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Top 10 Paranormal Myths 79

Top 10 Paranormal Myths 4. Only Old Buildings are Haunted resemble the sexy beasts of “Twilight” and
A decrepit, ancient Victorian mansion with “True Blood,” but they are still very much alive
Do ghosts only come out at broken windows, creaky floorboards and moldy (or undead) in various parts of the world. Even

night? Does bigfoot exist? furniture may be the best haunted house in within the United States, there are subcultures of
Hollywood, but it’s not where ghosts necessarily individuals who believe they are among a class
hang out. Beyond just old houses, researchers of vampire -- with especially active groups in
Aaron Sagers
claim to have found paranormal evidence in New Orleans and New York City.
jails, asylums, hospitals, hotels, museums,
Just because the paranormal is the realm of the battleships, cruise liners, cars, roads and forests. 8. Modern Zombies are Supernatural
unexplained doesn’t mean there isn’t any New locations can also be haunted, as can the The term “zombie” has been in use for well over
explaining to do. Humans have always sought to ground where a new building is established. a century and, before 1968, applied to seemingly
give definition to the world around us, and even There doesn’t necessarily have to be a death on soulless slaves created by Haitian voodoo
to the worlds that may be beyond us. As a result,
the property, either. It is widely accepted within “magic.” After 1968, when George A. Romero’s
over the course of millennia, we have developed
the paranormal community that objects and Night of the Living Dead was released, the term
countless theories and told endless stories within
people themselves can be the focus of a was forever changed. Modern zombies are the
the realm of paranormal pop culture, and there
haunting. result of an unexplained contagion but are not
have been a lot of misconceptions that have
supernatural. According to zombie expert Matt
taken root in the public’s consciousness. Believe
5. America’s Paranormal Fascination Mogk of the Zombie Research Society, the
it or not, even when dealing with the mysterious modern zombie is a relentlessly aggressive, re-
realm of ghosts, aliens and creatures, there are is New animated human corpse driven by a biological
Although the paranormal has become quite
some things we can fairly confidently label as infection. So, supernatural vampires, mummies,
popular with the arrival of investigation-based
false. So, to clear up some incorrect assumptions Nordic draugrs and all revenants need not apply
reality shows, America’s fascination dates back
about the unexplained, let’s take a look at the
to the origins of the nation. The paranormal for brunch with this bunch.
Top 10 Paranormal Myths.
peaked in the US in the mid-19th and early 20th
centuries with the introduction of Spiritualism, a 9. Skeptics and Believers Don’t Get
religious philosophy that espoused that Along
1. Paranormal Facts Exist
communication with the spirit world is positive. There are actually many skeptics involved in the
The term “paranormal” applies to anything
Mary Todd Lincoln, Mark Twain and Harry paranormal community, and they are normally
currently beyond the range of scientific
Houdini were among the American celebrities welcomed by investigative groups. When the 2
explanation. So anyone who claims they have
who became part of the paranormal groups operate together, the skeptics can assist
access to the rulebook of the paranormal, and
conversation, and the public gathered in homes in disproving misidentified phenomena. If
that they know a foolproof way of making a
and auditoriums to connect with the dead in something cannot be disproven, it then leads
ghost go “boo!” is probably a charlatan … or
séances. Beyond ghosts, future president Teddy believers closer to a possibly legitimate
about to be pretty famous. Plenty of researchers Roosevelt wrote of a frontiersman’s encounter experience. Dave Schrader, host of the popular
-- including reputable scientists -- have
with a Bigfoot-like creature in 1893, and other paranormal radio show Darkness Radio, says
compelling theories about unexplained
Sasquatch stories would periodically make their paranormal believers are not at war with the
phenomena and are attempting to apply those
way into the news. Long before the Battle of Los “skeptic nation,” and he embraces their input
utilizing the scientific method, but so far,
Angeles in 1942 or The Roswell Incident in because he’d rather be taken seriously when
paranormal facts don’t quite exist.
1947, “airships” were reported in the skies findings are reviewed. Additionally, most
above America -- and newspaperman S.E. skeptics are confused for cynics but actively
Haydon wrote about the crash of such a ship in want a paranormal experience -- but they want it
2. Ghosts Only Come Out at Night
Aurora, Texas, in 1897, about 6 years before the to be real and not just a false positive.
There are a lot of reasons to ghost hunt at night:
Wright Brothers’ first flight.
The world quiets down as the day fades away;
10. The Paranormal is Bad for
some locations only let you enter after the close
6. Aliens are Little Green Men in Business
of daytime business hours; it is much creepier at
Flying Saucers Even if the phenomenon is unexplained, the
night; and, most importantly, it’s the best time to
play with your sweet night vision camera! But if Actually, the most popular aliens are little grey business world is a big believer in the
you want to chase ghosts, you can just as men, according to believers. In America, “The paranormal. Paranormal Tourism, where
Greys” are the archetypes when discussing alien travelers spend vacation money on pilgrimages
effectively do it during the day, according to
encounters, and were supposedly found in The to genre conventions and famous hotspots, is an
most paranormal researchers. In fact, it might
Roswell Incident. The creatures supposedly active industry. Instead of shying away from a
even be a more effective time because that’s
have large, black, buggy eyes and a slit for a paranormal reputation, locations are embracing
when the dead were probably most alive.
mouth on their oversized noggin. However, it. Every city seems to have a few ghost tour
aggressive reptilians and blonde-haired Nordic operations, while haunted house attractions and
humanoids have also been reported by vampire balls abound, and entire towns in
3. There is No Physical Evidence of
eyewitnesses, along with dozens of other alien America are defined by their paranormal
Bigfoot
species. As for the flying saucer part, personalities. The Roswell UFO Festival attracts
While there have not been any bodies found,
UFOlogists claim we should add flying droves of alien enthusiasts to New Mexico every
Bigfoot researchers claim there is quite a bit of
crescents, cigar-shaped crafts, triangular ships July. Meanwhile, Point Pleasant, WV, belongs to
physical evidence to suggest the creatures exists and a V-shaped craft to the classic flying saucer The Mothman, and Salem, MA, has a tourism
-- including hair, blood, tissue, tracks and, yes, motif. industry focused on the infamous witch trials.
poop.There is also a growing community of Zombie walks, runs and obstacle courses (along
scientists who believe in Sasquatch, including
7. No One Still Believes in Vampires with proms, protests and pub crawls) are weekly
famed primatologist Dr. Jane Goodall and Dr.
The bloodsuckers from folklore have enjoyed a occurrences in cities across America. []
Jeffrey Meldrum of Idaho State University,
nice comeback in paranormal pop culture in the
among others. Eric Altman of the Pennsylvania
last few years, but they never completely went
Bigfoot Society stresses that, as far as the lack of For The Best Of Radio Programming
away in some societies. Recently, Indian
physical remains (a dead Sasquatch), 24 / 7 / 365
politicians placed a $2,000 bounty on vampires
fossilization requires very specific conditions sucking the blood from villagers’ cattle in the From The World of the Paranormal
and Mother Nature has an effective system of And
town of Dharampuri in Tamil Nadu, which
breaking down animal remains in about 10 days The Science of Parapsychology
called to mind the 2004 exhumation and
-- so a freshly-dead specimen of the already-rare
subsequent staking of a corpse in Marotinu de Listen to XZBN
creature would be hard to find.
Sus, Romania. The supernatural ghouls may not www.XZBN.net