Scared to report UFO sighting due to lack of evidence?

I had a few encounters with UFO's and such in my lifetime. I Saying UFO, I'm not going to say Alien craft or anything without facts. However I have never taken a picture or Video of my experiences. There just never seams to be any recording device available at the time of the sighting. and what's real hard to believe is that one sighting lasted over 1/2 an hour in broad daylight, And i was in a 20 minute phone argument screaming at my friend with nice video camera to drive over who was 3 blocks away and instead of bringing the camera over he tried to find it in the sky and record it from his location, needless to say he couldn't find it, (it was really high up and my eyes were locked on it).and i had no cam of my own .This was the most frustrating moment of my life.
I had another experience tonight and yet again, no video/pics or anything! I wont get into detail, so i stay in context of my thread title. But lets just say what i saw tonight was terrifying! I'm still a little shook up.

The reason for this thread is to ponder on what % of people out there have witnessed UFO's and just do not report them due to lack of evidence and/or ridicule.
I could understand some important or famous person in fear of ridicule due to reporting a UFO. But Crap, I'm NOBODY, and I'm scared to report for the same reasons.
Now we all have heard %'s of people that believe and don't believe these phenomena exist. and its usually around 50%
I'm almost positive there are many people just like me, maybe even more people that have not reported UFO's than people who actually have.
i think there should be some kind of poll (if theres not one already) of people who experienced UFO's. not just the typical" believe or not".
so I'm asking people here, "Are you scared to report a UFO due to lack of evidence/ridicule?"
is there a thread or forum on ATS for sightings with no evidence? well theres nothing to debunk. But maybe some people are shook up over their experience and don't have people to talk to without causing an argument. maybe a place for people to just share stories? and possibly link pre existing videos to compare to their own sighting as i will demonstrate below..

for those interested in my first daytime sighting= i don't have my own video but theres one on the web thats not "similar" to what i saw,, it's "EXACTLY!" what i saw. it freaks me out when i even watch this video, i get flashbacks lol.
www.youtube.com...

take care all....the search for the truth continues......... Cutter/

in regards to your thread title it is a sad fact that because of WAYTOOSKEPTIC skeptics alot of true storys are being unherd out of fear of the entire first page of there thread bashing them. I realy thing ATS needs to realise why this site was made again, and i totally aggree with the reminder that springer made. people need to realise that if there going to be on ATS they need to at least give storys a chance, not unquestionly believe, just allow them to be innocent until proven guilty.

And not to double post but in regards to that video I really wonder how people can see so much evidence, this 10 minute long video thats undenyably not CGI'd and still be skeptic. Deny ignorance people. >.>

yes thanx, im glad u understand. funny thing is, i can mention UFO's that I have seen to a group of people at a wedding reception and not only spark conversation but hear about an hours worth of experiences from a few different people immediately afterward. and some of these people stories are more convincing than stories I've read online, and a look on their face more convincing than anyone I've witnessed in a UFO documentary/video.
these people didn't have video or pictures either, but they had a story/experience that was great to hear. Not only for the fact that they believe, but nice to hear they "know" they exist. there must be a lot of witnesses out there,,.

Everyone has seen a UFO atleast once in their lifetime. Unfortunatly, such UFO's are often times only Unidentified by the viewer or viewers, and completly identifiable by any military or commercial radar systems.
If your description of the UFO is simply a light flashing across the sky in ways that you believe no such aircraft of the Earth is possible of, it is quite possible that it is simply some form of secret military aircraft.
I am pretty sure that the world is much more advanced than we civilians are led to believe it is. We are kept in the stone age as the many companies producing technological advances would profit greatly by slowly introducing old tech with outrageous prices to the public, while still having newer tech to market in the coming years.
Earth may already be traveling the stars in interstellar crafts far more advanced than anything that is known to the public.

Good thread, flagged and starred .

You raise an excellent, excellent point in that most sightings probably aren't even reported due to lack of photo/video evidence, or lack of other witnesses.

I've only ever witnessed a real UFO sighting once in my life but once is all it takes to make you a believer. But without any evidence, what good would it do to tell anyone about it?

both video and photographic evidence have been degraded so much i don't think it really matters anymore if you have it or not, your still going to get people attacking you. good physical evidence would be great but it is so rare that the chances of uncovering it slim at best. and then, even if you have it, it probably won't convince many people.

my opinion, for what its worth (less than 2 cents i'ld wager) is that compelling eyewitness testament is far superior to video and photo evidence, and although in isolation it proves nothing, by sheer weight of numbers it will eventually put things beyond doubt.

Nice thread. Have a star.

I'd be more willing to talk about a sighting on here if I didn't have any footage of any sort. There's quite a simple reason for this insomuch as I don't think it would be dissected quite so much.

Posts I have read where someone is simply recounting and sharing an experience tend to be received very positively by the membership, who are generally interested and supportive of such events.

However, going back to the video/pic situation, I would be wary of posting anything I had because that's when people start to think that someone may be deliberately trying to pull a fast one, when things don't look right.

Then again, as I write this I'm thinking that I have seen recent thread where that hasn't happened because no-one appears to have a convoluted story to go with it. More a case of 'look what I got hold of, what do you think, folks?'

So, thinking a little more, if I videoed something, I would post it, admitting I don't know what it is and ask the membership to work with me on it.

I think we should talk about sightings and if people want to ridicule, let them.

If necessary, put in complaints and hit ignore, but definitely post about it.

That's what we're here for isn't it?

I'd venture to say up to 90% of real sightings don't get reported especially if it's just one observer (no-one to corroborate it) and no photographic evidence. At best these 90% of sightings might get discussed with friends over a few drinks at a later date.

I had a solo sighting in 1986 of a UFO (well it flew and I couldn't identify what is was) and never saw any reports of other witnesses to that event so just simply kept quiet about it until I'd seen a number of credible looking reports of the same sort of object over the years. Even if I had a piece of a UFO in the boot of the car and the pilot in the passenger seat I'd be hesitant to rush off to the local TV network with my story.

On the subject of photographic evidence:
To me it indicates an unnatural state of readiness for the event like having the right equipment set up in advance just right to capture it so naturally it warrants the most intense scrutiny. If I were to just happen to walk out the back I'd be highly unlikely to have a HD video camera set up ready to capture high quality audio/video of a once-in-a-lifetime sighting. At best you might get an under/over exposed, out of focus shaky image *if* I had a camera at hand *and* the presence of mind to actually pick my jaw up off the ground and start trying to shoot pictures.

reply to post by captain spalding


That video post was interesting and you say you saw that type of object?
Thing that annoys me is the use of digital zoom...I mean 800 X of digital on a 270k pixel camera isn't practical, imho. What I liked was the fact you could hear real time the puzzlement and excitement of the moment. Still enough of that.

Back to the thread title. I think inevitably that there will be sightings not reported...they probably outnumber the hoaxes!!! Personally, I am a huge sceptic, I know the mind can be tricked and isn't a perfect. I have seen, heard, smelt and felt things that I cannot explain. But I always accept that my mind may be "making it up".

I have spoke to people who have "seen things" and they seem genuine in their accounts. But you have the chance to question and ask for clarification..even drawings, or go to the scene and get a talk through. Here on ATS all you have is Bert Bloggs, someone we do not know telling us a story that may or may not be true. I am not getting at the OP here!!!

I think there may be value in raising cases with only eyewitness accounts but sceptics like me probably wouldn't accept it. There again if it is posted as is, then the sceptics, like me, will read it and either ignore the post or state, interesting story, wheres the proof? However, it could be that such a post gives someone else a "heads up", a pre-warning of a particular UFOs behaviour, that could be beneficial on a future encounter.

For example, the UFO you mention and the one in the vid were around long enough to get a camera (if you have one, buddy, I hope your friend was a real good friend...and remains so...I would be peeved in the very least if mine done that!!). Now without that knowledge I would probably just be looking out the window watching, knowing the UFO is gonna be gone any second. But armed with the information I now have, I know I will have time to get a camera!! Because, we got a video of what it looks like and two eyewitness accounts saying that its gonna be around long enough to film!!

It is bad enough when there is a dodgy video and the arguments go on for days over the authenticity of the video...and still go on when its proven fake

I think really we are at a stage where no one piece of "evidence" will prove anything. Proof will come from a variety of sources, over a period of time, I believe. So really an eyewitness is probably as valuable a piece of information as the next piece.

I see a parallel with the crime statistics in the UK. We know not everyone reports crime. The only reason we mention a car break-in is to get a number for the insurance. So we get an inaccurate picture of how safe it is in parts of the UK. So assumably budget and resources are based on recorded figures..so things get worse, because no-one really knows whats going on. So likewise, maybe the UFO phenomena is bigger than we discern it to be, because not all of it is reported?

I think though, there is an element of bravery needed by some, in order to report such occurrences. Employers and colleagues thinking you mentally unstable, the wife thinking you made up your "lost time" story to cover up an office fling. Sadly the only answer is to make these reporting more the norm...so there the problem...starting it off""

It must be difficult seeing something and feel unable to tell anyone. But you do raise and interesting point, how much is being missed?

I am curious though as to what was terrifying about your latest sighting?

How bizarre! That footage you posted was discussed here in ATS, I remember because it goes on forever and the man who shot it came to ATS to discuss it, he got alot of flack for not having a tripod lol I was only thinking about this footage (last night!) being one of the few that I believe isnt a hoax and it definetly a UFO.

We had decent length footage, location and the man who shot it came here to discuss it, there were no holes in his story and if anyone had a question he answered well.

I remember years ago, at Glastonbury, asking if people have seen a UFO. One person said, "I dont believe in UFO's but I saw..." and she told us what (cigar shape) and where (Luton) but the best bit was how she described it as being "wrong" looking out of place, unnatural to her sense of normality. She wasnt a believer at all but had this stunning experience. How I would love to have such a perceptual shift in seeing! Anyway, heres the ATS link to the discussion of the video you posted.

I whitnessed a UFO a few years ago that I've never really talked about, and this is the first time I've ever mentioned it anywhere online...

I saw it near the hill on the downside of the Conejo Grade in Ventura County California. The object was a cylinder oriented vertically. The lower half was wide and the upper half was a bit narrower. It was too small to be a conventional aircraft, and seemed more probe like to me. I saw it in the month of November, and to my knowledge for the past few years previously a UFO was spotted in roughly the same area. I tried to find a video of it which is supposed to exist, but was never able to. From what I remember they something symiler coming out of a larger craft... It was in fact because of the previous years sightings that I was looking at the time I saw it...

I tried to get off the freeway to go find it, but by the time I got back to a spot where it was visible, it was gone and I did see a blimp. I know it wasn't the blimp I saw, however, as I did see the blimp on the back side of the hill before I went over it. When I explained this to a couple friends, they laughed and said it must have been the blimp... I was certain it was not, but this is pretty much what kept me quiet about it... Its hard to convince people that I saw an unusual object around the same time a blimp was in the area...

[edit on 8/23/2007 by bobbyt]

wow, nice stories and replies fellas,, thanx,, now i don't feel so alone.

reply to post by captain spalding

for those interested in my first daytime sighting= i don't have my own video but theres one on the web thats not "similar" to what i saw,, it's "EXACTLY!" what i saw. it freaks me out when i even watch this video, i get flashbacks lol.
www.youtube.com...

Not to derail this, but I have not seen this video before. It is something recorded in camera for sure, and has NO appearance of doctoring. I'm a skeptic, thus look for mundane explanations for everything (lol) but anybody have any thoughts on this one? It's the regular crappy shaky, blurry, useless UFO video that you get on "screwtube" and the internet every day, but since it was obviously filmed "in camera" what do you think it was?

Its been 12 years now since my sighting, ufo, and alien lifeform, which im so happy to know the truth, I feel so lucky, but I was careful and kept part 2 of the sighting secret even on nuforc. Why because its a situation where its okay to talk to a close friend about, but going public is maybe not always a good idea. I dont want the debunkers who do not deserve that information to even have that information, that way they remain naive. I guess it depends on the type of sighting and what happens. Im happy with my simple life and dont want money, only knowledge interests me, so no thanks its going to remain secret till I die, I made that promise to myself the night of the sighting, so I guess the debunkers can all go fly a kite now, some people do deserve important information, but definately not blurted out online, for the general public to see, its not a question of being scared, but more a question of being clever and taking the time to understand your sighting in the case of the real alien sightings, and your absolutely sure its alien what you saw. Get the information to the right people, some secrets must remain secret.

[edit on 25-8-2007 by widukindHH15gran]

From what I have seen here on ATS in the last 4 years, I agree with more_serotonin_pls.

The common reports of sightings are met with just a common series of questions, but, unless the report has some bizarre or unusual detail, it is treated with a low level of scepticism, at least it does not get the "treatment" that photos or videos get.

So, to anyone reading this thread, I say:

Do not be afraid of sharing your sightings (UFO or otherwise) with other people here on ATS, as bad as it sometimes looks, most people here will treat you with fairness.

If you feel as if you saw something you should report it to NUFORC they take reports and you can also see if any other sighting occurred in your area.