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f13.net  |  f13.net General Forums  |  General Discussion  |  Topic: What are your paranormal beliefs? 0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
Poll
Question: Which of the following (if any) do you believe in?
UFOs/Alien visitations - 38 (23.3%)
Ghosts - 26 (16%)
Telepathy/Telekinesis - 17 (10.4%)
Bigfoot/Yeti - 10 (6.1%)
Demons/Exorcisms - 12 (7.4%)
Chupacabra/Nessie/other Cryptids - 9 (5.5%)
Mediums/communications with the dead (including EVP) - 8 (4.9%)
Other (explain) - 43 (26.4%)
Total Voters: 87

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Author Topic: What are your paranormal beliefs?  (Read 60995 times)
WayAbvPar
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on: December 14, 2006, 11:04:51 AM

I have long thought this would be a fun thread, and was finally spurred to action by the Atheist/Ghost thread. Living in the Pacific Northwest, I have grown up with Bigfoot stories all my life (it was a big deal in the 70s when I was a kid. Yes, I am old). I used to believe, and have been a big fan of all the research, sightings, TV specials, etc. Now I just WANT to believe- I think it would be way cool if it actually existed. However, my logical/cynical side has taken hold, and I am forced to admit I think it all might be BS.

Thoughts?

When speaking of the MMOG industry, the glass may be half full, but it's full of urine. HaemishM

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bhodi
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Reply #1 on: December 14, 2006, 11:08:46 AM

I have no faith and little belief. That's my explanation.
tazelbain
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tazelbain


Reply #2 on: December 14, 2006, 11:35:00 AM

It won't let you choose none.

"Me am play gods"
shiznitz
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Reply #3 on: December 14, 2006, 11:35:22 AM

I would vote "none" if it was an option.

However, I do believe in a God. I do not believe that Jesus Christ was God made flesh and he died for our sins, but I do believe in a divine plan of some kind. It is cheesy and cliche, but love and children brought me to that conclusion. I will teach my kids the rudiments of Protestant Christian thinking so they have somewhere to start, but I don't go to church and don't plan on dragging them there.

I don't believe in anything in the poll list because I have zero evidence that they even might exist. Hearsay doesn't count for anything. That said, it is certainly possible that some planet in the universe has a different form of intelligent life. If here, why not somwhere else? Asserting that those lifeforms have visited us is a leap too far for me.

I have never played WoW.
Riggswolfe
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Reply #4 on: December 14, 2006, 11:47:38 AM

People on this site don't believe a good MMO can be made, let alone in anything spiritual.

I marked 3 of them because 1 I know exists from experience, two others I am willing to give the benefit of the doubt to.

"We live in a country, where John Lennon takes six bullets in the chest, Yoko Ono was standing right next to him and not one fucking bullet! Explain that to me! Explain that to me, God! Explain it to me, God!" - Denis Leary summing up my feelings about the nature of the universe.
Nebu
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Reply #5 on: December 14, 2006, 11:55:18 AM

Add me to the "none of the above" column.

"Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other."

-  Mark Twain
Strazos
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Reply #6 on: December 14, 2006, 12:01:52 PM

I don't know about "UFOs/Aliens," but I believe there are other living, sentient beings out there...somewhere.

Fear the Backstab!
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geldonyetich
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Reply #7 on: December 14, 2006, 12:24:19 PM

To believe in something is to be limited by it.
To choose not believe in something is to be limited by disbelief of it.
I prefer not to be limbered by either regimen.  Adamant faith or antifaith strikes me as irresponsible.

To put it another way, whether or not I believe in any of the above would not be of help if I were to encounter it.

Nebu
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Reply #8 on: December 14, 2006, 12:50:39 PM

To believe in something is to be limited by it.
To choose not believe in something is to be limited by disbelief of it.
I prefer not to be limbered by either regimen.  Adamant faith or antifaith strikes me as irresponsible.

To put it another way, whether or not I believe in any of the above would not be of help if I were to encounter it.

If someone could explain the chemistry or physics of their existence, I might be more open-minded.  i.e. I believe there is likely life on other planets, I just doubt its ability to get here.  Nearly everything on the list above cannot be explained by any of the data-tested studies over the past several hundred (thousand) years.

Quote from: Steven Wright
Everyone that believes in telekinesis, raise my hand!
« Last Edit: December 14, 2006, 12:52:48 PM by Nebu »

"Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other."

-  Mark Twain
schild
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Reply #9 on: December 14, 2006, 12:54:40 PM

Sup guys.

OooooOOOOOooooo. Oh, and I voted.
sinij
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Reply #10 on: December 14, 2006, 01:15:28 PM

I hope I'm drastically wrong about what I believe in, after all I'm fucked if any of it ends up being true. Yes I'm an atheist.

Eternity is a very long time, especially towards the end.
Signe
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Reply #11 on: December 14, 2006, 01:27:51 PM

I voted, too, but I'm not telling what I believe in. 

My Sig Image: hath rid itself of this mortal coil.
El Gallo
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Reply #12 on: December 14, 2006, 01:34:59 PM

It's difficult to think of a word that is more fun to say aloud than "Chupacabra."  And I have it on good authority (a Police song) that something funky lives at the bottom of Loch Ness.  I'm not sure what a cryptid is, but if they are cool like EL CHUPACABRA, sign me up for them too.

This post makes me want to squeeze into my badass red jeans.
Valmorian
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Reply #13 on: December 14, 2006, 01:43:27 PM

To believe in something is to be limited by it.
To choose not believe in something is to be limited by disbelief of it.
I prefer not to be limbered by either regimen.  Adamant faith or antifaith strikes me as irresponsible.

To put it another way, whether or not I believe in any of the above would not be of help if I were to encounter it.

That's meaningless.  There are thousands of things you believe and don't believe in. 
geldonyetich
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Reply #14 on: December 14, 2006, 01:59:41 PM

Binary opposition is not your friend.

Miasma
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Reply #15 on: December 14, 2006, 02:00:49 PM

I would vote "none" but only because the aliens option is qualified with visited by.

I can't see the results when I click on the "View Results" link either.
stray
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Reply #16 on: December 14, 2006, 02:25:47 PM

I believe chupacabra are just pets who wandered off alien ships.

In fact, I think all chupacabra came off the exact same ship, in the exact same incident. A minor fuckup/disaster on the part of one of the aliens.

Also....I really hate that word "aliens". I shouldn't use it. They deserve better.

So that being said, there is no such thing as aliens.
Righ
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Reply #17 on: December 14, 2006, 02:27:51 PM

And I have it on good authority (a Police song) that something funky lives at the bottom of Loch Ness.

It's just the manifestation of an acausal connecting principle.

The camera adds a thousand barrels. - Steven Colbert
Riggswolfe
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Reply #18 on: December 14, 2006, 02:33:29 PM

I wonder how our poll would compare to say the same poll as conducted on a random sample of people.

"We live in a country, where John Lennon takes six bullets in the chest, Yoko Ono was standing right next to him and not one fucking bullet! Explain that to me! Explain that to me, God! Explain it to me, God!" - Denis Leary summing up my feelings about the nature of the universe.
Yoru
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Reply #19 on: December 14, 2006, 02:40:55 PM

I enjoy hokey paranormal specials on TV. A lot of these things fall more into my "I want to believe" category than "I believe". It'd be neat if there were all kinds of wacky supernatural stuff going on, but I've yet to come across things that I'd consider indicators of their presence, aside from TV specials and books written by those enjoying tinfoil chapeaus.

That is, they're fun to think about, and the mythology they present makes our world that much more rich, but in broad daylight, I can't really espouse a strong belief in their existence.
Margalis
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Reply #20 on: December 14, 2006, 02:42:06 PM

No Zombies or Vampires? Come on now!

vampirehipi23: I would enjoy a book written by a monkey and turned into a movie rather than this.
bhodi
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Reply #21 on: December 14, 2006, 02:45:15 PM

I enjoy hokey paranormal specials on TV. A lot of these things fall more into my "I want to believe" category than "I believe".
Exact opposite for me. I dislike people making spectacles of themselves, and that sort of thing qualifies has a huge spectacle.
I feel nothing but hatred for the people who are abusing someone's love and inability to let go for their own personal gain. I'm looking at you, john edwards.

A man's got to believe in something. I believe I'll have another beer.
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Reply #22 on: December 14, 2006, 02:50:04 PM

Exact opposite for me. I dislike people making spectacles of themselves, and that sort of thing qualifies has a huge spectacle.
I feel nothing but hatred for the people who are abusing someone's love and inability to let go for their own personal gain. I'm looking at you, john edwards.

A man's got to believe in something. I believe I'll have another beer.

Not the kind of thing I was referring to. I'm thinking more of the "ghost hunting" or "alien hunting" specials you'll sometimes see, where some New Agey tart runs around in an abandoned building being scared of the noises the building makes when it settles. Then they show a camera flickering on and off due to ancient wiring in some obscure corner of the basement and go all apeshit that something on "the other side" is trying to talk to them.

It's pretty hilarious.
stray
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Reply #23 on: December 14, 2006, 02:54:57 PM

Those shows bore me....But I tend to hate reality TV anyways, and that's the kind of format they usually follow.

I'm much more entertained by Erich von Daniken.
bhodi
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Reply #24 on: December 14, 2006, 02:56:19 PM

Not the kind of thing I was referring to. I'm thinking more of the "ghost hunting" or "alien hunting" specials you'll sometimes see, where some New Agey tart runs around in an abandoned building being scared of the noises the building makes when it settles. Then they show a camera flickering on and off due to ancient wiring in some obscure corner of the basement and go all apeshit that something on "the other side" is trying to talk to them.

It's pretty hilarious.
That's retarded. People watch that shit? I'd rather nail my dick to a chair.
tazelbain
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Reply #25 on: December 14, 2006, 03:00:56 PM

Ghost Hunters:  The people in the show seem pretty reasonable, but whoever does the editing jacks it up by splicing it to be scary.

"Me am play gods"
Signe
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Reply #26 on: December 14, 2006, 03:16:54 PM

To be honest, I really, really enjoyed Ghostbusters. 

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El Gallo
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Reply #27 on: December 14, 2006, 04:00:13 PM

Can I change my vote from "Chupacabra/Nessie/other Cryptids" to "New Age tarts"?

This post makes me want to squeeze into my badass red jeans.
Tebonas
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Reply #28 on: December 15, 2006, 03:16:44 AM

I don't believe in believing in things just for the sake of it and I saw no tangible proof for any of the above.

I think UFOs could be a possibility, even if very unlikely because you don't only have to take the enormous space in account, but the time problem involved as well. They would not only have to find our planet, but they would have to hit the small amount of time we live on it as sentient beings. Sentient life on other planets? No problem whatsoever with that thought.

Ghosts, don't see what should survive once the body dies. Even residual electricity should dissipate after a very short time.

Telepathy/Telekinesis, don't see how they should work, especially Telekinesis. To move something you have to apply force upon it, that force needs energy that has to be created. That energy needs to be channeled through a medium towards the object. And all of that without traces on the Telekinet, the object, or the space inbetween? Extremely unlikely.

Bigfoot/Yeti. Could have once upon a time something big, hairy and humanoid lived in the more wild areas of this world with only scarce contact with humanity, leading to the legend of Bigfoot and Yeti? Sure, after all a standing bear looks remarkably humanlike, as do many apes. Parallell developments or side branches of the Homo Sapiens could have been holding out for some times. Civilization should have done them in by now though, especially in North America.

Demons/Exorcism. Fuck no. The heyday of Catholic exorcism was in the days when they had to compete against the new protestant movement. Elaborate and carefully planned public spectacles to show the people that they are only safe in the one true church. A whole range of both bodily and psychological illnesses can be perceived as possession if you don't know about them or it suits your needs.

Nessie and stuff: See Bigfoot/Yeti, but less likely because of the timescale involved.

Mediums: Now that would be fun if I believed in Mediums if I don't believe in ghosts.
stray
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Reply #29 on: December 15, 2006, 03:26:33 AM

Bigfoot/Yeti. Could have once upon a time something big, hairy and humanoid lived in the more wild areas of this world with only scarce contact with humanity, leading to the legend of Bigfoot and Yeti?

Gigantopithecus

Prehistoric primate from Asia who stood about 3 meters tall. A few jawbones and tooth sets have been found, but not a full skeleton.

The Fox Mulders of the world like to tie the Sasquatch/Yeti to a cross continental migration of gigantopithecines. Which, really, isn't necessarily too far fetched. There must be some reason why so many different Amerindian cultures depict gigantic apes in their art and monuments.
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Reply #30 on: December 15, 2006, 03:33:01 AM

In my defense, bigfoot is a purely American thing. The only research I did was watching a few episodes of "Bigfoot and the Hendersons" as a child. I was bored and we only had two TV channels. :)
stray
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Reply #31 on: December 15, 2006, 03:34:53 AM

Bigfoot and the Hendersons? Haha. Is it called that in Austria? Here it's Harry and the Hendersons.  tongue

Btw, the guy who played him was the same guy who played the Predator.
Tebonas
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Reply #32 on: December 15, 2006, 03:39:17 AM

Nah, upon checking it actually was called "Harry und die Hendersons" with translates to "Harry and the Hendersons". Sorry for that, been a long time.
Ironwood
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Reply #33 on: December 15, 2006, 06:09:39 AM

As long as there's a steady paycheck, I'll believe anything you say.

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
Riggswolfe
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Reply #34 on: December 15, 2006, 06:23:24 AM


That is, they're fun to think about, and the mythology they present makes our world that much more rich, but in broad daylight, I can't really espouse a strong belief in their existence.

I can't resist asking:

So you don't believe in them in broad daylight, what about at night?

"We live in a country, where John Lennon takes six bullets in the chest, Yoko Ono was standing right next to him and not one fucking bullet! Explain that to me! Explain that to me, God! Explain it to me, God!" - Denis Leary summing up my feelings about the nature of the universe.
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