Are there any Straight Dopers out there who are in active communication with the dead? If so, what is your method–Electronic Voice???–Seance??–Ouija Board??–Entrails from chickens??
What’s the Straight Dope from the folks on the other side of the veil??
I read books, some of which are written by people now deceased. That seems to meet the standard definition of “communication.”
I used to use LPs, but now their recordings are available on CDs. Aoxamoxoa is my favorite.
No, no. Workingman’s Dead or American Beauty.
My communication with the dead is exclusively one-sided: I talk to them. They listen.
If they’re trying to talk back, I can’t hear them, which may be a good thing.
WRS
i don’t see much in the way of debate, here, (and it does not actually look like witnessing–more like a poll).
Off to IMHO.
[ /Moderator Mode]
In re: speaking to dead musical artists (not necessarily The Dead–I have no idea if they’re breathing or not) by CD:
They’re decomposing composers.
There’s less of them every year.
You can say what you like to Debussy,
but there’s little of him left to hear.
I never speak to the dead. I use a combination of interpretive dance and tin whistle.
In case you haven’t figured it out Rippington the vast majority of the people here think the strainght dope on ‘talking to the dead’ is that it is all hogwash.
I used to be, but then I got digital cable. Now I can’t get static on any of my channels. I’ll have to try that chicken entrails thing. Thanks for the tip.
We communicate via vlf radio. 
IMHO, you cannot communicate with the dead. Communication requires exchange. Dead organic matter cannot do this.
What would John Lennon say if he were alive right now?
tap tap tap
(muffled)
Help! Help! Get me out of here!
It’s jest a joke people. I won’t hurt you. 
Harry Houdini had a strong interest in communication with the dead, partly from a desire to communicate with his mother with whom he was very close. This was at a time when mediums and spirit communication was very popular and supposedly prevalent. He apparently went into the subject with a very open mind but found only fraud, no communication that could positively be verified. When he died, he had arranged a code word or phrase (I can’t remember which) with his wife. They figured that if anyone could escape from “beyond the veil”, the master escape artist could - a sentiment I would agree with. He never conclusively did. (There were a lot of mediums who claimed to have messages from Houdini, but none had the proper phrase, at least not until after it had been made public of course. :rolleyes: )
Arthur Conan Doyle was a very strong proponent of Spiritualism and believed absolutely that it was possible to communicate with the dead. He did this through mediums and spirit writing. After he died his family believed (or at least claimed to believe) that Doyle communicated with them. (Through seances/mediums and not boards or entrails.)
I do know people who feel they were “guided” under certain circumstances by people who died. Nothing so blatant as voices, writings, etc., but definitely a belief that it did or can happen. I believe that this sort of “guiding” communication can happen, but I would not push this belief on any others nor do I wish to be convinced that I’m wrong by anyone else.
So, in response to your OP, while I have never communicated with anyone who has died, I don’t think active communication is possible but think that less direct communication is possible. How’s that for a serious, non-snarky answer? I know it’s not quite what you were looking for, but it may be the fullest answer you get.
“HELLO POLLY! WAKEY WAKEY!! THIS IS YOUR NINE 'O CLOCK ALARM CALL!!” whap whap
They’re just resting.
WRS
I hear Corey Feldman’s looking for a pen pal.
Well, at least now we’ll have clean hogs!!!
I used to have a Ouja Board.
I just could not get past the Parker BrothersTM logo to even half way believe in it.
I kept picturing the mass production and thus, doubted that mine got enough VooDoo power to do much? :dubious:
We use ULF EMR