The existence of Marcus is a claim so extraordinary that (meaning no offense) I’d really have to know Meenie better before I could take at face value that she believes it, and then I’d have to go from there. I will say however that this thread makes me regret some of the probably gratuitous cracks I’ve made about the beliefs (at least the experience based beliefs) of others. The skepticism/doubt of some people as to the existence of the “paranormal” based on the facts that 1- they haven’t personally experienced it 2- it doesn’t fit the laws of Physics or observed data is something I find logical, understandable, even admirable to some extent, but the absolutely refusal to even consider it is POSSIBLE
that people aren’t just imagining things (or there wasn’t some other obvious explanation they just were too daft or gullible or daft to comprehend) is galling.
While skepticism is essential for true knowledge to advance, so is the ability to admit what you know is not all there is and may not even be right.
The Ptolemaic system explained every observable phenomena of the heavens for more than a millennium and you could predict eclipses by it. During the American Civil War most physicians, highly trained and intelligent and well educated, believed in the miasma theory of disease; some actually scoffed at the theory of germs in scholarly papers until after Pasteur. Walk outside at night and you’ll see the light from stars that may not even exist anymore, or events (that particular light) that is at very least several years old and in some cases an event that predates the existence of humans. Such a basic and commonplace thing as human conception only began to be understand after the microscope (and then had some whopping errors) and what every school child knows today about sperm and egg were only known after the late Victorian era.
The Lemba of South Africa (and Zimbabwe) were considered quaint and silly by many for stating, even though they’re black and culturally resemble their neighbors, that they descend from Israelites. Obviously, this was something worked into their mythology after encountering missionaries. Odd, though, that their DNA also adapted to the mythology and is semitic in origin (same patrilineal markers as are found in the Kohanim even). String theory is not falsifiable at all and suggests taht there are many dimensions of the universe and all time is happening at once, and yet it’s respected as a theory.
Point of the above isn’t that all old wives tales are true (the majority are probably wrong) or that science has had some whopping errors and thus isn’t valid (those errors in fact are what keep it valid) or that ‘quantum theory is loopy and some brilliant people hold it as true thus ghosts which are also loopy must be true’, but that
-our knowledge of the physical world is incomplete (and things we have only learned to be true about in the past century indicate its strangeness)
-anecdotal evidence can sometimes be confirmed by later technologies
-the most brilliant people alive using the best information and the best logic can be dead wrong
-other things, but you get the point and I’m making no converts so
if you don’t want to believe in ghosts that’s fine. I understand your reasons and admit I probably wouldn’t believe in them myself if I hadn’t had odd experiences. I don’t believe in reincarnation, crystal power, psychics, or the supernatural teachings of most organized religions for example,
However, I would never flat out state that “there is no such thing as a psychic or as reincarnation, there is no such thing as a divine being or angels, and anybody who believes there is can only be called an idiot”. I don’t know for certain and neither do you. There’s a difference in keeping your bullshit detector on standby and just saying “bullshit” to anything that’s not 100% proven.
Not said well, I’m afraid, but the concise version is “Until claims of the paranormal are absolutely disproven I don’t know and neither do you”.
Until recently, I was actually engaged (unfortunately, she broke it off for reasons she would not explain) to a woman who did not even know Marcus existed. He respects my privacy when I have dates or intimate moments with others, though, of course, as my friend, we talk about my relationships when I’m not actually on a date or something. The only exception to this is when my best friend is around, because he’s interested in Marcus so Marcus will hang out with us sometimes when asked.
