BTTH IV

Yes, more spectral chicanery.

So I was sitting at the box last night, catching up on some emails. The Thriller came up from his office and asked, “Will it bother you if I turn on the TV?”

“Of course not, go right ahead,” says I.

Big mistake. Of course he turns on a spook show. (What was I thinking?) Enter three very serious-looking thirty-somethings; self-proclaimed “investigators” of the existence of the supernatural: stars of the new show with the brilliantly creative title, Ghost Adventures.

Digression: Does anyone else find it amusing (and, in my case, tiring) that many of these shows feature apparent “skeptics” of the paranormal, purporting to go out and disprove the existence of ghosties, only to find that, “Ooh, they really DO exist!” ? Hey, let’s tell people we don’t believe in ghosts, then flip out when we feel that blast of cool air in the dungeon… *sigh* Truly. It’s like a Sci-Fi Channel original movie script — the type that would make Ed Wood proud. [And if you’ve ever seen a Sci-Fi Channel original movie, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.] Anyway…

For the next hour, I was treated to the audio of the show, since I cannot see the TV screen from the parlor. I’ll try to paraphrase the more entertaining bits:

We’re measuring for EMFs — that’s electromagnetic field — which some believe can detect the presence of paranormal entities.”

“Dude, I felt something.”

“OK, Mr. Boots, I hear that you don’t like people invading your space. Well I’m here to tell you that I am invading your space, and if you don’t want me here, you need to come out and tell me.”

“Man, I don’t feel too good.”

“$^#%! Something just touched my hair!”

“Aaaah! Aaaaah! You guys, c’mere!”

“Lower the camera, lower the camera, lower the camera, lower the camera!”

“It’s lowered.”

Right. So. How do you think the spooOoOOky episode ended? Well, in this case, it appears that our pesky poltergeist Mr. Boots caused quite a stir. It seems, according to a blog I read this morning about it, that one of the final shots was of the tour guide having a conversation with the lead investigator, Zak. There was, according to this blogger who watched the show, a noticeable “blur” around Zak, but the tour guide appeared totally clear. Creepy.

And, of course, nobody ever edits film footage or adds production effects. I mean, that would be an attempt to scare or fool people. TV producers would never do that…

Hey, we finally have photographic proof of Mr. Boots’s existence. This from a Flickr account:

I’ve said before that if you watch this stuff purely to laugh at it, or to see great locales on TV, fabulous. But seriously, we all know people who get all buggy-eyed and whispery when they talk about these shows. I want to hug them; console them, make them hot cocoa.

I have a better idea, though. Wanna feel a little creepy? Read The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. That’ll get your imagination going.

Have a great weekend, my fiends.

Fink, hitting the books

4 thoughts on “BTTH IV

  1. Ross

    Before I go any further, let me say I’ve seen a handful of these episodes and I’ve seen every ‘Ghost Hunters’ episode. I watch them with the same satisfaction that many people get from reality TV like Survivor- part of the joy is sitting back and being smarter than them.

    Now I don’t believe in ghosts, but if I had before I started watching these shows, I am sure they would have made me a non-believer. The ghost investigators on these shows are abysmally incompetent at what they do. Not because they can’t find and capture a ghost and send it on tour like King Kong, but because in each investigation they record 10-20 hours’ worth of what THEY THEMSELVES even call ‘evidence’. Then, thinking like conspiracy theorists and using inductive reasoning, they begin to extract from those 20 hours what they regard as ghost-related activity, amounting to maybe 30 seconds in sum. Now, if they used basic, sound reasoning by deduction, the conclusion is inescapable: They don’t have 30 seconds of ghost evidence … they have 19:59.30 hours of non-ghost evidence, of evidence that unequivacally declares that ‘ghosts don’t exist.’ what kind of intelligent investigator ignores the totality of the evidence for the particulars that favor his point of view?

    And then there’s this: If these shows DO indicate the existence of a ghostly afterlife, I’ll take a pass on it myself. I would prefer no eternity at all to spending it in the business of jiggling door handles.

    It sounds like hell. on. earth.

    Reply
    1. Rat Fink Post author

      “…capture a ghost and send it on tour like King Kong…”

      HAAA

      I’m with you, Ross. When I’m in the ground, I want my soul to go someplace fun. As James Taylor said:

      When I die, make sure I’m gone
      Don’t leave ’em nothin’ to work on.

      OMG! Something just brushed past my leg. O.M.G.!!

      Wait, it was only Rousseau.

      Reply

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