Okay, I promised myself I wouldn't post in this thread but that lasted maybe 2 minutes.

Chrispycritters, that was my point.  Isn't that the tag line and the cornerstone of their show, that they are plumbers who investigate the paranormal?  Personally, I could care less what they did, what licenses they had or didn't have.  That wasn't the point.  I didn't watch them because they were plumbers.  It was the everyday man that explored the paranormal with the hope of explanation of experiences.  I realize saying service technicians does not sound as impressive as plumbers but, they have made such a big deal about being plumbers, when you find out that's not true, even technically, it is a problem.  Even in the repeats last night, I heard Grant make the pronouncement at the MacArthur house that he was a plumber and that was in March 2008.  So, what do I get from that knowing what I've discovered?  That when you make a statement like that and you have no license to make that claim, I cannot trust what you say from that point forward.  And, since this has been the basis for the continuing statements from J&G and others since the beginning, I cannot believe what they say.  They have to prove to me why I should.  But I know that is unreasonable to expect and will never be done because that is one of the statements on which they base their show.

Look, I know people call themselves a lot of things that they are not.  I'd like everyone to believe I'm a real blonde but…. (only my licensed hairdresser knows for sure).  But those people are not on tv, making public appearances, selling videos, DVDs, etc. under this premise.  You can bet if someone called themselves a plumber in RI, did work at someone's house or place of business, and there was a problem, there would be complaints filed and possible lawsuits filed so fast it would make your head spin.  That is why RI has complaint forms for this purpose and why they require plumbers to be licensed.  The fact that RR confirmed to the State they are not employed by RR in RI and the State confirmed no license for either (except an apprentice license for J pre-GH), is all I need to know.  I have no reason to disbelieve the State of Rhode Island.

My father always said you judge a man by his word and deeds.  That may be considered old fashioned values but that's how I was brought up and how I look at it.  Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

Thanks for hearing me out.  I'm not going to debate it because those are my opinions and everyone is free to make their own decisions and post their own comments.

Thanks Chrispy.

I found an article on another site that deals with Integrity: concerning TAPS, Ghost Hunters, Jason and Grant, et al.

I thought this paragraph said it well:

"No matter who we are or what we do in life, it is our integrity that makes us responsible, credible, dependable people. Once your integrity has been compromised, there is never a guarantee that you will ever really get it back. That is why it is imperative to maintain your integrity and to protect it at all costs. It is an extremely precious commodity and one that should be utilized in all of our day-to-day dealings, both private and professional."

http://tapsrevealed.yuku.com/topic/1103 

TAPS Revealed-Keeping an opened mind while rationally discussing the evidence.

lew7rch said:

I Have turned into an investigator in the past few weeks on the whole Taps thingI found this   http://bit.ly/FkfkL

Good work.  If you check out MovieDan's videos, he did one to the song "Lies" by the Buckinghams.  He did not fool around but went straight to the heart of Collargate.  MovieDan is rough around the edges sometimes, but he was a huge fan until the famous jacket pull.  He felt completely betrayed and his anger really comes through.  I believe he also does some paranormal investigating as well and that made him doubly angry at what he saw on the Live Show.

Hope you checked out our "Grant List" here which brings up a number of suspicious incidents.  There are also excellent debunks of some of the so-called evidence elsewhere on the internet. 

About the plumbing bit–it certainly is linked to the integrity of the show and the people in it.  The simple fact is that they are not registered as plumbers or apprentices in Rhode Island or Massachusetts (myself and others have checked.  It is a matter of public record so the public can check on any plumbers in the state). 

Now, Roto Rooter calls them plumbers and certainly goes along with the concept of the show.  So where does that leave us?  Did Jay and Grant have their names removed from RI's certification list when they garnered their fame?  Perhaps their licenses are inactive.  After all, I don't believe they will ever return to being plumbers anyway.  This is certainly a mystery to some of us.

Of course, this is a TV show.  The whole premise is that this pair of average guys who have a blue collar but prestigious profession and who also happen to be best friends embark on investigating hauntings.  (Just for the record, I don't look down on any profession.  From G man to scientist, they all contribute to making our society run smoothly and give us a very high standard of living.  Every cog in that wheel is important.  Look what happened in NYC when the trash collectors went on strike.  Only then did people come to appreciate their profession.)

"Plumbers by day, ghost hunters by night" is a great tag line and has an appealing sound to it.  It's a great premise as far as entertainment is concerned.  Alicat has expressed it very well in her post in this thread. Here we have people who could be your neighbors doing ghost investigations.  A huge percentage of the population are interested in hauntings; heck, I know I am and that's one of the reasons why this board exists.  Whoever thought of it, it works and works well.

Is it a dumb idea?  Of course not!  I can still remember the first promo I saw for GH.  Pure excitement.  It still, in its way, works quite well or the show would never have lasted this long.  I better wrap this up before I write a book but–

I keep telling myself they have to be plumbers in some capacity because it is half of the concept.  On the other hand, so far there is no evidence that they are, although again, there may be a good reason for that.   The truth is that we will probably never know.  But the whole show hinges on their supposed profession and yes, there is where the subject of integrity comes in. 

Believe it or not, part of me still wishes that all is above board.  But as a skeptic, I have to go with the evidence, and its simply not there for either side of the equation.