Would the government tell us about UFOs?

einsteinian77 · Dec 7, 2003

If you chose other please explain.

Jonathan · Dec 9, 2003

At this point two people said other but didn't care to explain.

Guybrush Threepwood · Dec 9, 2003

I can't believe:
render a cover up is on first place...

what are you people afraid the aliens will suck your brain and transform you in mineral gathering slaves???

Njorl · Dec 9, 2003

Well, I know the first thing I'd do if I travelled to another inhabited planet is look for some sentient lifeforms to eat!

Yummmm, sentient goodness....

Njorl

Raven · Dec 9, 2003

I think it would be interesting to hear arguments why someone would vote one way or the other.

I voted that the government should let everyone know aliens exist if they were discovered. If we are in any danger, we have a right to know. If we are safe then what's the harm in knowing. If it is too difficult to tell whether we are safe or in danger then letting the public know will allow a more thorough investigation of what our visitors' intentions are.

einsteinian77 · Dec 9, 2003

If the government did find aliens,whether the aliens were peaceful or not, I think people would go into mass hysteria creating riots and sheer chaos all around the world. This is why I chose b. Only people who are open-minded and intelligent have right to know, and society as a whole is far from being intelligent and open-minded.

russ_watters · Dec 9, 2003

Originally posted by Guybrush Threepwood
what are you people afraid the aliens will suck your brain and transform you in mineral gathering slaves???

That isn't what the question asked. The question asked what we thought the government would do. The default position of any government is to ignore or cover up any piece of information it can't understand or adequately deal with.

However, given the nature of the information, a coverup would be extrordinarily difficult. So the "other" category would be that the other two are not applicable.

wasteofo2 · Dec 9, 2003

Originally posted by russ_watters

However, given the nature of the information, a coverup would be extrordinarily difficult.

Depends what actually happened.

If aliens landed in times square and announced themselves to all of New York City, then the coverup would be hard, but if the Govt. found a dead alien in a ship, no problem at all.

Guybrush Threepwood · Dec 10, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
Only people who are open-minded and intelligent have right to know...

and how do you know which one is open-minded and intelligent? have you discovered some magic test to do that? or do you let the government choose them?

Jonathan · Dec 10, 2003

Raven wrote
...that the government should let everyone...
(I did the italics)

should was not the question, it was would.
I agree with wasteofo2.
I chose B and agree with einsteinian77, because what he said is right, but he left out something. "Only open-minded and intelligent people should have the right to know", but since we can't tell who they are, it is beter to not let anyone know. Of course I'd prefer if most of America wasn't of such a fragile mind so I could know too, but it is better than wide spread looting.

Nereid · Dec 10, 2003

other, with reasons

OK, I'm #3 other.

In a case like this, there would be no such single entity as 'government'; in fact, there never is.

The discovery would have to be made by some person (or persons) who would have informed others with more senior ranks. Before too long, the 'discovery' would be known by 10, 30, 100 people. People who work for 'the government' are no different from PF members and guests, and among 100 or so, there'd be some fierce disagreements as to what to do, resulting - before a week was out - in at least one person leaking the story in some way (not necessarily to the press). If there were more than one person who'd acted, then we could say there was a split in the government. How then could we answer either a or b?

russ_watters · Dec 10, 2003

Re: other, with reasons

Originally posted by Nereid
The discovery would have to be made by some person (or persons) who would have informed others with more senior ranks. Before too long, the 'discovery' would be known by 10, 30, 100 people. People who work for 'the government' are no different from PF members and guests, and among 100 or so, there'd be some fierce disagreements as to what to do, resulting - before a week was out - in at least one person leaking the story in some way (not necessarily to the press).

I agree, and this was my point, einsteinian77(though I didn't explain it). If two people know it, its not a secret.

I get the impression sometimes that people forget that people in government are human too.

einsteinian77 · Dec 10, 2003

"I get the impression sometimes that people forget that people in the government are human too."

Thats my point, I think that the people in the government would look out for people in the best way. By telling the whole world that aliens have been discovered could do a whole lot of harm.

I would think that, as people working for the government, they would think about the consequences before any of them start leeking such a huge discovery.

Guybrush Threepwood · Dec 11, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
Thats my point, I think that the people in the government would look out for people in the best way.

nice thoughts. where de you live, Neverland?

Njorl · Dec 11, 2003

The government could never keep it quiet. There would always be a few people talking about it. The question is, will these people with loose lips be believed? A clever, secretive government would prepare ahead of time. They would sow the seeds of doubt by making many UFO hoaxes of varying degrees of discreditability. That way when the real thing happened, they could easily attribute it as just another hoax.

Njorl

einsteinian77 · Dec 11, 2003

"nice thoughts. here do you live, neverland?"

Isn't that what the government does, govern the country?

TheDream · Dec 11, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
"nice thoughts. here do you live, neverland?"

Isn't that what the government does, govern the country?

Governments eat cheezy poofs.

einsteinian77 · Dec 11, 2003

you sound like a cheezy poof

TheDream · Dec 11, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
you sound like a cheezy poof

As in the crunching or as in the acidic melting of small pockets of trapped air?

einsteinian77 · Dec 12, 2003

I'd have to say as in the crunching, could be both though

russ_watters · Dec 12, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
Isn't that what the government does, govern the country?

Government does govern, but thats not what you said. You said "would look out for people in the best way" which is far from the same thing. Ideally, thats what they do. In reality...no.

einsteinian77 · Dec 12, 2003

So what do they do in "Reality"?

FZ+ · Dec 12, 2003

If aliens did arrive, the governments will probably reveal it, though only after assessing for themselves what is going on.

It is more favourable to release information in a controlled manner, than to allow exaggerated rumours to leak out, and fears to grow out of ignorance.

TheDream · Dec 12, 2003

Originally posted by einsteinian77
I'd have to say as in the crunching, could be both though

I really didn't have anything intelligent to post on this topic, so I kind of snapped.

The goverment is watching me. Wants to use me for my mental gurth! But I fight them off with my AFDB and anti-psychotronic toaster!

motai · Dec 15, 2003

Anti-psychotronic toaster? Sounds an awful lot like a weapon of mass destruction to me... and it also seems like the perfect weapons to use to bribe the world for $1 million dollars.

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Would the government tell us about UFOs?

If the government actually did find an alien craft what do you think they would do?

Inform the public immediately

render a cover up for as long as possible

other

einsteinian77

Jonathan

Guybrush Threepwood

Njorl

Raven

einsteinian77

russ_watters

Staff: Mentor

wasteofo2

Guybrush Threepwood

Jonathan

Nereid

russ_watters

Staff: Mentor

einsteinian77

Guybrush Threepwood

Njorl

einsteinian77

TheDream

einsteinian77

TheDream

einsteinian77

russ_watters

Staff: Mentor

einsteinian77

FZ+

TheDream

motai