A question for debunkers or skeptics on UFO's and Ghosts?

Question

Why do you absolutely believe there is nothing intellegent outside of Earth that visits us on a regular basis?

Why do you not believe that the energy or spirit lives on after death?

Do you not believe we have a soul?

With the thousands upon thousands of visual contacts of UFO's how can you deny that 100% are not Extraterrestrial craft?

If a UFO landed right in front of you and beings came out that were not human, would you still deny it?

I have to ask because it seems that no matter what happens and no matter what proof is presented you write it off as a hoax or something else.

So my question is this and I have two:

UFO's - Will finding out that there are intellegent beings visiting us damage your belief system or religion?

Ghost's: Will finding out that there is life after death change your life? If you are an athiest does the thought that you could be wrong and have a spirit scare you?

Answer 1

De bunkers try to find logical explanations for things they do not understand or fear. If they cannot explain it away they just say that it does not exist.

Answer 2

Regarding UFOs:

I don't absolutely believe that aliens don't visit us. I've just not seen any evidence which justifies the belief. Although the possibility of alien life in the universe seems likely, it may not be that likely that intelligent lifeforms can travel across great cosmic distances.

Regarding accounts of seeing UFOs, "unexplained" is not identically equal with "of alien origin", and there are very very few photographs that remain in the unexplained bin.

If a ship landed in front of me and an alien walked out, why would I deny it?

I don't have a belief system or religion regarding UFOs.

Regarding ghosts:

I have seen no evidence for the existence of spirits, so before I can believe that spirits exist after death, first they need to be demonstrated to exist in the first place. Is the lack of evidence proof of lack of existence? No, of course not. But ghosts, spirits, wraiths, etc., are rather fantastic wild ideas scientifically speaking, so before I buy into it I'm going to need a good reason. A good reason can be obtained via evidence, but so far there is none that stands up to scientific scrutiny.

Hypothetically speaking, if there was some way to know if there was life after death, sure it would change my life. But again, I'm going to need a reason to believe and so far there is no reason to be found.

I am always open to reviewing new evidence that anyone might have.

Answer 3

I'm pretty sure there is intelligent life in the universe.Besides us sometimes, I mean.What evidence of UfO's are you talking about.With just about everyone carrying a video or camera.It must be around somewhere,Right.All I've seen are fuzzy pictures and obvious fakes.Eye witness testimony is undependable,I want to see it to believe it.And that's something I'd love to do.I'd like to believe Aliens are visiting Earth.So far I can't.

    Now ghosts are different.I have to be honest.I think believing in ghosts is silly and childish.If anyone, any time can prove me wrong.I'll be happy to apologize.In fact I'll pay a $25 award to the person who can do it.I'm keeping it small,maybe that will work.The $1,000,000 reward at randi.org,hasn't had any takers.

   One final point Ghosts have nothing to do with a soul.My religious friends,good Christians all.Think believing in ghosts is just as silly as I do.

Answer 4

first, i do not absolutely believe that  there are no aliens. all i'm saying is that there are  not enough objective and  fool-proof evidence that aliens do exist much more live among us.but it's a matter of faith. if you believe they exist then go ahead but dont go about convincing others.



well, this is a matter of faith too. you cant force this belief on anyone because there's no objective evidence that the soul does exist. i used to be an atheist and questioned many things. but when i chose to return to catholicism, it's not because some guy with a bible encouraged me and led me to the church. nope, it's my personal conviction, my subjective experience and decision.

  

being a catholic. my faith requires me to believe there's a soul. i do not need to ask for a proof to believe. it's pointless.  



i havent seen one myself and i am very much aware how the mind can play some tricks especially when fired up with emotions and bias.



no i wont. i'd invite them over coffee and record their visit with all of my neighbors watching and recording as well. that's how objective it's gotta be.

  

again, maybe they do exist. maybe they dont. it's a matter of professing faith. we do not have faith in Ufologists and i do not have faith in you. that's why i cannot believe you.



no it wont affect my being catholic if at all it wont affect my belief that there's a God who created this universe. i've never been a rabid religious bigot and i never will.



people who have encountered ghosts cannot prove that ghosts and spirits exist in as much as paul saying that he's seen the ressurected christ can convince me. believing in something is a personal experience. you cannot just preach these things. thanks, btw good question.

Answer 5

i believe in ufo's but as a Christian i do not believe in ghosts. the Bible teaches that your spirit is returned to God, your body is returned to the dust and "the dead knoweth not anything". i believe that what people believe to be ghosts are satan's minions disguised as loved ones (or enemies+strangers) to keep us living in fear and to break down our faith in God.

Answer 6

personaly i would love to see either  i'm a believer

Answer 7

It's all real, there are aliens, and paranormal....if you choose to believe in it.  Some people don't.  That's their choice.

Answer 8

I doubt that we've been visited by aliens in UFOs because of the distances involved.  The nearest star is about 4 lightyears away.  At 1 million miles an hour, that will take a little over 16,000 years to get here.  Even at 99.99999% efficiency in recycling waste into food, air, etc, they would run out long before they get here.  If one landed in front of me, it would help me to believe, but I'd still look for evidence of a hoax.  I'd believe that first, as I'd consider that still more likely than believing it was from an alien planet.

I don't believe in a soul, because I see no evidence of one.  Can you tell me what it is?  What is it made of?  Where does it reside in the body?  What is its function?  Do animals have one?  Which animals?  Apes, dogs, cats?  Worms, insects?  Why or why not?

Finding out that other intelligent life forms exist wouldn't damage my belief system or religion.  I'm an atheist.  Therefore, I don't believe that any supernatural god created the aliens, but that they evolved just like we did.  I would be thrilled to find out that the SETI program detected an intelligent life form, but the distances would still mean that it's unlikely that they will ever visit us.

As to ghosts - again, I think that the reported occurrances are either hoaxes, mistakes, or natural phenomenon that people misunderstand because they want to believe in ghosts.  And I'll ask the same questions - define what a ghost is, prove that they exist.  If you can't do that, then they are figments of your imagination at best, like bigfoot or the loch ness monster.

Answer 9

its probably because being a skeptic I have a psychological attitude problem ... like the south american natives who could not see and recognise the ships of Cortez.

As a skeptic I am good at pretending to be Logical ... but I do have some issues that I have to confess about ... that no matter how many times I see the evidence ... I cannot recognise it.

I know that I only have to recognise ONE and only ONE piece of evidence to allow this reality ... but my brain cells just cannot manage the process at all ... after all its just so cool trying to undermine empirically based rational discussion ..

long live skeptics ...

Answer 10

my answer to this is and I have thought about it extensively how in the world would they find us.  Its difficult to detect planets we have only recently discovered wobble in stars as well as faint shadow effects.  I just dont see how to detect at massive distance planets at proper distance from their respective sun, and composition that could sustain life. then there is the travel to that planet.  Its simply a very long trip with low probability of discovering something that could sustain life.  It makes better sense to me to search with seti and other systems for life the emits radio signals.  But when you think about the short distance our own signals have gotten just 50-60 light years thats nothing.  our atomic detonations can only possibly be detected to a distance of 60 light years.

Answer 11

I really can't add much to these many excellent answers.

Evidence, evidence, evidence, disprovable, repeatable, observable evidence!  That's what a rational, skeptical, uninvolved person requires to 'believe'.

I like to think of myself as such a person.  

Contrary to what you might think, however, I am drawn to the idea of the otherworldly and I would love to 'believe' that ghosts exist.  Sadly, I don't because...there's no evidence that fits the rubric of rationality/science.  (You can show me any number or pictures or read me any number of accounts, but these must be repeatable and disprovable...none are.  And many could have _several_ explanations...for example ghost orbs...even if they aren't photographic phenomena... why ghosts?  why not aliens or thought images or what have you?!)

And as for whether or not proof of ghosts would muck with my belief system, I am an Atheist, but the existence of life after death would just be one of the other innumerable previously unexplainable natural phenomenon which came to be explained by science.  So, no; 'believing' in ghosts would not damage or alter my religious beliefs (or lack thereof!)

I support what Ghost Hunters do, though I seldom support their flimsy methods.  There was a time when Egyptologists studying hieroglyphics were laughed at and ridiculed by the scientific community for trying to decipher the pictographs...until Champollion finally cracked the Rosetta stone.  Of course, Champollion was himself a scientist and used the sceintific method to do his work!

Finally, for the best answers to all these questions, check out Carl Sagan' Cosmos series.  Especially the one dealing with extraterrestrials, UFOs, and horoscopes.

Answer 12

I believe that these skeptics think that they are using sound judgment and logic and in their own way are more of a realist. There are also those who just choose the other side of any good argument.

True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.

Socrates

The pessimist complains about the wind; The optimist expects it to change; The realist adjusts the sails. — William Arthur Ward

At what point in our lives will  we all agree;  a lie is sacred?

Answer 13

Anything that has an option to believe or not believe it, is false

If it were true, you wouldnt need to believe, it would just be  a fact to everyone.

Answer 14

Most skeptics don't believe something until they see it with their eyes.

Even thought stories, videos and photos are one thing - nothing gets you believing until you see/experience something for yourself.

Only when this happens do they put science/religion, and their own thoughts/feelings and opinions aside.

Answer 15

A skeptic will not accept any idea or postulate as true until there is concrete, reproducible evidence supporting it.  Second-hand accounts and easily-altered photographs are not evidence.  

There has never been any scientifically sound evidence presented for any of the phenomena you discuss.  If there is, we can talk about accepting those ideas into the realm of science.  Until then, I would suggest to you that there is more beauty and wonder in the real world than in the fantasies offered by the con men who usually advocate these kinds of things.

Answer 16

1)  Because there's no evidence for it.  Science does not accept anecdotes as evidence, especially when the anecdote is from a drunk redneck who just came back from talking to their quack therapist.

2)  Because there's no evidence for it.

3)  No.  There's no evidence for it.

4)  Because there's no evidence for it.  Pictures are easily faked, no one has any physical evidence, crop circles are easily created by people, and most people never bother looking up at the sky at night and then are confused when they do.  Note that you never see astronomers claiming they saw a UFO.  That's because we know what we're looking at.

5)  No, then I'd have proof.

6)  You haven't presented proof.  You've told stories and faked photographs.

7)  I don't have any religion for it to damage.  I'm sure there's life out there somewhere; the universe is simply too large for us to be the only life.  But the distances involved are ridiculous.  It's not visiting us.

8)  If I have a spirit, great.  If there's an afterlife, great.  If pink flying invisible unicorns exist, great.  But I'm not afraid of any of them even though I don't think they exist.  And I'm pretty sure I'm right about that 'doesn't exist' thing.

Answer 17

if a UFO was to land in front of me and non humans walk up to me than I might believe.  Why do you think that all atheist think we have no soul?  I happen to believe in reincarnation so I know where my soul is going, to my next life.

Answer 18

right on brother...people are too ingrained to believe what only they see....it's a shame they don't use more of their brain

Answer 19

I am a skeptic, and I never said that there are no intelligen beings in space. Just that the things people are describing are other known things and should not be entertained as positive evidence of intelligent life on other planets.

I am a christian, so I totally believe in the spirit living after death. However, its against my religious belief, as well as any known cases and evidence that those spirits get trapped on earth and roam around. Again, there are natural and rational explanations for almost every case. The cases that can not be explained (not that there is no explanation) do not support the idea of humans dying and being earthbound.

If there are UFOs and Ghosts, then we will only know through skeptism, because if we simply believe them without question, it would be completely useless. The skeptics are the only ones who are examining the evidence and comeing up with possible explanations. The believers only come up with one explanation no matter what, that its paranormal.

Answer 20

"Why do you absolutely believe there is nothing intellegent outside of Earth that visits us on a regular basis?"

I don't "absolutely believe" that, I just think it is very unlikely that intelligent beings have come to Earth. Also, I see that numerous alien-related events have more mundane explanations - sleep paralysis and exhaustion can lead people to think they have been abducted by aliens. Crop circles, which many still believe are made by aliens, can be made with boards and string. Many UFO pictures are birds, Venus, or simply objects thrown into the air. No one has ever taken a clear picture of an alien spacecraft, or provided any other material evidence.

"Why do you not believe that the energy or spirit lives on after death?"

Because there's no evidence for it. The mind is a function of the brain, and when the brain is damaged, parts of the mind can be lost, or the personality can be changed greatly, as happened with Phineas Gage. Look him up on Wikipedia.

I don't believe in a soul for pretty much the same reason.

"With the thousands upon thousands of visual contacts of UFO's how can you deny that 100% are not Extraterrestrial craft?"

I can't deny that, but it is very suspicious that aliens are often very similar to the ones seen in movies, and that sightings of aliens similar to those in popular movies increase after the movie comes out, not before. Also, faked alien spacecraft photos are so common that I have to doubt them all.

"If a UFO landed right in front of you and beings came out that were not human, would you still deny it?

I have to ask because it seems that no matter what happens and no matter what proof is presented you write it off as a hoax or something else."

I would probably think I was hallucinating, but yeah, I couldn't deny something in front of my own eyes. I deny the existence of aliens that visit Earth because the evidence is always so shaky.

"Will finding out that there are intellegent beings visiting us damage your belief system or religion?"

No, I would be happy to meet them, in fact I would love to learn more about them, just as I like learning about the strange creatures that live on Earth.

"Ghost's: Will finding out that there is life after death change your life? If you are an athiest does the thought that you could be wrong and have a spirit scare you?"

I'm an athEIst, and I'm relatively confident in my beliefs, but if someone showed me I am wrong, I would happily change my beliefs. I'd rather not have a supernatural spirit, because I don't want to turn into a ghost or live forever or anything like that. The idea of eternal life bothers me - could you imagine living a million years, knowing that you've lived only an infinitesimal fraction of your infinite life?

Answer 21

well first of all don't you think by assuming that we are visited by E.T.s you are being a little conceited. because if thy have faster than light travel than thy could see anything that transpired on earth by looking at it from a telescope...the further away they are when thy look the further back in time thy will see... but seriously come on can you tell me how someone can travel faster than light. for that matter with all the matter just floating around in between galaxies thy would collide with countless pieces coursing unsuitable damage in effect destroying the craft. but what would thy gain by Turing to keep themselves hidden... by believing in it even than it is an inertly it gives you piece of mind. my piece of mind comes from reason...i do be live that there is live out their but i am not convinced that thy visit us.