The Danger of Dogma - August 2, 2017
So this show is in response to a short bit Peter Benard recorded after listening to our June 9th Show on Fiction and the Paranormal. Although he misquoted me a couple of times, overall his points were excellent, so this show is in response to his response. We clear up what he seems to have misunderstood, in case anyone else did as well, and then build off of the points he made. Overall, this show is about how to stay sane, and not get caught up in the beliefs these things create.
You can hear Peter's Bit Below, if you want to listen to that first. It is not necessary, but it will give you a better idea of where we are coming from as we go into this.
And here is the email Peter send us;
"I have a lot of respect for the older episodes of "Where Did The Road Go" but I think Seriah has become too involved with certain other people who are unconsciously intent on creating a new religion of Forteanism in which the majority of logical thought is labeled heresy.
"Pollutes the evidence pool" is to Forteans in 2017 what "Trump and Russia" is to MSNBC and CNN in 2017. It excites the cult members while making everyone else see you as completely batshit crazy.
Keel told me to NEVER BELIEVE ANYTHING ABOUT ANY OF THIS STUFF. Once you start believing anything, then YOU WILL GO INSANE.
Hence, my attraction to Andy Kaufman-style pranking, like Mullah Nasrudin, Robert Anton Wilson, and other heretics before me. To drive you SANE. If pranks make you ANGRY instead of making you LAUGH, then YOU are the one who most needs to be pranked. Pranksters pull pranks TO REMIND YOU THAT YOU BETTER STOP BELIEVING IN SHIT for the sake of your own sanity. If you're wondering if it's heretical to listen to FICTION, then you need to take a break and go listen to ANYTHING else for a while. Take a break. Watch a comedy. Go see a band play, man. Don't make up random fortean rules based on the limited thinking of the people who collect Bigfoot or UFO paraphernalia then beat yourself for sinning against these arbitrary and weird rules.
cough cough Blink 182 cough cough
If your first assumption is not ALWAYS that it was a prank, then you've become a cult member and a believer, and you have no ability to claim being involved in scientific inquiry. All of forteana is just a collection of stories. A collection of stories is not a "pool of evidence," it's FOLKLORE. Horror fiction is also essentially folklore. You ask if folklore is polluting folklore! That's not logical thought. Anyone who has read RAW knows that's only ghost words based on dogma instead of the reality(ies) in front of your nose.
You guys fret about how to be taken more seriously by people outside your little circle. If you ACTUALLY want to understand that, listening to my audio would be a good place to start. Or you can get angry at me for liking and respecting you enough to spill my guts for you. My next appearance in Boston I'm being lumped in with a Simpsons animator and a Grateful Dead t-shirt artist, nothing in my world is changed if you heed my words or not.
End of mansplanation"
I am joined by Wren Collier, Red Pill Junkie, and Adam Sayne as we discuss (as per a listener's suggestion) ExtraOrdinary: The Stan Romanek Story. A documentary that appeared recently on Netflix and other platforms. Stan's claims are generally considered to be quite suspect, and we take apart what is presented in this documentary...
In this episode of Masquerade Podcast with author and researcher Steph Young, we’re going to look at true stories of Time Travelers! and, the strange and creepy stories behind their appearances....!
The final part in this interview with Jenny Ashford. In this part we talk about violent poltergeists and demonic possession. We talk about The Bell Witch, The Black Mausoleum, The Warrens, and much more... We also get into some possible explanations for these cases.
For episode 11 we continue our talk about iron and the supernatural. This episode we focus on the blacksmith and the blacksmith’s role in folklore, magic, and as a liminal figure. We talk with author, powwow practitioner, and blacksmith, Cody Dickerson. We hear another story of a changeling and a boy taught to work iron by the faeries. Finally, we hear some traditional songs about the blacksmith.