by Karen Frazier, Managing Editor
Paranormal Underground Magazine

There’s nothing I love more than an opinion. Some have even suggested that I am *gasp* opinionated myself. And what is that saying about opinions? Opinions are like ***holes. Everybody has them. No offense to the poor guy sitting over there who was born without one. An ***hole, that is. I’m pretty sure you still have opinions, and I’m guessing medical science found a way to bless you with the other.

Before I inadvertently start a worldwide movement (or is that a bad choice of word?) of mercy for that poor guy, let me get to my point which is, surprisingly, an opinion. Seems I was blessed with both.

I make my rounds on paranormal blogs, bulletin boards and other online paranormal communities. I don’t always post in them, but I do read. It’s the nature of my job as a paranormal journalist to keep my finger on the pulse of the paranormal community. Let me tell you this. There are times I can barely bring myself to read. After all, reading/hearing/seeing the same old same old grows wearisome. Surely you all can relate to that.

There are a lot of armchair quarterbacks out there who have some pretty strong opinions about what’s going on in the paranormal field. And they are more than welcome to have those opinions, truly they are. It’s a free country and we are free to voice our opinions provided we steer clear of things like defamation of character, slander and libel. Still, I have to wonder this. How many of those opinions are based on true experience in the field, and how many are based on just sitting around on one’s keister and talking about how stupid and pointless it all is?

Here’s a for instance. I recently read a post talking about how one of the cast on Destination Truth was a worthless wimp. I’ve watched Destination Truth. I’m pretty sure there are no wimps on that show. How do I know? Because I’ve never ridden river rapids, climbed sheer rock faces and walked/driven/hiked/flown thousands of miles in dubious conditions to chase down paranormal sightings. My guess is that the person who ventured such an opinion hasn’t either. And until they have done that, perhaps they might want to hold off on the entire wimp judgment.

Here’s another for instance. People gab all of the time about how ghosts aren’t real. It’s an opinion that they are entitled to and one I once shared. Still, I’m betting that many of those people have never, ever gone out in the field and attempted to find out for themselves. Because what I’ve discovered from the people who have spent an appreciable amount of time trying to find whether or not ghosts are real is that, somewhere along the way, they’ve had an experience that convinced them that they were. Not always, but in a lot of cases.

This is an entirely different thing than PROVING ghosts are real. I get it. For those of you who want proof, here’s what I have to say. Get out of your armchairs and find it. If you want to find a way for science to prove (or disprove) the existence of ghosts, then get out of the backseat and take the wheel. If you are already doing that, clearly I am not talking to you. You have my respect and admiration for following your truth and doing actual research to back up your statements. If you don’t believe in ghosts but don’t really make a point to go out of your way to taunt people who do, then I’m not talking about you, either. There are a lot of people who don’t believe in ghosts but don’t spend a lot of time opining on paranormal websites. But for the rest of you who have never made an attempt to investigate, try this: Start using scientific method to investigate places that people claim are haunted. Establish protocols that we can all use and learn from. Instead of being frustrated that the people investigating aren’t doing it right, lead the charge. Be the change that you want to see in the paranormal field. And if you aren’t willing to do that? Certainly you are still entitled to your opinion. But if you’re griping and not out doing, then really, how credible is that opinion?

I get it. It’s fun to point fingers and talk about what a tool the other guy is because he doesn’t do things the way you would. Especially the guy who’s out trying to discover and learn instead of sitting at home in the Barcalounger with a bag of Doritos and a beer. But Barcalounger guy, I’m talking to you. What are you waiting for? Clearly you have an interest in learning what it’s all about, or you wouldn’t be sitting at home watching/reading up on the paranormal (would you?). So why not put down the bag of Doritos, step away from the beer, rise up from the La-Z-Boy and get out there to create the change in the field that you claim you’d like to see? Maybe if you do, you’ll be the guy who changes the game forever. Can’t do that from a Barcalounger.

Enjoy reading Karen’s blog? Her new book, Avalanche of Spirits: The Ghosts of Wellington> is now available. Click here to buy.