Magic Man ?


Were you one of the hundreds of thousands...or maybe millions who watched magician David Blaine do his week-long drowining man thing on ABC network this past week? If you did, or if you heard about it, then of course you've got lots and lots of company. But I've been wondering just what this means. I mean the fact that so many of us have paid attention to what is at the very least, a completely obvious stunt designed to get us to watch even more of the Alphabet Network, really suprises me.Are we that hungry for entertainment?
Blaine's stunt went something like this: beginning last Monday, May first, Blaine lowered himself into a large, globe shaped tank of salt water, and allowed himself to be suspended under water for the entire week. He used a breathing aparatus. He took in no food, just liquids. He was on public display outside ABC studios for the entire week, while the netowork's morning show, Good Morning America, blathered on about the impending stunt every morning leading up to the final day. The stunt, or magic act, was supposed to take place on May 8th, when Blaine would remove his oxygen supply and hold his breath underwater for longer than 8 minutes and 58 seconds.
Anyway, after a week of televised hype, the moment of truth came, featured in a two hour long tv special on the night of May 8th. Blaine removed his oxygen supply, and managed to hold his breath for just over 7 minutes. After a few very dramatic moments when it appeared that Blaine might actually drown himself while attempting the record, his crew members pulled him from the tank, gave him first aid and wrapped him in warm towels. What followed was ( for his fans present at the event ) a hear-warming speech puntuated by "thank-yous" and other expressions of gratitude. I know this sounds corny- it is- but it made GREAT tv.
Here's the thing: Blaine suspended himeslf in a big transparent tank of water, with an oxygen supply , out in the open, for a whole week. When the moment of truth came, preceeded by days of network TV coverage, the magician couldn't even hold his breath for as long as he'd claimed he would. If he'd sold us a car, we'd want our money back! But people loved his little show. Hundreds of thousands of viewers watched. Why?
I can think of lots of answers for this, and none of them say anything good about us, the viewing public.
But here's what I think is at work here. I think most of us watched, because we like magic. And we were subjected to magic. I mean the real thing. Real magic.
My friend Ryan says, magic doesn't have to be supernatural, necessarily. It just has to manipulate others enough so that they believe a certain set of ideas, or so that they behave in the desired fashion. Magic not only subjects us to the illusion, it makes us buy the illusion. I'm willing to buy that definition of magic, and boy, do I think most of us got a snootfull this week. I'm not an advocate of magic. And I believe it can have a spiritual aspect. still,
consider this: Blaine is terrific at what he does. I've seen televised specials of this man where he performs some extremely mind-bending feats. The first that comes to mind is where he causes himself to levitate before the very eyes of people on the street. They were terrified as they watched. I've also seen him perform other magic feats which left his audience frightended and bewildered.
Consider this as well: Blaine's ' Drowned Alive ' stunt was begun on the morning of May 1st. Many people call this mayday. Witches and Wiccans call this the first day of Beltaine. Beltaine or Beltane means " Bel's Fire". It's a spring fertility festival which honors Bel, the nature god. Check your Celtic or Wiccan traditions.
The following several days are of course the Week of Beltaine. If Blaine is an actual practitioner of magic, wouldn't Beltaine be the perfect time to work an act of magic on millions of willing viewers? Of course it would. In fact, there couldn't be a better time.

David Blaine uses the week of Beltaine to cast a massive spell over the whole country, to get them to join him in his act. Those who are affected are drawn to their televisions, or to his actual location to watch him work his magic, and when the stunt is completed, they feel attached to him. They hope he'll achieve his goal. They send warm thoughts and feelings his way. They become his fans. Have you seen them? Even those who aren't so deeply affected are still curious enough to watch to see what's going to happen. Millions tune in to see this stunt through to the end. When he was finally removed from that tank, the massive crowd cheered and applauded. When he spoke to them afterward, they hung on every word. You're probably still seeing snippets of tv interviews with him right now.
Congratualtions. You've been bewitched.
The awesome power of tv has allowed a powerful magician to capture your attention and hold you spellbound... even though you didn't realize it was happening.
Now. Who else has betwitched you? Who else has used the tremendous power of modern media to capture your eyes and ears and make you sympathise with their cause?
Have you ever really hated a pop song, but still you kept hearing that song play in your head? Do you keep seeing the image of someone you despise, like Paris Hilton or Tom Cruise, over and over again, whether you want to or not? Is it magic that eventually makes you soften and decide "well, they're not really that bad. Maybe I will go see that movie after all!"
For sure, David Blaine isn't the only skillful magician out there. No doubt there are many others, some of them in high places. We can't really help the fact that they're there. But it's up to us whether we fall under thier spell.