A question for the sceptics?

Question

would a ghostly experiance change your opinians

Answer 1

i don't believe in ghost, if you have one send him .

Answer 2

No, ghostly experiences can be explained away by various phenomena. Apparently it is more about personality than paranormal and some people are more susceptible to interpreting things atmospheric or ghostly. There was an interesting programme that demonstrated this with sceptics experiencing nothing in the same rooms as others who thought every shadow or breeze was ghostly. What do you really think?

Answer 3

No. It's a good question, though and I'm glad you asked it!

I actually have had several experiences, that, if I chose to relate them in a certain way, would make really good ghost stories. Likewise, I have seen things in the sky that I could not identify.

But it is a leap from saying 'here and now, I can not positively identify or explain what I am observing' to saying 'therefore, the only explanation must be paranormal',

For example, I have seen the likes of Randi, Penn and Teller, even Paul Daniels, perform things that I can not for the life of me explain. But because they are honest conjurers, I know they are decieving my senses. I know I can be fooled. It is valuable to remember that!

You have to apply the law of parsimony - what is more likey, that I have misinterpreted signals from my senses, or that our whole paragdim needs shifting and eveything we know about the laws of the universe is mistaken?

Don't get me wrong - I do believe (I can't recall if it was Arthur Clarke or Ike Asimov that said it) that the most exciting phrase in science is not 'Eureka!' but 'That's odd' and I do think that amnomality should be investigated. But when it comes to the scientific investigation of claims of the paranormal, the first question has to be 'is there anything to investigate?' and individual anecdotes do not could as evidence for this. Only when it is established that there is a statistically validated phenomenon should the full and awsome battery of scientific investigation be applied.

So basically, no, if what I was experiencing contradicted what I know about the universe, I would first doubt myself before leaping to conclusions! We need an open mind, but not so open that our brains fall out!

Answer 4

No, we as humans are almost programmed to have 'ghostly' experiences. The difference between a sceptic and a believer is that a sceptic should, nay must, be sceptical of his own experiences.

Answer 5

Yes, But I Suppose That Doesn't Make Me 100% Sceptical!

Answer 6

Not too sure thats why i'm a skeptic but then if i seen a ghost i would probably think it was my imagination percieving things that aren't actually there. The eye plays so many tricks on you who knows what to believe.

Answer 7

Change something, but would not prove and religious doctrine. It would depend on the exact experience. The problem is, it has never happened to the skeptics.

Answer 8

We don't have them. If we see something, we try to explain it rationally rather than just going off saying it is a ghost.

My first thought would be that I was delusional, and I would see a doctor. That is usually what it comes down to.

Answer 9

It did a friend of mine! He never had one until we went on vacation together. A spirit got him in the middle of the night. Freaked him out. I exorcised it, & he could feel the absense of it's presence afterwards. He is now a believer.

Answer 10

My perceptions, yes. My opinions, no.

I've had some very strange experiences. None of them have brought me any closer to giving worship to the God of Abraham.

Answer 11

Define skeptic. Skeptical about Christianity, skeptical of organized religion or skeptical about the existence of a god?