Comments on The EVP Recordings: CHARGING DOES NOT MAKE ONE UNETHICAL or UNPROFFESI...

I think you all make a very compelling arguement f...

2007-12-02T01:39:00.000-07:00

I think you all make a very compelling arguement for charging money to fund your research. I would like to say however that I believe a distinction should be made. Charging for content to customers who are looking to learn from your work is different than charging clients to impart your wisdom while collecting more content. Also if charging is implemented, then along the same lines, shouldn't we in-turn be charged to collect our data from cemetaries, home owners, ect.?

Wow, All I can say is that the thought process of ...

2007-01-07T01:08:00.000-07:00

Wow, All I can say is that the thought process of your anonymous poster is utterly illogical. And, he knows he is so wrong. That's why he posted anonymously.

Let's see, do taro card readers get their information for free? Do psychics get their information for free? Do psychologists take what they have learned in books and make suggestions to others on how to live their lives and make decisions for themselves? That means they take the information from someone else's books and then basically resell it under the disguise of being a Doctor? Hmmm... unethical according to anonymous. Selling something that wasn’t yours to begin with (in fact it might be a book written by a guy who is dead now – that means we are “whoring out the dead” aren’t we?)

I just don't understand what is wrong with charging for a CD that contains video, EVP or photos that I took. If I recorded, collected, processed, analyzed and generated a professional CD, why is it unethical for me to charge for the work and compilation that I have worked hard to create. If I know there are individuals out there who are interested or can learn from the content I can provide, then I am providing a service, and have every right to charge for that service!

This yeah-hoo (and that is as nice as I can be) claims to be an investigator who pays for everything himself. He claims that investigating is a hobby. That is all fine well and good and distinctly eliminates him from being a professional investigator with scientific goals and theories which take years of study and dedication. It is amateurs like this, and their glorified attitudes, that taint the connotation of paranormal research. They stunt the continued study, growth in the field and the ability to move further in our research.

Reg's article was addressing the fact that with all you little people playing investigator and running around screaming "I'll investigate your house for free" you miss the big picture and create a misguided sense that hobbyists’ know what they are doing. You people are the ones that are truly scamming clients into believing the crap you tell them. You have no verifiable facts or data to back up you claims or statements any further than stating, “yes, you seem to have some sort of paranormal presence in your home ma’am”

The fact is that investigators who think they can go into a location for a few hours and make a full assessment for a client are enormously misguided! It takes years of studying one location to learn from it and know it well enough to make a confident assessment of what is taking place.

Case in point, one man is continuously attacked by an unseen force for several years, which is deemed by many to be a demonic force and ultimately a demonic location. It is later realized that this man had emerging abilities that were ultimately responsible for the scratches and that his energy was seen as a beacon by entities on the other side. For years there had been much EVP gathered from the residual and interactive entities at this site. Having personalities of their own, some of the entities wish to play games and taunt investigators, while others ask for help or share information. Having a rapport with these entities and having studied it for so long has afforded the investigative group an incite that many never get the chance to experience or understand. This is what the study of the Paranormal is all about – furthering our knowledge and understanding.

It takes further study of that same location by other groups to correlate and compare data amongst different groups. There is so much in the way of theory to test and evaluate and a good scientific look at any haunting will run a given set of parameters several times before evaluating the findings. Then run the again to be sure. When you deal with the many varied parameters(like ambient noise, emotional baggage from any one team member, the will of the ghostly entity to be seen or heard and any given time or location, etc....) of an investigation, the smallest change of any element will ultimately compound the testing and experiments that need to be run. Scientifically speaking of course.

As a hobbyist, there is no need to prove anything or look for answers. You are only in it for the thrill. There is no professionalism required and no knowledge needed. I mean really, who has ever ran across a scientists who claims his interest as only a hobby. Scientists are out to study and learn from their environment.

There have been so many wannabe investigators and hobbyists out there, that they have clouded the work and progress of professional investigators. Anonymous, you should be ashamed of yourself! How can someone so close-minded claim to be an investigator of the paranormal field and open to its possibilities? Oh, that’s right, it is only a hobby to you.

Reggie, your article was awesome!

Charging for services rendered is one thing. Charg...

2006-09-24T21:34:00.000-06:00

Charging for services rendered is one thing. Charging for something,inherently,free is quite another. Let me explain...

Charging five bucks for a disk (which,in my opinon,is a little high considering what a blank cd goes for these days) I wouldn't consider unethical. This guy put together something to make another person's life a little easier. We are surronded by things that make our life easier and they all cost money.

The problem is the few paranormal groups/investigators that charge for content (i.e. EVPs...orb photos)on their websites. To me, it's like whoring out the dead. These people are the scum of the earth. Charging a fee to view/listen to something they've obtained for free is a crock. It would be like the government charging you a dollar an hour to breathe.

As far as the cost of running a group/website, keep in mind that all of this is a hobby. Like all the other hobbies out there, it is going to cost you money. If this is truly what you love doing,then money should have very little to do with it. If you can't afford to run a group/website, then maybe you've chosen the wrong hobby. Notice I said "hobby" and not "profession". Even TAPS (since you mentioned them)has a "day job". That "day job" helps to pay for most of their "hobby". Donations (which, I'm sure, are given to them freely. They don't charge for investigations/web content)and merchandise probably help offset the rest of their operation. Merchandising, if done tastefully, is a good revenue generator. IMHO, selling a t-shirt or magazine is not unethical. Selling an item and claiming it is "haunted" is.

I run my own paranormal group and I'm a member of another. I pay for everything out of my pocket. I buy equipment when I can afford it. I don't expect others to hand it to me or support me with money. As I've said before, it's a hobby, not a profession.

Most commercial websites use advertising to help absorb their operating costs. There used to be an online paranormal magazine (not sure if it's still in operation) that would get advertisements for EMF meters and other paranormal related items/equipment to pay a fee to be displayed on their website. I wouldn't consider this unethical. The magazine was free (You had to create a free account) and the authors of the various articles volunteered their time/talents. A guy, like Dave Oester, that takes stuff that is submitted to him for free and then charges for it, is scum. He also has the audacity to charge for Ghost Researcher Certifications.Do you truly think he's has any more of a clue about the paranormal than anybody else? If you look up the word unethical in the dictionary, you should see a picture of his face there.

So, in my opinion, if you are charging to do investigations then you are, without a doubt,unethical.If you can't come up with the necessary funding to support your hobby, you may need to re-think your hobby.

Thanks Michael, I'm glad you liked it. while I dis...

2006-01-11T22:31:00.000-07:00

Thanks Michael, I'm glad you liked it.

while I disagree somewhat on what you said about the non profit folks, I do think it's silly to point fingers over charging for products or services you might provide.

I do agree, however, that simply becoming a non for profit entity in the eyes of the US government, doesn't really mean that you have honorable intentions or are better than anyone else.

It's all about your actions. You can tell who is out to scam who from the ways you see them acting. Money is a complicated thing and it does change how people react to you and each other, but any organization that wishes to be successfull needs money to make that happen.

So, while we might not see the "EVP kids memorial day telethon" it is simply unfair to call any organization 'disreputable' simply because they might charge for something.

Never have I read such a perfect "nail hit on the ...

2006-01-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

Never have I read such a perfect "nail hit on the head Reg!" After all, I think that there is a huge difference between charging for product versus charging for investigations themselves. A really great example of this all stems from the history of spirit photography of the mid-to late 1800s. Yes Mary Lincoln was duped, LOL. But here's a particular punch I'd like to offer to the high and mighty of the we do it for free ethic. I notice that a lot of these groups that hit the groups who charge are "Not For Profit Organizations" That means that all the money that they make goes back into the organization. They like to come off as charitable, but I think that is deceptive. THEY are their own charity. I mean I have yet to see EVP Researchers for Muscular Distrophy yet. So who are they fooling? All the money they make goes for costs equipment and salaries just like all of the groups, but some of them come off as if they were somehow better because they deem themselves as "Not For Profit". So, I'd just like to simply ask some of these groups: "What is your charity?" I'd like to think that we all got into this for the same reason: We want to be scientists in the final frontier of human life. What better cause is that? We all need to work together and stop trying to play the politics of "I'm better than you because...." Thank you Reg for such an eloquent blog on such a timely topic!

I'm sorry not to see more comments on this one.I t...

2005-11-22T15:59:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry not to see more comments on this one.

I totally agree with you. You can't get anywhere near proof without the proper tools. The scientific community already harbors disdain for what we do; why stay below standard when it's reasonable to expect that proper proof will require proper tools.

Free is great, if you can afford it. The serious paranormal community can't anymore.