Pavitra comments on Find yourself a Worthy Opponent: a Chavruta - Less Wrong
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a) it has been suggested to people. by culture in general that there is such a thing as hypnosis, which works in such-and-such way.
b) This existing suggestion can be used to suggest to people that they become more suggestible than they are already.
In short;
c) it's suggestion all the way down.
Suppose I cast a magic spell to make magic start working for everyone in the universe, including myself retroactively so that I can cast the spell.
I would not expect magic to start working.
Conclusion: there's something real happening in the vicinity of the referent of "suggestion".
I'm not saying suggestion is nothing. I am saying the level of suggestibility is never zero.