After reading this thread and the FAQ from Bad Astronomer that someone referenced in that thread, i started wondering: how much do these folks actually believe their own claims? (Note: i’m taking it as a given that their claims are bogus; if you feel otherwise, the debate about that can occur in the above-referenced thread.)
Personally, i’ve met one person who claimed to have been abducted by aliens. She was a very sweet person, but (to my mind) clearly fell on the “crazy” side of the spectrum. I am convinced that she honestly believed she was abducted, and probably suffered from mild schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder, or both. She never sought to gain benefit (financial or emotional) from this claim, and didn’t even tell folks about it until they were fairly good friends.
Other people who make claims insisting on the existence of aliens seem to clearly fall on the “charlatan” side of the spectrum. I lump the Annunaki folks primarily in that category. They seem to have strong interest in convincing other folks in the veracity of their claims (e.g., they have books to sell, they gain some measure of fame, etc.). I could understand that some folks might think they actually believe their own nonsense, but my opinion differs.
Questions i have: How many of you on this board have met claimants of this sort? What was your estimation of them: crazy or charlatan? How many do you think fall in the middle of that spectrum (a little crazy, but also deceptive)? And do you think there are any people who don’t land on the spectrum i described, but actually have qualitatively different motivations?
(Note to mods: i put this in GD because that’s where the other thread is, and because i could foresee this becoming a debate. If you feel it’s better suited to IMHO, please feel free to move it.)
There is NO credible evidence that ANYONE has ever been abducted by “aliens”. No “abductee” has ever been found to exhibit symptoms of medical experimentation. The whole thing is fantasy, akin to tales of faireys,leprechauns, etc., in days gone by.
Read Philip Klass’ UFO Abductions: A Dangerous Game for an analysis of the situation by a noted UFO Skeptic:
Short answer: Some believe it. Some people seem to be using the story of UFO Aduction to get people to listen to them so they can get across their real message (of peace or whatever) across. some people are charlatans out for a buck. Some people seize on it 'cause they wanna believe and confabulate and make themselves feel special. It’s a mixed bag.
Did you even read the OP? He’s not asking whether there is any credibility to abduction stories. He states outright that he’s assuming all such stories to be false. He’s asking whether “abductees” and others who claim the existence of aliens are truly delusional (they really believe their fantasies are ‘real’), or liars (using their made-up stories for fame and financial gain).
Thanks, Cal! I’ll definitely check out the book. I’m curious if anyone besides me has any direct experience with abductee claimants or other alien conspiracy proponents. If so, what was your estimation of them?
Oh, and thanks, Tangent, for reiterating my point.
Yeah, well, a Roto-Rooter ET buttprobe will do that to a person, won’t it? Especially if administered by the Zeta Reticulian Greys! Them bugeyed bastards know how to lay the hurt on yo’ ass!
A currently popular explanation is that some “abductees” suffered extremely vivid and realistic hallucinations caused by temporal lobe seizures or waking dream states. Not “crazy” in the commonly used sense.
Not an abductee, but I knew someone who seriously believed that Planet X was coming and the Niburu crap and all that, quit his job to move somewhere on shield bedrock (Minnesota, I believe). He also believes that he doesn’t have to pay income tax, that the gold fringe around the American flag means we are living under martial law and something about the courts don’t have jurisdiction over citizens.
He’s spent a lot of money buying the books, tapes, and dvd’s.
Three of many idiot legal arguments, none of which has ever stood up in a court of law (unless you count those self-organized “common law courts.”) See also Posse Comitatus.
I had a friend who was in several bands who had alien abduction issues. He was crazy. He would always maintain that he’d been abducted by aliens. As he would get sicker, he would add specific details, like an implant in his thigh. Then I’m assuming he would have some sort of manic episode, as he would report that he’d been visited by the aliens, and they had shown him the glory of whatever it was, and that they were going to bring great things to humanity. It was at this point that the aliens would start attending his gigs. One drummer remarked laconically, “They could at least pay the cover, the pricks.” Then the aliens would observe him everywhere, and then he would decide that they weren’t benign at all, and would go into hiding, usually under a bridge. Eventually, he’d wind up in an institution, get reasonably sane, and start over. Even at his sanest, though, he would tell the most outrageous tall tales about his encounters with famous musicians.
http://www.netro.ca/disclosure/npccmenu.htm I was just surfing around the internet some time ago and came across a story. The government had lost a long drawn out law suit ssupressing a story. I was interested and came to that site. Why would they fight it. Theres nothing new here that I can see. I wish it were true. Then we could see us as neighbors on a 24 000 dia rock circling the galaxie and quit trying to blow it up.We are mpre alike than different yrt we are always killing each other.
Oh yeh. The crazies inhabit the UFO world so much, that if therer were truth you could never find it.
I’m with FiveYearLurker in that most of them want attention, and a relatively few are either crazy or confused.
I find it hilarious though that someone can start an OP about how crazy it is to believe in alien abductions with pretty much everyone agreeing, but if someone starts an OP on how crazy christians (or some other religious beliefs) are, poeple would start a flame fest.
As nutty as alien abductions sound they are orders of magnitude more likely than some of the religious ideas some of us take for gospel truth. Just one of this things that make me smirk.
Thanks for the possible third angle that i hadn’t considered (though, to my mind, a temporal lobe seizure or waking dream state implies a kind of temporary insanity, especially if it causes them to believe that events occurred in objective reality).
CalMeacham, i haven’t yet checked out the book you recommended, but i’m curious: does it discuss any of these medical issues as possible explanations for true believers?
That’s a pretty good shorthand method for discernment, and one that i frequently use myself. I think it does need some refinement, though, in that there could be liars out there who do it simply for the attention, or because they feel compelled to, but they don’t actually make any money.
