I Read Her Ring
He's as blind as he can be. Just sees what he wants to see. Nowhere man, can you see me at all? Vows of silence are certainly meant to be broken, right? Or perhaps I will just take Gandhi's approach...Mondays suck anyways. So much discussion of Communist fish and how to catch them, I couldn't keep out of the conversation.
In order to question if red herrings exist in a puzzle, one first must understand what a red herring is. For our adventure, A red herring is clue placed in a puzzle to intentionally mislead or distract from the correct path or answer.
Does The Secret contain clues which appear to mislead/distract from the proper answer or path? 100% yes!
Do you agree or do you actually believe JJP & Byron were not aware that a L + Bell would lead most Americans to immediately land on the Liberty Bell? The intent is beyond obvious.
Does the fact The Secret contains clues which mislead/distract make these clues red herrings? Not necessarily.
Why no? Well, it's simple, there is an actual correct answer for these clues which fit within the confines of the puzzle. If the coordinates lead to Cleveland, chances are you will not travel to Philly. If the clues lead to the Cultural Gardens in Rockefeller Park, chances are you won't leave the general area to go the the opposite side of the city. There was a better Liberty in the grand scheme of things.
This leads to another question which we have attempted to pose many times. Most recently, George asked the same question in a video and it appears people are starting to listen. Are we taking the bait? We are all attempting to land this trophy fish but most go for the obvious, right? Wait, rewind to Cleveland...was L+Bell more obvious for Liberty Bell or Liberty Ave? Didn't Boston sort of feel like a big bait and switch? Let me give you one of my favorite examples across the puzzles. The San Francisco painting plays heavily with complimentary opposites. For simplicity, think yin and yang and please, if you do not understand yin and yang, look it up. Don't assume, I check my assumptions all the time and am often met with a deeper understanding. So, Lincoln. Everyone who accepts the imagery as Lincoln,(which JJP verbally confirmed to JM years ago) takes Lincoln and tries to insert him into their solution. I've seen good interpretations, like Lincoln Park, and a ton of very bad interpretations. Regardless, Lincoln is 100% taking the bait. If you look at Lincoln in the context of the puzzle itself...jump back to yin and yang...dark/light, young/old, odd/even, mountains/valleys, moon/sun, male/female. Abe Lincoln's equal, complementary opposite is Mary Todd. Do you see how this is clever in the context of a puzzle? Sure, Lincoln Park is a good Lincoln but how does it utilize what the overall painting is telling us in conjunction with a Chinese philosophy also represented in the painting? Note, we don't leave San Francisco for Los Angeles or Detroit based on a singular visual which sort of looks similar to something in these cities. This is extremely important to note. Also, a beginners tip for those coming into The Secret very late...take the time to understand how and what was uncovered before you. Understanding is key here as it may help arm you with the skillset required to attack these puzzles in a logical fashion. Ask yourself, what is my skillset in respect to puzzles/treasure hunts? Do I even have any or am I simply guessing? Then move onto understanding step 1. How are the proper cities determined? What are the coordinates, where are they, how are they masked within the art, and how many paintings do they appear in? Is there something unique about the location of the city for painting they do not appear in? This exercise will eliminate all the alternative proposed cities.
Until next time, sorry to break the silence. Please don't send me your solve without reading first. Just kidding, I know you don't care.
Nowhere man please listen. You don't know what you're missing.