Does anybody REALLY want to solve the mystery or do people want to stand around screaming "look at that" every 30 seconds?

How about not posting videos if there is not clearly a real person (claimant) claiming to have witnessed said event?

How about encouraging people NOT to report a sighting when its something very insignificant like just a light? The point of even tracking or cataloging sightings is to find an answer is it not?

The more instances of shadows or little lights that get reported and get obsessed over, the more it adds to the noise, and thus reduces the signal to noise ratio.

Additionally these reporting sites need to do a better job of identification. There should be a really good centralized database with code names for specific object types. You have to assume that people are seeing the same object in repetition. All of these sites assume that every single person has seen a unique object that nobody else has seen or will see again. That's completely ridiculous.

As long as there is no correlation of origin, there will never be an answer to "what was that"?

Originally posted by alexander_delta
How about encouraging people NOT to report a sighting when its something very insignificant like just a light?

Because so many people on here have reported seeing "just a light" there is a growing understanding that there is really is something incredible about theses sightings. People should be encouraged to report there sightings. All the evidence points to something quite marvellous going on in our skies. What if the scribes had never recorded the Star of Bethlehem? All sighting reports add weight to the reality of ufo orbs in our sky

Originally posted by ufoorbhunter

Originally posted by alexander_delta
How about encouraging people NOT to report a sighting when its something very insignificant like just a light?

Because so many people on here have reported seeing "just a light" there is a growing understanding that there is really is something incredible about theses sightings. People should be encouraged to report there sightings. All the evidence points to something quite marvellous going on in our skies. What if the scribes had never recorded the Star of Bethlehem? All sighting reports add weight to the reality of ufo orbs in our sky

Because tens of thousands lights on commercial liners cross the skies every night. If you really want people to be screaming "look at that" on here for the next 50 years and not have a definitive answer, that is the most sure fire way to do it.

There are way too many posts to videos or pictures that offer no scientific value. If you aren't looking for scientific value then you may as well concede that you don't really want to find answers.

The internet has increased the signal to noise ratio of this subject beyond repair. Add in many folk's need to religiously believe in aliens, or the myriad "ufologist" idiots running around and you have a laughable subject that is going nowhere fast.

And then you have the overwhelming absence of logic, reason and most of all common sense.

Originally posted by alexander_delta

Originally posted by ufoorbhunter

Originally posted by alexander_delta
How about encouraging people NOT to report a sighting when its something very insignificant like just a light?

Because so many people on here have reported seeing "just a light" there is a growing understanding that there is really is something incredible about theses sightings. People should be encouraged to report there sightings. All the evidence points to something quite marvellous going on in our skies. What if the scribes had never recorded the Star of Bethlehem? All sighting reports add weight to the reality of ufo orbs in our sky

Because tens of thousands lights on commercial liners cross the skies every night. If you really want people to be screaming "look at that" on here for the next 50 years and not have a definitive answer, that is the most sure fire way to do it.

You sound like someone who habitually lends their decision-making process over to authority figures (specifically, academics, scientists, historians, archeologists, biologists, professors, teachers, etc.) and blindly swallow what they present as "official" without the slightest hint of doubt or question, because you have been brainwashed (subtly) into believing that modern science stands for all-things rational & reasonable. You've been indoctrinated so thoroughly that you claim you need hard, verifiable evidence to believe ithat extraterrestrials are real, but you don't need it to believe the word of a scientist! Let me tell you, your one and only true source of authority is your intuition, not anyone or anything else. Your intuition is what should be deciding the authenticity of a given piece of evidence, not an academic or a scientist.




[edit on 15-3-2010 by hermantinkly]

Originally posted by alexander_delta
Does anybody REALLY want to solve the mystery or do people want to stand around screaming "look at that" every 30 seconds?

I am under the impression that there are many people who want to solve the mystery. I'm not privileged to know the folks who stand around screaming "look at that" every 30 seconds. However, I do believe it is a natural reaction steeped in the human condition to be in awe of the things we cannot understand, whether or not there lies a natural explanation.

How about not posting videos if there is not clearly a real person (claimant) claiming to have witnessed said event?

I hear what you are saying. I too tire of poor videos (most of them). However, in examining evidence, a serious researcher will tolerate the good and the bad if only to get a clearer picture---not necessarily "the" answer.

How about encouraging people NOT to report a sighting when its something very insignificant like just a light? The point of even tracking or cataloging sightings is to find an answer is it not?

I think people have enough encouragement to not report sightings. In fact, we should be doing just the opposite of what you propose: we should be encouraging people to report everything they see in the skies they can't understand; since the track records on good, solid UFO report investigations shows that via an independent source, 75% or more of these reports can be easily explained.

Also, a light, as has happened in many cases you must be aware of, can turn out to be quite unusual and significant.

The more instances of shadows or little lights that get reported and get obsessed over, the more it adds to the noise, and thus reduces the signal to noise ratio.

I agree, there is no need to obsess over shadows and little lights. However, that doesn't mean they should be ignored. Report them, document them, and classify them as insignificant. That at least will give us a better context, and possibly some insight into the psychology of the phenomenon.

Additionally these reporting sites need to do a better job of identification. There should be a really good centralized database with code names for specific object types. You have to assume that people are seeing the same object in repetition. All of these sites assume that every single person has seen a unique object that nobody else has seen or will see again. That's completely ridiculous.

Which sites are you referring to here? There is a decent, centralized database out there with mostly very insignificant sightings. But from time to time, they get a real interesting sighting. MUFON has a good, searcheable database; possibly MUFON is one of those you are disappointed with.

In addition, I would assume that it would be best to give the witness a rap sheet of specific questions designed to bring out the most complete set of information; rather than pigeon-holing a person into starting from a specific shape, let them decide, paint it out across a blank canvass, and THEN compare their stories with the others to search for correlation.

As long as there is no correlation of origin, there will never be an answer to "what was that"?

Yes. This is what we're all waiting for. The Landing on the White House Lawn. However, for the time being, we have a handful of jagged pieces of the puzzle; from the picture emerging we can at least begin to make some inferences, without coming to a conclusion before a true conclusion can be reached.

-Eleph

I agree with what Alexander-Delta is proposing.
With a UFO report nearly every 5 minutes of everyday, worldwide, it's not really a question of "is there" anymore. It should be a "what is" that becomes a "here goes x"...
If there are alien bases on Earth, the said aliens are more than likely to travel alongside the same routes, and we could tell over time, with all the implications it means.

More importantly, we shouldn't debate and argue over what should be collected. A study group should be formed to try and catalog the sightings following strict rules with a screening for hoaxes and another folder for "unverifiable possible hoaxes", just in case, instead of automatically discarding info. I think both sides here have interesting and valid points of view, but ultimately, we should aim to really measure what is going on instead of relying uniquely on TPTB's saying and groups like MUFON and all which are lead by agents of TPTB.

And since no one in an official position is reliable to the eyes of many here, let's do like them and use the potentiality of ATS's minds and let's do the work ourselves.

I know some here are more than able in sophisticated fields so it would be easy to form a group of individuals from "every" realm of the human society, allowing not only a specialized but also holistic view of the phenomenon.

'nuff said. g'night.

I beleive anything that cant be readily explained by the person having the experience, should be reported. If it turns out to be nothing then we all learn something.

If it cant be explained then again we all learn something. If you dont report it and therefor miss out on crucial input from people who have more experience. You'll always go on wondering if what you saw was something or not. Missing out on the oppotunity to get some insight on what constitutes a true UFO compared to these "strange lights" which will most likely be down to air craft, but not always.

Originally posted by KrypticCriminal

I beleive anything that cant be readily explained by the person having the experience, should be reported. If it turns out to be nothing then we all learn something.

If it cant be explained then again we all learn something. If you dont report it and therefor miss out on crucial input from people who have more experience. You'll always go on wondering if what you saw was something or not. Missing out on the oppotunity to get some insight on what constitutes a true UFO compared to these "strange lights" which will most likely be down to air craft, but not always.

That just isn't a reasonable assumption. There are thousands of "I just wanted to see if you guys could figure it out" posts.

Every claim needs to have a person making that claim responsible for it. No more "some guy took a pic or a vid". No more silly lights pics with a "sorry, you figured me out". Where are the repercussions for this ridiculous behavior?

Most of the "debunkers" (who don't actually debunk anything) will never believe in the ET origins of UFOs. If it's a blurry video that doesn't prove anything. If it's a shaky video that doesn't prove anything. If it's a crystal clear video then it must be CGI. If the camera is on a tripod it must be staged. Why not just admit that if a UFO landed in your front yard and a little green guy jumped out offering to shake your hand, your first thought would be: "This must be a midget in a Halloween costume."

There's nothing wrong with being close-minded, any more than there's anything wrong with having an overactive imagination, just be honest about it. Most of the debunkers who participate in UFO threads derive pleasure from ridiculing other people. That's the ONLY reason they participate. So perhaps it's you who should refrain from posting.

Of course, when it comes to blatant hoax videos I feel no sympathy for their creators and, unfortunately, as much as I dislike most debunkers, people with overactive imaginations aren't nearly as good at exposing such fraud. You can NEVER have too much (good) information though.