Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS of the FOURTH KIND

Alien Abductions

"Soldier," the officer asked, "did you speak to those civilians who reported being taken aboard the saucer?"
"Yes, Major, and it sounded to me like they were all on the sauce, sir."

A close encounter of the first kind is seeing a UFO. An encounter of the second kind is the observation of a UFO touching down on land or water. The third kind is making contact with those inside the UFO. The fourth kind involves the abduction of humans by extraterrestrial kidnappers.

Eyewitness reports of alien abduction by people who were either kidnapped or who observed such an event are very similar to the numerous accounts of every other kind of encounter. They're similar with respect to the fact that 99% of all sightings, contacts, and supposed kidnappings can be dismissed by skeptics as a combination of hoaxes, hallucinations, dreams, misinterpretations, or genuine mental disorders of one kind or another. Which leaves scientists and skeptics alike with a nagging one-percent of reports and testimonies for which no reasonable or rational earthly explanation suffices. It is also understood that this subject is no laughing matter for the people involved, and while I tend to find humor in the topic generally, no disrespect is intended, nor an outright dismissal of anybody's personal, firsthand experiences.

As part of any discussion of human abductions, mention must also be made as to the extensive evidence regarding animal mutilations, much of it well documented and eerily compelling. Fortunately few if any humans appear to share the same fate as cattle, sheep, and other animals as concerns their eviscerated carcasses being strewn about the fields of farmers and ranchers. A question arises as to whether the two situations are related or exist as separate phenomena. Consequently my focus will concern itself solely with the alleged kidnappings of people by extraterrestrial hooligans, and leave all other mysteries, from crop circles to amateur videos to animal mutilations, for others to comment on. Including me, if and when I find time.

Rather than attempt to assess the reasons and motivations of the people who claim to have been abducted, some of whom insist their encounters are ongoing, we can instead explore and consider what might be the rationale of alien invaders who have been snatching humans for perhaps hundreds of years -- maybe more. The reports have been documented for so long, it appears that whatever their reasons, these extraterrestrial felons either never tire of their crimes, or have yet to find what they're looking for. A third choice suggests some form of ongoing, cooperative collaboration between humans and aliens, a plot right out of the TV series, The X-Files. Such a notion is just too conspiratorial for my blood, and I'm at my most skeptical and incredulous with respect to conspiracies.

Thus if we assume that people and E.T.'s aren't working together as some type of modern-day galactic mafia, then we are free to question why advanced aliens might abduct people, expose them to all manner of quasi-medical experiments, then return them none-the-wiser back to where they were taken. The biggest flaw in the aliens' technology is obviously the none-the-wiser part, since many victims -- at one time or another -- recall their frightening experiences at the hands of their merciless captors. In theory, without these inadvertent, accidental recollections, humanity itself would be none-the-wiser with regard to the abductions in question. Thus the subject's greatest strength -- and weakness -- is its reliance on eyewitness testimony. Although a pittance of hard evidence is alleged to exist, most of it in the form of small (and quirky) implants, no peer-review evaluations have, to date, been performed or made available.

Once again, it is only the scant one-percent of abduction accounts that are worthy of discussion and further evaluation. This is not to say, however, that among the 99% of other reports, we are left with only charlatans, liars, mental patients or wackos. Indeed many persons have endured experiences they (and all others) cannot explain, but a lack of explanation in and of itself does not automatically validate an alleged abduction scenario. In an extremely complex world, any number of other possibilities might be responsible for the strangest of events, including reports of ghosts, hauntings, Bigfoot, and even demonic possessions. In order for something as specific as an abduction by extraterrestrial kidnappers to exist as the sole explanation for a given situation, very specific criteria must be satisfied. As the late astronomer Carl Sagan noted: extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. Within this one-percent of extraordinary claims, such extraordinary circumstances do appear to support abduction as the sole basis of a victim's assertion. For this reason, it is tempting to examine such a claim from the perspective of the prospective perpetrators -- namely the aliens themselves.

While I'm not suggesting it's possible to think like an extraterrestrial, much less ascertain their motives or thought processes, such an evaluation is no more fraught with inaccuracy than the psychoanalysis of someone who has passed lie-detector tests and genuinely believes they were abducted and experimented upon. If we can't crack the patient's story, then maybe we should take a brief look at the alien doctors and nurses involved. What's in it for them? Is it even possible to speculate about such a thing? I think so, if we don't take ourselves too seriously in the process. Out of whimsy can often be found occasional and insightful glimpses of wisdom.

Needless to say, a thousand theories already exist as to why aliens would want to "probe" human beings in a laboratory setting. Without question, though, the most disturbing aspect to the reports of abductees is the dispassionate, if not sadistic nature of the experiments conducted on them. As if the murderous Nazi doctor, Josef Mengele, were himself an alien, tales of severe mistreatment and terrifying abuse run as a consistent pattern among the alleged victims. Such reports, if true, would indicate that the extraterrestrials responsible possess pathologically sociopathic brains. Not necessarily evil, per se, but so insensitive and oblivious to the pain and suffering of other sentient beings as to be certifiably disturbed by human standards. Thus before I can even begin to deal with the larger purpose of experimentation on human beings, we'd have to first understand the alien rationale for torturing human beings. Just for the sake of argument, however, let's skip past this initial obstacle and assume that human suffering is a necessary part of the examinations. Sick and depraved by anyone's standards, but let's go with it for the time being.

Why return the patients to their communities afterwards, subsequent some form of post-hypnotic suggestion that they forget everything that happened to them? One reason, I suppose, would be similar to how biologists implant animals with microchips or other devices that allow them to be tracked, captured later and again studied for whatever reason. The aliens might well be interested in followup exams, so to speak, and want to deal with the same individuals over and over again. Perhaps these folks are the ones most likely to start recalling their office visits. In any event, whatever the extraterrestrial version of Josef is up to, his answers are definitely slow in coming. They're either very complex or involve a process that drags on almost interminably.

Lots of people go missing every year. Thousands worldwide. Some no doubt fall into deep holes, drown at sea, or just wander away and simply vanish among the world's population centers -- or unpopulated regions such as wilderness areas or desert sands. Others are the victims of crimes of one form or another, and are simply disposed of accordingly. A small percentage, those who regain their memories of what happened to them, claim to have been abducted by extraterrestrials. These are the returnees, of course, whereas how many were taken and never released remains unknown. And unknowable. It's possible that only a small percentage of those kidnapped are released at all, and even among those, many who are again abducted are either not returned or simply dumped somewhere. Nice, huh? Not exactly Spielberg's cuddly E.T. from the movie.

More likely than not, intelligent, sentient beings who develop sophisticated technologies, no matter where they call home, share a lot in common. Fabricating hardware from the soft biomass in which all of us were spawned in one way or another, is fraught with many of the same difficulties and challenges regardless of who you are. In similar fashion, successes and achievements are equally rewarding, inspire continued triumphs, and forever push the boundaries of intellectual curiosity. For these reasons and others it should be possible to speculate as to the possible motives that would drive an alien race to commit acts which by any other name, are still atrocities no matter how you slice them.

One argument suggests that the aliens, who are far more advanced than we are, view humans in the same way as we ourselves look at lower animals, insects, or even plants. Given our abysmal track record in this regard, such an assertion has a degree of merit. What we see, though, is the more technologically sophisticated humans become, the more mature is our approach to other living creatures including the planet itself. And this is done with respect to non-sentient beings, let alone our reverence for those we might view as fellow, self-aware entities. But, others might protest, our treatment of fellow humans is the worst of all, so where's all this maturity stuff? True enough. Although such examples appear to be the exceptions and not the rule. At least not on an intellectual, scientific level, or in psychological terms of what we strive for and aspire to. Humans are simply bad at living up to their own standards. But we're improving all the time, despite our slow progress of one and a half steps back with every two steps forward. Consequently our astronauts represent the very best of our species, while the rest of us go about our daily lives for better and for worse.

If and when the day comes where human space explorers misbehave the same as common criminals, then two events will also be probable and commonplace: space travel itself, and renegade pirates who are not representative of their species as a whole. So this is one possible, however unlikely, explanation for how aliens could have both visited Earth and continue to carry out universally heinous activities. Such a claim still fails, however, to answer what gain is derived from human experimentation, but we've at least described how certain aspects of such events might come into play.

The good news is that if aliens, renegades or not, have been harassing Earth inhabitants for as long as it would seem, then space travel may be easier than we might otherwise have believed. The bad news is that these same extraterrestrials are hard to catch-in-the-act. Let alone catch, period. Apparently only the military of various countries have captured some of these outlaws, including one or two of their saucers. Going down this road of inquiry again sounds a lot like episodes of The X-Files, where humans are clandestinely in communication with both bad aliens and good aliens. Either there's a lot going on with UFOs and aliens, and most of us don't have a clue, or the nighttime sky is just as empty (and quiet) as it appears to be. Which is a shame unless you're a traumatized abductee.

Abductees are not impressed with advanced space-travel technologies that have permitted extraterrestrials to cross the vast distances between our home worlds. Even worse, those kidnapped are utterly unimpressed with the whole concept of having made contact with other-worldly intelligences. On the contrary, abductees view themselves as victims at the hands (or tentacles) of entities whom others would figuratively kill just to glimpse. The dichotomy between the two groups is immense and profound. Because many UFO enthusiasts (who idealize extraterrestrials) cannot imagine an encounter of any kind being a negative experience, they tend to discount or dismiss the abduction accounts of claimants. Other UFOlogists cling to abductee depositions as further proof of the existence of aliens. The whole business is big mix of who believes what, who doesn't believe, who wants to, and who does or doesn't care.

In summation, there's a certain sloppiness associated with the whole abduction business. The idea that some victims remember a lot of what happened to them, while others recall very little, is problematic. Whatever technology that alien abductors use to make people forget, seems far from perfect. It's pretty hit and miss, always has been, and the little buggers just can't seem to get the bugs out. The whole manner in which humans are taken, treated, then deposited naked among the bushes seems not only cruel, but crude, as in sloppy. Leftover injuries, scars, and implants of one form or another implies a kind of haphazardness about the whole process. If we couple such observations with our keen awareness that space travel has zero-tolerance of slipshod behaviors or for slapdash vehicles, then we're left to question how aliens could get away with so much, for so long. And rarely if ever get caught napping, instead of kidnapping.

When scrutinized under our own unsympathetic microscope, even the one-percent of unexplained or unexplainable abduction accounts are dubious at best, and incomplete at worst. Some piece of information may be missing that would resolve the situation in an instant. The cases are always suspect with respect to their cause and presumed conclusion, as compared to pure cause and effect. While clearly an effect for which a cause was undoubtedly involved, a conclusion that includes extraterrestrials would seem to require more than a vague deposition little different from a standard crime report. On the contrary, an extraordinarily detailed forensic analysis using MRI's, CAT scans and the like ought to indicate the presence of extraordinary evidence in support of extraordinary claims. Yet we see little in the way of overwhelming proof. As with so many of these kinds of things, our inability to disprove an explanation, is not a form of proof that then necessarily includes that same explanation among all other possibilities.

No discussion of this and related topics would be complete without some mention of what has come to be known as repressed memory syndrome, or RMS. In the book, The Myth of Repressed Memory: False Memories and Allegations of Sexual Abuse by Elizabeth Loftus and Katherine Ketcham, we learn that not only do human brains have a propensity for making connections, weaving and linking together disparate elements in endlessly creative and imaginative ways, but entire cottage industries have sprung into being, the sole purpose of which is the legitimization of RMS, and from which large sums of money continue to be made. It is likely no coincidence that nearly all accounts of alien abduction involve memories which are revived via some form of sensual stimulus -- similar in most respects to the experiences of those for whom more down-to-earth explanations are involved. Also in like fashion, the majority of abductees' accounts include some aspect of sexual violation, one of the key ingredients with respect to RMS, and where very human perpetrators are the criminals in question.

In a world where it is often difficult if not impossible to distinguish between genuine memories and those which are fabricated by accident, purposeful intent, or result from illness, we should refrain from fast conclusions and rushes to judgment, as they say. In any direction. A true skeptic believes anything is possible, and I'm one of those who want to believe. Without more evidence beyond that which might be created artificially with equal impact, the rational inquirer can neither confirm nor deny the veracity of even the one-percent minority of abduction reports.

It's been said that the most banal of scientific revelations, such as the discovery of gunpowder, would be viewed as magic if not otherwise explained. When so-called primitive peoples were first exposed to the technologies of more advanced cultures, the miracles they witnessed were viewed as magical, mystical, and religious experiences more often than not. A speculation with which I find myself in total agreement proposes that even today, among so-called advanced societies, modern miracles and magical happenings still find a place in our collective, sophisticated psyches. It is why magicians continue to "wow" audiences with their amazing acts of legerdemain, because our minds instantly relegate to magic, what we cannot readily fathom in any other way. Magic is more, however, than a casual dismissal of an extraordinary experience. It is a kind of denial that something actually happens in the same manner as we perceive it. With almost a religious fervor, we accept the trick involved and simply assume that while we can't imagine how the illusion was performed, it is nonetheless an illusion. A classic case of not really believing what our eyes tell us is true.

Another, often more sinister kind of magic also exists in the world. Magic of the supernatural kind. Maybe an encounter we might label as being of the fifth kind. Almost humorous now that I think of it, something is considered supernatural in nature if it can't be explained via the machinations of real or traditional magic tricks. So strong is the appeal of the supernatural realm and our affinity for it, that even when magicians demonstrate an ability to precisely replicate a specific instance of alleged supernatural activity, believers choose to dismiss the magic and cling to the mysticism, so to speak. A discussion along these lines brings us headlong into the realm of demons, ghosts, possessions, and exorcisms. How's that for a segue from extraterrestrial abductions? Not as much as you might think. There's a very good chance that all of these topics are interrelated. Make that an extremely good chance. Okay they are, period.

Last time I looked, magicians are performing tricks that can only be supernatural in origin. There's just no way that tiger could have jumped into that cage with the woman in it. Not that fast. And then the woman turns into the magician and the tiger into the woman. Not possible. What is possible, however, is that things can happen in everyday life that look or sound magical, sometimes both. But since there's no magician involved, then we immediately glom onto the only other explanation -- that other kind of magic that doesn't involve tricks; it employs goblins, vampires, ghouls and poltergeists instead. Hey, who needs phony magic tricks when you've got the real stuff to work with?

Harry Houdini, real name Erik Weisz Houdini, spent his whole life trying to separate the charlatan flotsam from the authentic afterlife jetsam. As a master magician, he definitely knew the difference. Unfortunately for Harry, he found a lot of the one -- the fakes and phonies -- and none of the other. That probably deserves to be repeated. Though a confirmed believer himself, poor Erik never found a single case that proved the existence of an afterlife. Maybe he was too close to the trees to see the forest, as they say. Edgar Cayce is another favorite of those who favor one form of magic over another. As are scientists seeking answers to how the universe works, only to obscure the answers simply by observing their test results.

The world literally overflows with strange and unexplainable phenomena. The Earth, the energy of quadrillions of life forms all respiring at the same time, restless geologic forces ceaselessly churning and changing, complications heaped upon complexities, all with brains barely out of the trees, claiming to make sense of it all.

Most of whom purport to comprehend the incomprehensible, who claim to see where infinity leads, yet don't have a clue -- not an inkling -- as to how a flophouse magician pulls that rabbit out of his hat.