related_results_labels({"version":"1.0","encoding":"UTF-8","feed":{"xmlns":"http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom","xmlns$openSearch":"http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/","xmlns$georss":"http://www.georss.org/georss","id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2168219303449559049"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-12-08T16:45:17.487-07:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Buck's Ghosts and Hauntings"},"subtitle":{"type":"html","$t":""},"link":[{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2168219303449559049/posts/default/-/Supernatural?alt\u003djson-in-script\u0026max-results\u003d5"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/search/label/Supernatural"},{"rel":"hub","href":"http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Buck"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/03195661861205323477"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"}}],"generator":{"version":"7.00","uri":"http://www.blogger.com","$t":"Blogger"},"openSearch$totalResults":{"$t":"2"},"openSearch$startIndex":{"$t":"1"},"openSearch$itemsPerPage":{"$t":"5"},"entry":[{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2168219303449559049.post-3738743754447021089"},"published":{"$t":"2009-11-30T01:37:00.001-07:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-11-30T01:37:24.026-07:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"TV Shows"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Paranormal"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Supernatural"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Random Thoughts…"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cp\u003eI don’t really have a “post” per se on any of these topics. None of them quite seemed to warrant their very own post on the blog so I decided to lump some recent random thoughts together under a single post. Pardon the mish mash. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eI realized recently that almost everyone I meet anymore has a ghost story of some type. By ghost story I don’t mean they know a traditional folklore type story but rather their house, their parents’ house, a friend’s house, or a hotel they stayed at is haunted. What once was a fairly rare event, the personal ghost encounter, has become as commonplace as seeing a homeless person in a big city. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eOver the past year or so at parties I’ve had or events I’ve attended when people find out what I used to do with SPI they begin to recount their own ghostly encounters. It seems that no matter how mundane the event it is ascribed a “paranormal” cause with the adamant disclaimer that it can’t possibly be anything but a ghost because they watch Ghost Hunters and they have thoroughly checked everything possible ergo ghost. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eI can remember growing up that hearing a first hand ghost tale was quite rare. In fact, in high school I did a paper on a local haunting (from a folklore collection angle) and had to really hunt for someone who had actually experienced the haunting personally – although it was quite famous regionally! Today, were I to undertake the same task I’m sure I would hear dozens of first hand stories. In fact, it might make an interesting exercise. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eGhosts have become extremely popular in our culture through the media and substitution for traditional religious beliefs (just read almost any psychic’s website and you will find a theological cosmology as intricate as any envisioned by a Medieval church council). Thanks to this popularity everyone seems to want to be in on the act. Whether it be telling you of “Uncle Joe” who haunts them and moves their keys or peppering you with questions about your own experiences and beliefs, the desire to be part of this synthesis of religion and pop-culture seems to be irresistible. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eOf course, this often puts me in a rather awkward position as I don’t fit into their notion of this world based upon television shows. When I tell people that I, personally, do not believe in ghosts within the construct of dead people wandering around chatting us up, they are often struck speechless. After all, surely anyone who studies and thinks about this stuff must have to “believe” in the traditional paradigm of ghosts as souls stuck on Earth for some reason. Honestly, that bit of information has caused more than one person to put me at arms length because I wasn’t their idea of a “ghost hunter” they could show off as a friend. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eSo, moving on…\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://lh6.ggpht.com/_u48bOmgAyeY/SxOEO3XfvHI/AAAAAAAAV70/XXfzitMECDQ/s1600-h/DiscoveryChannelTV-StormChasersNewEpisodesBeginSundayOct18th10pmEP958%5B5%5D.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px\" title\u003d\"DiscoveryChannelTV-StormChasersNewEpisodesBeginSundayOct18th10pmEP958\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"DiscoveryChannelTV-StormChasersNewEpisodesBeginSundayOct18th10pmEP958\" align\u003d\"left\" src\u003d\"http://lh6.ggpht.com/_u48bOmgAyeY/SxOEPUzBd8I/AAAAAAAAV74/IYEwJBgQxP4/DiscoveryChannelTV-StormChasersNewEpisodesBeginSundayOct18th10pmEP958_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax\u003d800\" width\u003d\"300\" height\u003d\"225\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e My new guilty pleasure in reality TV has become Storm Chasers on Discovery Channel. I started watching it last year simply because I caught a rerun late at night. Tornados have always fascinated me because they can be both beautiful and horrible at once. As a teenager I had a close encounter with one just before my high school graduation when a series of tornados ranging from (old style) F-2 to F-4 swept through my hometown. I narrowly missed being in the worst of it thanks to a migraine. Still, I got to see one touch down in the field across from my house as my father was speeding us toward my sister’s house because she had been on the phone when one of the tornados hit her side of town. She was fine, just tore the porch off her house and threw a 200 year old oak tree into the living room of a neighbor. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eAnyway, I’ve been watching that show and Michael has gotten hooked as well. A couple weeks ago in an episode the pros were trying to chase a storm and kept running into roadblocks of sightseers and amateur chasers. There were hundreds parked along roads, creeping down narrow highways, milling around in the middle of the highway with binoculars and cameras. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eI couldn’t help but think that storm chasing might be the next ghost hunters fad. As the pros cursed the amateurs in the way I wanted to say, “well, this is what happens when you’re on TV today.” See, everyone thinks that if they watch something on TV they can do it. It’s that dumbing down of America. Just like most amateur ghost hunters out there they only know what was on TV last week. They don’t read, they don’t study, they have no training in anything remotely useful in research. Because Jason Hawes proudly proclaimed that being a plumber qualified him to be a ghost hunter because he knew the difference between a leaky toilet and a ghost – everyone in the country thinks “paranormal research” is a piece of cake. No, ghost hunting is a piece of cake. Collecting stories and scaring each other is a piece of cake. Research is hard, long and requires…. education. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eSo, here are people with Ph.D.’s trying to collect data on storms and every thrill seeker in the state is clogging roads and putting people in danger because they see people chase storms on TV and figure “Hell, I can do that. All I need is my laptop, GPS, and the local weather page!” Because in anti-intellectual America… education is unnecessary!\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eNext up…\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cdiv style\u003d\"padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: right; padding-top: 0px\" id\u003d\"scid:8747F07C-CDE8-481f-B0DF-C6CFD074BF67:24307589-8bad-412b-835b-fec63f8635be\" class\u003d\"wlWriterEditableSmartContent\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://lh6.ggpht.com/_u48bOmgAyeY/SxOEP9WXVdI/AAAAAAAAV78/GYCKIL5ZLPs/ghost-lab-crew-8x6.jpg?imgmax\u003d800\" title\u003d\"Because it is important to stand with your arms crossed looking tough in matching T-shirts!\" rel\u003d\"thumbnail\"\u003e\u003cimg border\u003d\"0\" src\u003d\"http://lh3.ggpht.com/_u48bOmgAyeY/SxOEQiYNkQI/AAAAAAAAV8A/RqqiwIW52MI/ghost-lab-crew%5B17%5D.png?imgmax\u003d800\" width\u003d\"360\" height\u003d\"295\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/div\u003e  \u003cp\u003eI have not watched the show and will not subject myself to the torture of watching the show. I’m speaking of “Ghost Lab” which is Discovery Channel’s entry in the every expanding basic cable “we must have a ghost show!” lineup. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eI’ve only seen the ads for the show and admittedly, the people who make ads for this stuff are usually the most simple of the simple. However, it appears this show centers on a couple of brothers in matching T-shirts and hats (of course) who use all manner of lighted gadgets to hunt down ghosts. Now, it might be interesting if the “Ghost Lab” actually included some type of lab work but it appears it’s just the usual stumble around in the dark formula with a spotlight on gadgetry. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eIn the latest commercial airing they are knocking around what appears to be some fort or castle in a storm. Their purpose is to “prove” that “paranormal activity” increases during a storm. Ahh, how nice. Of course, they still need to prove paranormal activity exists, but let’s let them have their day. Anyway, in this commercial they are correlating lightning strikes with EVP and happen to get an EVP around the time of a lightning strike. It is their “A ha!” moment as they conclude that this proves paranormal activity is related to electrical energy.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eOf course, to anyone with half a brain it would “prove” that coincidences do happen. To “prove” their belief would first require they prove paranormal phenomena and in particular EVP does exist outside the normal construct of the physical universe. Then they would have to show that there is statistical evidence that this newly found physical phenomenon occurs more often at moments when lightning strikes the vicinity. This would require years of study under all sorts of storm conditions. \u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eBut, it’s so much easier to find a coincidence and declare to your public that you have “proved” something. And the sad part is…. the ghost hunting groups will believe it.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2168219303449559049-3738743754447021089?l\u003dbucksghosts.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/feeds/3738743754447021089/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d2168219303449559049\u0026postID\u003d3738743754447021089\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2168219303449559049/posts/default/3738743754447021089"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2168219303449559049/posts/default/3738743754447021089"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/2009/11/random-thoughts.html","title":"Random Thoughts…"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Buck"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/03195661861205323477"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"02653328012866227494"}}],"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"0"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2168219303449559049.post-3587338377332668972"},"published":{"$t":"2008-12-13T18:28:00.006-07:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-12-13T18:35:39.611-07:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"ghost stories"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Law Enforcement"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Supernatural"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Ghost Security"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cspan class\u003d\"zemanta-img\" style\u003d\"margin: 1em; float: left; display: block;\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://commons.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:ESP-hallway.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg src\u003d\"http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/ESP-hallway.jpg/202px-ESP-hallway.jpg\" alt\u003d\"A typical cell block row of Eastern State Peni...\" style\u003d\"border: medium none ; display: block;\" width\u003d\"202\" height\u003d\"134\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan class\u003d\"zemanta-img-attribution\"\u003eImage via \u003ca href\u003d\"http://commons.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:ESP-hallway.jpg\"\u003eWikipedia\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"entry_body_text\"\u003e         \u003cp\u003eA burglar who broke into a house claims he was held captive by a \"supernatural figure\" for three days without food and water, officials said.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003ePolice official Abdul Marlik Hakim Johar told The Star newspaper the house's owners found the 36-year-old man fatigued and dehydrated when they returned from vacation Thursday.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eHe says they called an ambulance to take him to a hospital.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eThe man told police that every time he tried to escape, a \"supernatural figure\" shoved him to the ground.\u003c/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eAbdul Marlik could not immediately be reached and other police officials declined to comment according to \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/\" title\u003d\"The Huffington Post\" rel\u003d\"homepage\" class\u003d\"zem_slink\"\u003ethe Huffington Post\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWho needs ADT when you can use ghosts? Wonder if he'll be made to serve out his term in \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.easternstate.org/\" title\u003d\"Eastern State Penitentiary\" rel\u003d\"homepage\" class\u003d\"zem_slink\"\u003eEastern State Penitentiary\u003c/a\u003e?\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/p\u003e                                                                            \u003c/div\u003e\u003cfieldset class\u003d\"zemanta-related\"\u003e\u003clegend class\u003d\"zemanta-related-title\"\u003eRelated articles\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/legend\u003e\u003cul class\u003d\"zemanta-article-ul\"\u003e\u003cli class\u003d\"zemanta-article-ul-li\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/10/08/cybertrips.prison.tours.ap/index.html?eref\u003drss_travel\"\u003eNotorious prisons offer ghostly thrills\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli class\u003d\"zemanta-article-ul-li\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/12/13/ap/strange/main4667260.shtml?source\u003dRSS\u0026amp;attr\u003d_4667260\"\u003eMalaysia Burglar Stuck For 3 Days In Haunted House\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli class\u003d\"zemanta-article-ul-li\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28205738/\"\u003eBurglar: Ghost held me captive for 3 days\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ul\u003e\u003c/fieldset\u003e    \u003cdiv style\u003d\"margin-top: 10px; height: 15px;\" class\u003d\"zemanta-pixie\"\u003e\u003ca class\u003d\"zemanta-pixie-a\" href\u003d\"http://reblog.zemanta.com/zemified/d3dd2027-f9e3-4422-bd36-25173ec187f4/\" title\u003d\"Zemified by Zemanta\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"border: medium none ; float: right;\" class\u003d\"zemanta-pixie-img\" src\u003d\"http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id\u003dd3dd2027-f9e3-4422-bd36-25173ec187f4\" alt\u003d\"Reblog this post [with Zemanta]\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2168219303449559049-3587338377332668972?l\u003dbucksghosts.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/feeds/3587338377332668972/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d2168219303449559049\u0026postID\u003d3587338377332668972\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2168219303449559049/posts/default/3587338377332668972"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2168219303449559049/posts/default/3587338377332668972"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://bucksghosts.blogspot.com/2008/12/image-via-wikipedia-burglar-who-broke.html","title":"Ghost Security"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Buck"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/03195661861205323477"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"02653328012866227494"}}],"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"0"}}]}});