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Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story
    #7504216 -

True Story:

I was deep in the Florida Everglades last night photographing nocturnal birds with a new lens I bought for that purpose. As usual, there was a small, friendly crowd of bird watchers there.

It was close to new moon, so it was very dark. Suddenly one of the other bird watchers starts yelling and pointing at something in the sky. We all looked and saw the bizarre object. "It's an alien ship!", several people exclaimed.

I was completely baffled by the irregular triangle of dim lights traveling slowly in perfect formation. It made no sound even though it seemed to be fairly close. The lights blinked randomly, dimming then getting brighter in no discernible pattern. The edges of the triangle could be seen faintly glowing.

Everyone was convinced it was some kind of alien craft. Then someone spotted another one, then a third. A few of the people there were scared enough that they started to leave.

When I suggested that whatever those things were they were far more likely to be something ordinary than an alien ship, I was rebuffed. "What is it, then?" the crowd asked.

I told them that I didn't know, but not knowing doesn't make the most highly-unlikely of all the possible explanations correct. They looked at me as if I was a fool.

To get a better look, I went to my car and got my night-vision binoculars. One look told the story: the objects were flocks of geese. In the dark new moon sky, the only light was shining up from the city of Miami far to our east. It illuminated the underside of the birds. The flashing lights were the birds occasionally flapping their wings which changed the amount of surface area reflecting the light from Miami.

The glowing triangular outline was an invention of our brain which has an uncanny ability to 'fill in the blanks' when information is missing. There was no glowing triangle when viewed in the night-vision gear. It's only when the flocks were viewed naked eye, that the brain created the optical illusion of a triangular glowing object. I passed the binoculars around so everyone could see the truth.

But the revelation of how easily we gullible humans are fooled isn't what prompted me to write about this. What happened next is what freaked me out.

Instead of being grateful to me for revealing the truth, the crowd became downright angry with me. The atmosphere of camaraderie from a common interest that we'd shared all afternoon and into the night vanished. People clicked their tongue at me and gave me irritated sidelong looks as they handed back the binoculars without so much as a thank you.

Few things in human behavior surprise me any more, but this did. It drove home harder than any other experience I've ever had how people dig into ideas they want to be true and refuse to let go.

Even when True Believers are shown the truth with their own eyes they're loathe to accept it. Being shown the truth with logic and common sense online is nigh impossible. This experience has shown me why no matter how much logic, plausible explanations, and common sense I write here, some people will never accept the far more likely truth over their wild pet ideas in which they've invested so much of themselves that they can never let go. :sad:


--------------------
Republican Values:

1) You can't get married to your spouse who is the same sex as you.
2) You can't have an abortion no matter how much you don't want a child.
3) You can't have a certain plant in your possession or you'll get locked up with a rapist and a murderer.

4) We need a smaller, less-intrusive government.

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Re: UFOs and Wanting Something To Be True [Re: Diploid]
    #7504298 -

At least they didn't burn you alive like they would have in the old days. Most people want to believe in something greater than their day to day lives. When you take that away from them, they tend to get upset. We like to pretend that modern society is somehow more evolved than the middle ages, but when you really look, not much has changed with human behavior.


--------------------
Just another spore in the wind.

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Re: UFOs and Wanting Something To Be True [Re: Seuss]
    #7504754 -

This reminds me of that scene in the Lord Of The Flies where the inquisitive child gets mugged for proving the "monster" was no more than a parachute. Yeah you're lucky you didn't get mugged by a group of birdwatchers.

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Diploid]
    #7504797 -

I am surprised that you are surprised. People WANT to believe in magic.

The Amazing Randi as a teenager exposed a charlatan preacher in a tent revival meeting. The crowd got angry and expelled him from the tent instead of thanking him for opening their eyes to being scammed.

How many times on this board are skeptics / debunkers referred to as 'evil' or 'disgruntled' or 'bitter' or some other such negative descriptor?

KEEP YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF MY FANTASY! :fairy:


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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Diploid]
    #7504798 -

That's a great story. I love bird watching. If we ever hang out lets do some of that.

The true believer is invested in relieving their death anxiety and the truth usually will not suffice.


--------------------
"Don't believe everything you think". -Anom.

" All that lives was born to die"-Anom.

With much wisdom comes much sorrow,
The more knowledge, the more grief.
Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Icelander]
    #7504813 -

There are a few turkeys, dodos and cuckoos here. No binoculars needed.

:goose:


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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: OrgoneConclusion]
    #7504830 -

OrgoneConclusion said:
There are a few turkeys, dodos and cuckoos here. No binoculars needed.



Maybe they were just extremely disappointed that it wasn't a harbinger of the Second Coming.

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Booby]
    #7505988 -

Excellent story Diploid. I truly believe this experience was brought to you by the law of attraction. Just kidding.


--------------------
Entropy is increasing.
To send me a PM, go to my journal

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Grok]
    #7506351 -

:lol:


--------------------
:bunny::bunnyhug:
All this time I've loved you
And never known your face
All this time I've missed you
And searched this human race
Here is true peace
Here my heart knows calm
Safe in your soul
Bathed in your sighs
:bunnyhug: :yinyang2:

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: Diploid]
    #7506458 -

Ohhhhh....  That was YOU with those fuckin night-vision binoculars.....    :crankey:

:tongue:

I wasn't there, but could it have been possible that the people's reactions might have been misread....?
When you get something in your head that you are positive about, it can turn awkward when someone politely shows you that you are wrong....
I am not saying that you are wrong, but when the ego is wounded, it makes it difficult to focus on other things to talk about - for some....


I am not an "official" bird watcher, but I recently purchased the Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds....
After seeing the super-freaky-AWESOME birds of paradise "dancing" displays on "Planet Earth", I had to find out more....!    :thumbup:


>^;;^<


--------------------
I'll be your midnight French Fry....  :naughty:

"The most important things in life that are often ignored, are the things that one cannot see...."
>^;;^<

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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: PhanTomCat]
    #7506484 -

Quote:
After seeing the super-freaky-AWESOME birds of paradise "dancing" displays on "Planet Earth", I had to find out more....!


Attraction to bird porn is a serious disorder. :nono:


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Re: Wanting Something To Be True - A True Story [Re: OrgoneConclusion]
    #7506520 -

But but but, it is in my nature....!?    :tongue:




>^;;^<


--------------------
I'll be your midnight French Fry....  :naughty:

"The most important things in life that are often ignored, are the things that one cannot see...."
>^;;^<

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General Interest > Philosophy, Sociology & Psychology
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