The Paranormal Blog

Every year, 'round New Years, on the PSICAN Message Board, we open up for ANY and ALL predictions for the New Year to come!

Be you psychic or not, we welcome any or all predictions on anything from "Most Likely to Win The Super Bowl" to "Political Advancements in The Middle East", it's fair game on all fronts! (PROVIDED it's not too preachy and not trying to simply espouse a philosophical or political wish... we want HONEST prognostications!)

I, for example, am about as psychic as the average table lamp and as such, have a fantastic track record of never really achieving much in the way of success with my predictions, but it's fun to try...

To give it your own go, surf to this link (click here) and read/post away!  You'll also find links to previous years for a good giggle at how awful most of us are with these things.

Oh, you will need to be a member of the message board (it's a freebie) which, if you're not, surf to THIS link (click here), read through the rules and agree (you must be 13 years of age or older,) and once in, the VIP code is 1967
(We're sorry to make everyone leap through hoops to join the board, but we want it to be secure and spammers WERE a real problem... not so much anymore!)

Anyway, before sharing (here) my predictions, (I don't know if Sue will share hers when she's done,) allow me to state here the caveat we have on the thread that should be read by a certain segment of our readers... sorry for the phrasing and touch of sarcasm, but we've had some real wanna-be loony sceptics mock this as they THINK it's supposed to be 100% legit for everyone and that we ALL claim psychical abilities...

PLEASE NOTE: To the ignorant "would-be-sceptics" that tend to pop by and either post about these things or message me... These are for "fun"... no one here, unless stated, considers themselves a soothsayer, absolute prognosticator, or time traveller... to the best of my knowledge. The track records of these things over the years have NOT been great and that, in itself, is data. If you HONESTLY believe we're doing this because we feel we're professional psychics or otherwise "advertising" our amazing skills, please kindly remove you head from your butts and READ MORE about this site, the board, and the people involved! Thank you in advance!

My last caveat before heading through my predictions is these are PREDICTIONS... not wishes, not dreams, not what I "want" to have happen, but what I "feel" might happen...

SO, without further adieu, here's MY 2013 predictions! (I expect the same low score as always...)

WORLD NEWS

Italy defaults (or comes dangerously close to it) on it's debts sending the Eurozone into bad waters.

I expect President Obama will do well... good words... SOME good actions... but overall, still be a disappointment.

I ACTUALLY expect the ridiculous right-wing/Tea Party rhetoric to ratchet down over the next twelve months.

America (which just 'dodged' the fiscal cliff,) will continue to 'dodge' the fiscal cliff... always by a hair's breadth... allowing austerity measures to go ahead slowly without panicking the American public.

After the tragic incidences of 2012, there will be NEW gun control legislation in America... that will be meaningless really... and sadly, there will at least one more tragic (more than seven at a time) incident... I'm seeing (sadly) two.

The NRA ceases to be relevant and has to re-invent itself without the nut-jobs currently running the joint... and become WAY more moderate while fighting to preserve more NORMAL gun rights.

Gene therapy continues to astound with almost all "common" forms of cancer either beaten or becoming chronic, but not fatal, illnesses... this will actually be bigger news THIS year for some breakouts than previous years.

Horrible disasters in Asia... Japan and mainland China being hit several times by several serious natural disasters.

The Syrian crisis ends with a whimper, not a bang, as the current regime side-steps out of the way. Russia will not be amused.

TECH NEWS: Apple shares plummet by year's end. Microsoft remains neutral. RIM improves. Google soars. Tablets DO NOT take dominance over desktops... and never will. Windows 8 SP1 will start to be the gold standard.

Riots in Spain... bad ones.

Britain goes on... SSDD... the way it has lately.

Russia rattles it's sabre in one hand, signs trade agreements with the other.

India becomes an even bigger power-house economy with a huge middle class burgeoning like mad... equality between sexes takes centre stage and because of the recent tragedy, SOME progress is made with women's rights... but they have a long way to go.

North Korean continues to be a bit of a weird, scary joke... who rattles sabres only to have the blades fall off while trying to look REALLY scary. China is still in "command" of making sure they don't become super-boobs.

I actually believe there WILL be progress in Palestine and as such, Canada (amongst others) will look like chumps.

Islamic terrorism takes a back seat to simply bizarro lone-nutter terrorism... this is already happening, but will increase dramatically.

There will be a "space fall" of some sort... Something will enter Earth's atmosphere and cause a ruckus, not an alien spaceship though, sorry...

There will be a small but notable atomic accident shining the world's light on the dangers of nuclear plants... the danger will be overplayed in the media and freak people out unnecessarily worldwide when it will really only be a direct threat to the people near the affected plant.

Some fashion trend will actually become world news... because it'll be an uncomfortable global trend (where it can be)... I'm thinking something like men's dresses or nano-bikinis... something rather... un-Victorian, if that makes sense.

America sees an increase of bad weather... which climate change will be blamed for (justifiably)... but again, it will be overplayed in the media... and although it's a factor, the scope will be blown out of proportion and those of us who have ALWAYS believed in global warming will have to gently walk friends back from the paranoid abyss... and point out that "Green House Gasses" are something to worry about and do something about, but aren't stalking you in your bed tonight.

GM crops will be scary... although sadly, SOME will be beneficial, the other 35 - 50% of the ones created for pure profits will be bad... very bad... and start to become an international worry.

Princess Elizabeth Diana Windsor.

Prince Harry settles down with someone kinda... and is a tonne of fun and really goes the mile to become a "fan favourite" of even non-monarchists... but as that's a good thing and people like it, someone will force a stop to it quickly.

Speaking of Royals, more bad stuff for the Grimaldis.... that will make the news.

CANADIAN NEWS

I expect, politically, SSDD... Federal Libs seeing Marc Garneau and Justin Trudeau duking it out... whoever wins will still be more-or-less irrelevant until 2014... but it'll be a sideshow.

I expect the current government to positively GLOW about Canada's economy when compared to the rest of the world... and they're right...

...but Stephen Harper starts to lose support after one too many "off shore companies" buy into Canadian markets... with some of his more xenophobic ground base calling for a White Rose Party of Canada... or a return to the "traditional" conservative views... which, for the record, aren't REALLY the traditional Tory views and actions in Canada, but these folks look to the American Republican Party for cues, so they'll assume that Conservatives have always been a "Canadian Business for Canadians" party... which isn't really the case, but hush!

I expect Prime Minister Harper to do good things, this year... I actually do!

...with native rights, the Tories will do better, but in fairness, this is ONLY because of the global shaming of Harper over Chief Theresa Spence.

In my home province, buh-bye Dalton, hello Mr. Kennedy... but DON'T crown Premier Hudak yet... at best, I see a minority PC house with the Dippers as the Loyal Opposition.

Rob Ford will still be mayor of Toronto...

...until Olivia Chow walks away with it.

Quebec through The Maritimes is about to get even MORE horrid weather... deadly weather... sorry... especially come Spring and Summer.

...and I do expect a MILD hurricane to come up the Mississippi and into the Great Lakes this year... and everyone here will shout "HURRICANE HAZEL!" in memory of the big storm in the 1950's... it won't be that bad... or even close.

The Prairies will face worse flooding than ever.

Those pipeline issues? Well... they'll still be there... unresolved.

BC will be booming economically as the "preferred port province" for natural resources... way moreso than now... and Vancouver will take over from (currently) Calgary and (formerly) Toronto) and (even more formerly) Montreal as the big trade and business city... If you hated the high rents and hipsterism, you ain't seen NOTHIN' yet!

I believe this year will be the opening salvos to show that the territories (our North) will become a VERY important place globally within the next two decades. SOMETHING (not necessarily oil or mining) will make them start to shine... and it will be noticed.

Quebec does not even come CLOSE to considering a new referendum.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

Reality-ish teevee will NEVER DIE!!!! Well, save the paranormal stuff... with the crypto-field being the only growth(?) sector... and Honey Boo-Boo like programs... but it will start to now NOTICEABLY be scaled back in production...

...to be filled with short-season and/or one-off documentaries made for prime-time television... which, for the most part, will be as atrocious as the current fare.

Dexter doesn't end.

Doctor Who... nah, this is the FIFTIETH anniversary year... too easy to predict SOME things here... but my guess is Moffat will manage to screw it up somehow.

MMA becomes the new pro-wrestling "for real"... taking more time slots in "normal" television and getting a more kayfabe rub with the athletes being needed to be more camera friendly... "better on the stick".

The fall sched for the big networks focuses on comedy... and fail.

Star Trek = THE Big Blockbuster next year.

...and with The Hobbit and Trek, BBC's Sherlock becomes a weird oddity for most... and Sherlock (Cumberbatch) and Dr. Watson (Freeman) become major stars on both sides of the pond without being horribly type-cast.

Joss Whedon is going to surprise us huge.

(Gimmes) Lincoln and Django Unchained go big and long at the Oscars... with Amour being the upstart most people didn't see coming.

Brittany Spears gets positive attention.

Lady Gaga coasts.

Psy has peaked. (Surprise!)

Psy rip-offs (not "Gangnam Style" tributes, but 'new songs' mimicking K-Pop,) will be plentiful... and far, far worse.

Downton Abbey, Sons of Anarchy, Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and Breaking Bad will STILL be the shows everyone talks about... with my beloved Doctor Who being relatively side-lined until September and even then, only talk as it's the official anniversary... although they could end THIS season with an awesome cliff-hanger... but it'll still be September before SERIOUS buzz happens.

Fox News still, inexplicably, dominates the other news channels in the USA...

...Sun TV does not here in Canada... despite probably desperately TRYING to ratchet up controversy with some Anne Coulter-like BS in Canada... showing that the management mistakes Canadian Conservatives for US Republicans... and they aren't.

More bad news for CBC with more cuts...

TVO (public television Ontario) threatens to cease to exists save on the web.

Sex tapes cease to be anything noteworthy.

Speaking of which, Kardashian has a son... and no one cares save Kanye... seriously, just Kanye. This kid will need a LOT of psychological assistance in later life.

Carly Rae Jepsen will not make it to the same spotlight she held earlier in 2012... she's singing, "Your name's Psy, and I don't know you. But you unseated me, so really eff you!"

The Stones tour rolls on... with little press... save their FINAL (Ha!) show.

Rush becomes the big (general public) nostalgia act with new stuff...

The RIAA and MPAA start to attempt to come after Canadians... and fail... and in the states, they bring more lawsuits against grandmothers and the homeless for "illegal copyright violations"... further alienating the general population and artists.

Speaking of which, the producers of "The Game of Thrones" along with HBO actually (publicly) entertain providing FREE and LEGAL downloads (low-ish quality, slightly edited to make DVD and subscription sales worthy, but decent for general viewing,) of the program with ad sales worked in with them... trying to find a profitable way to embrace the modern file-sharing ways of the world... and the other networks, production companies, and the MPAA (and assorted unions) will kill the idea dead... and the show will STILL be the #1 pirated and illegally downloaded program out there... the industry WILL NEVER learn.

PARANORMAL NEWS

Expect a major scandal... not with us! It will involve fund raising (surprise!) and some other issues... Oddly enough, those involved will STILL have a loyal following... smaller than before, but it will be there.

There will be another scandal, but it will be the equivalent of a MacDonald's marketing employee "confessing" that the burgers used in ads and promotional materials AREN'T the same as the ones you get in their restaurants in terms of appearance. The mainstream (not really... think TMZ style,) media will care and go, "OMG! OMG! OMG!" and those of us here will go, "You're kidding, right? You DIDN'T see this coming?"

The only new development towards evidence in ghosts will be more conformation of the possibility of psi-related phenomena.

Sadly, psychical abilities (especially remote viewing) despite positive new things will remain stunted.

CSI/CFI (formerly CSICOP) ratchet up the idiotic rhetoric against all things paranormal thanks to the newfound loathing of evangelical atheism by the general public (let's not even mention the more recent issues with claims of misogyny and worse within the higher-ranks of that fold)... JREF does not follow suit, but stays their course. Ben Radford (amongst others) becomes the "Great Satan" to many in the world of paranormal phenomena... and finally gets his "stardumb" amongst ghost hunters and would-be demonologists...

Ufology continues a steady incline in information and data because more evidence of life off our rock in space comes to the fore... making people more interested. By 2015, Ufology will have transplanted cryptozoology (the current cause celebre amongst the general public) in terms of the population's consciousness... which transplanted ghosts in the early 2ks... which transplanted psychical stuff in the mid-1990's... which transplanted Ufology in the 1980's...

...and if you see a trend, no kidding.

Demonology starts to become less relevant as people begin actually learning.

Reality-ish ghost shows falter BADLY!

...which leads to an even bigger upswing in crap paranormal "online - not terrestrial" radio.

Granted, because of this, ACTUAL parapsychology and legitimate study in ghostly phenomena (amongst other topics) does well... better than it has in years with new voices and old trustworthy souls bringing new thoughts, ideas, and perhaps even evidence of a flavour to the table.

A Canadian college or university FINALLY entertains the idea of offering a major in either parapsychology or the study of the paranormal in some fashion that does NOT label it "pseudoscience" and does not put a CFI/CSI chump in charge of it.

If you thought the recent (as of this writing) "demonologist" who wanted to do a public (and press-covered) investigation of the school in Connecticut where the mass shooting happened is bad, wait for it... it will get worse... and not just from him. This COULD be considered a "gimme" as a well-known paracelebity/former reality-ish television star did say, the day of or the day after, that "evil" and "demons" were responsible for the tragedy... I'm hoping he meant figuratively, but I'm certain it was not seen that way by some... as shown... and as such, fresh tragedies will draw the fame-seeking cretins from the woodwork with gusto... they will be a loud and horrible minority, but think a generic Baptist compared to The Westboro Baptists.

Ghost photos from apps become more popular and passed off as "legit".

MOAR BAD GHOST TESTS AND GIZMOS! This will cause contention still, but the snake-oil salesmen will be out in bigger force.

MOAR BAD CRYPTO SWAG! I fully expect an upswing in bad/dumb Bigfoot and the like swag... as in, "Now Available In SEARS!" kinda upswing.

MOAR good Ufology books... I honestly don't know what's in the works, but I have this nagging sense that a really tremendous and well-received (pretty universally) book will come out in 2013 on UFOs.

Big "ghost hunting"/"crypto-hunting"/"alien-hunting" groups are done for the most part... You'll see more one-and-two member teams promoting on Facebook than anything else... so expect a few more groups of old to fold in on themselves... (Not us nor any of the big established groups...)

DEAD POOL

One of the former Charlie's Angels from the 1970's... obviously not Farah.
Don Rickles
Bud Cort
Prince Philip
Dick Cheney
Fidel Castro (I think this will be the year...)
Gary Burghoff
Hugo Chavez (the cancer will win... but not in itself...)
Paul McCartney
Jerry Lewis
MC Hammer
Dirk Benedict
Dick Van Dyke
Mary Tyler Moore
Gavin MacLeod
Billy Corgan (Yeah, year two... but...)
Gabriel García Márquez
Dave Chappelle

...and sadly, either Hal Linden, Abe Vigoda (sadly, I think it's this year), or Steve Landesberg.

THAT'S all from me this year...

REMEMBER: These are just 'predictions', not desires, not dreams, not hopes, and not wishes... it's what I "feel" might happen.

This said, there is a chance that Sue will share her predictions here, but then again, it might be wiser to pop by the message board thread and see (hopefully) everyone's that participates! (Click Here)