> THC> RT> No, but it must be available to and testable by the existing
 > scientifi
 >    > RT> community.  Otherwise, yes... the claims are without validity.
 > THC>Just because a claim is not immediately testable does not mean it is 
not
 > va
 >    >It simply means it can't be tested at present.  Future testing, when
 > finall
 >    >available, may or may not show the claim's validity.
 > Ok... I'll grant you that.  It is conceivable that within all the
 > UFO
 > hype, there are some valid ET encounters... conceivable, but IMO,
 > highly
 > improbable .  But those claims do nothing to reach a conclusion
 > until
 > they are validated, substantiated, and shown to be proof of alien
 > presence.  As long as the claimant holds the evidence away from
 > the
 > public and just _talks_ about it, it is without value to the rest
 > of us.
 > THC>   >> The "skeptics" do not have to provide any
 >    >   >> special evidence to back up their own claims (e.g. "I won't do
 > your
 >    >   >> researc for you.")
 >    > RT>
 >    > RT> I think that is fair...  the believer is the one making the 
laim.
 > He
 >    > RT> should be the one backing it up.  Convenient for the skeptic, no
 > doubt
 >    > RT> but nevertheless, thats the way the world works.
 > THC>The believer is making a claim when he says that a UFO he saw was an
 > alien
 >    >spacecraft.  However, the skeptic is ALSO making a claim when he says
 > that
 >    >the UFO was a weather balloon.
 > Again, I have to agree.  If the debunker claims an absolute
 > alternative
 > to the ET hypothesis, it is up to him to substantiate that
 > position.
 > The problem we have here is that in many cases, the event can be
 > easily
 > explained by mundane events... events that happen every day, but
 > to
 > prove that this particular event is ordinary is impossible because
 > the
 > debunker has no more physical evidence than the witness. This is
 > were
 > we use the balance sheet, the preponderance of the evidence, to
 > reach an
 > opinion.
 > Where, IMO, the fallacy of the true believer comes in is that he
 > rejects
 > all the possibilities of mundane events in favor of the one
 > explanation,
 > aliens... just because he can't explain the event.  It seems that
 > he
 > WANTS to believe in ET so he isn't willing to accept the sensible
 > (IMO
 > ) alternatives.  I don't understand that.
The above is a fanciful move away from reality for the sheer fun of
it. I look at it as a form of speculation carried to an extreme.
Many skeptics do not understand this, and sometimes take on an air of
superiority not knowing of the fun the "believer" is having with it
all.
Some believers do seem to have a overwhelming wish to establish that
aliens are in our midst. I personally have a problem understanding
this kind of mind-set. Maybe it is akin to the fact that some
avid TV soap-opera fans put more reality in the program then they do
with their mundane real life. This mind-set is why some TV actors
have to have body-guards to protect them from stalkers who have lost
their connection to reality.
Regards,
Jack
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