Doyle also believed in the supernatural.
this post was submitted on 03 Jun 2025
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Yeah, more people should be aware that Doyle was basically the opposite of Sherlock Holmes in many ways.
He seriously believed in faries, spirits, psychic powers, telepathy, etc. and claimed many mental illnesses was the result of being possessed by spirits. He held multiple public debates to defend this, and published several books on the matter.
He actuall believed Houdini used real magic. Despite knowing him and having Houdini repeatedly try to explain that it was just tricks and illusions. To the point where they had a pretty public falling out after Doyle absolutely refused to believe him and insisted that it had to be magic.
I like this story, along with the one about Houdini and his wife agreeing on a secret code that they would relay to their living partner so as to confirm the existence of ghosts, etc., if one were to die before the other. His wife died, he never received her message, and then dedicated the rest of his life to debunking supernatural bullshit.
Houdini was a real one
that is some advanced belief if the man himself revealed his secrets and yet you insist that no actually, i know better than you, it was magic!
"I reject your reality & substitute my own"
Adam Savage? Probably lots of other people nowadays.
“I reject your reality & substitute my own”
I'm fine with Adam Savage's version, it's the
"I reject reality & substitute some crap someone (or something) told me"
that all too many people do nowadays, and it shits me to tears...
At least he was honest about what he was doing.
In Edinburgh, the city where he was born, the centre for spiritualism is named in his honour.
When I found out that Arthur Conan Doyle debunked Robert Koch, I was surprised. Like imagine if Gwyneth Paltrow absolutely eviscerated and ended the career of RFK Jr with evidence to back her up on every single point.
I mean this is a super unfair characterization of both of them. While Arthur conan doyle may have believed in the supernatural, he was also a practising doctor. And according to the article, Koch, who had many other accomplishments as well, didn't present his discovery as a cure at all, and was quick to retract his statement when it didn't show much therapeutic value. It seems like this was more about the hype over his treatment getting blown out of proportion.
Like imagine if Gwyneth Paltrow absolutely eviscerated and ended the career of RFK Jr with evidence to back her up on every single point.
Aiming to set the bar low eh?
The bar is precisely where it was placed, he is the highest ranking medical official in the US. Another proud moment.
No? The Surgeon General is the highest ranking medical officer. The HHS Secretary does not need to know medicine to do their job, though I imagine it helps for part of it.
I remember that show! Carry on my wayward sonnnnnnn
Is this the origin story for the super-villain Koch family?
No, this one was mostly good. The other ones can burn in hell or the equivalent.
I'd accept just, "burn"
Cooking hotdogs over their flaming corpse.
Hmm, could I get over the smell given the circumstance? Yes, I think I could.
You’d die from the toxic fumes.
Ahh I wonder if someone else also recently read John Green’s “Everything is Tuberculosis”.
I haven't read it, and I'm not sure that I will, but may buy it just to support John. Him and Hank are some of the best that the world has to offer.
Great book so far.
So he’d be an antivaxxer?
He was major antivaxxer even in his day. Today, he would probably beat people in the streets for it.
Very interesting article, thank you!