The Shadow of Doubt

Guess who’s back from the dead?

No, it’s not Parson Brown…it’s your resident paranormal skeptic, back with a fresh enthusiasm on The Shadow of Doubt.   After a much needed hiatus in my second home of music, I’m back to talk about some old friends (and a few new ones) on the paranormal scene.

So without further adieu, we tread forward with a discussion on last night’s episode of Ghost Hunters International.   Tasmania  was the place touted as being world-renowned for its paranormal activity.  The GHI team investigated Port Arthur Penitentiary.  One thing that hasn’t changed is which team members seem to experience all the activity. *coughBarrycough*

Here’s a review of what the team picked up in their investigation.

In the Parsonage:  footsteps heard, pretty clearly heard live but no luck on the playback

Senior Medical Area: Barry’s 360 mic picks up EVP and temp fluctuations.

Ashley Godwin asks John Gould to come out and talk to her, EVP response of “okay” is heard…then she reported feeling a poke in the knee.

Rob Demarest asks “what are you still doing here?” EVP response heard “get out”

Barry’s full spectrum camera picks up a person walking on the grounds in front of the church.  I wonder if it could have actually been a person (production crew member)? They said the 30 second exposure of his camera should leave a motion trail if someone were photographed walking and they tested this.

DVR picks up movement of bed curtains….a draft perhaps?  Dustin Pari claims they tested for drafts.  Hmph.

For me, the most notable moment happened when Joe Chin and Barry Fitzgerald were in the medical area.  Barry was lying on the table while Joe walked around taking readings when suddenly Barry grasped his right shoulder/chest area and winced in pain.  Joe, standing just in front of Barry’s head doesn’t even acknowledge Barry’s complaint.  I could draw a conclusion from this….what about you?

Let’s talk!

Tonight we welcome the return of Ghost Hunters International with their second season of paranormal investigations abroad. They’ll be in Ireland looking for ghostly activity in the 18th century prison, Wicklow’s Gaol.  You can talk with others about this show and Ghost Adventures after they have a lock-in investigation at Eastern State Penitentiary. We’ll recap these episodes during a live interactive podcast on Sunday night at 8PM EST. Join us by following the link below and chime in this Sunday and every Sunday!

Last night, the Ghost Adventures crew investigated the paranormal activity at the Bird Cage Theater in Tombstone, AZ.  Tombstone is a famous ghost-town with scads of reported paranormal activity over the years.  On last night’s episode however, GA investigator Zak Bagans was really excited at the possibility of catching nude hooker apparitions in the former wild-west brothel and poker house.  So excited was he that he drew some pretty interesting conclusions out of a few EVPs they had captured.

There was at least one EVP of both a male and a female voice being heard together…so the natural conclusion Zak grabbed for was that they must have interrupted the ghosts having sex!  Now,I have heard some good ones (EVPs that is) but never have I heard someone claim they heard disembodied sexual activity.  Was it the environment?  Assumption-led investigating forcing them to draw conclusions they normally wouldn’t?  If they heard that same EVP in someone’s house, would they say it was two people talking, rather than having sex?  I didn’t hear any moaning on the recording, so….

Early in the tour, Zak also claims to have been touched on his groin.  Clearly he was happy to be in the company of hooker ghosts.  I wonder what else was on his mind during the investigation.

Well folks,  this is one burned-out skeptic who will be taking a break.  I need one.  I may still post reviews on a show if one so moves me.  I’m tired of entertaining the more-enlightened-than-thous out there  who think that a few books makes them an expert on any given topic. There are people  out there who have dedicated a lifetime of work, education and real-life experience in sciences of the mind and yet are thought to be clueless because we just don’t understand that alternate reality…whatever.  Yes, I get emails and comments all the time telling me that I just don’t understand because I have not the capacity to see another reality.  LOL What next? Witch hunts for skeptics?  You go head and revert to the superstitious dark ages if you want.  I’ll stay right here in the realm of the rational.  Funny how science is ok when you want a pretty iPhone or cable TV or a kidney transplant, but don’t ever interfere with paranormal, we’re too stupid for that!

These straw-man arguments are tired and done so many times it’s making this blog redundant.

I need some fresh air.

Skeptic out.

 Zak Bagans and the GA Crew investigated an old Spanish mission, La Purisima, where the Spanish took over the lands once inhabited by the peaceful Chumash Native American tribe.  The grounds are said to be haunted by a plethora of spirits from Spanish soldiers and priests to Chumash Indians and even a greyhound dog.

As the guys took their tour of the premises, they were hosted by employees of the site with each their own story of a haunting experience.  One that sticks out to me is that of Arthur Carlos, who had an experience with the ghost of a menacing Spanish soldier who tried to choke Carlos as he lay still on a cot.   His description of the event reminded me of an episode of sleep paralysis .

I’m not going to give a play-by-play of the night, since it was largely uneventful.  There were a few things worth mentioning however.

As the GA Crew go outside to follow what they thought was the sound of a distant battlecry, they inadvertently  pick up a thermal image of a figure standing in the field.  It was pitch black outside and there’s no way that their naked eyes would have seen a person standing that far off in the field.  So what is my point?  That it is entirely possible that the figure on the thermal camera was a person…a living person, interfering with the investigation.  It’s a big place with lots of employees that may have access to the grounds after hours.  I’m just sayin.

They caught lots of EVPs, but only two of them I thought were significant.

1. Nick Groff is alone in the bed of Father Pyeras, whose bedding was mysteriously messed up.  On Nick’s digital audio recorder, you can hear a voice saying “lay down.”
2. Sounds of flutes (common Chumash music) being played in the weaving room, where the crew had been earlier playing music to attract Chumach spirits.  This is also where they felt extreme temperature fluctuations.

One thing we didn’t get much of was Zak’s dramatic presence.  He was pretty low-key.  All in all, this episode was probably more of a typical paranormal investigation.  A lot of the EVPs could probably be debunked, but a few were interesting and maybe even paranormal.  I just don’t fully trust the larger tourist facilities because the environment is too hard to control.