How do you prove to someone ghosts exist?

[Guardian Angel of Fire]

OMG, I heard it! Thank you for the PM. That was really weird, but still it could have been altered or something. Whatever, if that really happened then...that's creepy.

Nope no alteration at all, nothing added at all, only thing is so that people could hear it is in this final one i increased the volume just so it was there, but even without it was quiet clear still.

To say the attempt debunk: Not my dad because he was upstairs asleep we were in my basement, my sisters werent home, me(male) and two female friends in basement without any electronics on at all, we did it by candle light, not my dog because i know she cant talk (or can she, just kidding lol), and it's not a TV upstairs because i would hear it if anything.

[illusenjester]

Sounds believable, yet doesn't that creep you out at all?

After from what happened to your friend...would you say you're still interested in playing around with those things?

[Guardian Angel of Fire]

Sounds believable, yet doesn't that creep you out at all?

After from what happened to your friend...would you say you're still interested in playing around with those things?

Nope it actually made my Jaw Drop, my house is like a magnet for strange things happening, i had on a stormy night a bunch of bottles and cans get smashed into on a chair by a flashlight sending one bottle about 6ft away and landing right next to a small couch. Loud bangs in my house, things turn up missing then reappear where you left them (im serious it wouldnt be where i left it then it'd be there), voices, strange sounds, tapping on glass that my sis heard first than me second in another part of the house (it wasnt a tree, no tree close enough to touching it)....i have much more but so much i cant remember it all lol

Honestly yeah, me and her are still interested, basically i'm trying to figure out more about this and gather more evidence that it's not just you sub concious, or a friend fooling you or a game....seriously....I'm interested if not even more than before!

[Radian]

Have you ever encountered or had a conversation with someone skeptical about paranormal ideals...like ghosts? How do you refute the idea that ghosts aren't real?

I've never been proved that they do exists but I believe they do because just way too many people tell me they've seen/felt some weird spirit(people that I trust) and there are way too many witnesses and stories. I know some are just for myths or legends...but what are your opinions? How do you prove a ghosts existence?

You can't convince anyone such a thing. All you have is your experience.. when you share your experience it's going to believed or doubted.. or sometimes worse- assumed it's a lie, or you're some crazy person.

Experience can't be proved really. Only shared.

[+HerNibs]

I'm not calling skeptics ignorant, I'm saying there ARE skeptical people who are ignorant and refuse to believe anything even with evidence. (I know people like that)

Also, my use of context was correct, here's the real definition of skeptical. Cited from dictionary.com

skep·ti·cal

–adjective 1. inclined to skepticism; having doubt: a skeptical young woman.

2. showing doubt: a skeptical smile.

3. denying or questioning the tenets of a religion: a skeptical approach to the nature of miracles.

4. (initial capital letter) of or pertaining to Skeptics or Skepticism.

Having doubt, there you go.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/skepticism

skep·ti·cism also scep·ti·cism (skpt-szm)

n.

1. A doubting or questioning attitude or state of mind; dubiety. See Synonyms at uncertainty.

2. Philosophy

a. The ancient school of Pyrrho of Elis that stressed the uncertainty of our beliefs in order to oppose dogmatism.

b. The doctrine that absolute knowledge is impossible, either in a particular domain or in general.

c. A methodology based on an assumption of doubt with the aim of acquiring approximate or relative certainty.

3. Doubt or disbelief of religious tenets.

The bold part is what I find to be the most accurate. You certainly have the right to your opinion. My point is that most skeptics don't just grab an opinion and refuse to budge when faced with actual evidence.

What evidence did it take for you to believe in ghosts? What convinced you? Is there ANY way that you could have been mistaken? A glimmer of doubt?

HN

[Aanica]

Nope it actually made my Jaw Drop, my house is like a magnet for strange things happening, i had on a stormy night a bunch of bottles and cans get smashed into on a chair by a flashlight sending one bottle about 6ft away and landing right next to a small couch. Loud bangs in my house, things turn up missing then reappear where you left them (im serious it wouldnt be where i left it then it'd be there), voices, strange sounds, tapping on glass that my sis heard first than me second in another part of the house (it wasnt a tree, no tree close enough to touching it)....i have much more but so much i cant remember it all lol

Honestly yeah, me and her are still interested, basically i'm trying to figure out more about this and gather more evidence that it's not just you sub concious, or a friend fooling you or a game....seriously....I'm interested if not even more than before!

I remember when you posted about that and I will definitely say the EVP is scary I still have it from a while back GAF....

[primordial]

Have you ever encountered or had a conversation with someone skeptical about paranormal ideals...like ghosts? How do you refute the idea that ghosts aren't real?

I've never been proved that they do exists but I believe they do because just way too many people tell me they've seen/felt some weird spirit(people that I trust) and there are way too many witnesses and stories. I know some are just for myths or legends...but what are your opinions? How do you prove a ghosts existence?

-If Ghosts is not matter or physical objects, then it doesn’t exist. We are taught at school about Energy and Matter and they cancel out this idea, because something has to interact w/ reality. They need an finite amount of energy..to exist. They did their Time "here", like everyone will, and will never come back to this Realm. Never. Unless, I can be very wrong in thoughts about that there could be Universes or even galaxies out there manufacture Einstein Rings into our planet..like a mirages/illusions.

-You see people on popular tv shows- like those guys from TAPS,..they are not Scientists. These guys go in with gadgets that are not designed to find Ghosts. It is a waste of money (n intelligence) at any electronic store. I find it quite amusing actually…well, it is entertainment. They never do follow any scientific method…they only “move” around the meters. Please don’t fall into their beliefs.

-And then, here is people that experience Ghosts, and we enter into the world of Neuropsychiatry. In short, everything is explained or helped by an pill impo, and of course, we need further Research.

-I am a Ghost Hunter and a ex-Deacon(Anglican). I work as an Assistant nurse at an Care Home, seen many deaths, and at the Mental Health as a Psyche-Aide.

Anyway, my points is, if I ever see a Ghost, I will definitely go back to my Church, and take those next steps to be an Bishop with an picture of a ghost in one of the pages of Matthew.

In the time being, I have nothing right now in that World, no ghosts, but, I am optimistic.

I drew a really thin line.

Edited August 7, 2008 by primordial

[everquesterinman]

Have you ever encountered or had a conversation with someone skeptical about paranormal ideals...like ghosts? How do you refute the idea that ghosts aren't real?

I've never been proved that they do exists but I believe they do because just way too many people tell me they've seen/felt some weird spirit(people that I trust) and there are way too many witnesses and stories. I know some are just for myths or legends...but what are your opinions? How do you prove a ghosts existence?

Die...come back...scare the crap out of them. No seriously the way i see it people with closed hearts never love, and those with closed minds never know ANYTHING. Dont worry about "proving" what you choose to believe to others...In fact dont "worry" at all because as my grandmother used to say "everything comes out in the wash" and sooner or later we will all KNOW for sure what life if any exsist after death...sad thing is there must not be any computers or internet there so we cant communicate. Your faith in what you believe comes from your own personal experiances as do mine. Live love, laugh and let others do the same.

[cpjason]

To answer that question for myself I spent thousands of dollars organizing a paranormal investigations group. You don't need to spend the money but the only way is to go out and find ghosts for yourself.

Get a tape recorder, flashlight, camera, and anything else you might have to document your experience. Find a haunted house, get some courage and investigate it and bring your friends. Use the Internet fo find haunted locations in your area.

Seeing is believing, and it's the only real way to convince someone.

[Dannii]

hmm well you see i always try to prove to my friend that ALIENS exsist but i haven't gotten far with that.*sighs*

So if you are trying to PROVE something to someone then it could be very very very hard because people have their own opinons.

[PixieDust_]

Lol, I don't think you can ever prove to someone a ghost exists untill they see one for themselves. It's just too unbelievable to hear from the mouth, and more believable when viewed upfront.

[merytamen]

Today's technology makes it even harder to produce anything that would prove ghosts exist. Any of the pictures and EVPs I have seen/heard can easily be faked. And unless you were there when it happened and you know no one messed with the equipment or fabricated a hoax it will be hard to impossible to convince a skeptic.

I have had experiences with the ouija board that have convinced me there is something strange going on there. For me it doesn't automatically lead to the conclusion that ghosts or spirits exist, but my experiences have definitely been strange. I was part of a group of skeptics who started out figuring nothing would happen. We did several experiments. We made sure the board we were working with was turned about enough that none of us knew where the letters were (we had our eyes closed during the stage where the glass we used instead of the planchette moved.). We excluded the one person who would have known the answer and then asked our questions. We did get the right answers. No gibberish. This surprised us no end.

Is it possible one person in the group was messing with the rest of us? Yes. But knowing the people there I am personally convinced that this is not the explanation for what happened.

Is it absolute proof? I personally think that what it shows is that something odd was happening that would require further research.

It is interesting that some people have no results. It seems that any paranormal experiences are hard to duplicate. This makes scientific verification rather hard.

[Marcus Aurelius]

Have you ever encountered or had a conversation with someone skeptical about paranormal ideals...like ghosts? How do you refute the idea that ghosts aren't real?

I've never been proved that they do exists but I believe they do because just way too many people tell me they've seen/felt some weird spirit(people that I trust) and there are way too many witnesses and stories. I know some are just for myths or legends...but what are your opinions? How do you prove a ghosts existence?

Well, that's quite a good question, my friend....one with no easy answer. For the record, I believe in ghosts. I've been a paranormal investigator for awhile now, and I love it. Its become quite the hobby for me lol. I've had a few weird personal experiences in that time; but they are not ones I can absolutely verify to being paranormal. Going through the archives of the group I joined, I've heard some great EVPs and such too. But I'll tell you what, the more investigations I do, the more skeptical I become personally. I think 95% of the claims we investigate are anything but paranormal. With a lot of the attention ghosts have been getting in the media lately, for example, I think a lot of people WANT their homes or businesses or whatever to be haunted. I've investigated some of the most haunted places in Ohio, allegedly, like the Mansfield Reformatory and most recently Prospect Place. No personal experiences whatever. Now, at the Reformatory, I, and a couple other investigators caught some interesting EVPs.....one of which appears to be a direct response to a question. But again, no personal experiences. I didn't see anything, I didn't feel anything. Hell, I found myself questioning whether Prospect Place, especially, was even haunted. So there's a bit of my personal background.

But you know what? I think people often DOWNPLAY the role of personal experiences in a lot of cases. I've seen and talked to hardened skeptics who have had pretty wild claims of activity, and or experiences, and really, no cause to question them, in that these are honest people, who really have no reason to make any of it up. Furthermore, some of these people were terrified by their experiences, and you can easily see that that fear is real. It makes me think to myself, why would these people be lying? It seems genuine. And if you dig deep, even within your own circle of influence, chances are, you either know someone, or know someone who knows someone who has experienced this kind of phenomena. Its hard to think that someone you know very well, and trust, like a family member, a spouse, a friend...would lie to you about something of this nature, right? My girlfriend had some crazy experiences as a child, and these experiences were terrifying. She's my girlfriend. Lol should I doubt her? .....She thinks I'm crazy for even doing this because of her experiences!! When someone talks to you LIKE THAT anyway, chances are they are telling you the truth.

I am skeptical, yet, some of the stuff I have heard on EVPs, mainly, are pretty hard to doubt.

Lastly, Primordial, you criticize groups like TAPS, and I am not sure why. You say you hunt ghosts; but ridicule using technology. What do you use? Psychics? Feelings? Seances? I'm serious, if you don't use any sort of electronics or technology, then how would you have us investigate the paranormal? You say these gadgets are not designed to 'find ghosts', well, who cares, IMO? I mean what, we need to invent a ghost hunting device? This makes no sense. Especially when you consider that yes, maybe these are NOT designed for it; but nevertheless, they still produce results. Look, if you want to use TAPS as an example, they have captured some pretty convincing stuff over the years with these gadgets. Have you ever actually seen anything they caught? And I have no reason to doubt their legitimacy, they are not Most Haunted, they have been doing this for decades, long before there was ever a show about them. I wouldn't be so quick to discuss those whom I view are pioneers in our field. Its as simple as that.

[Nazz]

I tried to prove to my twin brother that they existed. Showed him a few really solid pics what I have gathered on my research trips. And still he didn't want to accept the fact.

So there isn't much to do. If someone has made up his mind not to believe in spirits etc, then he most lightly will not believe even if you give solid evidence.

[Breakbeat]

ouija board.

Edited September 2, 2008 by Breakbeat

[Nazz]

ouija board.

People usually say that you are moving the pointer. So still doesn't work quite well.

I know only one ouija board like thing that can be done by one person alone, but still people think that this isn't real. That there must be some trick behind it.

[Marcus Aurelius]

People usually say that you are moving the pointer. So still doesn't work quite well.

I know only one ouija board like thing that can be done by one person alone, but still people think that this isn't real. That there must be some trick behind it.

Well not only that, but also if there is anything extraordinary about it, it may actually be some form of telekenisis or esp, as well. Like there is no entity at all, you're communicating with your own psyche. Worse still, it is almost impossible to prove or verify any experiences one has with the board. Its better to try to capture evps and stuff like that.

[Agent. Mulder]

ouija board.

LMFAO

that doesnt prove anything, to anyone

[Queenofthefairies]

unfortunately it's all about personal exsperience. I know they are true>if you know this then there is no need to prove anything.

[Marcus Aurelius]

unfortunately it's all about personal exsperience. I know they are true>if you know this then there is no need to prove anything.

That's actually a very good point. One has to really experience this for themselves.

[balios]

Have you ever encountered or had a conversation with someone skeptical about paranormal ideals...like ghosts? How do you refute the idea that ghosts aren't real?

I've never been proved that they do exists but I believe they do because just way too many people tell me they've seen/felt some weird spirit(people that I trust) and there are way too many witnesses and stories. I know some are just for myths or legends...but what are your opinions? How do you prove a ghosts existence?

You need to provide proof. "Feelings" or "emotions" aren't proof. People get spooked out all the time from just stuff in their head, especially if its dealing with the emotions of a deceased loved-one. Blury pictures with spots aren't proof, that could be anything. Wierd electromagnetic or thermal readings aren't proof either, since that could be anything as well.

Show them the ghost, that's the best way. If somebody said "come over to my house, there's a ghost that appears all the time", and I did see it myself and it was clearly something ghostly, that'd be pretty convincing. If something is moving by itself all the time, then show them that. That's the kind of real proof that convinces people, not claims that somebody "felt" a ghost.

[Neognosis]

You can't prove ghosts exist because they do not.

You can't prove that they don't exist because you can't prove a negative.

[Agent. Mulder]

You can't prove ghosts exist because they do not.

You can't prove that they don't exist because you can't prove a negative.

why?

im just curious

[jonny b]

My question is why feel the need to prove or disprove anything?Why is it not just ok to believe what you will, and take a particular stance on a subject? Just let others be as they want to.Why the need to sway them to your train of thought?I think it's all good and fine that one can argue or debate a subject on any topic and believe as they will, but it's a bit much to want to make people believe as you do,and besides, if everyone believed the same thing there would be alot of boring conversations.