It seems like the alien and UFO community is full of disinformation agents. But it’s more than people just pulling pranks; you’ve got people manipulating politicians, government agents, military personnel, billionaires, CEOs, etc. If it’s the case that there’s no there there, I don’t understand why the topic gets so much attention. Sure, a few people make money off of books or documentaries, but it’s a tiny fraction of the business that the fictional alien industry makes off of sci-fi books and movies. So I don’t see how money could motivate the level of manipulation we see. Likewise, I don’t see the political utility. It’s a bipartisan issue, so no particular party is benefitting from it. And I don’t see how it’s a big distraction relative to all the other distractions there are currently or that politicians have use historically. Apparently there was some national security interest in UFO groups back in the 50s because they were worried they’d be co-opted by the Russians. Well, we live in an age where Russian bots are trying to manipulate all online communities, so I don’t see any reason to put special focus on UFOs. Another possibility is that special contractors use UFO sightings to cover up the testing of experimental aircraft. But that’s a weird dance of encouraging UFO enthusiasts while ridiculing them simultaneously. And, what’s more, it’s been confirmed that some UFO sightings in the past were experimental aircraft’s, so the cat’s out of the bag on that one. So, if aliens and UFOs aren’t a real thing, why do various groups screw around with the community so much? submitted by /u/SportyNewsBear [link] [comments]