial the number?? Now I know I should be grateful that folks are calling and I am actually, but sometimes it would be encouraging if I felt like folks did read the information on the website before calling as most of the basic questions are answered.

That said the way that a seeker can be a good client and also protect themselves from the scammers is to do their homework. Find out all you can about the reader you are considering hiring and that includes reading any information he or she provides on his or her website. If after that the seeker still has questions then it is only fair that he or she contact the reader and find out the answers.

Also ask the reader some simple questions. How do you work? What kinds of readings do you do? What can I expect to get out of the reading? What kind of reading would be best for me? Given the answers that come from the discussion you will then know if you really want/ need a reading and if this reader is the right one for you. I say finding a good psychic is like finding a good hair dresser. They are rare but when you find one you know it!

Removal of Spells and other Scams!

The other night I was woken by a phone call at 1 am in the morning. Jumping out of bed, I picked up the phone to discover that it was a potential client who was seeking a reading. Now because I list my professional work address on my web sites folks just assume that they are calling the church when they call but to make things easier I have the calls come to my home so I can book appointments.

Anyway like I said I was woken by a long distance ring on the telephone. After my initial panic I decided to pick up the phone and have to say that it was one of the most interesting conversations I have had with a complete stranger in a long time! Now that does not mean that I want to encourage late night phone calls… not at all, but something important did come from the questions the caller had which motivates me even more to keep this blog up to date.

As I said before, I want to use this blog to help seekers find the right psychic for them and allow others to learn from my 12 years of experience working in the psychic industry.

Now back to the call that came in on Thursday night. The caller was asking me it if were possible for a psychic to remove evil spells from a person. Being in a half dead sleep I thought she was kidding until I realized that she was telling me that another psychic told the caller that she had an evil spell on her and that it would cost her $600.00USD to have it removed by the psychic! Now this kind of nonsense on the behalf of psychic workers is a big problem in the industry. Some folks think that it is ok and their right to fleece an uneducated and trusting public but that is not the case! This kind of gouging just makes all psychics look bad as the public gets wind of these horrible stories of such practices and then thinks that all folks who work as psychics are con artists. That said I am glad that the caller asked the question!

What to do if the same thing happens to you:

If any one working as a psychic tells you they can remove evil spells for a cost get away from them as fast as you can what they are doing is illegal and can get them put out of business if reported.

Now dealing with online readers it is hard to know who they really are but there are ways to find out. If you have an email address for them you can report them to their internet service provider. Fraud is fraud and most ISPs will discontinue the fraudster’s Internet service. If the psychic in question works for a particular psychic reading website you can report them to the operators of the site. Also you may want to report the incident to the internet fraud department of your local police force.

In the case of the situation where one is going to a face to face reading appointment be aware of your location and keep the contact information and report any questionable episodes to the local police. The chances that a psychic you are dealing with in an in person appointment would try such tactics is somewhat less because most psychics who work in the community face to face with clients do know the laws of their province/state and city. Most do not want to risk their reputations and legal problems but all the same you the buyer needs to be aware and proactive.