Joe Nickell explains why he investigates the paranormal, as opposed to merely pronouncing his skepticism of it. He talks about his training as a detective and why it was formative, along with his background in magic. He explains why field experience is so important to scientific paranormal investigation. He distinguishes between skepticism and debunking, and what results from each approach. He argues that the existence of the paranormal is not the only question to answer while conducting paranormal investigations. He explains why he continues investigating subjects he has already looked numerous times, such as ghosts, lake monsters and miracle claims, and why he spends time on the paranormal as opposed to other important topics. He talks about whether the supernatural