Posted by Jemele Hill

JOHANNESBURG -- Never doubt the power of Paul the Psychic Octopus.

Or for that matter, Sasha the psychic.

Paul, a psychic octopus who lives in Germany, went against the wishes of his countrymen and picked Spain to win Wednesday night's semifinal. And, unfortunately for Germany, the Tentacled One turned out to be exactly right, with Spain advancing to the World Cup final after a 1-0 victory.

Paul was not alone in his selection. On Tuesday, I went to see Sasha, a psychic with a shop in the Montecasino in suburban Johannesburg. She agreed with Paul and chose Spain to not only beat Germany, but win the entire World Cup.

But Sasha has a ways to go before she can reach Paul's legendary status. Paul correctly predicted each of Germany's games in the World Cup, bringing his record to 6-0. And at the European championships in 2008, Paul correctly picked 80 percent of Germany's matches, missing only the Germans' loss to Spain in the final. Paul might have been thinking with his heart there -- wherever that might be located.

Although Paul has bolstered his reputation as a soothsayer, he's probably gained some enemies in Germany. I just hope for Paul's sake there isn't an increased interest in sushi.