I'm a cynic by nature, but I like to think I'm not completely close-minded when it comes to "unexplained mysteries". Still, the UFO "mystery" was one I never paid much attention to. A highly-advanced race flies across the galaxies in complex machinery to visit our humble green planet, and then they're too timid to approach us and have to fly around surreptitiously in rural Southern neighborhoods like intergalactic voyeurs? Supposedly, they occasionally abduct a human in order to perform some sort of bizarre sexual experimentation on them (author Whitley Streiber claims to have had an encounter with these inquisitive aliens, and has written a book about his "experience" called "Communion"). I'm open-minded enough to entertain the possiblity that somewhere in the vastness of the universe another form of life might exist, but I'm pretty damn sure they're not flying around in saucers. Funny story: I have a friend who absolutely believes in these things, and claims to have seen one in our neighborhood when he was 9 or 10. He believed it enough that he actually went around the neighborhood with a tape recorder to see if any of the neighbors had witnessed the same phenomenon, and record their observations for posterity. One old Italian woman took it in stride, telling him, "No, Dan, didn't see anything, but let me know the next time they come, and I'll put some coffee on for them." When we were drinking in later years, another friend of ours (lamentably deceased) used to mock Dan constantly about it, saying, "What happened, Dan? Did some little green guy pop out of the saucer and wave to you before flying off?" Despite the mockery, and Dan's passage into supposedly sober (with all the connotations that word implies) middle-age, he remains convinced he saw a UFO in our little NJ neighborhood-- surprising, since most UFO's seem to target neighborhoods south of the Mason-Dixon line.

If they really exists, and if they really came to our planet to study us... they must be laughing and thinking why they had spent their time coming here! All a universe to discover, and they had to came here to study us??? I think it's not real, only a good fantasy for films.

You have entered the Twilight Zone... doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo....

What difference does it make unless the presence of aliens makes a real difference in our lives? It makes for great fiction and moviemaking but will not bother even talking about it.

So why does this highly advanced race want to spend all their time with dumb-ass hillbillies? No doubt they're seeking the answer to the great mystery of the universe, namely how to get on the cover of a supermarket tabloid.

I have seen UFO's, not saying these flying objects were driven by life from Mars...but I have seen a couple of "objects" that could not be explained away by a weather balloon or airplane.

Doesn't that mean "Unleaded Fuel Only?"

Out of all the trillions and trillions of planets we are defenetly not the only one with intellegent life on it.

It is either swamp gas, Venus or ball lightning (which happen to leave radar signatures), nothing to see here folks, move along. - Govt. Stooge.

UPDATE TO STARK: All it takes to prove the truth of these claims is the fufillment of the scientific method. That means independent testing and verification of the original claims by a peer review group, usually composed of disinterested scientists. The result also has to be reproduced by independent observers.

That cannot be done when the first claims are based upon undisclosed sources. The claims cannot be checked or proved and we have to take them on faith. It rather reminds me of some current theories about the origin of life.

As to the eyewitnesses, I have had some experience with them. Eyewitness testimony is often faulty and subject to imagination. To be charitable, many people have also seen Elvis,but I would have to have that verified by independent evidence by disinterested scientists.

ORIGINAL COMMENT: I listened to part of Stark's link to the Art Bell program whereby SETI was supposed to have received communication from extraterrestrials.

From what I gathered, one source,maybe two, who refuses or refuse to be named, made the discovery.

SETI denies.

The scientific method requires peer review and independent verification. That has not happened, so I guess there is no sense getting the vapors about this.

Unconfirmed sources are not the type of scientific evidence necessary to prove a point.

My father and I one night saw something totally unexplainable in the sky as we were saying goodbye to some friends getting in their car. Neither of us has in the past claimed to believe in such things but until the three large balls that hovered then flew across the sky are identified, they are just that...unidentified flying objects!!!!

Sorry, these are my fault too.

Best mystery ever, readily dimissed by "LIEntist" and other "skeptics" who's primary mission is to cover up the truth.

UFOs are Unidentified Flying Objects. There are sufficient testimonies of the phenomenon documented since the dawn of writing (Book of Ezekiel, Egyptian and Mayan drawings of strange craft and "spacemen", The Nuremberg incident in April of 1561). We simply cannot overlook the matter.

I encourage you to be skeptical, but not irrationally so. Keep an open mind.

Since UFOs have fallen into the hands of popular culture and science-fiction, the matter is being unfortunately ridiculed and overlooked. So yes, there exist fake documents and false testimonies but there also exist solid testimonies of direct first-hand experiences with UFOs (or ETVs)of reputed people around the world including politicians and millitary officials.

I encourage you to visit Dr Steven M. Greer's website "The Disclosure Project".
He has gathered over 400 witnesses, important U.S. government and millitary officials, that are bravely coming forward and revealing these experiences they've been told to keep secret for so many years.
His goals are to disclose the facts about UFOs and the cover-up that's kept them secret for over 50 years.

His reasons for coming forward and pressing the matter are, amongst others, the looming energy crisis (oil) that is sure to sweep the globe in the coming decade if things don't change. ETVs (Extra-Terrestrial Vehicles) use a form of energy generation and anti-gravity propulsion system that uses no fuel or electric power source. With this technology, we could get off fossil fuels in enough time (hopefully) to stop further damage to the ecosystem.

Here is the link:

http://www.disclosureproject.org/

I believe it is important that we establish peace before these beings, who have shown no hostility, will begin to approach and contact us. I believe we can achieve this in our lifetimes.

This is just beginning to unfold.

Wikipedia link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UFO

I can't believe that there are not intelligent life forms besides ourselves in the universe. Whether they have visited us is another story but my guess is that they have visited. Will they ever make contact? How do we know they haven't already?

Though a skeptic, I've seen things by eye and by radar that I could not explain.
Once, while sailing to Guam during my time in the Navy, several sailors including myself, saw an oddly moving formation lights low on the horizon for almost a full minute. I knew what flares, asteroids etc. looked like, I'd seen hundreds of fantastic meteor showers at sea and this was something different.
Another instance had me on my radar, along with a pair of American OHP's, holding an unknown air contact that approached our formation at about 500 knots, reached about 30 miles out, then turned around and disappeared so quickly the radar couldn't measure it's speed.
Though both instances were probably nothing, those couple of minutes of uncertainty were a great thrill.

It should be obvious to us that there is a high probability of other life on other planets. Consider, we are aliens on other planets right now (in the form of mechanical vehicles). Our society is not very old. If we can find ways to explore other planets and in time, outside this solar system....can others. It's ignorant to believe we are alone.

Not really any so-called proof in this area. Fake aliens and aliens people claim to be real always look the same--little men with big heads and buggy eyes. Sorry, but they are not real.

Tons and tons of proof,yes ufos are real. And why should we think that we are alone anyway in the universe which is so vast that it litterally doesnt end? Stop and think about it. But the amount of video footage speaks for itself on the subject of ufos. The goverment will announce this one day when they quit screwing around and lying about it.

I always considered UFO's rather boring. I'll change my rating if an actual alien shows up and lasers someone or something.

If they where going to invade earth, would have they done it by now?

This is probably one of thge greatest unexplained musterys yet. i think that there is life out there but I am not completly sure about ufo's

The only people who see these are the hillbillies in the midwest, and they were probably too drunk to realize that it was only an airplane.

If the small minds of dumb hillbillies are all they are interested in, then the future of the universe looks terribly grim.

Seeing is believing, if not neccesarily knowing. I saw a UFO, or a ghost, or something. Whatever it was, it wasn't normal. Overactive imagination? Not in my case. I definately saw it, whatever it was. Hallucination, maybe. However, I wasn't the only one who saw it. IMO, if you categorically deny the possibility of the paranormal than you've probably never experienced it and you probably have a distinct LACK of imagination. I can't tell you what I saw any more than you can tell me I didn't see anything. You wouldn't know, you weren't there. I was...and I don't know what I saw, but I know what I didn't see. Who says they have to be beings from outer space? I don't believe anybody who says they know exactly what a UFO is anymore than I believe someone who says there cannot be any such thing. There are some things that NOBODY knows about and nobody will ever know everything.

Hehe. I love the way that because of the drive of the media and people assuming, it always ends up as 'beings from outer space visiting etc, etc' UFO stands for Unexplained Flying Object. It isn't WAS (Weird Alien Spacecraft) Some theories are is that it is new military spacecrafts, meteors etc.... there are endless possibilities y'know.

i dont really know what i saw on day during class. i was staring out of the window then i saw a silver disk (yes like the ones u see on scifi and you think its fake) I WAS so scared! i KNOW it wasnt no military object comming right next to the window of a school! it was hovering right next to the window at about 5mph. i still remeber this SOOO CLEARLEY when it happened 3 years ago! im not saying it was a alein but it defitneyly was a UFO!

I've totally seen these things. Most of the time though, I'm able to identify them as airplanes or satellites, after which they become Identified Flying Objects. For a fleeting moment though they are indeed technically unidentified. Weird, huh?

There's a lot of b.s. and false sightings surrounding the u.f.o. phenomenon. Sometimes it helps to have an open mind. I'm sure there have been other times in human history where the truth had been surrounded by lies.

I beleive that if it was really an intelligent lifeform then it would be smart enough to ignore a species like ours. Maybe they do exist, but what makes us so important that they would come all this way to say hi, pick up Elvis, drop of Stone Henge, shove a camera up our ass, and then crash at area 51? Come on people, get a grip on reality!

Sometimes I try to convince myself that UFO's really exist, and I do this because sometimes it gets real scary thinking about how small we really are in this universe......so when it worries me I just start thinking about Jesus, and then I stop thinking about all that nonsense...

I think people really WANT to believe they are visiting us for some reason. Some even to the point that they've let their imaginations run amuck and actually believe they do so on a regular basis. Do I believe we're alone then? No way. The universe is too vast to make a sweeping statement like that. I believe that there's definately something out there. I just think that what people are seeing here on planet earth exists in what might be called the spirit realm.

I think there are definitely aliens out there, but I don't know if they come to Earth. This planet is hundreds of thousands of lightyears from the nearest star system, meaning that it would take that amount of time to travel here at even the speed of light (which of course is the fastest thing we know).

UFO's are sweet. They are cool I hope that they really are real.

The belief in UFO'S is inversely proportional to the diminution of common sense. Less common sense equals more belief in UFO’s. The more we learn about the difficulties and incredible chasms of distance for intergalactic travel the more the simple minded what to believe in demigods.

Gee, a flash of light someone notices in the sky or has a picture of. Man it's gotta be a UFO!! It can't be a star or one of the other millions of types of particles in space!!!

UFOs captured Elvis' secret baby. The only good thing about UFOs is that they helped to usher in some of the worst sci-fi films ever in the 1950s.

Tell me how could they travel the universe and still have to come that close to earth to learn anything. You would think they could "scan" the earth and learn all they wanted to know. Also if they need our bodies so badly why not take a few of us. Surly they could tell from one of us if we're exceptable, for whatever there looking for or want to know. Come on people!!! I believe in aliens, but if they can get here they would be past our abilities atleast. PPPllleeeaaassseee!!!!

I don't necessarily believe in little green men coming down in saucer-shaped vehicles, but out of all the millions of stars and planets in all the galaxies in the universe, I personally feel like there are at least a few of them that support life. Whether they can think and act like we do, who knows, but odds are, there is some form of like out there besides us.

ABSOLUTELY NO EVIDENCE, and I mean NO EVIDENCE that UFOs are alien crafts. This is just another poor use of science. Incredible claims require credible evidence and there ain't none. Otherwise this would be all over the news. Pure nonsense.

If another species from another planet were smart enough to create such technology, they'd also probably be smart enough to just stay away from Earth, too, just to avoid the hassle. I'm sure that there is some type of life on other planets, but I'm not sure about UFOs yet. I'm pretty convinced that most if not all UFO sightings are likely to be top-secret experimental aircraft which the goverment has recently or not yet unclassified.