UFO Sightings

[Lflank]

Exactly. We believe that since we're the most advance species on earth and we created such wonders, that an advanced species would want to contact us. I believe that they would study us for an extended period of time, if they come here.

How do we tell whose "belief" is true? That is the essential core to the whole "debate".

Notice how often the word "believe" enters the discussion. Which exactly illustrates my point. This whole discussion is religious in nature, not scientific. it's about "beliefs", not about evidence. That is precisely the difference between "science" and "pseudoscience".

Science doesn't care about what anyone "believes". Science only cares about testable repeatable independently-verifiable evidence and data--and pseudoscience doesn't have any. What pseudoscience does have is belief--lots of it. Whether it's people who say they have seen this or that, can't explain it or determine what it is, but "believe" that it's this or that, or "investigators" who "believe" that all the unconfirmable stories actually demonstrate something. And then we get to hear all their "beliefs" about what the unknowable space aliens might or might not be doing.

It's no different than medieval scholars debating the nature of the gods, or the characteristics of angels or demons. And no more helpful to anyone.

It's the most important difference between the reality-based community and the faith-based community. The reality-based community talks about what it can (or can't) measure. The faith-based community talks about what it "believes".

And what they "believe" simply doesn't matter. It's no more infallible or better than what anyone else "believes". People "believe" a dozen different things, and there's simply no way to tell whose "beliefs" are true and whose are not. One holds one's "beliefs" solely and only by faith.

That's why "belief" is useless to science.

 

[Lflank]

i feel like i am taking crazy pills! i want to jump in, but what can i say that Lflank can't say better?.... carry on.

I find it sad what is happening within the US. We have surrendered to the whole idea that reality is whatever we want it to be, that science is just an opinion no better than any other opinion, and that we can pick and choose what parts of scientific reality we like and what parts we don't like. And this has led to all sorts of silly things that fly in the face of reality, like the "moon landing was faked!!!!" silliness, the "global warming is a liberal plot!!!" silliness, the "evolution is an atheist plot!!!" silliness, and all sorts of medieval monster, demon and ghost stories.

I can only comfort myself by remembering that reality is a stubborn thing, it doesn't go away, and, in the end, reality always wins.

 

[Lflank]

for anyone that truly to the depth of their soul, does not even see "aliens" possible, the possibility of a much more advanced race somewhere else in the universe, not possible?! you are mistaken.

I don't recall anyone saying that the existence of space aliens is impossible. Indeed, I have said here in this forum repeatedly that (1) life is just complicated chemistry, (2) there is nothing preventing that chemistry from happening all through the universe, so (3) the existence of intelligent technological life other than our own is virtually a statistical certainty.

That simply does not mean, however, that any of it has ever been here. I too have studied the subject for several decades--Indeed I was, in my younger days, a staunch UFO proponent. But the more I studied it, the less good reliable evidence I have seen from anyone indicating that intelligent ET life has ever been to earth. What I see instead is "reasoning" along the lines of (1) I want to believe, therefore I do, (2) anything we can't explain means my explanation is the right one, and (3) anyone who disagrees with my belief is just a close-minded heretic.

In other words, everything I have seen from UFOlogists has been religious in nature, not scientific. Their favorite word, mentioned hundreds of times in every one of their books, is "believe".

In the reality-based world of science, by contrast, the word "believe" never appears, because what anyone "believes" simply doesn't matter. Science only cares about independently-verifiable measurable and testable data and evidence. And UFOlogists have none. All they have is "belief".

The UFOlogists may indeed be, possibly, entirely totally absolutely correct--space aliens may have been visiting us for thousands of years. But they offer absolutely no independent evidence or data that this is so. Only their "belief".

 

[Elderpred13]

I wish they would land in New Jersey, and abduct our ******* governor.

 

[Lflank]

I wish they would land in New Jersey, and abduct our ******* governor.

Our Florida ******* governor probably tops yours--he was CEO of a health care company that has been charged with defrauding Medicare and Medicaid of millions of dollars. He declared in his defense that he "didn't know what was going on"--which makes him either the most incompetent CEO ever in the history of American business, or a flat-out liar. And in either case, he doesn't belong in the governor's mansion.

But then his opponent in the election wasn't a shining jewel either--she was formerly the state's chief financial officer who sunk several million of the state's pension fund into a land deal in New York that fell through and lost all the money.

Great choice, huh.

It's why they call us "Flori-duhhhhh".

 

[Elderpred13]

Jeez, Florida is my birth state, (Miami). Seems like these kinds of idiots are the only ones who run for office. Who do we elect, Moe, Larry, or Curley? Sorry for jabbing the stooges.

 

[Hunterofthedark]

OMG I NEARLY SCREAMED WHEN I SAW ALL THOSE UFOS! IT WAS SO FREAKIN' SCARY!!!