I think that 'undeniable proof' is subjective. What for some might be unmistakable evidence would be nothing but a hoax to others. We may or may not know the truth behind the legends, but, in the end, it's not the veracity of the myth that gives them allure, it's the romanticism of the legend that appeals to the people.
No- it's not all that subjective. You roll me in the corpse of a bigfoot, or have a Loch Ness monster wash up on shore- that's pretty solid damn proof those exist. That last bigfoot hoax was so transparent, but "real" news media covered it anyway. But when you have guys who find a bigfoot body, but then won't let ANYONE touch it but some whackadoo who hasn't done anything but use other peoples' money to hunt bigfoot for almost 40 years, that raises red flags, eh? When real biologists got ahold of it? Possum, fake fur, and a halloween mask.
I agree with the romanticism, and that's just it- the stories and legends, and the idea, are often way better than the real thing.
I've seen that house on two different paranormal shows on the Travel Channel. One of them even had a psychic that had to leave without concluding her investigation because she felt oppressed by the malevolent spirits of the house. Whether or not that's true, I'm not gonna call bullshit until I've experienced it firsthand.
OK, first of all, paranormal shows on the travel channel (and every other channel) are not scientific documentaries. They need what all other TV shows need- ratings. They are written and played for drama, so that they will be exciting, and bring viewers. Again- if it was so easy to gather all this evidence that these frauds on these shows do- no one would refute the existence of ghosts, etc.
And second.... oh lord.... psychics. I really don't have the finger endurance right now to fully express my opinion of these folks. I've been to that house, I've met numerous people who lived in the house. I've offered to bring a dozen people with cameras to stay in that house.
They are so afraid someone will hurt their tourism by not experiencing the "haunting" that almost none of the previous owners/tenants have experienced. Why do you think that house (In Villisca, IA) keeps ending up on those shows? They WANT people to come look at it, and shit- if a psychic got freaked out in there, it must be pretty haunted, eh?
Again, I'm not trying to beat down the imagination, or the wonder of the supernatural, but people seem so willing and quick to ascribe anything even remotely weird a a haunted, possessed, other-worldly, or supernatural status, and often times, there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for these things. The white orbs photographed in dark rooms? No- not ghosts. Dust, illuminated by a camera flash. A psychic freaked out by malevolent spirits in a house? Good for ratings and tourism, and that's about it.
I would LOVE to be proven wrong. I have, for a long time, wanted to take a movie-making crew, and our cameras, sleeping bags, and some twizzlers, and just tour reputedly haunted places. I WANT to see these ghosts, ghouls, etc. I want them to be real, and scare the shit out of me. But- alas, whenever you show up to these places, it's not the right day, or it only happens when.... or the spirits don't appear when blah blah blah.
Oh, and we've been turned down for NINE places, because we don't want to bring a bunch of phony equipment to substantiate supernatural claims. We just want to do a documentary about haunted places in the US. :dunno: