A Blameless Life?
by Karen Frazier, Managing Editor
Paranormal Underground Magazine
For the past few weeks, I’ve been watching a thread in our forums that discusses Donna LaCroix’s recent interview with the Ghost Divas in which many believe she made startling revelations about her time on the uber popular SciFi television show, Ghost Hunters. Donna herself has made a few appearances in the thread to talk about the situation. People are fired up.
It has been, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the most popular thread we’ve ever had in our modest forum. That makes me sad.
I’ve avoided blogging about the whole Donna thing thus far for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it’s always difficult to know what really went on. There’s what one person perceived to happen, what another person perceived to have happened, what the public perceived to have happened (and let’s be realistic – there are as many perceptions in the public as there are people), and what really happened. That’s one reason, but there’s another, as well.
There’s amazing stuff to talk about in the paranormal world – and almost all of it has nothing to do with what’s on paranormal television. It’s a huge universe with lots of unknowns to ponder and discuss – from the existence of ghosts to the existence of God. What are the investigators in the field discovering these days? Are there new methods that seem to work? What is an EVP, really? What’s going on with people who believe they have been abducted by aliens? How can scientific methods be applied to the field? What role should anecdotal evidence play in the study of the paranormal? Do human beings have souls? What happens when we die?
Those are just a few that I have come up with off of the top of my head in 10 seconds or less. There are thousands more just like it, and if you really stop to think about it, aren’t those much more thought provoking conversations to have than what Donna said to the Ghost Divas about her time on a television show?
I have nothing against Donna. I have nothing against paranormal television. I just think we have better things to talk about. I’m guessing (although I don’t want to put words into her mouth) that Donna would say the same.
It’s sort of analogous to what’s going on in the wonderful world of golf these past few days. I am a huge golf fan (although a TERRIBLE golfer, which doesn’t stop me from trying). I actually like to watch golf on television, read golfing blogs and magazines and more. There are a ton of things to talk about with golf that are important to every golfer, and yet none of them have a thing to do with Tiger Woods’ sex life. But guess what’s dominating the golf blogs right now? Nothing that’s going to help me improve my short game, that’s for sure.
Our culture has an intense fascination with celebrity. Whenever there is the slightest celebrity misstep, we stop talking about the things that matter and start chortling with glee over the latest star to come crashing down out of the sky. And yet, how many people have never misspoken? How many have never made a single misstep in their lives that, if they were a celebrity, might not just be the next big scandal? Who has lived a blameless life? And, in your most intensely painful moments when you do flub up, how would it feel to have that happen in the media spotlight with thousands – or even millions – looking on and commenting about something that they truly know nothing about? I don’t even like to have five people observe my mistakes – so to think about hundreds, thousands or millions? I can’t even imagine it.
Tiger Woods is a golfer. Donna LaCroix is a paranormal investigator. In my opinion, that’s where the spotlight should end. They do what they do for reasons that are their own – and I would imagine that those reasons originally started with a passion for their pursuit. It’s just that somewhere along the way, the spotlight shined in and every corner of their lives became cause for scrutiny.
Yes – I realize that many would make the argument that they invite celebrity. They are public figures. We have a right to discuss them. Fair enough. Just remember this as you do. We never know where our passionate pursuit of something may lead us. When we find what we love to do, we all grab on with both hands and ride the wave wherever it takes us. That is almost always not to fame and fortune – but sometimes it is. Imagine your life under a microscope. Imagine your life with a huge spotlight shining on you and millions of eyes gleefully watching for your first misstep.
No one leads a blameless life. Certainly I don’t. Personally, I am a hugely flawed human being. I’m guessing that doesn’t make me much different than anyone else. I’ve been caught in the act of being human more than once, and it doesn’t feel great. When I see people get caught up in the act of being human with millions of eyes on them, I can only come up with one thought. There, but for the grace of God (or whomever you believe in) go I.
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Great post Karen.
I agree with you entirely. Everything I do is under a microscope. And I am not saying this for sympathy. Just writing this will be analyzed from every angle. I want to talk about the paranormal. Karen is right, as as my father always said: There is one side of an argument, another side, and then there is the Truth. I’m not looking to rehash the interview stuff, but we all have our own opinions and I’m not here to change anyone’s opinion.
I’m no better or worse than any of you. I have made many mistakes. I’m not a “celeb” at least I don’t feel that way. Except when I go to by feminine products at the store, and someone in line yells “You are Donna from Ghost Hunters!” Or when I’m having my yearly colonoscopy for Crohn’s disease, recovering from an invasive procedure with everything exposed, the nurses come in with my butt hanging out of my johnie and want my autograph. Or when I worked in an antique store for $9/hr in between GH and GHI, people recognized me and said, “What are you doing working in a place like this? You are a celebrity” I wasn’t embarrased to earn money, no matter if it was at burger joint or whereever. I’m don’t consider myself higher than anyone else. I’ve even had people come up to me in the grocery store telling me their son just texted them because they saw me at Home Depot buying paint! My god! Not fun.
I just want to be a regular girl again. People will criticize that I’m writing here, but so what. I don’t claim to be an expert. Most of you here probably have more knowledge than me. I have tons of experience to share, and would love to learn from you.
I love the paranormal. I’ve turned down 5 TV projects on major networks to do shows and to be paid alot of money and be set for life. I said no, because I know my ethics would be compromised. Fame is for people that are insecure with themselves. I’m only human, not a superstar. I value my privacy and that of my family over everything.
So, can’t we all forget I was on TV? I just want to be a regular person. I did put up a myspace, for those who wanted to keep in touch.
Also, signing on to TV, you do lose all your rights to privacy. It is true. I didn’t know how much as I had only been an engineer all my life, not in the forefront of anything. I was never counseled in what could this mean. But that is beside the point. I take responsibility for it now.
Anyways, for anyone that is interested, I’m working on research that proves that human consciousness transcends beyond death (physical death). If anyone would like to share in what they know, I’d be happy to bounce back ideas. Also, I have close to 12 clients (private) that I work with, free of charge, and I don’t advertise. I’m a counselor for them and their families. I’m like a doctor on call for them, because I’ve been thru it myself. I keep all of our counseling private because I care for them. I am proud to say I’ve helped most of the families so far; some were ready to sell their home; others were ready to get divorces; others were ready to put their kids in psychiatric wards. I get much reward for helping people. So, if anyone out there wants to talk about that, I’d be happy to.
So why am I writing here even though I said I was going to lay low; well because I love the paranormal and I love disussing it, and as my grandmother always said “Speak your mind. But (1) be respectful, and (2) absorb the consequences and move on”. I don’t want to be a topic of conversation, I want to be a part of a conversation.
But keep in mind one thing: you ONLY know me from television. And I only know you from your statements. Can we try and join together to just keep it strictly talk about the paranormal and not anything else?
~Donna LaCroix
Hi Donna,
Works for me, I just want to discuss the paranormal.I was interested in what you referred to as your gift, but you have touched on it.There is another poster on here who has set up a help web site for people who have paranormal problems. Maybe, that person will come forward and give their ideas to you. I think, the sharing and exchange of ideas benefits us all here. I’m interested to learn what others have experienced and have done, your input would be appreciated.
Glad you came back, I was hoping you would so we all could talk about the paranormal. It really is a great site, and a place to share.
Lookng forward to the discussions.
Not to be the voice of dissent (again) but in my opinion, paranormal television is related to the paranormal. If only because paranormal television could have an affect on the way we look at paranormal things. I think discussing paranormal television is par for the course when you get a bunch of people together that watch it regularly.
It shouldn’t make you sad Karen, that people are fired up over a subject that they are passionate about. It’s a good thing that people share a common interest and discuss it, it’s one of the ways we can help, in even a tiny way, the paranormal genre evolve. I say that’s a good thing.
-Brushes off the blog response fingers-
The popularity of said thread is a double edged sword. Is it a shame that it appears to be a popular thread for the wrong reasons? Perhaps.
You could also see that its a good thing because it does show the passion the people on the forum do have for the paranormal.
Why? People think its one step closer to the truth about the paranormal. Is it real or fake? No matter which side of the fence you’re on, what Donna says (or doesn’t say) is fuel for that fire about what you think is the truth about the paranormal… or to be more precise, maybe its more about a certain group of those who were investigating it.
I think the benefit of the thread far outweighs its negatives. I see it as a spark here that could lead to more interesting, far better and thought provoking discussions. It’s just a matter of taking the energy and thus re-directing it elsewhere or spreading it out among the forums.
RTT
Reminds me of the night before Diana’s wedding to Prince Charles, when, as the story goes, she wanted to get out of it, and her sister replied, “It’s too late, Dutch – your name is already on the tea towels.”
You’re a celebrity now. AND a regular person. All famous people are a mix of both.
You want to be a regular person? That’s easy enough to accomplish on a forum. Re-register under a new user name – one that no one would associate with you. I’m sure Karen would allow you to be an exception. There’s nothing dishonest about having a made up user name – most of us do just that. Then post to your heart’s content.
I would also recommend staying off that Donna thread. IMHO, you’re just re-stirring the pot. It will die down if left alone.
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