The words every ghost researcher dreads. Ironically, this is the worst kind of witness to have in an investigation. It means that they saw what they believed, whatever the reality.
Whenever I read or hear this phrase I know there will be no point arguing. You can expect answers including the gem 'you weren't there, how can you know'. You can expect such witnesses to stick to their story even if they are shown four CCTV videos of the actual incident from different angles.
Why am writing this? Because I just suggested, very mildly, to someone that their interpretation of events was not the only one that fitted the available evidence. They soon put me right on that!
Re: I know what I saw
I've recently had this from a friend - "I know a Ghost when I see one!" - I thought that was a classic line! I know how you feel, but there really isn't anything you can do. I've tried to explain how fallible the memory can be to my friend and I got through to him, but he still seem's to believe it's true for everyone but himself. Gah!
I'm going to post my ghost anecdote (again)
One night myself, OH and a couple of friends were sat in of an evening just chatting. Myself, OH and male friend are skeptics, female friend less so.
Suddenly, clear as day, we could hear the voice of a young child saying 'No, No, No'
My/OH's child was tucked up in bed fast asleep and it didn't sound like him anyway. The voice was definitely in the house - not noise from the street. The CD we had been listening to had finished playing.
We were spooked!!!
Female friend took this as clear evidence that we were haunted (our house is over 100 years old and some guy hanged himself from a long dead plum tree in the garden).
Then we heard again a child saying 'No, no, no'.
This time, OH and I managed to locate the sound - it was our new cat - a rescue Persian cat that hitherto had been silent. She has the weirdest meow! We talked to her and got a 'No, no, no' on cue. Definitely, 100% Layla the Persian. Turned out she was hungry.
A while (and some wine) later, female friend was 100% convinced that it wasn't Layla she heard.
She 'knows' what she heardeven though it doesn't tally with the available evidence or three other people's recollection including her own BF.
You can't argue with that. Some people hear/see what they want.
Did female friend see Layla mewing, MM?
Yes!Originally Posted by DrS
We'd only had her a few weeks - three year old breeding queen that nearly died from a womb infection before being handed in to rescue. She suddenly decided that she trusted us (as rescue cats sometimes do). She'd been on the low bookcase hiding, but after the second 'No, no, no' we'd tempted her out. The third 'No, no, no' was seen and heard by all.
After first accepting it was Lay, in the space of an hour female friend decided it wasn't Lay after all. It was 'definitely' something else - a 'ghost'!!!
We tried to argue, but when someone is adamant despite the evidence it is futile!
For a second I thought it said "some guy hanged himself fron his long dead plums"Not pleasant.
I'm not sure questioning what they saw is necessarily the best approach. For example, I've experienced a "paranormal" occurrence a few times. A few times when I've woken up I've seen a shadowy figure standing over my bed. Usually it seems to be a couple of feet away, one time it actually seemed to be bending over me and I nearly broke my hand punching the wall when I swung at it. Of course, it's no coincidence that this only happens in the dark when I'm half asleep and is always exactly in the direction of my jacket hanging on the door.
However, the point is that I really do know exactly what I saw. I saw a dark, humanoid figure looking at me. There's absolutely no point arguing with that, because it is what I saw. The point that needs to be made is that what you see is not necessarily an accurate reflection of reality. Simply saying "You didn't see X, you actually saw Y" is unlikely to convince anyone, because they know full well that they saw X. Instead, what you need to explain is why your brain decided it saw X despite actually receiving input from Y.
I've tried scientific explanations. Sometimes it works but mostly it doesn't. That's because what some witness see fits in exactly with their prior beliefs. It's almost a case of 'I saw what I knew I'd see'. Expectation can be incredibly powerful and challenging it upsets people.
I wonder if I've got this all the wrong way round. Maybe it is really a case of "I know what I didn't see". In other words, the witness hasn't a clue what they saw but it sure it wasn't 'normal'. It is interesting how many people are content with an 'explanation' of 'unexplained'. To scientists that would be frustrating but to many paranormal witnesses it vindicates their feeling that they've seen something extraordinary.
I'm not sure that I quite agree.
It seems to me that the scientist/skeptic/rationalist will accept "unexplained" and, obviously, take it to mean "unexplained".
What was that light that we saw in the sky? Didn't look like an aircraft or meteorite. It is unexplained. What made that strange noise in the dark, no obvious source? Unexplained.
The woo crowd come to exactly the same conclusion but confabulate "unexplained" with "paranormal". It didn't look like an aircraft, it was an alien spacecraft. No obvious source of noise, it was a ghost.
An awful lot of loony story telling involves "nobody can explain it". It might have been a mistake, a hoax, an unlikely co-incidence, etc, etc. But because we don't know which of these it was then it must be paranormal in the believer's head.
Add supernatural to paranormal and you've got an explanation of every irrational belief system. Very succinct.
Ah but the point is, the witness description really DOES sound like it was a meteor or an aircraft or a balloon, to someone interviewing them. But when such an explanation is put to the witness, they reject it. This IMPLIES that they are familiar with such objects, even though they probably are not*. They think they know what these objects look like, though they've never taken the trouble to actually study them. Thus, 'I don't know what is was but I know it wasn't anything normal.'
*It can be tricky asking witnesses about their prior experiences of such objects without sounding 'negative' In any case, they will invariably say 'I know what a meteor looks like' and get huffy if you ask them to describe one! There is always the unspoken suspicion that you are either questioning their honesty when actually you are questioning, as politely as possible, their expertise.
Last edited by Harryprice; 30th November 2009 at 05:46 PM.
My cat Cuddles say "no!" as well MM! :) If you want a really ghostly looking cat photo, find a say ten week old Persian and take a flash photo - somewhere i have some of Marmalade where he is just a fuzzy glowing ball of light, with a a couple of eyes. I'll dig 'em out... Something about their fur makes it fluoresce - odd but known to cat breeders, I found out what it was by googling it I think! :)
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