https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/u-s-belief-in-sasquatch-has-risen-since-2020/ar-AA10dHPf?ocid=entnewsntp&cvid=12d7014f7a5d466a9b823dbbb27234e2
I suppose the NE region is salted by the proportion of urban dwellers, although the relative percentage has apparently increased more among urbans/suburbanites while rural belief remains about the same as 2020. Interesting that the average spread by region is pretty small, only 15 to 11%.
Also interesting, the level of belief that aliens have visited our planet is a lot higher (on average) than I was expecting.
I think this goes along with the over abundance of shows on TV, some of them very sketchy and hilarious, promoting the ideas of the paranormal and the occult. I know, I'm a big fan of them. But you do need to take them with a considerable amount of skeptical thinking, not just blind acceptance. I'm not sure which came first, the shows or the interest in the subjects.
That's true about having a skeptical eye on the shows (and more generally) -- although sometimes the scepticism cuts both ways! I know someone who was invited to be a guest analyst on one of the shows, who was told by the producer to declare a dark figure walking on two legs up a snowy mountainside to be a bear, when it was obviously a dedicated biped, not a bear waddling on two legs up a 50 degree slippery slope. ::)
Also, while shows feed the interest, the interest had to be large enough to justify spending cash on the shows to begin with.
I admit that I love a lot of paranormal shows - it's a guilty pleasure for me. And I accept that 99.9% of all their content is total BS. It's that .1% that keeps me going.
But in the back of my brain, things like Bigfoot or ghosts, if real, would have been caught somewhere by some kind of camera by now.
I want to believe!!
Quote from: Sir Slash on August 03, 2022, 11:59:42 AM
I think this goes along with the over abundance of shows on TV, some of them very sketchy and hilarious, promoting the ideas of the paranormal and the occult. I know, I'm a big fan of them. But you do need to take them with a considerable amount of skeptical thinking, not just blind acceptance. I'm not sure which came first, the shows or the interest in the subjects.
I disagree. 99% of people can distinguish between fiction and reality. Paranormal and occult TV shows don't promote the belief in paranormal any more than the Lord of the Rings films promote belief in Middle Earth.
^Some do, like Ghost Hunters or Ghost Adventures, by claiming a desire to 'debunk' their findings and then narrowing it down to 'this can only be a demon that will eat your face.'
Shows like the above are dressed up as 'documentaries' - but the average person will never notice that they have script writers credited at the end.
Don't give too many people too much credit - I really wonder how many out there do believe that LOTR is history.
Wait, there's no such thing as Middle Earth?
Quote from: Gusington on August 03, 2022, 12:53:38 PM
^Some do, like Ghost Hunters or Ghost Adventures, by claiming a desire to 'debunk' their findings and then narrowing it down to 'this can only be a demon that will eat your face.'
Shows like the above are dressed up as 'documentaries' - but the average person will never notice that they have script writers credited at the end.
Don't give too many people too much credit - I really wonder how many out there do believe that LOTR is history.
Good point, I assumed Slash was talking about stuff like American Horror Story but there's indeed a lot of "scientific" schlock out there like Ghost Adventures.
^I LOVE (certain seasons) of American Horror Story. Some just grossed me out.
Don't get me wrong, I love a lot of these shows despite the fact that they are mostly (or entirely) BS.
I have always wondered what, if anything, happens to us when we die. I am terrified that the lights just go out and that's that.
American Horror Stories scares me too much to watch. ::) Yes, I was more talking about the, 'Reality' paranormal shows and Bigfoot hunts that never seem to find any. They are portrayed as being realistic but almost always end without evidence, convincing evidence anyway. But I do still like them, but just more as entertainment. A few shows do try to find actual answers to unexplained events, and do often enough, as well as admitting the things they cannot explain. I like those best. But nothing beats a team of Hill Billys out hunting monsters with weapons at night! :2funny:
Quote from: Gusington on August 03, 2022, 12:36:31 PM
But in the back of my brain, things like Bigfoot or ghosts, if real, would have been caught somewhere by some kind of camera by now.
Not sure about ghosts (also easier to more convincingly fake or mistakenly interpret visual glitches); but there's an ever-increasing ton of (apparent) Bigfoot film/video footage, and new biometric analysis methods for checking the footage -- and the footprints, both recent and (in casts) going back to the 50s. (Photos, too, but not being movements those can be a lot easier to fake.)
Still a lot of chaff to burn through, and it's interesting watching the detectable hoaxes get more detailed along the way. It's possible that hoaxers have started learning how to fake a mid-tarsal break in active foot structure for example, but up until very recently hoaxers wouldn't have even known to try for that, much less be able to do it. On the contrary, footprint analysis has now started catching people as 2nd level hoaxers, falsely claiming to have faked footprints using methods which would absolutely not have worked to create the results! (Leaving aside how the original results were created in the first place, but definitely not
those ways.)
But even the classic Patterson/Gimlin footage has a lot going for it in modern scientific analysis.
Worth noting that most of this analysis is NOT being done by the paranormal shows; and when they try, they often goof it up. A recent example was an episode of some show (I forget which) using LIDAR to scan the Bluff Creek area where the "Patty" figure was filmed, in order to work out geometrically the height of the figure, arriving at a conclusion of normal human height: a little over 6'. That's fine in principle (and doesn't necessarily prove a suit, though it allows a human-sized suit in theory of course); but the show didn't take into account a bunch of factors about where the current position of debris would be, compared to the 1960s footage, to verify whether or not the debris they were using to plot scale for the figure had moved, so its resulting calcs had to be invalid.
Locally here in rural SW Fla. there are many Bigfoot stories from hunters and ranchers who swear they are real and present. However nobody ever brings one in on the hood of their truck. I keep thinking if these people were aware of the monetary value of even a dead Squatch, they'd forget deer and hogs. This makes me more skeptical that the stories aren't real. But I keep an open mind.
My (step-)grandmother on my Dad's side used to tell us stories when I was a kid, of dealing with occasional skunk ape raids and encroachment on their ranch (at the time) near Tampa; her timeframe would have been late 1950s to mid 60s maybe.
Mom made her stop, and told us firmly that Grandma liked to lie to us because she thought it was amusing; which to be fair to Mom, was plausible for that Grandma. ;) Still, she was clearly interested in the topic because she had a very impressive collection of paperback books for the late 1970s! (Our surprise at discovering this was what triggered the tales.)
The only detail I remember of the stories, was of them taking shots (rifle or shotgun, don't recall) at a tall ape lumbering off at a fast stride, after they caught it visiting one of the nearby stock areas (goats, chickens, can't recall) in the twilight after sundown. The detail probably sticks with me due to the stride-away, not running, which is typical for many stories. Also typical (even stereotypical nowadays) of the Patty film of course, which may be where she got that detail in making up her story, assuming she made it up. Still, Patty wasn't being shot at (with a gun, only with a camera), and most people, especially back then, would dramatically imagine the figure running away from being shot, not doing a casual fast-stride. Running isn't unheard of (even in other film footage -- there's some interesting recent footage of running and even leap-bounding figures from Russia for example), but fast striding is more common (including in other film footage).
My great grandmother, who spent her youth in Galway in the 1890s, was very serious about the "little people." They were not be mentioned or trifled with. She once scolded me for making a leprechaun paper doll for St. Patrick's Day. Making fun of them might bring "mischief" she said; after all how do you think the little guys get all of that treasure to put under the rainbow?
Probably a good thing that she died before "Lucky Charms" became a thing.
Before TV there were hearths and campfires where these stories were told; now we have the 'History' Channel and YouTube. So sure! Why not Bigfoot?
Quote from: Gusington on August 03, 2022, 12:36:31 PM
I admit that I love a lot of paranormal shows - it's a guilty pleasure for me. And I accept that 99.9% of all their content is total BS. It's that .1% that keeps me going.
But in the back of my brain, things like Bigfoot or ghosts, if real, would have been caught somewhere by some kind of camera by now.
I want to believe!!
Oh, that's me too; if it's not a history podcast, it's a paranormal podcast that I'm listening to while I'm working.
^Any you recommend? I never really jumped on the podcast bandwagon, because I'm old(e)...so all of them will be new to me!
Quote from: Gusington on August 05, 2022, 02:47:56 PM
^Any you recommend? I never really jumped on the podcast bandwagon, because I'm old(e)...so all of them will be new to me!
Hmm. These are a few off the top of my head and they do vary in terms of tone, content and language.
In no particular order:
Last Podcast on the Left - 3 guys talkin' 'bout serial killers, cryptids and whatnot. Strong language at nearly all times, so headphones help, and their personalities and such aren't for everyone.
Brohio Podcast - 2 guys who do just like the above do, but in their own way. And yes, strong language is used here as well as they are, in my opinion, just good natured blue-collar guys from Ohio.
Astonishing Legends - 2 guys covering the paranormal (and some history like Amelia Earhart) in a very long term format at times. Utterly fantastic if you like multi-hour dives into topics by people who genuinely try to come at the topics with rational minds. Pretty clean in language with, perhaps, an occasional dirty word every now and then.
Lore - Aaron Mahnke's first foray into the podcast world. Well written and and read. Episodes generally are Aaron covering just one thing, so pick and choose what you'd like to hear about.
Anything Ghost - Lexi Wahl's show where he talks about, well, ghosts. Generally, an episode consists of stories from a dozen or so people and some of these stories are read by Lexi and some by the people who brought forth their story (so quality varies here).
Expanded Perspectives - 2 buds in Texas covering the paranormal. Topics vary, but they never really seem to stray from paranormal things.
Dark Histories - English fellow covers topics in a similar way to Aaron Mahnke but seems to cover things that are more "European," in origin.
American Hauntings A fantastic show where each "season," covers a topic or area in length. This season, for instance, is about spooky things in the countryside and woods. Previous seasons covered Hollywood, New Orleans, and so on.
And in a pinch, just google "best paranormal podcast," and you'll get zillions to choose from.
Thanks man! I've heard of that first one, and read a few books based on the Lore podcast. Dark Histories sounds great as does American Hauntings. I need to retire to I can listen to these and create my own.
Bedtime Stories is well-produced, and can be listened to as a podcast. They cover a wide range of topics ranging from true-crime, unsolved murders, to the most recent version of the unsolved werewolf murders (supposedly) in the Land Between the Lakes (about an hour and a half from where I'm sitting). Ten to fifteen minutes per episode. There's a spinoff short series about (supposedly) a soldier's several odd experiences serving on MP patrol at Fort Bragg, and in-country as an 'advisor' in Central America. (Wartime Stories...? Can't recall, will check later.) They're certainly meant for entertainment, not for analytical discussion, but are pretty well researched on details, and the writers will cover a range of theories toward the end (including mundane ones).