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The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

nytimes.com

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Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#271

Post by fapjacks »

krapp wrote: post #249
pmarreck wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because it totally makes sense that the military would fly highly-classified aircraft in full view of thousands of people, essentially giving away any element of surprise in the event the shit hits the fan (thinking Phoenix Lights here)

I completely agree that the Phoenix lights were weird. I don't know what they were, I don't think they were birds, but I also don't think they were a big black alien triangle. Neverthless, the military does sometimes test classified aircraft in view of civilians. And they have been known to use or even encourage UFO sightings as misinformation to cover up their activity. Fiction has to make sense, but reality doesn't…

Actually, when I see the videos of the Phoenix Lights, I immediately recognize plane-dropped flares. Every video I've ever seen of those lights appear to me to be plane-dropped flares. I spent many years in the infantry and deployed four times and I can tell you with certainty that's what they are. I think even the Air Force came out and said they had dropped flares that night.

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#272

Post by krapp »

pmarreck wrote: post #266
krapp wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I completely agree that the Phoenix lights were weird. I don't know what they were, I don't think they were birds, but I also don't think they were a big black alien triangle. Neverthless, the military does sometimes test classified aircraft in view of civilians. And they have been known to use or even encourage UFO sightings as misinformation to cover up their activity. Fiction has to make sense, but reality doesn't…

And yet you're refusing to believe in the "reality" (hypothetical) of an alien ship visit, because it doesn't make sense (to you... and possibly to me). Probably because (among other things), we think FTL travel is impossible (... we think ... cue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcubierre_drive ) which makes any visitation from realistically far away essentially impossible or at least highly impractical ("cryosleep" f…

I'm not refusing to believe in the hypothetical reality. Of all the hypothetical realities I can conceive, "actually aliens" is the one I want most to be real. I want to live in that world, and not just see it in fiction.

What I am refusing to do is believe that hypothetical reality to be more likely than it is, based on the evidence (or lack thereof) presented and what it does or doesn't actually prove. I'm slotting it in the rank it deserves, which is slightly ahead of demons in likelihood but still less likely than everything else.

But yeah, the likelihood that it's aliens is not entirely zero.

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#273

Post by fapjacks »

pmarreck wrote: post #266
krapp wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I completely agree that the Phoenix lights were weird. I don't know what they were, I don't think they were birds, but I also don't think they were a big black alien triangle. Neverthless, the military does sometimes test classified aircraft in view of civilians. And they have been known to use or even encourage UFO sightings as misinformation to cover up their activity. Fiction has to make sense, but reality doesn't…

And yet you're refusing to believe in the "reality" (hypothetical) of an alien ship visit, because it doesn't make sense (to you... and possibly to me). Probably because (among other things), we think FTL travel is impossible (... we think ... cue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcubierre_drive ) which makes any visitation from realistically far away essentially impossible or at least highly impractical ("cryosleep" f…

This is a really cohesive statement of the opinion I have about it, thanks. It always surprises me to meet people that can't push their internal boundaries to even think about the possibility. The kind of thinking that if humans haven't done it before -- and taken plenty of pictures! -- it can't possibly happen. The same person that thinks, "Well, since nobody has eaten all the stars in the galaxy for computational power, aliens can't possibly exist," despite the fact that we can't even generate the kinds of radio signals that would be needed for our own receivers to pick them up beyond a handful of light years. I will go to my grave dying to know how and why people think this way.

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#274

Post by King-Aaron »

mrspeaker wrote: post #263
King-Aaron wrote: post #257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In 1996 (Around June I think), myself and around 200-odd people at the Karratha drive-in cinema witnessed a nearly identical phenomenon as you describe. It was about 9pm - 10pm, and I have fond memories of everyone around us staring straight up, instead of at the cinema screen.

Karratha?! I was south of Perth - maybe it was the same ones! I went to call the observatory, so I dialed the operator (remember operators?) and she said "You saw the lights too? If you find out what they are, call me back!"... I never got through to anyone though and just let it go.

It would be interesting if it was the same event. Though unlike the formation you showed, I recall the three stars initially coming together from different locations in the sky to form the triangle - they weren't initially in formation. They stayed in formation then for a few minutes, before disappearing

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#275

Post by dang »

jim_combinator wrote: post #255

Harry Reid is as crooked as a dog's hind leg. In fact, that democrat putz is so crooked they'll have to screw him into the ground when he dies. Anyway, I hope his buddy Robert Bigelow the male gigolo finds something interesting and shares his wares because something's going on up there.

Please stop posting uncivil, unsubstantive comments to HN. You're welcome here, but comments like this are not, regardless of how bad some other people may be.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

https://news.ycombinator.com/newswelcome.html

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#276

Post by pmarreck »

krapp wrote: post #272
pmarreck wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And yet you're refusing to believe in the "reality" (hypothetical) of an alien ship visit, because it doesn't make sense (to you... and possibly to me). Probably because (among other things), we think FTL travel is impossible (... we think ... cue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcubierre_drive ) which makes any visitation from realistically far away essentially impossible or at least highly impractical ("cryosleep" f…

I'm not refusing to believe in the hypothetical reality. Of all the hypothetical realities I can conceive, "actually aliens" is the one I want most to be real. I want to live in that world, and not just see it in fiction. What I am refusing to do is believe that hypothetical reality to be more likely than it is, based on the evidence (or lack thereof) presented and what it does or doesn't actually prove. I'm slotting…

Fair enough!

Also, this came out moments ago. Timely? https://twitter.com/cnn/status/943105094345723904

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#277

Post by remir »

King-Aaron wrote: post #256
remir wrote: post #247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>On a more serious note, I can't believe any government can keep a tight enough lid on something like that. Someone, somewhere is bound to defect or to leak it is somehow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtmpaM0PqyI

This is something that I wonder about - the Disclosure Project assembled some people that seemed to be fairly plausible witnesses. Was this press club disclosure ultimately discredited?

>Was this press club disclosure ultimately discredited?

I haven't seen anything to discredit the message from the witnesses in the video, but the guy who organised the Disclosure Project (Steven Greer) is really convinced that ET are here.

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#278

Post by chrisco255 »

valuearb wrote: post #230
jsmthrowaway wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be fair, it was 2006, and "everybody's phone has a great camera" was several years off. The article does mention someone may have snagged it on a plain digital camera. Not taking a side, just pointing that out.

Phones had cameras back then. Disposable Cameras were available at every airport shop. And Someone allegedly photographed it, but no one bothered to examine or release the photos?

Some did. Most were cheap and even the most expensive ones took 2MP pixel shots. Good luck capturing a fast moving object from a long distance with a Motorola Razr.

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#279

Post by chrisco255 »

krapp wrote: post #272
pmarreck wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And yet you're refusing to believe in the "reality" (hypothetical) of an alien ship visit, because it doesn't make sense (to you... and possibly to me). Probably because (among other things), we think FTL travel is impossible (... we think ... cue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcubierre_drive ) which makes any visitation from realistically far away essentially impossible or at least highly impractical ("cryosleep" f…

I'm not refusing to believe in the hypothetical reality. Of all the hypothetical realities I can conceive, "actually aliens" is the one I want most to be real. I want to live in that world, and not just see it in fiction. What I am refusing to do is believe that hypothetical reality to be more likely than it is, based on the evidence (or lack thereof) presented and what it does or doesn't actually prove. I'm slotting…

You do? I don't know if I want to live in that world. Depends on how friendly the aliens are I suppose?

Re: The Pentagon’s U.F.O. Program

#280

Post by valuearb »

fapjacks wrote: post #251
valuearb wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Phones had cameras back then. Disposable Cameras were available at every airport shop. And Someone allegedly photographed it, but no one bothered to examine or release the photos?

Well, faced with all this suspicion and negativity, what incentive would anybody have to present their photos to the public? And so let's just scrap this whole incident at the airport. No pictures, no video, no UFO. There is still a substantial body of photographic, video, expert reliable witness accounts of unexplained phenomena happening in our skies going back decades. The government's chief skeptic guy that heade…

What incentive? Huge incentives, obviously. This entire thread is a promotion to help a former government official kickstart a business to "research" this phenomenon, where his partner is contractually obligated to get paid $100,000 a year.
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