the presence of extra-terrestrials and mass panic

[Eddi]

Some say that one of the reasons for governments not telling everyone about the presence of extra-terrestrials on this planet is that such a revelation would cause mass panic

(assuming there is such a presence but I think it is possible)

Would it though????

I don't think it would

The media has been softening us up for decades, anyway

Intelligent life on other planets is hardly a far-out radical notion, the idea is old hat

And even if it did cause mass panic I don't think it would last forever, it would calm down, people cannot be in a state of panic indefinitely, they would eventually snap out of it

It may make people re-think their religions though......

However: if the truth makes people re-think their religions then how is that bad??????

If your religion would be destroyed by knowing about aliens then maybe it would be good for it to be destroyed??????

Personally it wouldn't so much as dent my own beliefs

But whether being known by extra-terrestrials is good or bad is of course a different question, but they haven't wiped us out yet, which I think is promising

Anyway, there very well may not be any anyway..........

 

[Twilight Hue]

Some say that one of the reasons for governments not telling everyone about the presence of extra-terrestrials on this planet is that such a revelation would cause mass panic

(assuming there is such a presence but I think it is possible)

Would it though????

I don't think it would

The media has been softening us up for decades, anyway

Intelligent life on other planets is hardly a far-out radical notion, the idea is old hat

And even if it did cause mass panic I don't think it would last forever, it would calm down, people cannot be in a state of panic indefinitely, they would eventually snap out of it

It may make people re-think their religions though......

However: if the truth makes people re-think their religions then how is that bad??????

If your religion would be destroyed by knowing about aliens then maybe it would be good for it to be destroyed??????

Personally it wouldn't dent my own beliefs

But whether being known by extra-terrestrials is good or bad is of course a different question, but they haven't wiped us out yet, which I think is promising

Anyway, there very well may not be any anyway..........

In the old days people might have ran away from Alien UFOs, these days they probably will run toward them as saviors of humanity.

 

[Eddi]

these days they probably will run toward them as saviors of humanity.

I probably would, that's for sure

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

The media has been softening us up for decades, anyway

During which time all of the technologically advanced countries, with all of their resources, divisions, and malcontents, all being badgered daily by the news media, have contained the secret of the epoch with reasonable effectiveness. OK ...

 

[Eddi]

During which time all of the technologically advanced countries, with all of their resources, divisions, and malcontents, all being badgered daily by the news media, have contained the secret of the epoch with reasonable effectiveness. OK ...

I don't see how there can't be both a big denial by governments (especially the US government) whilst the news media normalise the idea of ETs

Gradual normalisation and a government cover-up could both be occurring, and the gradual normalisation can take care of itself, it will happen naturally - unlike the cover-up

And I don't mean to sound paranoid but I think there is much we ordinary people don't know about how the world actually works, I don't think things are as simple as they may at first seem

The tip of an iceberg etc.

It would not surprise me one bit were I to learn that the world's governments had a common interest in managing public awareness of ETs

And of course, ETs may already be controlling us - although I think that's a little far-out and unlikely but I don't rule it out

And granted, it is possible governments have no knowledge of ETs - I think that would also be plausible

I think this is an interesting thing to think about anyway

Personally I am on the fence when it comes to aliens - there is scant evidence for it but it doesn't sound impossible so put me down as a "maybe"

 

[amorphous_constellation]

No, it wouldn't cause mass panic, it would cause mass non-production. People would wonder why they have to stay down here working, when the aliens can just explore galaxies all day long. It does not inspire confidence in the anthill status quo that we got going down here.

 

[beenherebeforeagain]

Me: Hey, I'd like to come along with you guys. Surely there's something you have me do?

Them: No, sorry. Just wanted to probe you a bit and then put you back in your own life.

Me: Please? I mean, whatever you'd have me do would be an improvement...

Them: We are truly sorry, but we can't keep pets...

Me: Is that how you really look at me? As a pet? That's so cool!

Them: No, wait...

Me: So that's yes? I'll even learn how to purr for you and stuff!

Them: Hold on! No!

Me: I won't take up much room, and I'll even do my chores...

Them: Stop it! We can't take humans on a permanent basis!

Me: Please? You won't regret it!

Them: [shoots me with a ray to make me unconscious again]

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

I don't see how there can't be both a big denial by governments (especially the US government) whilst the news media normalise the idea of ETs

OK

 

[Jimmy]

What makes you think there’s government coverups? Don’t you think that would be a little difficult?

 

[Eddi]

What makes you think there’s government coverups? Don’t you think that would be a little difficult?

Depends on the scale of their contacts with ET

 

[Quintessence]

I've encountered no compelling evidence of extraterrestrial visitors and reject said notions and all the mythology that goes along with it. I understand the appeal of this mythology even though it's not my particular thing. It has no place in my religious traditions.

Speaking in the hypothetical, even if there have been such visitors it wouldn't change anything about my religion either. Not because of anything related to truth or whatever, but because extraterrestrials simply would not be of any relevance to my religious practices. My religion is earth-based, not space-based.

 

[Jimmy]

Depends on the scale of their contacts with ET

Why cover it up?

 

[Eddi]

Why cover it up?

Because it would change everything and they would have very little control over what happens

Governments don't like uncertainty and neither does capitalism

 

[soulsurvivor]

Some say that one of the reasons for governments not telling everyone about the presence of extra-terrestrials on this planet is that such a revelation would cause mass panic

That is just an excuse that apologists for the coverup use and which the government will eventually use when it is caught and the coverup is revealed. The government could easily announce the presence of the ETs and wait for a few weeks or months until everyone got used to the idea and then ask the ETs to reveal themselves.

The real reason for the coverup is that the government has realized that the ETs are more advanced and technologically superior to humans and the US government does not want to acknowledge that fact to its citizens as well as to the world. The US military and political hegemony is at stake here.

 

[Jimmy]

Because it would change everything and they would have very little control over what happens

Governments don't like uncertainty and neither does capitalism

What would happen?

 

[Quintessence]

Because it would change everything and they would have very little control over what happens

Governments don't like uncertainty and neither does capitalism

What's interesting about the extraterrestrial mythologies is that it has some strong parallels to some reoccurring storytelling themes throughout human history - ones found both inside and outside of the world's religions. Recognition of powers well above and beyond human control is arguably the root of all theism; extraterrestrial mythology supplants gods with aliens playing essentially the same role (albeit in a more sinister light in most tellings). With this in mind, you would think that strongly theistic societies really wouldn't be fussed about aliens supplanting that same role of the higher power. They're used to the idea, after all - accepting limits on control (or perhaps hiding in vein from it). There's probably some interesting comparative work to be done and it probably has been by scholars, I just haven't looked into it.

 

[InChrist]

Some say that one of the reasons for governments not telling everyone about the presence of extra-terrestrials on this planet is that such a revelation would cause mass panic

(assuming there is such a presence but I think it is possible)

Would it though????

I don't think it would

The media has been softening us up for decades, anyway

Intelligent life on other planets is hardly a far-out radical notion, the idea is old hat

And even if it did cause mass panic I don't think it would last forever, it would calm down, people cannot be in a state of panic indefinitely, they would eventually snap out of it

It may make people re-think their religions though......

However: if the truth makes people re-think their religions then how is that bad??????

If your religion would be destroyed by knowing about aliens then maybe it would be good for it to be destroyed??????

Personally it wouldn't so much as dent my own beliefs

But whether being known by extra-terrestrials is good or bad is of course a different question, but they haven't wiped us out yet, which I think is promising

Anyway, there very well may not be any anyway..........

I don’t believe there are extra-terrestrials, as in physical beings or intelligent life elsewhere in the universe or from another planet. I do think there are powerful, malevolent spiritual beings, known as demonic beings in the biblical scriptures, who are or will deceive humans into thinking they are intelligent extraterrestrials.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

I've encountered no compelling evidence of extraterrestrial visitors and reject said notions and all the mythology that goes along with it. I understand the appeal of this mythology even though it's not my particular thing. It has no place in my religious traditions.

Speaking in the hypothetical, even if there have been such visitors it wouldn't change anything about my religion either. Not because of anything related to truth or whatever, but because extraterrestrials simply would not be of any relevance to my religious practices. My religion is earth-based, not space-based.

I pretty much agree with this. My opinion is that if there is something going on here, it's either top secret government projects or something interdimensional (which is a lot bigger of a game changer), with the "alien" stuff being the cover-up. The distances are simply too vast for physical life forms to travel unless they had some extraordinary speculative technology. Space is not kind to living creatures, either, and our own space ambitions are severely limited by that. Like you said, it is a modern mythology; much of it sounds like the old stories of ghosts and malevolent spirits possessing people (some of which stems from sleep paralysis), especially with the abduction stories.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Yeah, there has been mass panic (some American TV carried the story of arrival of Martians many years ago. Perhaps US people would know which one was that.
And there has been religious panic when a whole lot of people (in Spain, I think) saw the sun go black or something like that.
We have this mass hysteria in India too - Ganesha drinking milk, right from Kashmir to Tamilnadu, and Gujarat to Assam.

 

[Mock Turtle]

It seems to me that it is in the interests of many governments to make the situation as uncertain as possible (UFOs as fact and aliens here or not), given their obvious wishes to keep technological secrets to themselves, amongst other reasons, and of course those wanting to make money from whatever they might have to reveal or not will be ramping up the possibilities. With technology now so easy to fake evidence too.