There is quite a fascination with the paranormal field lately and I think it\u2019s safe to say there are more and more investigative teams appearing literally every day.\u00a0 The field is saturated with them.\u00a0 Television and the internet have made this field incredibly accessible, which are both a great and major pain at the same time. Television and the glamorization of ghost hunting has made it more mainstream and acceptable among the general public which is nice, but the internet has made it possible for any Tom, Chris, or Harry to start up a team whether they have any knowledge of the paranormal or not.\u00a0 I don\u2019t begrudge anyone wanting to learn, I just begrudge people that fail to use common sense and do a little bit of research.\u00a0 There is a plethora of information available these days and sadly some of it is not good information.\u00a0 I would suggest anyone wanting to get involved in this field be very particular about what you take from the veritable candy dish of ghost hunting \u2013 you could very easily end up with that pretty purple piece that tastes like black licorice instead of grape and ruin your whole experience.<\/p>\n
When it comes to the paranormal, there are several types of beliefs.\u00a0 There are those that believe every mote of dust, drop of moisture, and trick of light that cause those pesky orbs are indeed signs of the afterlife even though science has proven otherwise.\u00a0 How many orbs did you see before digital cameras?\u00a0 There are those that believe everything paranormal has to do with religion \u2013 that every supernatural being is an angel or demon sent to do God or Satan\u2019s bidding.\u00a0 There are people that refuse to believe anything paranormal could possibly happen at all.\u00a0 Then there are people like me and my contemporaries that believe there are things that are unexplainable yet have the discernment to use some very basic common sense.\u00a0 We got the memo about orbs when somehow so many others missed it.\u00a0 We understand how a basic radio works and don\u2019t accept the fact that the dead talk through AM radios that only one guy and his selected friends a\/k\/a \u201cSpirit Communicators\u201d can translate while charging you enormous amounts of money to do so; we also understand that sometimes there are more voices on our tapes than there were people present but we have the wherewithal to admit we don\u2019t know how it happens.<\/p>\n
A lot of people believe in the paranormal because they have had an experience they cannot explain.\u00a0 People that refuse to believe in it have likely never had that same kind of experience and are often not highly spiritual people.\u00a0 They are science minded and thus refuse to accept that ghosts may exist because science hasn\u2019t proven the existence of the afterlife.\u00a0 They fail to accept there could very well be gray areas or even areas science hasn’t discovered yet.<\/p>\n
The group I am affiliated with is known as trouble makers and mean girls that don\u2019t respect other peoples\u2019 opinions.\u00a0 We\u2019ve gotten this reputation for a very silly reason \u2013 because we ask people to be accountable for what they put in front of the world.\u00a0 Being Pagan, this is simply a way of life for me and it frustrates me that more people don\u2019t \u201cget it.\u201d\u00a0 Being responsible for your actions is a large part of the Pagan lifestyle yet it seems to go right out the window when it comes to paranormal investigating and\/or beliefs.\u00a0 People seem to think just because THEY believe it\u2019s so, it is \u2013 whether science proves them wrong or not.\u00a0 Just because someone believes something doesn\u2019t make it so \u2013 not when there is science proving it!\u00a0 I am not talking about the simple question of whether ghosts exist or not \u2013 I am talking about things such as orbs that are proven to be caused by using your flash incorrectly or the fact that you really captured highway noises and not voices from the grave on your tapes.\u00a0 These are the kinds of things that CAN be proven and if someone really wants to be taken seriously as an investigator, they need to be willing to accept that every little thing is not paranormal and not put crazy things on the world wide web claiming you\u2019ve captured a ghost at the gas station when you\u2019ve really captured a moth on a security camera.<\/p>\n
According to the definition on Wikipedia, critical thinking “employs not only logic but broad intellectual criteria such as clarity, credibility, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, significance and fairness.”<\/p>\n
If paranormal investigating is something you are truly interested in, employ a good dose of common sense, read the skeptics as well as the believers and glean from them both.\u00a0 Use basic critical thinking skills.\u00a0 You will be much more credible and you will be able to actually intelligently discuss your position.<\/p>\n
Right now we may be known as radical and mean, but hopefully one day we\u2019ll be known as those people that made some sense in this crazy world of paranormal research.\u00a0 It seems to me the founding fathers were once thought to be a bit radical and crazy, too…<\/p>\n
Three years ago we deemed June as National Paranormal Clean Up month.\u00a0 We go to several abandoned and historic places every year and in order to give back to our communities that offer us these jewels, we give back by choosing a location to clean up.\u00a0 It can be something as simple as volunteering at your local museum or adopting an old cemetery to clean up.\u00a0 Our group has a local cemetery where we pick up trash and this year we are helping to clean out and renovate an old theater with a haunted history.\u00a0 Choose a location in your area and participate in Paranormal Clean Up month and give back a little bit.<\/p>\n