June 26, 2007

60 years of UFOs. I particularly enjoyed the Project Serpo reference; I'd never heard of it before.
  • The Serpo story makes a good read, but has logistical holes so big you could fly a UFO through them. It's worth noting that with the proliferation of image-capturing devices (cell phones, digital cameras, digital video cams, etc.) the number of credible images of UFOs have seemed to drop rather than increase. Humans seem to have a hard time grasping that we may indeed be all alone; since time immemorial we've been trying to come up with Neighbors, be they theistic or alien, to keep us company, even if they're only imaginary. BTW if we have been visited, I'm inclined to suspect it was by this guy,, and that it was Chuck Jones, and not Steven Spielberg, who knew about it.
  • The idea that proliferation of cameras should produce more pictures of UFOs (if they exist) is probably based on a false premise. Ignoring the fact that there are indeed quite a number of anomalous thingies caught on CCTV etc, and that they don't get very much reportage due to the mockery factor, there is also the issue of the 'gape' response. In the face of high strangeness, the urge is to gape in amazement, or run, rather than take a string of pix. It is also an interesting point that, in LA, despite the preponderance of CCTV & phonecams, only 1 drive by shooting has ever been caught on tape (at least this was the case up to a few years ago). Nobody questions that drive-bys actually happen quite a lot. There's also the fact that people don't look up very much. When you go about your daily business, how much time do you spend looking up? SERPO & other complete bogus fake stories about UFOs tend to, sadly, drown out the core of interesting & compelling evidence for the existance of 'something weird' up there. It's also in the nature of this phenomenon that it is baffling & elusory.
  • I love SERPO. Has that ever been the basis of a novel or a movie? I love the story. It would be great. They could use their clone army to invade/infiltrate earth in a sequel. I am so on this.
  • Well put, Chyren. I've actually seen some pretty weird sky phenomenon, being one who tends to look up quite a bit, yet I've never been persuaded that the source is extraterrestrial. Folks are getting pretty jaded, as vividly illustrated by this thread.
  • Well put, Chyren Oh right you're willing to accept the argument for alien life from a guy who's actually FROM THE MOON. Hello - conflict of interest much?
  • Had Spielberg died right after making CETK, that Serpo tale would have more weight. You know, like Kubrick after EWS. *adjusts tinfoil hat* They were then released into civilian life. That's the one thing I find most unbelievable of the whole story.
  • Yeah, I kinda wondered about that one myself... like they'd even be able to FUNCTION in "civilian life" after that. But if Chyren can function...
  • I can only function sexually.
  • But that may need testing.
  • quidnunc, get over here, I need gamahuching.
  • *hides, waiting for Gramma to arrive wielding the broom*
  • It's been too long since I've been probed! Welcome back, you little green freak.
  • This one's currently on my "most intriguing" list.
  • Spielberg did die right after filming Close Encounters of the Third Kind. You don't think that 1941 was a dramatic departure from his previous work? Spielberg died in 1978. Phil Jensendig, who was a childhood friend of Robert Zemeckis', was handpicked by the government to replace Spielberg as part of the undocumented McCartney Project. Jensendig had never directed a movie, and it showed with 1941. After 1941, people were wondering how a director who had made Jaws and Close Encounters could turn out such a piece of crap. So the goverment quickly teamed him with George Lucas (who the government killed shortly after the anti-Reagan Empire Strikes Back and was replaced by a director with far less talent than Jensendig) and Raiders of the Lost Ark was created. Jensendig was a quick student, however, and was soon directing some pretty good movies.
  • Nice story. Too bad it's complete otter bile. Otter bile, I say!
  • I remember that Phoenix thing, Nickdanger. Pretty creepy stuff. And bernockle, your explanation would account for 1941. Always scratched my head over that one, speaking of otter bile.
  • Why do these things flit about in America so often when Australia has so much more to offer? All those camels, brumbies, emus and kangaroos to mess about with, not to mention the Aussies themselves. We also got Pine Gap, Exmouth, stuff like that. It's a conspiracy i tell ya, another damned American conspiracy to sell their movies. The one about the Attack of The Giant Tomato. That was a burster.
  • Here you go, rotate180nth.
  • *swoops in on broom with flashing orange lights, cackles, swoops out again I didn't see a single oofoh when I was in New Mexico. Perhaps they were visiting relatives in Oz that week?
  • Oh, they're here. Come to my house on Thanksgiving.
  • In the face of high strangeness, the urge is to gape in amazement, or run, rather than take a string of pix. I dunno, if i had my camera and the Greys were parading around. I'd snap off shots like crazy. Pix of genuine greys! Can you imagine the $$$$? The proliferation of digicams really has led to more footage of weird sights in the sky. Like this little compilation for example. They're beautiful. They're eerie (especially the ones taken by the security cams). ...They're meteors.
  • Oh, and welcome back Chyren!
  • The proliferation of digital cameras and the ease of sophisticated photo editing have essentially cancelled each other out. It may be easier than ever to snap pictures of UFOs, but because it's also easier than ever to fake them, it will be that much more difficult to prove their authenticity.