I wonder
"Whats for dinner...I am real hungry...gosh I hope its pizza"
Ghost
Concept »
These spooky entities are the spirits of the dead, returned from beyond their graves for generally sinister purposes. There's generally about even odds whether a particular ghost will be helpful or malevolent towards the living, but some ghosts just want to be left alone entirely.
What's Your Reaction When Someone Tells You About Ghosts, or About a Place that's Haunted?
I am always astonished at how people believe in apparitions/ghosts/psychic beings/whatever. I've heard friends, relative, teachers, you name it, I've heard them say these things. Each time, I'm completely caught off guard. For my friends, I usually laugh and say I can't believe how dumb that sounds. For everyone else, I just kind of pretend I still have respect for them, then leave when I get the chance.
Thoughts?
mostly C
i think that god exists
i think that god is a fucked up child
i think he creates all kinds of paranormal shit occasionally, to fuck with us
god exists. he likes to mess around. everything is possible.. we're his ants and he can make what he may when he mays
For the most part I don't really believe them but I'll listen to their story all the same, which usually ends up with a niggling doubt in my mind that the place could actually be haunted.
None of these really apply to me.
I usually just tell them something along the lines of "Dude, ghosts don't exist, it's all set up". At least that's the kind of thing I say when someone trys to tell me about an episode of ghost hunters or whatever that show is.
I'm always interested in others' paranormal experiences, and I usually love checking out supposedly haunted areas.
I'm not really sure why your last four or five choices are basically the same, assuming anyone who believes in the paranormal is of a lower intelligence.
I'll grab the Proton Packs and fire up the E.K.G. Meter. You grab the Ecto 1 cuz we got some mother fucking bustin' to do.
So which one do I vote for ?
" I'm always interested in others' paranormal experiences, and I usually love checking out supposedly haunted areas. I'm not really sure why your last four or five choices are basically the same, assuming anyone who believes in the paranormal is of a lower intelligence. "@jukezypoo said:
" You could have just ended at internal face palm. Still, I chose C. "Hmm. I kind of felt the other choices would break up the more-common response from the Giant Bomb Community. It's pretty obvious that of just A, B, and C, C would win. What I wanted to know is exactly how dumbfounding this experience is to each different person. I am both shocked and appalled by how many have already clung to the supporter's side. No offense to them... but paranormal shit isn't real... are you retarded?
I belive them, maybe i'll get someone to help with a seance, then try to get rid of the ghost of whatever you do to tell them to get lost. I'll probally not go there because there probally is a ghost there and ghost are usually hostile because they have been murdered and stuff.
My points of why I should belive them (we don't see alot of religious ghost floating around, only murdered ppl who aren't religious. I think there is another side ppl go to when they die. I belive ghost are so hostile they aren't accepted to this other side. I also belive we have seen ghost in photographs, real life and videos because it's a real phenomenon)
@FunExplosions:
No, I'm not, but thanks for asking. However, I have had more than enough paranormal experiences in my life that were inexplicable in the realm of everyday logic to convince me that the paranormal does, in fact, exist. I mean, I wouldn't believe it if it weren't real. Ha! How stupid would that be? Actually, it would be almost as stupid as your sweeping generalization of those who DO believe and your thinly veiled attempt at insulting them through the wording of your poll choices.I don't simply believe anything someone tells me, however, the only people I take seriously when discussing the subject are those as level-headed and sensible as myself. I can't blame you or anyone else for thinking that it's all a bunch of bullshit fakery, because you know what? A vast majority of it is, and most people who want to believe are way too gullible on top of it. But writing every paranormal report off as being fake is just as ignorant as believing every word you're fed.
I don't think a person's level of intelligence has anything to do with it. Your assumption of that is offensive. That's not much different than thinking people are stupid if they have religious beliefs. Still, I don't believe in ghosts, but I certainly don't look down on others for believing.
How do people believe in these? I have NEVER heard any reason besides, "Well... how else can you explain it!?" Dude! That doesn't mean you should instantly revert to thinking it's the paranormal. Remember when the earth was flat? Remember when food turned into larvae? Remember when light-bulbs were magic candles? It's called science. People. People smarter than you or I, they are the ones who figure these things out. They are known as scientists.
Jimmy:
"Why was there a big white globe in the distance on my mirror when it was really humid and cloudy that night? I think uncle Ted was coming back to tell me to stop masturbating."
Mother:
"I think you're right Jimmy. What have I been telling you."
Scientist:
" I don't know, Jimmy, maybe it was condensation! (Explains condensation)"
Jimmy and Mom:
"Wo! That sounds like complete bull shit! Fuck that guy. Hey everyone, this guy's fuckin' crazy!"
Why do you think being superstitious equates to not being intelligent? There's a lot of really smart people out there who believe in God, and a lot of dumb people who don't. It's the same thing.
I usually listen to them, as I do most people who seem to want me to listen for whatever reason.
Regardless of the existence/fabrication of ghosts or hauntings in general, it's always interesting to try and understand the root of the "haunting".
And, no, that doesn't make these people stupid. In fact I know far more pig-headed fools who would dismiss something simply because they haven't experienced it for themselves.
I've had a handful of people call me stupid/gullible because I tell them I've found four-leaf clovers. Their default cynic refuses to let them believe in something, just because it appears it doesn't exist.
I don't think it's necessarily bad to be a default cynic. I don't think it's bad to be a default believer in some cases either. The world needs all types. It depends on what your life is like and I try not to judge that stuff too much because I barely know what's right for me, let alone others (and, yes, that actually makes me stupid, not my beliefs/non-beliefs).
I was just trying to point out that it doesn't make one correct to be skeptical. It just makes them skeptical, and I've seen idiots and smart people on both sides. But neither position requires stupidity to hold.
Actually the person I know with the beliefs I'd most consider ludicrous, she gets straight A+ on ALL of her high-level, scientific uni courses, and is an upstanding citizen in just about every way I can think of (she's even a good driver ... the bitch). She retains information like vault. It's ridiculous. I struggled with with a bachelors in Media Arts. Who the fuck am I to judge her for something that makes her excellence possible when it hurts no one else?
No one, that's who. Just like all the hilarious folks who will come in here and drop a quip and leave feeling superior as they offer nothing of value to the conversation.
" At least it's not as bad as believing in psychic pirates. "Hahaha a classic thread.
Anywho, anyone who tells me about ghosts or whatever creeps me out.
I usually try to confront the person and reason through with the person why believing in ghosts is silly, it never workers though.
My mom worked as a paranormal investigator at one point in her life, so she has some pretty crazy stories to tell.
The hotel I used to work at had a couple of people die there (all natural cause related deaths), and everyone swears that the top floor is haunted. Stuff up there goes missing or gets moved all the time by an unseen force. I honestly don't know what to believe, but it's still really creepy up there, especially at night when you're working alone and the halls seem empty. It's the only floor that's closed off from the rest, and it's all one long hallway from either end of the building. Like something out of a horror story.
Like I said, I don't really know what to believe myself. I've never personally encountered any sort of creepy paranormal activity, so of course I have to be skeptical about it. Then again, it's somehow easier to believe that than it is to believe there is one single all-powerful being that created us and has pretty much abandoned us to our evil sinning ways.
I live in a very haunted area where civil war battles happened and slaves were killed plus other random crazy stuff over time.
Ghosts to me has always been like little short movies for 10 seconds to maybe a minute that shows something happening a long time ago. It confuses the shit outta me inside homes when random strangers talk or walk around where I'm not but its interesting seeing it happen outdoors.
" I don't think a person's level of intelligence has anything to do with it. Your assumption of that is offensive. That's not much different than thinking people are stupid if they have religious beliefs. Still, I don't believe in ghosts, but I certainly don't look down on others for believing. "This exactly.
I voted for internal face-palm however as I wont say anything outwardly negative about said views though I do not share them.
" @FunExplosions: You should be talking about starring at TV and computer screens since thats all you know. go fuck yourself "Hahahah. Explain why you're getting so upset. You can't. You will just get more frustrated and start yelling. Take a breather, no one here wants to hurt you.
It really isn't about intelligence; some people have been conditioned to believe in the paranormal due to external factors. Very, very, very few people are skeptical from an early age--more likely, they are always searching for something interesting in their daily existences, and as children and youngsters, they are able to meld the idea of the paranormal into their usual routine fantasies. As we get older, most mature adults find a means of dispelling the paranormal (but not actively). The truth is, people are extremely good at fooling themselves--that's all there is to it. We want our occasionally-mundane days to be filled with the unknown because it is just that, it's exciting and completely unknown to us. Have you ever wondered why virtually every magician is an advocate of the anti-paranormal? It's simply because magicians know better than anyone not how people are fooled, but how people fool themselves.
That said, anyone who holds an active belief in the paranormal beyond their mid-20s is not intellectually sound. That does not mean they are not smart or that they are dumb, it merely means that they are unable to contemplate the subject from an uncompromising intellectual position. This can result from many things, most commonly social conditioning and--especially--tradition itself. (Controversially, this also applies to religion, but that's a different debate.)
For anyone here who does believe in the paranormal, there's a million dollars in it if you can find evidence for it. The challenge has been in place since 1964 with mounting amounts of money on-hand and has tested hundreds of applicants, and yet, somehow, no one has ever been able to proceed past the very first round. In fact, such tests are available in all areas of the world and yet still these psychics and ghost hunters and purporters of the paranormal have never once been able to win one. Hmm!
Man, a lot of these answers seem kinda arrogant and offensive. I've seen and read a lot about paranormal encounters but I just don't believe in ghosts, if someone does talk to me about having seen a ghost though, I may challenge their beliefs but I'm not going to tell them they're outright wrong, for the very large majority of situations I respect other peoples' beliefs.
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