Jack the Ripper hauntings

[Bridewell]

Hmm. And when ghosts move an object, open or close a door, move objects from one location to another, interact with the living, answer direct questions, turn off/on lights etc.?

Wolf.

My wife would confirm that, when we were alone in the house, we both heard very distinct heavy footsteps descending our stairs. That was over 10 years ago and I still can't come up with a rational explanation.

[Al Bundy's Eyes]

Dick Turpin's ghost don't half get about.

[etenguy]

Hmm. And when ghosts move an object, open or close a door, move objects from one location to another, interact with the living, answer direct questions, turn off/on lights etc.?

Wolf.

I am not a believer, Wolf, but when I hear about things like quantum entanglement and the like, I am very aware of the limits of my knowledge and just how weird things can be. Something more familiar is magnetism, which can make objects move without touching them, even form intricate patterns of iron filings. That some perfectly natural force might cause what is currently described as supernatural phenomena is not out of the question for me. As for the dead answering questions or directly interacting with the living - as things currently stand, the best explanation, IMHO, is either fraud or a function of the brain that is misinterpreted.

[etenguy]

I found it strange throughout - and very disturbing in places.

I agree - it is one of the best psychological thrillers I have seen and I should probably say no more to avoid spoilers for those who have yet to see it.

[Al Bundy's Eyes]

Quantum Entanglement is a bit off subject. Should probably have its own thread. Or should that be string?

[johnwest]

JohnWest, have you read "The Search For Jack the Ripper - A Psychic Investigation" by Pamela Ball? If so, what are your thoughts?

I have read it. It's an interesting book but I'm not convinced by the evidence presented. As for psychic phenomena, I'm not out to convince people of the existence of ghosts etc. It's a matter of choice. All I will say is that I have spoken to a large number of people who have witnessed or experienced things that can't readily be explained as tricks of the mind or fraud.

[Bridewell]

I have read it. It's an interesting book but I'm not convinced by the evidence presented. As for psychic phenomena, I'm not out to convince people of the existence of ghosts etc. It's a matter of choice. All I will say is that I have spoken to a large number of people who have witnessed or experienced things that can't readily be explained as tricks of the mind or fraud.

The only part I found remotely convincing was her supposed interaction with Joseph Barnett. The motive would make sense.

[Wolf Vanderlinden]

I am not a believer, Wolf, but when I hear about things like quantum entanglement and the like, I am very aware of the limits of my knowledge and just how weird things can be. Something more familiar is magnetism, which can make objects move without touching them, even form intricate patterns of iron filings. That some perfectly natural force might cause what is currently described as supernatural phenomena is not out of the question for me. As for the dead answering questions or directly interacting with the living - as things currently stand, the best explanation, IMHO, is either fraud or a function of the brain that is misinterpreted.

I understand. The paranormal is a seeing is believing proposition. However, my many experiences with all types of haunting phenomenon makes your explanation - fraud or a misinterpreted function of the brain - non starters.

A door handle rattles as it is being turned and the door then quickly opens as I walked by it. I am alone in the building but assume someone has come in and is using the restroom so I stop to see who it is. No one exits the tiny room so I look in. The room, which has no windows or any other exit, is empty.

There is a set build going on with about 6 or 8 carpenters, scenic painters and designers working on the main stage. I go down to the construction shop in the basement to get a length of rope from the end of one of the construction tables. There is a chair in my way so I move it off to one side, walk to the end of the 12 foot long table, grab the rope and turn back around. The chair is back where it was originally - in the way. No one else was in the basement at the time but myself and no one could have followed me down or gone back up without my seeing and hearing them.

I'm alone in the theatre and just about to leave for home. The last thing I have to do is go up to the booth on the second floor and shut it down. I have to walk the length of this long, narrow room in order to turn off the upstage work lights, then walk back to the door, set the alarm and close and lock the door. There is no one in the room and nowhere to hide and I have just walked it's length twice. I set the alarm, turn off the lights, step into the corridor and am closing the door when I look up to see a man standing in the room, illuminated by the light spill from the corridor, not six feet away from me watching me as I shut the door on him. I paused with my hand on the door handle wondering what I should do. I'm not sure what would be worse, if I open the door and he's still there, or if I open the door and he's not still there, so I just lock up and go home. Etc., etc, etc.

No fraud. No misinterpretation of the function of the brain. No attempting to change your, or anyone else's opinions, just a tiny fraction of the things I have experienced over the years. As I said, seeing is believing.

Wolf.

[Abby Normal]

I understand. The paranormal is a seeing is believing proposition. However, my many experiences with all types of haunting phenomenon makes your explanation - fraud or a misinterpreted function of the brain - non starters.

A door handle rattles as it is being turned and the door then quickly opens as I walked by it. I am alone in the building but assume someone has come in and is using the restroom so I stop to see who it is. No one exits the tiny room so I look in. The room, which has no windows or any other exit, is empty.

There is a set build going on with about 6 or 8 carpenters, scenic painters and designers working on the main stage. I go down to the construction shop in the basement to get a length of rope from the end of one of the construction tables. There is a chair in my way so I move it off to one side, walk to the end of the 12 foot long table, grab the rope and turn back around. The chair is back where it was originally - in the way. No one else was in the basement at the time but myself and no one could have followed me down or gone back up without my seeing and hearing them.

I'm alone in the theatre and just about to leave for home. The last thing I have to do is go up to the booth on the second floor and shut it down. I have to walk the length of this long, narrow room in order to turn off the upstage work lights, then walk back to the door, set the alarm and close and lock the door. There is no one in the room and nowhere to hide and I have just walked it's length twice. I set the alarm, turn off the lights, step into the corridor and am closing the door when I look up to see a man standing in the room, illuminated by the light spill from the corridor, not six feet away from me watching me as I shut the door on him. I paused with my hand on the door handle wondering what I should do. I'm not sure what would be worse, if I open the door and he's still there, or if I open the door and he's not still there, so I just lock up and go home. Etc., etc, etc.

No fraud. No misinterpretation of the function of the brain. No attempting to change your, or anyone else's opinions, just a tiny fraction of the things I have experienced over the years. As I said, seeing is believing.

Wolf.

hi wolf
while ive never experienced ghosts, i totally beleive other people have, including my mom. these are very credible people that have told me there experiences. my brother in law had a NDE. and if you beieve in an afterlife, i find it hard to understand that you wouldnt beleive in the possibility of the paranormal.
also, some people, such as yourself, seem to be more in tune with it.

i also think that science cant explain eveything, this is a very old universe and very big. and with the physics pointing more and more to a multiverse and or more dimensions who the hell knows whats going on.

no one is wise enough to dismiss this kind of thing off hand. I keep an open mind.

and btw, stories like wolfs may not be hard science but it is more than just what some people dismiss as anecdotal..its called eye witness testimony.

[Wolf Vanderlinden]

Hi Abby.

some people, such as yourself, seem to be more in tune with it.

This is one of the strange things I've learned over the years. I remember talking to a friend once who had worked at this theatre for over 30 years. She was loudly complaining about "these idiots" who claimed that the theatre was haunted. She had been in the theatre at all hours of the day and night, had slept there on occasion and had never experienced anything at all. They were crazy, as far as she was concerned. Suddenly she realised that she was talking to one of those "idiots" and her eyes got big while her jaw dropped opened. She covered herself by telling me that she understood that I "believed" in what I was saying (but I was still wrong). I still laugh about that. However, why didn't she ever experience anything while I, and others, experienced something almost daily? And she wasn't the only one either.

i also think that science cant explain eveything, this is a very old universe and very big. and with the physics pointing more and more to a multiverse and or more dimensions who the hell knows whats going on.

Yes, agreed. But whatever "the paranormal" is, I think, is likely just an area that science doesn't understand yet. However, having said that, science refuses to study the paranormal and the findings of the few scientists who have are ridiculed. All we can do is, as you say, keep an open mind.

Wolf.

[Holmes' Idiot Brother]

didnt patricia cornwell write in her last ripper book that she was being haunted by the ghost of the ripper? lol

Please tell me you're joking!!!! ROFLMAO! I would expect nothing less from that attention-seeking rank amateur! I liked her fiction, but after reading her first book on the Ripper, I became so disgusted that I stopped reading her works. She needs meds and she needs to stick to fiction!