Do you believe in Ghosts?

[WI_DEM]

In honor of Halloween.

If you've actually seen or felt the presence of a ghost please comment.

[Shell Beau]

1. I'm actually undecided. Although I feel as though I

have had experiences, I still catch myself doubting it. I lean towards yes more so than no, but I can't say for sure.

[longship]

2. No

not pixies either, nor werewolves, nor angels, nor zombies, etc.

There's no reason to accept supernatural.

[Fox Mulder]

3. I believe in the possibility of ghosts existing.

I don't think we should throw away or ignore personal experiences because we think the people are "crazy" or "it's all in their heads".

I really think the scientific community should actally look into the claims of ghosts (or the supernatural) and figure out if they really do exist or not instead of throwing away the idea as "nonsense".

[0007]

4. I've seen a lot of strange things that have no logical explanation

and I don't believe in ghost or ghost stories.

[The Doctor.]

5. Yes ghost are real...

and there may be a rational explanation...

I have to run, be back to explain later.

:scared:

[nickinSTL]

6. how about...

not sure.

There seems to be a lot of anecdotal evidence about 'ghosts'.

I don't necessarily think that the 'experiences' referred to as ghosts is caused by what we usually think of as ghosts.

It is possible that something fully rational and explainable is going on, but science just hasn't figured it out yet (and probably won't any time soon, unless by accident, as research on such phenomena is on the fringes).

It's also possible that it's all in people's minds...

:shrug:

I consider myself a true sceptic on the subject. I don't outright deny the possibility of something unexplained...but I doubt the veracity of many stories and the honesty of many who claim to have 'proven' a 'ghostly' occurrence.

edited for bad grammar

[DanCa]

7. As a time traveller stuck in a reoccuring temporal loop yes

As a way that grief stricken individuals have of seeing departed loved ones yes. As a other worldly spirit I dont know untill I am gone and find out for myself.

[dmkinsey]

8. I've never had a specific experience but

I lived in a house that I thought was "creepy"
A Friend who claimed to be sensitive to ghosts an' such said there was no doubt ghost there.

[FSogol]

9. No, but energy is never destroyed, it merely changes form. n/t

[Liberaler]

10. Nope, it's all in your head

just like religion and other socalled "supernatural" events. God, Santa Claus, Toothfairy... all in the same class, fantasies.

[The Doctor.]

38. That which is in your head is quite real...

Of course "God" is real, the problem is in the interpretation of the concept of "God".

Trying to anthropomorphize divinity is a foolish thing, but just because someones' interpretation of divinity is terribly flawed does not preclude the existence of such divinity.

The same goes for ghosts.

What we want or perceive ghosts to be is fundamentally flawed in that we assign characteristics to the phenomenon that are highly egocentric. We think a ghost is something that must conform to our notions of say... death, loss, grief, anger... and while those things may be related, the fact that such interpretive parameters cannot sufficiently explain the phenomenon does not mean that it does not exist. Therefore, in the search for 'evidence' of the existence of ghosts, we completely miss the ferry.

What it boils down to then is not trying to solve the mystery by pursuing the question, "are ghosts real?", but rather learning to ask the right question.

If we try to answer a single question, we will invent inappropriate parameters in order to do so, thus limiting our ability to understand the scope of the question.

Instead we must ask, "Under what circumstances can ghosts be 'realized'?"

We have just granted some flexibility to the parameters of our initial search, and now the investigation can begin in earnest.

In my study of cognitive science, I have come to understand that 'reality' is the only word in the English language that should always appear in quotes. Interpretation is all we have in terms of understanding the world around us, and humans have a complex system of interpretation.

Make no mistake, I too am a natural-born skeptic. I do not 'believe' in something until I have some form of empirical evidence regarding that things' effect on the measurable universe...

-That's how I know ghosts are 'real'.

Mull that over, then, if you'd like, I'll parlay my theory on what ghosts 'really' are.

Cheers.

[shrike]

11. My dear husband has

Seen ghosts, I mean.

And as I've commented before on DU, the funny thing is, he's agnostic. No belief in souls, religion, any of that stuff. I'm a practicing Catholic, and have never seen any of that stuff. Which I think is extremely unfair.

While staying at a B&B in Colorado, he woke up to see a woman in his room, bending and looking out the window. She was in old, period dress, but he figured she had to be the help. He spoke to her, she turned around and walked through the door, of course. He thought maybe the door was actually open; he got up, and of course it wasn't. He went out and looked in the hallway for her; nobody there. He mentioned it to the owner the next morning, and she asked him to please not repeat the story to anyone else. There'd been sightings in the past, she said, people had freaked, and they didn't want word getting out that another had happened.

He insists our house was haunted at one time, but the activity stopped when I moved in (she/he didn't like me, I guess.) One night he was lying in bed, waiting to get to sleep, and heard whistling in the front room. The cat, who was with him, heard it, too, and got up, alert, tail twitching. Hubby went out to investigate, and of course, nothing. There were other incidences, like doors opening and closing on their own, faucets turning on of their own volition (I've been told that pipe problems cause that phenomenon. Though it's never happened since I moved in), things of that nature. One night he was standing at the bathroom mirror brushing his teeth and someone patted him on the rear. He wasn't close enough to any wall to have bumped something. It was definitely a pat, he said, a squeeze. Then there was the time a girl he was dating walked back into the bedroom for something, while he was in the front room. He heard her scream and come running out. Someone, she said, was in the closet throwing things at her. There was, of course, no one in the closet, although the things he had piled on the shelves HAD flown across the room.

I don't know if I believe in ghosts, because Hubby does have an overactive imagination (IMO). But I certainly don't fear them; they're dead. I have more to fear from live humans than dead ones. I'd love our house ghost to return so I can become acquainted with him/her. But, as I've said, he/she doesn't like me.

[melody]

12. Ghostly experiences

Almost certainly going to be sorry I posted this, but my ghost research group actually caught a couple of very good and very authentic digital images worth scrutiny:

http://www.californiaparanormalsociety.com/photos/displayimage.php?album=3&pos=13
(face)

http://www.californiaparanormalsociety.com/photos/displayimage.php?album=3&pos=8
(two dogs)

[Loonman]

13. Belief has nothing to do with it

You either acknowledge activity when it happens, or you don't, or you never experience any paranormal activity at all. However that does not mean it does not exist.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

14. I am a ghost.

Or at least it feels that way sometimes. :shrug:

[TallahasseeGrannie]

15. Okay. Gather in to the fire, now

Everybody comfy? Gooood.

This is true. Old Grannie's grandfather died in 1965. He was 89. He was a very short man, having spent his formative years in a mine in Lancaster, GB, probably around 5 feet tall. He even shrunk as he got older and used to wear a very long overcoat that in his final years dragged the ground. (he said he'd soon be six feet under and refused to buy a new one) We lived in central Jersey, and he was a widower and lived with us. He used to walk every day to the mailbox on the corner and mail letters. He wrote a lot to his remaining siblings. He was buried on Ash Wednesday in '65. My father (now also deceased) and I were coming home from the Ash Wednesday service at our church about five blocks from our house one year later. It was snowing rather hard and we saw a small man mailing a letter at the mailbox on the corner. He was struggling to open the mailbox. It was dark out. My dad said "That looks like my father!" and I agreed. So we turned right and went around the block to check it out. When we passed that corner, the man was gone. And so was the mailbox.

S'mores anyone?

[Darth_Kitten]

45. that's neat!

:)

[AValdoux]

16. I believe in ghosts but,

I also believe that there are things in this world that science hasn't found an explanation for. Ghost could be a phenomenom that will be explained with science just as well as spiritual solutions.

I "ghost hunt' with the usual equipment, emf detector, ir thermometer, & digital voice recorder. When we travel, I always stay in old hotels for the fun of it. I had water come on in the middle of the night, at The Faust Hotel in New Braunsfel, Texas. I had gotten up a two times earlier to turn off the TV, then again for the A/C. When I woke up the third time and the water was running in the bathroom I freaked out.



AValdoux

[Punkingal]

17. I had one in my house...

it took things, and occasionally would put them back!

[In_The_Wind]

18. I believe ...

I did my own little test after Teddy passed away back in '93. I have a glass mobile, a pretty little thing with hummingbirds on every dangling plate of glass. The winter after he passed I hung the mobile in a place where it wouldn't be affected by air currents. I used to talk to the man I once called my rock. The little mobile would tinkle quietly at times in response to my words. It also made a lovely little sound sometimes when I was lonely. Although I've had people tell me that 'I am the most alone person they have ever known' - I believe that I'm never truly alone.

I've seen so many things that I can't logically explain. Yes, I do believe. Energy never dies it only changes form.

[woodsprite]

19. I've had a couple of experiences that cause me to believe.

One was right after my parents and I moved into a house that used to be in our family. My parents and I had rooms in the opposite ends of the house, but one night, my Mom and I met in the middle of the night in the middle of the hallway. She heard what she said was my aunts voice yell Marie, and I had heard that same voice yell my name. We tried yelling from our bedrooms the next day, so we don't think it could have been one of us answering the other one. We both slept with doors closed and it is very "dead" accoustically.

Also, about a year ago, I had an experience where I was asleep and woke up to hear sizzling/crackling getting louder and louder. The length of my arm felt like the hair was standing on end (like when you rub a balloon and get it static-y). I was afraid to open my eyes, but I was even more afraid to see what happened when that feeling made it all the way to my head. I finally opened them and the sound died away. I woke hubby up. He had been sleeping soundly and didn't hear a thing, although I was right next to him. I layed awake most of the night. When I finally drifted off to sleep again, I had my first dream about my mother since she died 5 years ago. I saw her in our foyer mirror walking up like it was a gateway to the other side. She had a very happy look on her face, tried to talk to me, but couldn't make herself be heard. She finally faded away.

Another time, I dreamed a deceased family friend knocked at our door. I recognized the voice, but his "body" was a blindingly bright white light. He told me he brought me presents--All blue baby boy stuff. I told him he was mistaken, that it must be for my SIL since she had just heard she was pregnant. He said he wasn't, that I would understand shortly. I found out I was pregnant with our son shortly after that.

Kinda neat - thought that sizzling/crackling experience still freaks me out. I *DON'T* want to experience that again.

[alarcojon]

20. I consider them a fascinating psychological phenomenom

and have read about too many "ghost sightings" which turned out to either have a benign explanation or be outright fakery to believe in them myself.

[melody]

21. Yeah, that's what I used to think, too

In my old benign academic days - before I saw one. lol

[alarcojon]

23. And you no longer consider possible non-supernatural explanations?

BTW I'm not seeing anything in the photos you post.

[melody]

28. Pattern seeking is a skill some have but others don't

Hyper-pattern seeking is the other end of the scale and gets more coverage than the wish to not see patterns.

I'm not saying anything is "supernatural". I'm just well-versed enough in the sciences to know that science doesn't make absolute statements about anything. It accumulates evidence. I am stuck with my own ignorance about absolutes, as we all are.

Incidentally, even my avowedly atheist friend Cami had to admit she saw the face and the dogs in those pictures. :)

[alarcojon]

29. Let me restate

It's not that I don't "see" the images you describe. I "see" what could be construed as a face, and what could be construed as dogs. But I could "see" a face in many random clouds passing overhead, could I not? To go from these images to a conclusion that they are ghosts is a leap I am not prepared to make.

[melody]

30. It's your assumption that the pattern doesn't exist in the first place

There's no way for me to prove the pattern exists and no way for you to prove the pattern doesn't exist. The difference is in showing a pattern of random information to various people. We always carry out an analysis. I pass it by numerous people. If nine out of ten see the patterns, we call it a positive find. I personally doubt that these patterns are the result of random aggregate forms in sporadic data. They're too clear, consistent and symmetrical. I don't know what a "ghost" is - but it's as handy a term for an unknown as any.

At this point, your belief says it's not. I'm an agnostic and I leave the question open.

In essence, I think it's wrong to suggest those are only matrixed images. What they are caused by, is another matter entirely. However, if images of faces and dogs can turn up on digital cameras by themselves, we live in something more mysterious than a clockwork universe.

[alarcojon]

42. Leaving the question open

You've indicated you believe in ghosts. The only argument you presented was two photos involving smoke and some images which bear some resemblance to a human face and to two dogs. If you want to leave the possibility open that they might be ghosts, fine. Yes, technically, they might be ghosts. Yes, I can't "prove" that ghosts don't exist, just like you can't "prove" that I can't control your thoughts. So what? All I'm saying is that evidence such as you present does nothing to convince me that ghosts exist.

Like I said, I can see faces in clouds, tortillas, patches of mud, splotches of ink,



a bowl of soup, etc. But I don't conclude there is some mysterious force at work.

Are there things we don't fully understand? Of course there are. That doesn't mean the default conclusion is that something "otherworldly" is going on.

[melody]

43. I don't believe in anything

Look, I don't want you to "believe" in anything. I honestly don't care one way or another. I don't "believe" in ghosts. I'm an agnostic.

>That doesn't mean the default conclusion is that something >"otherworldly" is going on.

If something non-mechanical can create patterns before a digital camera, then I think there is something more to the world than what we know, yes. That's all I'm saying. If you want to call that unknown "ghosts", fine. I'm happy to call it "a mystery".

And now you know why I said I'd be sorry I posted those pictures. I get into this hopeless, endless circle-of-eight arguments with colleagues all the time. What it comes down to, on a personal level, is preferred belief - yours and mine. To conclude that we can't prove what it is, then there is nothing there, is as irrational as proving "ghosts".

[The Doctor.]

41. Oh, so you know the full parameters of nature?

I don't believe in the 'super'natural. All that exists is quite mundane and natural... we just have to know how to measure it.

[youthere]

22. I'm undecided...

leaning more towards yes than no. I personally have never experienced anything "paranormal", but I think my oldest daughter has. My real father passed when I was 15, and my mother remarried shortly after. The only "grandfather" my kids have ever known has been my stepdad. They know my "daddy" died when I kid but never knew anything about him. When my oldest daughter was about 4 she went through a phase where she was tired (and crabby!) all the time. She would tell us that she was tired because "grandpa" kept her awake talking. We laughed and told her that "Grandpa" lived 6 hours away and certainly wasn't in her room. She said to us "Not Grandpa V------, my cloud grandpa! Y------!"
Now, I'm not I'm not saying it isn't POSSIBLE that she could have heard me talking at some point about my father and heard his name (Y------) but it just isn't likely. I don't speak of my father very often, and I never use his name, I just call him dad. She could describe him perfectly, except that "he was made of clouds". It was just weird. As soon as she told us it seemed to stop. So I dunno'.

[kwassa]

24. I'm not a ghost, but I am pretty damn invisible sometimes

usually when I don't want to be.

[SheilaT]

25. I'm a believer,

although I've never myself had an actual sighting.

A friend of mine, some years back, was visiting a historic house in Alexandria, Virginia, one of the pre-Revolutionary War ones. Can't recall the name. Anyway, it had been closed for a year or so during renovations, and my friend Don visited shortly after it reopened.

He was the only one there that afternoon, and in an upstairs room, behind the rope that kept visitors on one side and staff on another, was a girl in period costume, who looked to be about ten years old. She was playing a violin and when she was done with her tune, looked Don in the eye, and he said something like, "Thank you, that was very pretty." He then continued his tour.

When he got downstairs, he told the lady selling tickets that it was certainly nice they had someone upstairs playing the violin. The women kind of gasped and said, "Oh! You've seen our ghost! We didn't know if she'd be back." Apparently, the ghost of this young girl had been seen any number of times, but had disappeared during the renovations, and Don was the first one to report seeing her.

He says she did not look at all pale or ghostly in any way, but seemed to be a young girl in the same room with him.

[Mabus]

26. More than one experience

Currently we live in a house where I have heard a little boy asking someone to play with him. The voice is very clear in the upstair bedrooms and in particular the east one. At first I thought it was some kid in the neighborhood and didn't pay any attention to it except thinking to myself "I wish someone would play with that kid." When I was outside I never heard him so I didn't think about it. When I was in the kitchen I see some kid run across the backyard now and again but it never registered.

A few months after we moved in my husband's friends had to go home to take care of an ailing relative for about a month. They left their kids, two girls 8 and 10, with us while they were gone so they wouldn't miss school. The first night they came downstairs and asked for a radio. We gave them one and everything was fine. A few days before they left the younger was a little agitated and I asked her what was wrong. She told me that the little boy who lived in their room had kept her up all night. I asked her what she meant and she said all he wants to do is play. I asked her what she meant by the little boy who lived in their room and she the little boy who wore shorts, had blondish hair and wouldn't look at them when he said he wanted to play. She told me that's why they wanted the radio, they wanted to drown out his voice. We had a long talk. I asked her what she thought about the little boy and she said he was a spirit. Her mom and dad are full blooded Lakotas. Her dad runs sweats so she wasn't alarmed or frightened by the prospect of etheral beings. She talked about with her mom the night she told me.

Since then I've had two of my brothers and half a dozen friends tell me they've heard or seen the little boy when they go upstairs. Neither my husband nor I ever told them about it before they stayed here but told them they weren't the firsts when they told us that they've seen or heard something.

I've even had a couple of the neighborhood kids ask me if that kid upstairs wants to go play or ask me what his name is. When I ask them where they've seen him they always point to the north window of the east bedroom and tell me they see him looking out the window.

I've had things disappear and reappear when I'm upstairs. I was wrapping my husband's birthday present upstairs to hide it from him. The minute I put the scissors down they were gone. I looked all over the room, crawled around on the floor, looked under the mattress but they were gone. I knew I just had them and I hadn't moved. I'd spend several minutes looking before I'd go get another pair from downstairs but they'd disappear the second I put them down too. I even put one pair under my shoe to keep track of it. All in all I lost four pairs of scissors one by one. When I had run out of scissors I gave up and decided to wrap the presents later. When I went back upstairs all four pairs of scissors were lined up on top of the wrapping paper but the tape was gone. The tape showed up later.

We've had company in the living room who suddenly jump and say they've just seen someone dash across the landing upstairs. We've let them go up and check it out and there's never anyone or anything there. The windows are shut, there's no way a cat or something else could have gotten in.

The dogs and I hear footsteps upstairs. At least we all look up at the same time. My husband is oblivious to it.

People also see floating orbs of light around the house. The lights appear out of nowhere and either float or zip around the room and then disappear as quickly. The dogs have chased and barked at the lights. They also "do tricks" for no apparent reason. I've walked in on the two dogs sitting up, looking in the same direction towards the ceiling and wagging their tails. Sometimes they jump on the couch and act like someone is petting/scratching them.

I hear the backdoor open and shut which is strange because the door sticks and you have to pull/push hard to get it open. It doesn't actually physically open or shut because I've been standing at the stove next to it when I've heard it being forced open and then just a second later I hear it being pulled shut. I know I'm not the only one who hears it because the dogs rush out into the kitchen at the same time. Because the door makes so much noise when it is opened it always gets the dogs attention and they run to it. They look so disappointed when they realize we're not going outside.

Finally, at various times, even in the heat of a Kansas summer, in a room without air conditioning one of the upstairs bedrooms is prone to cold spots.

[WI_DEM]

32. that's spooky

have you done any history of the house to see if a child had ever died there?

[Mabus]

39. But it's not scary

No one has ever felt scared or afraid. For the most part I've thought it to better to leave the situation alone. We have had a couple of people come in who have tried to help the kid "move on" but it hasn't worked. It's like he's looped, that is, it is the same thing every time it happens, which itself is sporadic. It happens in spates and is episodic and seasonal. It occurs more from mid-March to late September than it does it the rest of the year. It starts with him asking someone to play with him. After a while it "intensifies" to the point where you start seeing him run across the landing or hearing footsteps. Then it moves downstairs with the backdoor and seeing him in the backyard. By the end of September he's gone.

We asked our neighbors if they knew about the house. The ones to the north moved in two months before we did and the ones on the southside were also relatively new. Of the two neighbors up the street who have been here the longest neither of them really knows about the history. They remember various families moving in and out but never paid much attention. One because he had no kids and is pretty reclusive and the other because her kids were never the same age as the ones who lived here. Neither of them remember any children who lived in this house dying. The second neighbor with kids has lived in the neighborhood for 20 years and the other (across the street) has lived here about ten years. The only other one I could ask is the lady on the street over but she's senile.

I tried to talk to the previous owner once. I called her because she received a letter that looked like it was important. When she came by the next day I invited her in because I wanted to ask her about it but she said she was in a hurry, thanked me for the letter and left. She called later and left a message on the machine where she apologized for her seeming rudeness and explained she wanted to get home in time for "The Sopranos" season opener. I've played phone tag with her a few times - she has three athletic sons and is either at one of their games or practices or is at work.

Our house is between 80 and 100 years old. It has a stone foundation and a half basement. I suppose I could go find out more. Perhaps I should.

BTW, the light orbs are here year round. They pop up pretty frequently, sometimes several times a week and don't seem to be connected to the boy. It is different than when the kid is around. The lights seem interact with the dogs while the kid doesn't. The kid looks through you, like you aren't there. Like I said, it is like he is reenacting something over and over again. He doesn't seem responsive to his surroundings. He just does his thing and then moves on until the next year. The lights on the other hand just zip through the house whenever they feel like it. They show up in our downstairs bedroom in the southeast corner and sometimes along the east wall. They appear to move through things like the closet wall. They will go into the closet (no door) and then pop of the wall a few feet over. I moved our bed so it points in another direction so I don't have to see them as much. They usually show up in pairs or in threes. Sometimes they are visible for up to a minute or more but most often they last a few seconds. Sometimes they move slowly sometimes they just zip.

They also pop up in the living room mostly in the south. I've seen them in the kitchen but not as frequently. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen (I like to cook and don't have a dishwashing machine). The orbs don't show up in the office area (which is directly below the upstairs east bedroom) or in the bathroom very often. I think it is the lights that play and interact with the dogs.

[Fox Mulder]

36. Did you ever consider putting a video camera up in the bedroom?

And recording those incidents?

I think that'd be sweet.

[Mabus]

46. Yes and no

My husband gets a little freaked/creeped out about these kinds of things. Whenever the topic comes up he leaves the room. It makes him really uncomfortable so that's the reason I haven't really done anything. Over the past few years he has become more open to talking about it or at least he doesn't bolt from the room right off now when the topic comes up. He's still a little freaked out about which is why another reason I've pretty much decided to leave the situation alone. Lately, when I have to go upstairs to fetch something or get it ready for a visitor he always says not to piss of junior. He's watched too many movies.

Anyway, my friend in California, who has stayed here and felt something (he didn't hear anything but he said he felt like he was being watched) wants to set up some webcams around upstairs to see if he can record stuff. He's got cameras set up around his property and house that are centrally linked to one computer and then the web so he can check on his place when he's on the road. We were talking about how cool it would be to set something similar set up here. He's also suggested I leave a tape recorder going upstairs to see if something can be picked up. He said he would bring some high powered recorder his boyfriend has when they come to visit this Christmas.

[GirlinContempt]

27. omg ghosts

[WeRQ4U]

31. An invisible man sleeping in your bed...........WHO YOU GONNA CALL?

GHOSTBUSTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[arwalden]

33. Ghosts Do Not Exist (Except In Movies And In Our Imagination)

[KittyWampus]

34. Define "Ghost". Seriously, Let Me Know What You Mean,Please

[alarcojon]

48. Apparently it's whatever you want it to be

[Beaverhausen]

35. My cat hung around for about a month after he died- kept "seeing" him

I'm not the only one who saw him. My boyfriend did, too.

[Cathyclysmic]

37. yes..short story

Slumber party...1986....my friends and I break out the ouija board. Talked to two spirits, said they were my brother and mom's first husband...we asked to see them...and they appeared. Just sitting on the couch. very freaky.

This happened before I did any drugs.

[WI_DEM]

40. That is very freaky

Interesting that your brother and your mom's first husband were together.

[Cathyclysmic]

49. I guess I should clarify...

half brother by marriage...his son.

[MrSlayer]

44. Of course not.

God, Ghosts, Santa Claus...Pah.

[Celeborn Skywalker]

47. Yes (nt)

[noonwitch]

50. I believe in possibilities, but am skeptical

I lived in an apartment that seemed haunted once, but it could have been nothing.
I've been to allegedly haunted houses and never seen or felt anything unusual (most particularly, the Bowers Harbor Inn in Traverse City, MI, the haunting of which has been written up numerous times). Because I believe in the possibilities, you couldn't pay me money to go anywhere near the part of Tennesee where the Bell Witch allegedly once haunted. I read the family's tales about it-I never want to experience that.
But it's like UFOs, just because I believe it's all possible, that doesn't mean I believe every story I ever hear.