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I don't watch too much reality TV shows but have seen a number of them dealing with the after life of haunted houses. Some may be bogus but allot seem to have vality to them. Voices from where? Movement of furniture- shadow figures- energy levels tested with electronic equipment- is this are so call heaven or hell ? Sometmes they cross over, to where ? Please help me here to get me off the fence on life after death no matter what form it might take. Thankyou, Danny

setupforu 4 Jan 14
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8

I believe a British term is needed here: BOLLOCKS!

There is nobody who even comes close to the Brits when it comes to scornful invective....makes me quite proud to be British! 😁

A perfect use of the word

8

My favorite spoof, including a definitive POOF!

Deb57 Level 8 Jan 14, 2020
8

Reality television isn't really "real".
Most of it is completely contrived.

Granted, science hasn't yet explained everything that humans have questions
about, but most of the "paranormal" has been exposed as quackery and illusion.
Ask James Randi.

Any activity detected by electronic paraphernalia on those shows can be easily manipulated, and often is.
Anecdotal "evidence" has no provable validity.
Hauntings and demonic possessions are just a couple of the things that religion
helps to propagate. Most cases are due to mental illness.
In the cases that haven't yet been explained, there's no reason to jump to the
conclusion that they "must" be real.

I'm completely skeptical of those who make claims they cannot prove with
credible, verifiable evidence.

7

Being agnostic I have watched many programmes, both north American and English, all have been a bunch of assholes with digital gadgets, frightening the shit out of themselves in dark, presumably haunted locations! It is all pathetic really, grown people acting like children, utter bullshit television, nothing more!

The key here is the word ‘television’

@Geoffrey51 All for ratings, nothing to do with reality as they call these "shows" 😉

5

They use a lot of easy to debunk tactics and rely on a lot of creepy music, "feelings," an very easily to reproduce phenomena. Still I sometimes find the shows entertaining. Fun to speculate how the crew created some of the effects that they try to pass off as paranormal.

Deb57 Level 8 Jan 14, 2020

Yes, the people supposedly filming these programmes are always being filmed, strange that! Oh! look, a shadow, a noise! or some garbled voices on a gadget from Radio shack, feckin' saddo's!

5

There is no life after death.

There are no such things as ghosts or hauntings.

Watch less "Ghost Hunters" and more PBS.

You're welcome.

Very informative

I thought so. Best to nip that sort of wibbly-wobbly nonsense right in the bud.

As I can't physically slap the OP with a science textbook, a few words in a little white box will have to suffice.

4

Woo is the term used for it. They use gadgets that do nothing but make noises and move dials and use words like "energy, anomaly or apparition" and try to make it sound like they know what they're talking about.
There has never been any evidence, not a shred of any kind of afterlife.

4

Perception is in the eye of the beholder. I recall going up to a neighbours house with a friend with a 'real estate' interest. The door was open so we went in. My friend said he got an 'uneasy feeling like there were spirits there'. I said "you have an uneasy feeling because no one is home and we are tresspassing".

Skeptic groups often conduct research in so called haunted houses. Not once have they found evidence of supernatural activity though they remain hopeful. Skeptics in my group would love to be proved wrong.

Best to remain very skeptical of what you see on tv including the news.

I believe in the possibility of ghosts/spirits and believe these "reality" shows are bunk. Images can be photoshopped, sounds can be dubbed in.

3

If only there were some scientific evidence to prove the paranormal, but, alas, like all supernatural claims there never seems to be any.

Be aware of the fakery of these shows. I once forced myself to watch a show about the guy who has the house nearest to the Cielo Drive property in LA where the murders took place in August 1969.( I only watched to confirm my loathing of this sort of thing and this murder is an subject I know well.) This guy has built a business of exploiting his haunted house near the murder property. Any tv team or journalist gullible enough to pay him will get stories of fallen figurines and photos and strange noises in the night. (Why do ghosts hate figurines and always knock them down!? ) He has on "professional ghostiologists" with ghostometers that measure all kinds of paranormal energy, if one is stupid enough to believe them. All fakery.

This stuff is addictive to some, like all supernatural beliefs.

3

When in doubt, trust the Scientific Method. The observed phenomena need to be duplicated, peer reviewed, and falsifiable.
Bear in mind that the primary purpose of the TV shows is to entertain and earn revenue.

3

When these types of shows are aired in the UK they come with a warning "For entertainment only" Nuff sed.

Nuff indeed, anyone who needs to see such a warning will probably die of ignorance!

If you see a psycic show advertised or some well known psycic (aka charlatan) doing a live show then somewhere in tha small print it says entertainment only

3

they seem to have validity? i don't think so. there is no validity to any of it. people have been scamming each other with this stuff for centuries.

g

3

There are no ghosts but if you think you see something...

3

Well, one thing I can add.
The JREF, James Randi Educational Foundation. has offered 1 million dollars to any one who can prove, well, pretty much anything paranormal, psychic powers, Supernatural, etc. There have been a lot of people who tried, and ALL have failed. And a good deal of well known so called 'Professional Psychics'. well none have ever even attempted. Wonder why that is.

James Randi himself has been exposing frauds for quite a few decades.

3

I also watch those shows, because they're great fun. I'm yet to see one where any of the supposedly paranormal occurrences depicted can't easily be explained as natural phenomena or outright fakery, however.

Jnei Level 8 Jan 14, 2020
3

Interesting point. First there are things we have no comprehension of in our world that a blanket “no it’s all bullshit” remark just shows the ignorance of the responder.

However, a TV reality show fails on two counts. First it is T.V. and, technically anything is possible to be created and secondly, the reality component. The brief is to make sure the audience are hooked on the adrenaline of the participants.

I would suggest that the TV show is entertainment. In real life ‘reality’ there are many phenomena that do not fit neatly into our Western post-enlightenment culture.

My counsel would be keep an open mind, but be aware of the man behind the curtain in the Bunko Booth.

No. I disagree. Ghosts are absolutely bullshit.

There is absolute zero evidence of ghostly presences roaming around us. Dead is dead, there is no remnants of spirits hovering about.

This is not ignorance and I resent your statement - if you wish to posit ghosts, its incumbent upon you to put the evidence forward. It is not my job to disregard common sense to satisfy your burden of "openmindedness".

@LatentumCattus Who said anything about ghosts?

@Bn4fE5 - horsefeathers. The absence of proof means that the premise is flawed and must be changed in line with the facts.

That is how science and critical thinking works

@Geoffrey51 What do think is supposed to be responsible for "hauntings"????

@Geoffrey51 - the OP.

Do you believe that ghosts haunt houses? Do you believe that it is even possible??

@KKGator Don’t know that there are hauntings. Haven’t mentioned anything about hauntings! People feel uncomfortable or anxious in some environments but that may be more about them than anything external, but I can’t speak for anyone else.

@KKGator, @LatentumCattus No idea. I didn’t mention ghosts and have no real concern for the idea one way or the other.

@Geoffrey51 - OK, well, the OP says they are on the fence about believing in haunted houses.

You give them "Interesting point. First there are things we have no comprehension of in our world that a blanket “no it’s all bullshit” remark just shows the ignorance of the responder."

Ergo, I can make the rational assumption that at some level you are open to the idea of haunted houses. I am issuing a blanket "no it's all bullshit" remark.

...yep, that about says it, methinks.

@LatentumCattus Okay. I don’t actually care if there are haunted houses any more than if there is gold to be found in Alaska.

Someone probably does care enough to look and that’s fine, but it won’t be me.

@Geoffrey51 - 🙂 Carry on, then!

A nice point rack up that round for one thread; pushed me well into 6.5. Cattus is pleased.

@LatentumCattus You’re welcome.

If you don’t have any truck with ghosts and hauntings etc., why do you feel so strongly about them.

@Geoffrey51 - kewl.

To be honest, after my initial post below, I was incensed by the first line of your comment. My position is not ignorant. It is completely correct given the facts and completely opposite of ignorant.

I would have had the same reaction if the OP had said they were on the fence about Bigfoot, Santa Claus, extant dinosaurs (excluding birds, of course), Darth Vader or the Easter Bunny and someone said to simply dismiss it is ignorant.

But I'm fine now; temperamental Cat is temperamental sometimes. I apologize to you for coming sideways and salty at you.

@LatentumCattus No probs.

@FrankA - Again, horsefeathers.

You're coaxing the "god of the gaps" argument. It holds no weight when used by Christians and is down right insulting when used by those who should know better.

The logic chain was "I think I believe in ghosts" and the "gap" reply is "keep an open mind" from Geo and several others.

Garbage in, garbage out. If sticking to the facts and not dabbling in the hint of supernatural nonsense is 'dogmatic', then happily so I shall remain.

@FrankA - You most certainly are arguing exactly that.

"We don't know either way" is the pre-step towards "God did it". Except replace "God" with "Ghosts" in this OP's 'inquiry'.

Your opinion that both sides of the equation are blowing wind out the asses is flawed. Your opinion may very well make you feel "openminded". Congrats. Now read a science textbook - sounds like you need to start remedially.

On the other hand, it is NOT my job to NOT prove something... God, ghosts, etc., ad nausea.

The foundational premise is that there is no such thing as ghosts. This is not a blind guess - it is concordant with facts and reality, whether or not I like it or you like it.

Your insistence otherwise is both useless and pedantic until you've put [insert woo here] in a test tube and shown me. Lemme guess, you are also one of these speculators that believe quantum mechanics somehow holds the key to unlocking all those woo-mysteries, amirite? Read a bit of Greene, Kaku and Tyson? Cites 'spooky effects at a distance' and quantum entanglement as some sort of pointer towards a spirit world?

@FrankA Gawd, this one still running? Bring on Casper and Marty Hopkirk. Let’s have done with it!

@Geoffrey51 - Yep.

I called pax with you on the run; and a mighty fine run it was. No harm, no foul; posts were exchanged and all was well.

But rabbles are being roused - and I got called ignorant directly - so I'm in a salty mood to collect more points.

2

It's a put-on. Think of it like Houdini. You are being intentionally deceived by these shows and the people who develop them. No real science has as of yet been able to demonstrate the supernatural or "paranormal." Beware anyone who claims otherwise.

2

Several things come to mind relative to your post. Houdini never failed to debunk the spiritualists that he encountered. "The Amazing Randy" had a standing $1,000,000 reward for any spiritualist who could perform their contact with ghosts and perform supposed paranormal things under scientifically control conditions...none even tried. Lastly, note that the "investigators" use pseudo-scientific terms to describe what they are doing that sound scientific, but are not..."high energy levels", etc., without identifying what they are actually supposedly finding...electrical energy, magnetic energy, etc. If it was not all bullshit, someone would have collected Randy's $1,000,000 prize. Note that Uri Geller could not perform his spoon bending for Randy when Randy provided the spoons for him to bend claiming that Randy had too much "negative energy", that was stopping it from happening. "Bumps in the night", are always raccoons rummaging through your garbage...or something similar.

I would watch that stuff but it drains my "energy".

2

I do not see tv anymore except news, no time really now that streaming is available and you choose what to see, much less reality shows, I think the only reality show Ive seen ever was the great race, where at least I got to see exotic places. Never saw any of the talent show type of reality shows nor the tons of exploitative type of "reality" shows mainly because they are not real, all scripted, appealing to the lowest common denominator. Regarding paranormal bs, its all bs, do you know what is the afterlife? It's call you're dead, either turned to ashes if cremated, or rotting in a casket. Death is a natural part of life and we will all die, guaranteed 100%. So instead of trying to come up with reasons to believe in "life after dead" may I suggest you visit any morgue, you will see there that once you die, it means your life ended. We don't have lots of time on this earth, put your effort into making this fragile planet in a better condition that you received it so that future generations of the living get to enjoy life more than we did and you will see that worrying about bs is a futile waste of precious time that could be better used for more altruistic purposes.

2

@setupforu - The folks who make those shows are making a "Show" - they produce special effects for them - or else you'd be watching week after week of not much.

Most of what people experience in haunted houses can be wracked up to what EMF's can feel like to humans. A bit creepy. (Loose wiring basically).

Of course a place being really old and having suggestibility plays into it.

I went to the Lizzy Borden House and took a tour - we were all freezing cold by the first upstairs bedroom. When the time for questions came I said "Any one else cold?" - oh yes the entire tour group was - on a sunny day.
I then asked the tour guide "Does the house have central air?" - also yes.... and it was cranked. We all had a good laugh.
I didn't sense a thing in that house. But they let out rooms for the night to folks eager to have an experience of their own.... 😉 And often have folks leave in the middle of the night. (Even though that wasn't when the murders occurred).

A lot of what you see can be explained by bad wiring - faulty plumbing (taps turning on by themselves? That can happen) - etc..

And I'll never throw out a good group hallucination.

I think everything is perfectly mundane explanations and what you see on the shows has a bit added in by the producers to keep you coming back.

The most enjoyable one I ever watched was a bar rigged to do just about every trick in the book on "Ghost Hunters". The overhead glasses rack was even made to shimmy. It was amazing.... And it was entertainment for the guests in the bar. The guest just didn't know it was rigged.
The "hunters" found all the rigging and showed it. That was one of the best ones I saw.

2

How about haunted mobile homes? Maybe they haven't been around long enough for ghosts to like them. Sorry, I should have said spirits. Yes, where do they cross over to? Those who know claim it is the other side. OK, the other side of what? Why would furniture move when the spirits have no bodies? Oh, it is energy. Let's capture some of them and put them to work. We would have free labor. Ever notice that these spirits can bite or scratch you? They claim this is true but they have no body, no teeth, and no fingers or nails. What is going on here?

The truth is that it is Reality TV and some people simply love it. Some swear that it really is true and it goes back for centuries. The problem is that nonsense like this has been debunked for many, many years now and the scammers keep coming back with it. None of this has to do with life after death.

True, I know people that used to say.."I put things down and found them across the room" how?.you're right, no physical form to hold something, to move something..so how do they see without eyes, a brain etc..bullshit

2

I think that there is a possibility of our energy continuing in some form and mysteries of this universe and physics yet to be discovered and understood. Eventually science will likely explain such things. Ghosts are not impossible in my opinion. If one is found, I would really like to see the results of controlled verified lab tests to determine its nature and properties.

@Seeker3CO exactly "as we know it today" as you said

I absolutely would not follow my opinion over current evidence but won't cease to be a little curious. I agree with you that there there has not been sufficient evidence to support an affirmative conclusion and there might not ever be. I don't dispute that it would be "quite the reach". Personally, I can not comfortably determine 100% that something is false until we have underanding on the scale of knowing that the earth is round or that it is far older than 6000 years or that the biblical flood could not have been global (likely local to part of the middle east). We know that nothing will ever give evidence of a flat earth or that gravity is false for example.

1

Turn off the tv and see reality.

ugly Level 7 Jan 16, 2020
1

Reality TV shows are anything but "reality" You'd be disappointed to know how much is staged/planned/reinacted etc. I wouldnt trust any of it as "proof" of anything.

1

Well Danny, All I can offer is that every time these things are investigated, they never hold up to scrutiny.

Nuke Level 5 Jan 15, 2020
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