Skepticism about Selected Paranormal Events
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Skepticism and Our Cultural Preference for Truth
As previously discussed, the intent of projects designed to discover the
existence of life in any form or at any level of intelligence within or beyond our
solar system is a worthy pursuit of knowledge, especially given the enormous
cultural and scientific implications of such a discovery. Finding answers to
questions of this nature will likely diminish skepticism about such issues and,
simultaneously, better inform us all. Moreover, pursuits of this nature are in
keeping with mankind’s historical quest to learn as much as possible about the
universe and our origins as inhabitants in it (Rasool, DeVincenzi, and
Billingham, 1977). For example, quite a stir was caused by a recent NASA
announcement about a meteor that contained deposits resembling earth-like
fossils. The controversy rages on because the object was said to have come from
Mars. If NASA is able to prove to the satisfaction of the scientific community
that the fossil-like structures are those of life forms that once lived on Mars, then
the idea that life is a common occurrence everywhere else in the cosmos would
all but replace the current idea that life is unique to this planet. Arguably, then,
such pursuits have become part of the many accepted roles of science: to gather
reliable evidence that might increase our sense of truth about our world and the
stars and planets, including new ones, now known to exist (Engel Brothers
Media, Thomas Lucas Productions, and the Public Broadcasting Service, 1997).
Times have changed since the Brookings Institute Report of 1960 (i.e., as cited
by Weller and Grossman, 2003). Hence, the truth about paranormal events
thought to be alien-related are more likely to be accepted by the public; even
when the ‘Iruth” about such events may present conflicts to our ordinary
understandings (SciFi.com/Ufology Resource Center, 2002). Perhaps the
perspectives expressed in the aforementioned poll are further evidence that the
search for truth permeates our secular and religious lives and that we must
follow that path no matter where the search takes us. Therefore, in order that
they not engender disdain, official explanations must also obey the laws of
reason and the scientific process. In many cases, however, the explanations defy,
with ridiculous explanations, what so many have reportedly observed (Hynek,
1969). For those whose duty it is to carry out official investigations, it has been
suggested that they do so in ways that will not show disdain for “ . . . scientific
integrity, a principle of scientific thought that corresponds to a kind of leaning
over backwards”(Feynman, as cited by Wudka, 1998, pp. 2-4). After all, none
who seek the truth would want to arrive at it as a result of a rush to judgment
(see, for example, Sturrock, 1990, p.l8).
Finally, if the Condon Report and Project Blue Book are the final words
on the subject of UFOs, then information presented in this paper indicates that
either new benchmarks are needed or that the old ones should be revised by
persons not predisposed to forming conclusions before reviewing all available