From: "Roy C. Lackey" 
Subject: Re: (urth) PEACE: odd Dr. Van Ness and today's Doris
Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2002 15:19:21 -0500

mantis wrote:

>As for the statement "Such comments would never have been made by her in
>real life," I strongly disagree.  Her comments are exactly what we would
>expect from a person responding to a non sequitorial, off-topic,
>out-of-the-blue comment.  The comments from Sherry and Dr. Black are the
>same.

Maybe, just maybe, some of the responses to Weer's anomalous statements can
be brushed off that way, but take the example of Dr. Black:

A four-year old boy knows words like "metaphysics"? Knows what a stroke is?
Expounds on elements of the theory of relativity? Knows the future? Knows
that Bobby will die in a few years from a fall he hasn't even taken yet?
Mentions five people he couldn't possibly know (at least two of whom hadn't
even been born yet)?

Dr. Black responds as if he hears Den say those things, doesn't like what he
hears, doesn't want to hear more, and sticks a finger in his mouth to shut
him up. Either Dr. Black heard Den say those things or he didn't. If he did,
then that scene didn't happen in real life, not unless Den had supernatural
abilities I'm unaware of. If he didn't hear Den say those things, what was
he responding to when Den states: "'You don't believe me.'", and the doctor
says: "'I think I do, but my business now is with your throat.'"?

Either way, whether the doctor heard him or not, that conversation never
took place, as written, anywhere but in long-dead Weer's mind.

The same applies to the bit about the lack of a telephone exchange
designation in the number Weer first gave Lois at the library. She
questioned it, because the phone company didn't drop those exchange letters
until sometime in the future of that conversation. Did he really give her a
phone number from the future? If he did, where did the knowledge of that
phone number come from? If he didn't, what was she questioning him about?
Again, either Weer has supernatural abilities, or that bit of conversation
didn't take place, as written, in the real world.

-Roy


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