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WASHINGTON—Airline pilots see unidentified flying objectsbut very few report it because of ridicule ...
I've always wondered what these pilots discuss behind closed doors. Is it a well know secret? Is it a do not mention? I'd love to hear one of these pilots on The Paracast, answering tough questions. I truly believe something is being seen up there.
I've always wondered what these pilots discuss behind closed doors. Is it a well know secret? Is it a do not mention? I'd love to hear one of these pilots on The Paracast, answering tough questions. I truly believe something is being seen up there.
They were here 4 years ago:
<a href="April 5, 2009: Dr. Richard F. Haines | The Paracast — The Gold Standard of Paranormal Radio" >April 5, 2009 — Dr. Richard F. Haines</a>
They will be back.
The biographies of ufologists are, hands down, the most weirdly selective, stitched together bios of any "field," anywhere.
I suspect that there are actually weirder bios out there. Actors come immediately to mind. I've personally had so many day jobs I don't recall them all. My last one was working as a "Computer Specialist" at a Canadian drug store chain called London Drugs ( I wouldn't recommend buying anything from them after that experience ). I've also been a Railroad Section Foreman, Landscape Lead Hand, Internet Project Manager, Dish Washer, Vacuum Cleaner Sales Rep, Starving Artist and Alternative Grunge Rocker. These days I manage my websites and do mobile PC technical work. I have a very modest income.
Backgrounding is a necessary function in establishing credibility.
One of the classic opening scenes in Close Encounters of the Third Kind.A realistic portrayal of this type of thing ...
Too bad the whole movie didn't maintain this direction.Betcha forgot about this scene - didn't cha ?
Ultimately, to paraphrase Chris, "the message is more important than who delivers it", plus incredible things can happen to un-credible people. For analysts or investigators, it should be the evidence rather than the personalities that speak to the credibility of a case. The old saying that if you can't attack the evidence, attack the witness, seems to be a time honored tradition of skeptics and debunkers.
That was always among my absolute favorite scenes in the movie. It added a layer of realism that made the movie seem more genuine.
I should note that my father's UFO experience was while working for Braniff Airlines, in an ATC tower at Dallas Love Field. I was left with the impression that pilots did frequently have strange encounters, but were loathe to talk about them due to fear of retribution. At the same time, I should note that the pilots I've personally known have said the exact opposite: That they know of no pilot who has had a UFO encounter and that these alleged experiences are works of fiction. Even a pilot whose column I regularly read has said the exact same thing. Two very distinct, polar-opposite realities.
Take Richard Dolan, for instance. He says he was born in 1962 and received a MA at some point in time (who knows when) ... then, apparently, he stared at a wall for 15-20 years
This is the field that has produced the likes of "Dr." Phil Imbrogno and "Lt.-Commander" Richard Thielmann (sp?). Forgive me if I'm skeptical.
If education or work experience isn't really relevant to the research but the research is solid, who cares?
Good so far.When dealing with independently verifiable information and data-based facts, you're correct, the messenger is irrelevant.
Well ... I think we diverge here a bit. From my perspective, "interpretive data and anonymous sources" are about as useful as science fiction. It might be entertaining, but that's about all it amounts to no matter how credible the person telling the story is, and either way ( credible or not ), if the story provides leads to verifiable information, then either way ( credible or not ), the information is still just as useful. Therefore strictly speaking, credibility is separate from the information and the information is where the focus of an objective analyst or investigator should remain.When dealing with interpretive data and anonymous sources, the messenger is absolutely relevant.
Among your examples are incidences where a clear breach of trust seems to have taken place ( e.g. the pretense of having certain credentials ), and as mentioned earlier, this has an effect on our assumptions about the veracity of the information that has been provided. Nevertheless, these assumptions should be set aside in favor of an objective look at the evidence. If the evidence can't be objectively verified somehow, then it reverts to being sci-fi again, and either way the credibility of the source is irrelevant. What credibility can do is serve as a guidepost to what information among the billions of bits of data we should look at in the first place.If we are denied the ability - as with an anonymous source - to verify the background and credentials of the source we must be given the opportunity to feel confidence in the ability and qualifications of the "messenger" to accurately interpret data and thoroughly vet the source on our behalf, as well as assurance that the "messenger" does not have an unscrupulous personal history.
In every other field, people publish thorough and comprehensive biographies about themselves. In ufology, people publish highly selective biographies that, often, leave 10, 20, 30 year gaps in their life. Take Richard Dolan, for instance. He says he was born in 1962 and received a MA at some point in time (who knows when) ... then, apparently, he stared at a wall for 15-20 years, then he published a UFO book from a little self-help publishing house, then he self-published a second one in which he quotes Butch Witkowski as a police officer. My confidence level in his "anonymous source?" Zero.
Jim Courant ... he was a pilot at some point for someone and received his flight training from somewhere. When, who and where? We don't need to know, I guess.
This is the field that has produced the likes of "Dr." Phil Imbrogno and "Lt.-Commander" Richard Thielmann (sp?). Forgive me if I'm skeptical.