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What about when an involved educated observer can't tell them apart? I mean, we still can't fully explain how friction works but we know how to use it.
Inability to explain something doesn't make it magic, regardless of the observer. I haven't the faintest idea how the computer I'm typing on works; but I'm reasonably confident it doesn't break the laws of physics. And even if I'm wrong about that - computers are literally magic! - then... they're magic: the observer always makes a conclusion based on their observations, but whether or not that's correct is moot: the thing being assessed is what it is.
My argument here boils down to this:
"I can't tell these two things apart." =/= "These two things are the same."
"This looks/feels like magic!" =/= "This is magic!"
...I'm collecting downvotes like pokemon in this thread in this thread, which I assume means a lot of folks disagree, but I'm really scratching my head here at why that is.