Do you like the paranormal?

[VampireLord1024VampireLord1024's icon]

Do you find paranormal things like ghosts and such interesting? Do you believe in paranormal things? ?

 

[jahn]

Paranormal things are cool but I don't necessarily believe them no

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

Yeah, I do.

Actually, the very first website I had ever visited was all about that. And I often watched Infinito Paranormal, a defunct TV channel about the subject.

 

[fake-kun]

I'm fascinated by folklore of all kinds, especially of my own culture.

 

[χKai]

They sure like  me! ?

 

[ZombieFish]

As a cryptid, I just think of it as normal. It is cool, though. Always wanted to meet Mothman.

 

[kuroninneko]

I think the world would be in a better place if we spent more time and money studying the paranormal and human consciousness.

 

[tigg]

I don't believe in it, never had any reason given to believe

 

[homesforgnomes]

To the extent that learning about them is practical, ie. for a long time I've enjoyed studying religion, and so "paranormal" topics related to that are of interest to me, but I can't say I give a hoot about bigfoot or aliens (though I am aware people create religions around those too!).

 

[freebie#47]

Always fascinated by the unknown....but the belief part is a bit of misnomer, cause most are more imaginative than reality based. AKA it exist even if we don't see it or know it.

 

[Tonberry]

Not really.
In my experience, the people who speak with the most conviction frustrate me because 9 times out of 10 they only speak about how supposedly evil it is, and so much of it just seems like them getting worked up by watching too many horror movies, and it feels like they don't trust their own imagination as much as they should and instead gaslight themselves into superstition.

Folklore and religion are interesting subjects though, because I think it's interesting to read about spiritualism and to learn and understand how people coped with the world in more superstitious times, when it made more sense.
I think everyone is at the very least a tiny bit spiritual to some degree. I get a special "magical" feeling when I'm out in nature, or when I look/listen to really moving art, but I think that obsessing about ghosts and evil spirits is usually corny and unimaginative.

But everyone's experience with the world is their own, and they have their own right to believe in anything, no matter how scientific or non-scientific it is, as long as it doesn't lead to them harming others.

(I'm offended by astrology though, if it counts, because it's deterministic and based on prejudice by nature, no different than believing someone's character is defined by their skin color.)

 

[Stingy Perry Stingy Perry]

My culture has some fascinating tales of the paranormal some of which are a staple subject to horror stories.

 

[J.B’s rabbit den]

Do you find paranormal things like ghosts and such interesting? Do you believe in paranormal things? ?

I’m skeptical to say the least but I do occasionally have trouble sleeping at night thinking about it lol.

 

[dropsmegamega]

hate 'em, they keep bothering me at night asking me to perform evil deeds and whatnot, don't they got anything better to do????

 

[RageBurner]

Paranormal is a pretty big umbrella, but in general, yes. I'm pretty confident there is more to existence than this here mortal coil.

 

[miguk miguk]

It's interesting for fiction. There is plenty in the horror genre that is entertaining. And mythology shows a lot of the creativity of early peoples that has enriched the world's culture.

That said, it annoys me when people insist that the paranormal is real. If it was, it would completely change the world we live in. Universities would have whole departments and degrees dedicated to the study of it; some colleges would even focus on it entirely. Technology would integrate magic for everything, as engineers would be required to study it. Medicine would be like something out of an RPG. Cryptids would be included in standard zoology. The paranormal would never not be in the news, as it would be in between politics and tech news for importance.

And I get that there are people who will say "that's what they want you to think." But there's no "they," no grand conspiracy. If you can publicly discuss it and (notably) it's a conventional belief, then there's no reason to believe that the idea is being suppressed. It's just a dead end concept outside of fiction.

It just occurred to me I'm saying all this with a Velma avatar and I find that funny.

 

[VampireLord1024VampireLord1024's icon]

I’m skeptical to say the least but I do occasionally have trouble sleeping at night thinking about it lol.

I didn't really mention whether I like or believe in the paranormal so:

I do like the paranormal I don't believe in the paranormal, as I haven't really had anything spooky ever happen to me in real life, other then one night a few years ago something said my name next to my right ear before I fell asleep, though I didn't open my eyes to find out what said it, that and also towards the end of 2012 it felt like something was walking on my heels; there's some of the stuff is pretty damn creepy to me, once you read about certain folklore, cryptids and the such.

Actually, I should include a couple of other things, though not seen by me, but my parents: my dad said that he say some angel with blond hair in our house in the early 2000's and she just smiled at him and then several years later my mom said that she thought she saw the outline or something of a demon next to a tree in our backyard.

 

[goregoregoregoregoregore]

I absolutely love paranormal horror stuff. since i was a kid the main type of movies, games, books, anime, manga and comics are paranormal or horror related. I feel a strange comfort and relaxation in horror/paranormal related stuff and my guess is the perception of my own brain that what i'm seeing is so outlandish out of my current reality in that moment(in the moment of being in the comfort of my room sitting down and safe that is) that i receive a "tick" of rationality that confirms that i'm totally fine in that moment in comparison and then i start to feel good, or maybe i'm tripping out and thinking too much lol
I don't believe in anything paranormal, but i wish it would be real. The certainty of the constant state of brutal reality never changing in the grand scale of things is way more unsettling if i'm making sense. And i think that's why so many people nowadays choose to "unplug" and believe that everything around them is a paranormal conspiracy and stuff like that, can't judge

 

[Cu-Neo]

Yes I like the paranormal media a lot, is a very interesting theme to talk about, but sometimes it's very funny seeing those TV programs about "Ghost hunting expert's" and is only two guys entering a neighbor house to scream when a table makes a sound.

 

[Ian Naxieas]

Do I like the paranormal? For sure, I think it's really interesting. Especially cryptids. Do I believe in it? I do not. I've had a few experiences that some people would probably consider paranormal, but I don't think some people realize just how fucked up the brain can be. I think we have a pretty good grasp on the natural world, but I don't think we'll ever know everything. We're finding new species all the time, but sadly I don't think we'll ever find something like Bigfoot or Nessie. x) I wish it was all true though. I love science and will take the cold hard facts over spirituality any day, but it's sad the world doesn't have any true magic in it anymore.

 

[Tonberry]

but I don't think some people realize just how fucked up the brain can be

This is my main takeaway from this too. But I've based my entire life and career around imagination, so I'm biased in its favour, and I'm really adamant about letting imagination be just that, not everything has to be contextualized into the real world.

will take the cold hard facts over spirituality any day,

I do this too, for my own health, but at the same time...

it's sad the world doesn't have any true magic in it anymore.

...I think that it's there for everyone in its own way. I think music and art is the closest we'll ever get to a representation of magic in practicality (which doesn't involve ingesting stuff that alters your mind, stoners and shamans are cheaters!), because those are just emotions and impressions taken from your brain and manifested into the real world (just like a magic spell!), and it can have intensely deep effects on people just by them absorbing it, and I think that's really fucking cool.

 

[LightningmanEXE]

in the general sense? it's very tricky.

Paranormal media is VERY tricky to pull off, and if it's done bad, I find it to be the most boring thing imaginable. I also love when it's paired with humor.

When it comes to like, cryptids, alien sighting, supernatural phenomena, ghosts... it's kind of a self defeating thing... like, if you have a name for it, and it has hundreds of pages of lore... is it really supernatural?

the thing that always comes to mind is how they think Chupacabra might a specific second generation wolf coyote hybrid that consistently has a genetic defect that makes it hairless. it's like... okay cool, but that's not as interesting as this weird lizard night demon we all came up with.

Do I think forces beyond our reality exist? yeah, but they are by their nature unknowable. that's my opinion anyway.

unless we are talking vampires... those guys are all over the cyberworld. it's a problem.

 

[miguk miguk]

it's sad the world doesn't have any true magic in it anymore.

We have full computers in our pockets that can communicate with anyone around the world instantly. We have gaming devices that can hold thousands of games at once from across gaming history. A full library of books, music, and movies can be digitized and pocketed. And we can flash freeze fish so they can be eaten raw without dying. We don't have magic, but I'd say we're close enough.

 

[Ikagura Ikagura]

What's interesting for me is to actually explain rationally why we came up with these.

I mean it's because of pareidolia that we came up with trolls (the original ones who turn into stone with sunlight) and walking trees from the shapes looking like faces, how Cyclopes came from Mammoth's skulls being misinterpreted and why we got to see Dragons in almost every cultures across all continents.

We also explained St. Elmo's fire and other rare meteorological phenomenon.

Of course normal people don't genuinely believe about cryptids and paranormal things since we're in an era of science and technologies to explain the world and the universe (although up to some limits). We won't mock people for having beliefs (as long as it's within the law).

but it's sad the world doesn't have any true magic in it anymore.

I think that if science evolves enough it would become indistinguable from actual magic.

 

[Ian Naxieas]

This is my main takeaway from this too. But I've based my entire life and career around imagination, so I'm biased in its favour, and I'm really adamant about letting imagination be just that, not everything has to be contextualized into the real world.

Oh? Are you a writer or an artist or something?

...I think that it's there for everyone in its own way. I think music and art is the closest we'll ever get to a representation of magic in practicality (which doesn't involve ingesting stuff that alters your mind, stoners and shamans are cheaters!), because those are just emotions and impressions taken from your brain and manifested into the real world (just like a magic spell!), and it can have intensely deep effects on people just by them absorbing it, and I think that's really fucking cool.

I can't disagree here at all. If we're defining magic like that, there's plenty of magic to be experienced still. Various forms of media, jaw dropping locations, impressive feats of human engineering, ancient ruins, natural wonders (Yellowstone should be on everyone's bucket list), or my favorite, impact structures. Meteor (Barringer) Crater in Arizona is a place I've visited a few times and it always fills me with a really distinct, awesome feeling.

That's not even getting into one of my biggest interests, astronomy. The universe, hell even just our galaxy, is something so gigantic that it's hard to wrap your head around, but that's what makes it special. Photos are impressive enough. We got to truly see Pluto for the first time ever and that still gives me a wonderful, tingly feeling. Our generation was the first and that is truly special.

We also got to see the supermassive black hole in Messier 87, we're the first people to ever directly image a supermassive black hole. This is stuff that will actually be in history books, it's astounding. But even going beyond photos, who knows what's out there, waiting to be discovered? That thought legit fills me with more excitement than pretty much anything. x) I know many people don't like the idea that we're in a cold, uncaring universe, but I feel that makes us incredibly lucky. Even though I think our understanding of the universe will always be incredibly small, the fact that we've gotten to the point we are now is super impressive.

One last thing, I don't think aliens fit under the umbrella of paranormal, but I have little doubt they exist in some form. I don't think we've been visited or abducted or any of that stuff, nor do I think we ever will, but I do not believe humanity is special. Even if it's just some bacteria on some far off planet, there has to be something. Life is likely exceedingly rare, but in something as big as our universe, rare things happen all the time. I guess that's the closest thing I have to a faith haha. And it truly fills me with excitement and gets my imagination pumping like very few things do.

We have full computers in our pockets that can communicate with anyone around the world instantly. We have gaming devices that can hold thousands of games at once from across gaming history. A full library of books, music, and movies can be digitized and pocketed. And we can flash freeze fish so they can be eaten raw without dying. We don't have magic, but I'd say we're close enough.

Preach it, Velma! I wish I had more to add, but that was well put.

I think that if science evolves enough it would become indistinguable from actual magic.

This is also true. Our current technology alone would be enough to make someone from the middle ages have a heart attack (if our illnesses didn't get to them first, or vice versa), let alone what technology will look like in 300 years (not too positive we'll make it that long) to modern day people. That's why I find science so wonderful.