There is a Yeti in the back of everyone’s mind; only the blessed are not haunted by it. ~ old sherpa saying
Showing posts with label Autumn Williams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Autumn Williams. Show all posts

Friday, January 6, 2012

From "Denying Science" to "Anomalist Historian."

Lesley at The Debris Field linked to, and commented on, Melisa Hovey's post about my post: The Search For Bigfoot: Denying the necessity of Science.....

Melisa wrote on her blog The Search For Bigfoot:

What do witnesses want?

I have to say, I disagree with Regan Lee. When witnesses contact a person they know is a “Bigfoot Researcher” they may believe with all their heart and soul they have seen a Bigfoot, but they, as much as any researcher, want proof.

Why do I think that?

Because witnesses contact people within the “Bigfoot Research Community.” They send emails to Bigfoot Organizations. They call the 1-800 numbers, asking us to come and take a look at their property, or an area where they had a sighting. They write in their emails, “I know I’m not crazy”. Witnesses think, if anyone can prove they seen a Bigfoot – it is someone within this community. Witnesses know we collect any possible evidence of what they are reporting. Witnesses allow us to stay on their properties and hold “night ops”. If they didn’t want proof as much as your average researcher, they wouldn’t contact us, or allow us on their property.
I actually agree with Melisa in many ways. Read her post for my comments.

I also commented at Lesley's blog. One thing I wrote at Lesley's blog that just came out and inspired me for more on this is what I said about the need for having a Fortean, or "anomalist junkie" etc. along on BF teams. That'll tick off some, I'm sure, but if we can have scientists, and nuts and bolts (to borrow a term from UFO research) kind of researchers, why not those kinds of investigators, researchers, and writers who come from a different perspective altogether? An "anomalist historian" along for the journey?

Monday, October 17, 2011

On Monster Tracker: Demonizing Long Term Witnesses

I have a new article at Monster Tracker: Bigfoot Research: Demonizing Long Term Witnesses
At Cyrptomundo, Loren Coleman's bias towards UFOs, aliens, and the stranger side of Sasquatch -- which includes long term interactions with Bigoot, regardless of any other high strangeness events or not -- and witnesses reporting such is made clear:

“They really believe they are having these experiences,” Coleman said. “I don’t know if it’s hallucination or a psychological state.” ~ Coleman,Meldrum Question Contactee Claims.
Given that one quote, it seems that anyone who sees something strange in context of a Bigfoot sighting is, in Coleman's worldview, either hallucinating or suffering from some kind of mental illness.

The Cryptomundo article addresses skeptic Eric Niller's New Bigfoot Sightings: Proof Still Lacking, which quotes Coleman's research on "Bigfoot contactees." (I prefer, like Autumn Williams and others, to use the term "long term witness" or LTW.)

Niller's article looks at the story of LTW Robin Lynn Pfeifer of Michigan, who says she has an on-going relationship with several Bigfoot.

Dr. Jeff Meldrum has no patience with such stories either:

"There's no substance to any of her claims," said Meldrum, who is an expert in the evolution of early hominid gait. "If there were 10 to 12 around her home, she should be opening up a museum with all the artifacts."
Meldrum's thoughts are based on assumptions and ignore what the anecdotal evidence is telling us. According to Pfeifer, the Bigfoot are not open to being photographed:
The rest at Monster Tracker...

Monday, August 1, 2011