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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsObsession with Aliens ..
Okay. Will someone please explain to me, why are a few, otherwise very intelligent people, completely obsessed with the notion of Aliens among our midst? By that I mean Aliens from other planets/galaxy's.. you know from "out there" , in space.
I had a friend, a music partner and former housemate which we shared so much in common, except this one thing. She'd attempt to share video documentaries, articles and books and such, which I would always have to explain to her that it isn't on my list of "interesting topics". On occasion, I would let her know that my attitude could be likened to that whether or not there is a god. There might be one, but in the end it didn't really matter what I believed, if it existed or not. It has no bearing on my life one way or the other. Same with Aliens, there might be I can't say with absolute certainty one way or the other, but it doesn't really matter if the President or Congress critters are really Aliens or not, because as Humans they suck as a rule, what difference does it make?
But for reasons I can't fathom, she's obsessed and even donates money to organizations that are about this topic. It's unbelievable. We haven't been friends for coming on a year now. There was an occasion that I just burst out laughing when she attempted to share an Alien 'factoid' with me.
I think that might have hurt her feelings although she didn't say anything about it at the time, but then again it turns out there was a lot more she didn't share with me I learned later.
We're still "friends" on fb, and I saw a notification that she "liked" a link that I wasn't familiar with.
I see they're soliciting money. Apart from feeling sorry for my former friend, I'm just flummoxed as to why on earth anyone has this obsession. You know, a passing curiosity is totally understandable. After all, I have to say that's it likely there are other intelligent life forms "out there" .. I don't believe life on earth, is all there is and that we're the only "chosen" ones.
But, beyond that passing curiosity and casual theorizing, I don't get the obsession.
What IS that about?
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Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)He would travel to UFO conventions as often as possible (I don't know if these are as common in the age of the Internet, where people can share their "findings" freely with other believers). I don't get the obsession, either.
I do think that in a universe of multi-billions of galaxies, the odds are that millions or billions of planets have the right combination of conditions to support life, and of these, a good percentage would support advanced life forms that have evolved over billions of years. However, I highly doubt any of these beings have traveled to Earth in the past, oh, several thousand years.
2banon
(7,321 posts)Because I agree with you, a universe of billions of galaxies, how myopic must we be to believe we're the only "intelligent life" in existence? Given that, I could fathom a possibility of "visits" in our current times.. however until I come "face to face" with one, I'm not going to be too concerned. And if they are able to take on "human" forms, there's not a whole lot we're going to be able to do about that either. But the obsession is just plain over the top. It's similar to talking to a fundy, imo.
LiberalEsto
(22,845 posts)People who are terrified of climate change, the world's economy and the other problems plaguing humanity sometimes need to feel that some external force will magically save them. Things like aliens, gods, guns, the Tea Party, whatever.
Personally I'd be more concerned that the aliens might eat us.
Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(135,628 posts)Here on earth the more technologically advanced groups have usually exploited the indigenous populations.
Xyzse
(8,217 posts)If it makes them happy and they are still a productive member of society, particularly if they are not hurting anyone, I say, more power to them!
2banon
(7,321 posts)matter.. just puzzled by it. Once someone starts engaging in "Alien" talk, it sort of feels like talking about the bible, and I have to leave the room, quietly shaking my head.
Xyzse
(8,217 posts)See, I actually kinda like it in a way. Things that animate people and make them passionate about things, even if it may be wrong.
As long as it is not self-destructive I tend to be good with it, especially if they don't try to involve me in it too much.
I even like LARPers.
gvstn
(2,805 posts)I liken it to a kid that gets into model planes. In and of itself it isn't productive but they might learn about the basics putting a model together. How much glue is too much, or that thin coatings of paint are better than thick ones. They may learn some factoids about different aspects of aviation or aerodynamics. Gets their brains firing in different ways that can be used later.
People obsessed with aliens might similarly gain a greater grasp of the hugeness of the cosmos than your average person. They may understand more about propulsion or star/planet formation because of their hobby. These little factoids could help them problem solve at work because of their slightly different perspective.
Don't forget most of the little gadgets we all possess now were envisioned years ago on Star Trek. Seems like a lot of today's "concept" people took those ideas to heart as kids and are trying to bring them into reality.
As far as the Ancient Alien crowd there I have to agree with you completely. That stuff does wear on me. It seems that some people can't accept the possibility that a great leader and a great genius could work together to create an awesome architectural feat unless it happened in the past few hundred years.
aint_no_life_nowhere
(21,925 posts)I find the notion of aliens fun although I don't think about them that often. I grew up as a little kid in the 1950s seeing flying saucer movies in the movie theaters all the time (Invaders From Mars, Earth Vs. the Flying Saucers, It Came From Outer Space, The Day The Earth Stood Still, The Thing From Another World, Forbidden Planet, etc. etc.).
But some very impressive people have taken the question of aliens very seriously and have dedicated significant portions of their lives to this, like Jacques Vallee, J. Allen Hyneck, and John Mack. Whether they are real in the sense we know reality or just a social phenomenon and mass hallucination, it's kind of interesting in my opinion. I wouldn't put anyone down for simply belonging to an organization devoted to UFO study as, if the many many anecdotes throughout the world of alien abduction or close encounters were true, it would probably constitute one of the greatest revelations in human history. That possibility alone can be very compelling to some and perhaps account for some obsessiveness on the subject.
uriel1972
(4,261 posts)...because there's bugger all down here on Earth.
-Eric Idle
2banon
(7,321 posts)
lovemydog
(11,833 posts)to pass the time. It doesn't require much more deep thought about it. Some people like knitting. Some like football, sex, drinking or whatever. Ask her in a friendly way. I once asked a friend about his love of science fiction. He got me really excited about it, in that he explained that it can address issues of social and political difficulties in ways that are both entertaining and thought provoking. I still prefer real history and non-fiction, but at least I understand better why he and his girlfriend are so into it.
2banon
(7,321 posts)There's some sort of inexplicable button in my brain that wants to shut down the subject in conversation, when it's treated in a serious way..pretty much the same reaction I have when folks start talking about scriptures. In a sense there's a similar theme, I think.
But I get the heeby jeebies when she goes there, I think because she accepts every story, whether it's abductions or whatever, as absolutely true, no question. When I see that level of "belief", it just leaves me scratching my head and I'm compelled to sort of walk away.
DebJ
(7,699 posts)they want to pass on to you, and get angry when you don't, or are not interested. I know two people like that.
It is like the fundies.
LongTomH
(8,636 posts)Ronnie had aliens on the brain! He started his political career talking about 'welfare queens' driving Cadillacs around Harlem. Near the end of his second term, he was talking about the nations of the world joining together to fight an alien invasion! At this point, he was in the early stages of the Alzheimer's that eventually killed him. The story goes that his handlers had to edit his speeches to keep him from talking about them incessantly.
When Steven Spielberg was at the White House for a screening of his Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Reagan stopped him on the way out for a 'If you knew what I know' spiel.
Reagan also claimed to have seen UFO's on 2 different occasions, as Governor of California.
mackerel
(4,412 posts)and assumes he was sent here from elsewhere.
2banon
(7,321 posts)is your friend dealing with other issues, that might sort of reinforce that sense of himself?
mackerel
(4,412 posts)2banon
(7,321 posts)An anarchist skeptic friend post this very interesting article on his fb wall referred to as the Fermi Paradox.
It's a long read and I didn't get through all of it yet, but it's a great 'one stop' article for all your 'intelligent alien life theories'.
I really like this bit by Michio Kaku:
Lets say we have an ant hill in the middle of the forest. And right next to the ant hill, they’re building a ten-lane super-highway. And the question is “Would the ants be able to understand what a ten-lane super-highway is? Would the ants be able to understand the technology and the intentions of the beings building the highway next to them?
So it’s not that we can’t pick up the signals from Planet X using our technology, it’s that we can’t even comprehend what the beings from Planet X are or what they’re trying to do. It’s so beyond us that even if they really wanted to enlighten us, it would be like trying to teach ants about the internet.