New Job

Sorry guys I haven't been blogging much this past month.

I got a new job and its been taking up a lot of my time. I am also building my new investigations team, and that has been taking up a lot of my writing time, as i have been focused on getting together numerous documents for that. Be on the watch for the formal release of my new team shortly. I promise I will try and make some time to blog more soon.

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Psychics and Mediums and Bears...Oh My!

In this lovely day and age of the ever so popular paranormal television show. The world has become inundated with the self proclaimed psychic and medium. There has been such a flood in recent years, that it resembles the spiritualist movement of the 1800's through to the early 1900's. It is pretty much the same thing, only now days they call them selves new age.

They make claims of having various powers or as they call them “gifts”. Anything from Clairaudience, Clairsentience, Clairvoyance, ESP, Precognitive abilities, to mediums channeling deceased persona's, and a number of other special powers. It some times gets to the point, especially when a number of these individuals are gathered in one place comparing abilities, to begin to sound like some sort of list of powers from a comic book. Each one out doing the next with their special powers, to the point they often times begin claiming they have numerous abilities.

I hope you can tell by now, I am not to fond of psychics and mediums. They all to often use various techniques such as cold reading, to exploit the grief of their clients. People that are wanting to communicate with a passed loved one so badly, that they are willing to believe nearly anything. All it has to be is close and they will apply it to them selves. I personally would be quite insulted if some psychic or medium belittled the memories of my father by claiming he was in contact with them. My reaction would be none to pleasant.

Now, whether or not these people making these claims are simply delusional, or they have some other intent in mind, be it a money making scheme or what ever, i have no clue. All I know is there is not a single shred of evidence to support a single claim of psychic or medium ability. There is even a million dollar reward offered to anyone, that can display these abilities, in a controlled environment offered by James Randi, a skeptic, debunker, and magician. This reward originally started out as 1000 dollars in 1964, but has since been increased to 1 million dollars. As to date, not a single person has passed just the preliminary test. The test is agreed on by both parties before hand, so the psychics and mediums know full well what they are getting into.

In the past I have worked with a number of psychics, and mediums while conducting paranormal investigations. The most disturbing part about working with such individuals. Is their demanding attitude that all attention be on them at all times during an investigation. As if they are the most important tool present on site. What i have also seen on numerous occasions. Is when some thing begins to happen in another part of the site, that requires the attention of the investigators. The psychics and mediums will all of a sudden start getting something, so as to keep the investigation steered toward them. Often creating a missed opportunity. This is why i will not work with one or the other anymore.

Now, don't get me wrong. I do believe in the possibility of psychic or even medium abilities. I think its very well possible that a very small percentage of people may have such abilities. But it is no where near as common or prevalent as so many would have you believe. Just go on line to any paranormal forum, or chat room. And listen to the numerous claims of this ability or that one. You would think these abilities are so common that we all have these abilities in us, only that they are laying dormant. Oh wait, That is exactly what many claim.

Anyway, until next time.

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The Big Paranormal Problem

Here is something that often isn't ever addressed until you find yourself or your team or group in the middle of it. An that is, the competitive nature of the paranormal investigator, and the ego's. This competitive nature and ego problem leads to another problem. The unwillingness to share collected data, and information with fellow researchers and investigators.

It's as if they think there is some great notoriety or money in this research. The truth of the matter is, there isn't.

The competitiveness and ego's all to often lead to fighting between teams, and groups. Fighting and arguing on message forums, and other forms of Internet communication, is one thing. But when you get into real life fighting between two teams or groups that are in the same area, It then can quickly get out of hand.

When two teams begin to fight over a location it does none any good. It ends up most of the time with these two competing teams going back and forth to a client telling the client this or that about the other team. Resulting hopefully in, neither team getting into the location.

I have been lucky thus far, to have not been involved in any of this behavior. But i have lost count in seeing this happen on numerous forums and chat rooms.

All this behavior does is hamper the forward progress of the paranormal community, to an extent. And lets face it, most of the teams and groups that behave this way, aren't really contributing much to the paranormal community. They certainly aren't sharing data, or conducting any kind of ground breaking experiments. So for the most part as a whole, the community isn't losing much.

There are a few organizations that are attempting to span the distance between teams, and groups. One such organization is International Paranormal Investigators. The organization is the brain child of Ryan O'neill, of Scottish Paranormal, who seen the need to try and bring together as many teams and organizations through out the world that he could, in order to share data and research. Thus far the undertaking has been a success. Boasting the cooperation of multiple teams in 36 states, 3 continents, including Canada, Scotland, England, Ireland, Wales, Scandinavia, and reaching out to teams through out Asia, Australia and new Zealand.

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Orbs - The Paranormal Burden

For the most part, the paranormal community as a whole has begun to ignore these troublesome anomalies, that are too often seen in photos taken while on site of an investigation. There are still the occasional team and group that present these burdens as positive evidence of paranormal activity. These groups and teams are most likely novices that simply don't have a lot of experience in the field. We can only hope at some point they educate them selves on the numerous possible contaminates that plague photos with these little round globules.

Perhaps some of you are wondering what an orb is. An orb is what the paranormal field has labeled as a small or large round ball of light generally visible only in a photo, with the rare occasion of being seen with the naked eye. And that these orbs are paranormally related being either that they are some how the compressed form of the dead, or some unknown being yet to be discovered. 99.99% of the time these anomalies are nothing more than air born particles reflecting the flash from a camera. Depending on the proximity of the particle to the lens of the camera, will give a differing size to these anomalies. An example is given above, showing numerous different sizes of an orb in the same photo. This clearly shows the closer they are, the larger they appear.

There are numerous opinions on the matter. Being that the more solid looking the orb appears the more likely it is a true spirit orb. However those of that school of thought, tend to forget the differing make up of the numerous different kinds of air born particles. For instance, house hold dust is made up of dander and dead human skin cells, these appear more transparent when photographed. Where as dust from a gravel road is basically a rock that is small enough to float on the air, this particle will appear very solid, and not be see through. There are hundreds and hundreds of different things in the air at all times that reflect the lights from a camera. Far to many to ever be able to say, “This orb is real, because there wasn't anything present in the air.” Just off the top of my head, there is dust, house hold or other wise (numerous), water, in its numerous forms, dander, pollen, lint, insects, etc. The list could simply go on an on.

The fact that for years now these things have been lumped with paranormal activity, is where the burden lies. We in this field try to use scientific means to establish ourselves. But all to often find our selves looked down upon by the scientific community being labeled as pseudoscience. The orb is simply one of a varying field of reasons for this in my opinion. Were so scientific that a large part of the paranormal community can not identify a contaminated photograph.

It is good to see these days though that more and more teams and groups are looking past the orb. Realizing their not paranormal. Though there is still the school of thought that these orbs are simply natural energy forms yet to be discovered. I'm not sure what i think about all that. As i have seen nothing that would suggest this. Though this or ball lightning may explain the orbs that are seen with the naked eye, as rare as that happens.

Until next time.

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Cemetery Hauntings

There are numerous paranormal investigation teams and organizations, that investigate random cemeteries all the time. A lot of time these groups are merely a group of kids out looking for a thrill, or their a new team lacking experience, and private cases, so they hone their skills in the cemeteries. I don't fault the later. However, the thrill seekers do create problems. As these kinds are more likely to come to the cemetery drunk or on drugs, if not doing both of those things there at the cemetery. This in return creates vandalism, and in some cases the arrival of the police. What is it these thrill seekers tell the police their doing? Ghost Hunting! This in turn makes it extremely hard for any group or team that is wanting to investigate this cemetery, due to the false allegations of these thrill seekers.

Now, here in lies a problem for me. Why would a cemetery be haunted in the first place? If it is due to this being the location of their body, then I see flaw in that reasoning. Especially if your a ghost or spirit with free will still. Sure I can possibly see some vain person not wanting to let go and perhaps spending a bit of time with their body, but for the most part, wouldn't an intelligent being want to be with loved ones at best? The free will thing is where i have issues with the above reasoning.

But then there is also the portal hypothesis. That some how, some way, every cemetery is a gateway to and from the other side. Now, the lack of depth to this hypothesis alone gives me grief. The portal is just magically there, no way of explaining it. As you can see I have a problem buying the portal hauntings.

I personally don't think many cemeteries are haunted at all. That is unless some event took place on the grounds, that would imprint a haunting, or leave something behind. Such as a murder or a death of some sort. This would be the only reasoning I could think of for a cemetery to be haunted. Although it could be argued that cemeteries are more apt to have residual hauntings. But, these residual hauntings, would be most likely those of still living people. And this would only be possible if say at a funeral the grieving was so strong that there was such a release of emotions that this event leaves behind the residual haunting or imprint. So what you would be possibly encountering isn't the ghost of a dead person, but more likely if anything, the emotional release of a funeral.

The only other reasonable/interesting reason would be something I read one time, on a study of pheromones, and their possible reason for residual hauntings. Was an interesting hypothesis, i don't know how far the researchers for the project got into experiments and testing the hypothesis. But it was an interesting read. The jest of it goes like this.

That since it has been scientifically proven that pheromones do have an effect on us. Then a cemetery could very well be full of them. And through time these pheromones that are underground and buried are then released with decomposing gases and what not. Where we then interact with them, and are then effected by what chemical memory is stored in the pheromone. This could also explain why haunting activity increases a lot of the time when home owners are renovating their home or remodeling. The pheromones left behind in all the nooks and crannies with in the walls and every crack are getting kicked up, and being interacted with. Granted more research in this hypothesis is needed, but its interesting none the less.

As oddly as it sounds to some. I can easily enjoy myself at a cemetery. Yes, I still go to them. But not to ghost hunt or investigate, unless a haunting or activity has been reported. But for the peaceful atmosphere and depending on where you go, their beauty. I enjoy photography, and probably my favorite subject to shoot is cemeteries. To be more specific, Victorian era garden cemeteries. In the old days, Victorian era and what not. Cemeteries were almost like parks. People would go for the day and picnic and lounge around all day in them. Nowadays their just a place to discard dead bodies. Their beauty from the past have gone, and we're left with bland identical rows of faceless headstones for our loved ones. You rarely find one anymore of recent times that would allow a person to raise a 30 foot obelisk as their mark on this world. Let alone plant hundreds of different plants and flowers through out the cemetery.

So anyway, I rant enough.

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E.V.P. - The best and worst of paranormal evidence. Part One

E.V.P. Electronic Voice Phenomena is the paranormal phenomena of capturing disembodied voices on audio recording devices, such as a tape recorder, digital voice recorder, or video recorder, that is not heard at the time the recording was made.

There are a number of hypothesis' on how the voices are made, and where they come from, and by whom they come from. Anything from alter-dimensional beings making contact, to the worlds collective subconscious some how being accessed by a 20 dollar voice recorder, and most likely the most popular hypothesis is the disembodied voice of a deceased person, a ghost, or spirit. The later is what I will be focusing on through out this article. As you see, nothing is set in stone in regards to E.V.P., and for that matter, the paranormal.

E.V.P.'s come in different classifications. This is to make it easier on a researcher during categorizing their recordings. There are 3 classifications, that most follow. I'm sure some researchers classify their own recordings in their own way, but for the most part, there is a kind of standard classification system.

It was created by Sarah Estep of AA-EVP – The American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomena.

Class A – E.V.P.
Is a recording that is clear and distinct in what the voices are saying. Everyone that listens to it will agree on what is being said, with out having to be told what is being said, or any kind of enhancements.

Class B – E.V.P.
Is a recording that maybe loud, but not exactly crisp and clear in what is being said. This is the typical Class E.V.P. that most researchers will get. It will be audible, however it may require some filtering or amplification through audio editing software. Most people that listen to it, will either need to be told what is being said in order to understand it, or each person will hear something different from the next person.

Class C – E.V.P.
Is a recording that is generally very low, and hard to hear. What can be heard is generally unintelligible.

An E.V.P. In my opinion can be the best as well as the worst kind of paranormal evidence. There is truly nothing like capturing a class A – E.V.P.. When you capture a real class A you know it, as the thing tends to grab you in a place that honestly, unnerves you a bit.

An then there is the flip side. Class B' and C' can really get to annoying you when nothing can be understood. Sitting around for an hour or more trying to filter out noise and trying to amplify the audio to a legible level get tiresome. Not to mention that if any kind of enhancing has to be done on a recorded clip in order to be heard or understood, then that piece of evidence is pretty much null and void. As the process of cleaning up an E.V.P., most of the time damages the audio. This is why you are to never enhance the original clip you may have captured.

In this day and age of the over night paranormal team. Sites are popping up left and right with all of these new teams and organizations displaying their evidence. There is good and bad in this. Good by way that more people are becoming open to the possibility of paranormal phenomena. Bad that, most of these teams are inexperienced not only in their research but even worse, in their analysis of their possible evidence. They then upload this evidence to their websites for the general public to listen to, and look over. With out fully knowing what it is they have captured if anything. This only will confuse the less informed public. Not to mention, makes the paranormal community as a whole look really bad to the scientific community, that quite honestly, we want to be excepted by so badly.

More to come at a later date.

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The Benefits of Meditation

Let me first begin with stating that I used to have a very bad temper. I was the type of person that could snap at the blink of an eye, and then do who knows.

Now, being older, the temper has subsided. In large part due to learning to meditate.

My first experience with meditation, was around the age of 16 or there abouts. I had been court ordered to get anger management. And the anger management program I was taking had a machine the councilor would hook me up to. This machine would basically read my brain activity, and it would show this activity on a monitor that was placed in front of me while I was hooked up. The councilor would then have me sit hooked up and watch this monitor showing my brain activity and then as if it was a game, see how low I could make the readings go.

Through practice and the discovery of controlling my breathing while hooked to this machine I was able to bring the readings down on the machine to extremely low levels. It became a pleasant experience each time I went to the clinic.

I then later learned that all I was being taught was meditation. And once I completed my course, I took what I learned there with me, and began applying it in my everyday life. I became calmer and more rational with my anger.

Now, I still use what I learned. But I have also since learned different techniques and advanced my depth of meditation. To the point now, my intent is to enter a trance state, in order to explore astral projection, and higher planes of consciousness.

Now, I think this would be a good time to let you know. That I am not the type of person you would expect to be talking about this sort of thing. I am not some kind of new age, hippie, wiccan, vegetarian tree hugger. In fact if you seen me, you most likely wouldn't expect me to be interested in the things that I am. You would think I'm into nascar, and deer hunting. The saying “Don't read a book by it's cover” really applies to me.

I only mention this as I don't want you to get the wrong impression of me. I am a very rational, and logically thinking person.

I firmly believe that more meditation is needed in this world as a whole. To many people are strung to tight. To many people are to busy running around these days with their day to day lives. People should slow down, take a moment for them selves. You would be surprised at just how much more you would see and be able to accomplish in a day if you were to take 20 minutes of your day, and give it to meditation. Just clear your mind as best you can (this truly takes a lot of practice) and concentrate on your breathing. Try a inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, then exhale for 4 seconds exercise. You'll find just doing the breathing exercise that your mind will clear it's self, and your body will relax to some extent on its own.

Just doing this for 20 minutes a day, I believe you'll find you have a better outlook on life, and that you are more focused, and that you are more aware of your surroundings. It works for me. If and when I find myself in a stressful environment or situation, if I am able to, I take what few minutes I have, to simply focus on my breathing and clear my mind, and relax.

So with that, I think I'll end this one. Give it a try some time. You may be surprised at what you find.

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Iraqi US Embassy

I think this is kind of old news. But I stumbled upon C-SPAN earlier today channel surfing, when I caught Representative John Duncan R-TN in the US House of Representatives, talking about the new US embassy being built in Baghdad, Iraq.

The Representative was voicing his displeasure about this embassy costing $592,000,000 to build, in a war torn Iraq. When I heard this amount, I was shocked. He then went on to state this will be the largest embassy in the world. With a operational cost of over a billion dollars a year.

Talk about a misallocated source of US tax dollars at work. What does a thing like this say to the Iraqi's? Your country is in total disarray, your infrastructure is totally and completely destroyed and were here building the largest embassy in the world. All at the same time, the Iraqi children are walking to school through sewage, only to arrive at a bombed out school building.

What were these people thinking? This is in the middle of a war, where are brave soldiers are going into combat with out armor at times. I'm honestly surprised the construction area of this embassy hasn't been mortared or targeted by insurgents. I suspect it will only be time before this happens.

It's not like Iraq is going any where. I think we could have waited before doing something like this.

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What do you think so far?

I'm just after a bit of feedback, on what people think of my lay out thus far on this blog. It's my first one, so any encouragement or advice would be great.

Also, I wanted to add a few guidelines for commenting here. First and foremost, I'm pretty big on freedom of speech. So feel free to say or state anything you like here in regards to the topic at hand. Regardless if you agree or disagree with me, you opinion is valued and appreciated. So there will be NO censoring or deleting of comments here. With the exceptions of spammers, and those that can not speak with out cussing every other word. I don't mind cussing, hell I cuss as much as the next guy. But I wont allow F bombs being dropped every other word. I hope you understand.

So with that out of the way. What do you guys think? Look good? Easy on the eyes? What can I do to make things better? I know, add content. No worries there, it's coming, this is only I think the third day this blog has been up.

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George Noory's Ouija Board experiment

Well, George Noory for a month or better has been building up this "experiment" he was going to do on live radio. For anyone that doesn't know. George Noory is the host for a nationally syndicated radio show, that is geared toward the paranormal, in all aspects, be it ghosts, aliens, Bigfoot, psychics, remote viewing, you name it, the show covers it at some point.

So, for a month or better now, George has been "pushing", "selling" what ever you want to call it, this grand experiment. where he and a few respected authors and self proclaimed "experts" on the occult, and the paranormal were going to sit down, and on live radio and conduct and experiment with an Ouija board. Interesting idea! could be good radio. ill tune in.

Well, he starts the night off the evening, with interviewing an author who wrote a book about Aleister Crowley and his connection with the Ouija board. Was a good interview, i rather liked the author (Jerry Edward Cornelius) , he apparently has a large collection of Crowley's books, and personal diaries and this sort of thing. Well once this interview is over, he starts another interview with another man, this man is in the studios as he is one of the participants of the "experiment".

This man decides to try and put a blemish on the previous guy that was interviewed, by saying how the man is miss informed and saying his decent opinion of Crowley is due to the man being a member of the O.T.O. and is a follower of Crowley. He then begins to start spewing the most vile thing's imagined about Crowley. saying hes a Satan worshiper, and sacrificed children, and he was a pedophile, and all sorts of things.

My problem with all this is, this man didn't have a clue about Crowley and his work. he took all the rumors and lies about Crowley and threw them out there in order to make the other author look bad, as if he didn't know what he was talking about. yet it is the this other author, who has this great extensive collection of personal diaries, and books. but i digress, it annoyed me at the time quite a bit. As i have always been interested in Crowley and his work, and am aware of the lies that have been spewed about the man.

Skipping ahead. George then leaves the studio and goes to the appointed control room for the experiment where Rosemary Ellen Guiley a respected author on many aspects of the paranormal is seated at a table with an Ouija board, accompanied by Bruce Goldberg (the basher of Crowley), and an older gentleman named Jordan Maxwell.

He then begins asking each person their opinion on whether or not he should go through with this. Rosemary and Goldberg encourage him. telling him there is nothing to worry about because there is nothing but positive energy present. Goldberg gives a prayer of protection or something. Then he asks Maxwell his opinion on it. And boy do we now get a ear full. This man apparently has been studying the occult for 46 years, I know this, because he was throwing this into everyones face. He begins to tell George how irresponsible the experiment is. An that George is going to be held responsible for anything that happens to any of the listeners due to this experiment. An as i said, he begins throwing the whole I've been studying the occult for 46 years it may be a good idea to listen to someone that knows what their talking about crap. My interpretations of this moment was he was basically saying, these other people don't know shit, and you need to listen to me. which is funny as Rosemary Guiley has written 31 books on numerous subjects in regards to the paranormal, shes also a investigator. yet, she doesn't know what she is talking about, because he has 46 years of experience.

Anyway, this is the beginning of the end. at this point you can tell George is going to back out of the experiment. But, he doesn't tell us this for another 20 minutes. An when the time comes, he does just that. goes into a explanation (more like an excuse) as to why hes decided to back out. An this quite honestly is when it gets a bit silly. As his reasons aren't due to Goldberg's expertise. Oh no no...its much bigger than that.

See apparently numerous friends of George have been having a bit of bad luck. A cardinal was in a car accident (Amityville horror anyone?), a man that had advised him earlier in the month not to do the experiment mother died, on the very day of the experiment, and a couple other things. oh wait wait, i forgot the big one...the earth quake in Indonesia that just happen earlier today.

Apparently George Noory is so egotistical that he thinks tragedy and bad luck cant happen to anyone or any where with out it being his fault. give me a break will you. The gods didn't decide to shake up Indonesia because George Norry was going to play with an Ouija board. The gods, didn't steer some old (probably nearly blind) cardinal into a car accident because George Noory was going to play with an Ouija board. The gods didn't take the life of an elderly woman because George Noory was going to play with an Ouija board.

George Noory please come on down from your cross. accidents and tragedies happen, every day, every hour. For you to sit around taking the blame like some Christ on the cross for all your friends is insulting. It was also insulting for you to give the other excuse that you were protecting all your listeners by not going through with it. Mr. George Noory, you buy these things at Toys R Us.

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The First

Nothing much to say here right now. This posting is mainly to help me get my design in order. yes, its going to stay pretty bland. I dislike bright colors, so i will be sticking with the darker shades, hopefully i can make it comfortable on the eyes.

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