Missoulian: Ghost hunter pulls disappearing act

Missoulian: Ghost hunter pulls disappearing act

Definitely one of the poorest excuses for news I've ever read, this published today just shows how eager many in the press and the public are to find anything, and I mean anything that discredits ghosts or the paranormal, even stooping so low as to report complete nonsense. Seems like things are pretty boring in Missoula Montana today if this is straight from the editors desk.

It seems the board of the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula don't believe in ghosts and have little respect for those who do. So the big news today in bustling Missoula? They've lost their ghost hunter! reports crack journalism ace and paper editor Jamie Kelly.

You see, someone offered his ghost hunting services last year to investigate reports of a military looking and somewhat mischievous spirit haunting the grounds that was seen many times by the past curator and others over the years. Bob Brown, the museums current executive director, "can't quite recall the young University of Montana student's name (it's buried there somewhere in a thick, scrawled-over yellow legal pad)" but he does remember what they told this person. It would be $25 an hour for this ghost hunter to use the building. After all, they would have to staff the building while he was there.

"The ghost researcher has not contacted the Museum to pursue the poltergeists." states the Dec 20 board of directors meeting notes. What a surprise. With a welcome like that I can't believe it! I'm not sure I would call some unknown college student who wrote a letter on a yellow legal pad a "ghost hunter", but I do know they seem to have a poor attitude for people who study the dead themselves.

Anthropologists and ghost hunters actually have a lot in common: most of their findings are a lot of "I think" or "it seems", "looks like" or "perhaps" gleamed from miniscule amounts of evidence with little hard scientific proof to back up any of their claims. Ghost Hunters claim to know all about the afterlife and museum people claim to know all about the past. But the reality is they all just do a lot of educated guessing because of inexact science.

If ever the Museum of Fort Missoula needs to excavate or investigate anywhere I know of, I'm sure going to encourage the owners of the property to charge at least $25 an hour for the privilege of their "scientific study" of digging holes, sifting dirt and looking at people's ancient trash.