Feeling a Lack of Control? Bigfoot Can Help

This is my column for Tim Binnall's site week before last. I'm posting it here since it has to do with Bigfoot. My new TR column should be up sometime on Monday; it's about Mothman, animals and their awareness of the weird . . .

TRICKSTER'S REALM
Binnall of America

10.13.8
Feeling a Lack of Control? Bigfoot Can Help

News has been floating around the internet about a study done that concludes the following: if we're feeling out of control, we see things that aren't really there. Wait, it gets better. We see Bigfoot. And UFOs.

First, when I hear that someone is seeing something that isn't really there, I have to ask: how do you know it isn't there? The huge complicated subject of mental illness aside, it's terribly arrogant to assume that someone is seeing something that "isn't there" just because the other person can't see whatever it is that isn't there. Or is it. The tester didn't put the thing there, that's how they know it isn't "really there." Hmmm, maybe. It could still be there. Opens up all kinds of philosophical and esoteric possibilities.

As to seeing Bigfoot and UFOs, why would anyone see those things when they feel out of control? The theory is that seeing these things gives one purpose. Uh huh.

Let's see. I feel a lack of control in my life (hey, who doesn't? Unless you're independently wealthy and in excellent health, none of us are in control. Even with all that money and good health.) So I'm feeling wonky, depressed, maybe scared, even, and I see a Bigfoot, an eight foot or more, hairy/furry, smelly beast of unknown origin, and that's going to make me feel more in control? Who thinks of things like this?

UFOs are infamous for shape shifting. They come in all sizes, colors and shapes. They appear and disappear with astounding speed, almost magickal in their behavior. They're weird all right. They're unpredictable. So, feeling a lack of control in my life, I decide to see something that "isn't there" -- a UFO. And if I'm feeling a particular sense of a lack of control, I might see some aliens. Throwing in the towel altogether, I might even say I've been abducted. Don't blame it on my psycho boss, spouse, the kids, the government, but project all these things onto Bigfoot or UFOs.

Not to mention that all kinds of people, all ages, all walks of life, the world over, see these things.

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Bigfoot really exists, that's why people keep seeing the things. UFOs are really here, they've been here for a very long time, and that's why people the world over keep seeing them.

What's contributing to this feeling of a lack of control over mundane issues is the media's and government's lack of responsibility when it comes to reporting these things.

The James Randi Forum has a new Bigfoot thread! I really can't keep up; I think it's at least 30 different threads now about Bigfoot. This newest one is titled "Bigfoot evidence gathering flowchart. Enjoy!

Way Cool Photos on Cryptomundo

But don't get too excited. . . they're great photos, but one is an admitted hoax, or more correctly, a promotional image for a TV show, the other, well, no info so far but just look at the damn thing and you'll see (one assumes) that it's a costume. See the thread here on Cryptomundo for images.

New JREF Bigfoot Thread!

Before you know it, I'm going to have to create a new blog just for threads about Bigfoot on the James Randi forum. Here's the latest: Bigfoot - Replicating the PG Walk (split from:Bigfoot - The Patterson-Gimlin Film)

From Church of UFOlogy: Sasquatch, Sasquatch, Won't You Come On Down?

Seems there's been a whole lot of BF sightings lately, for example: "Sasquatch, Sasquatch, Won't You Come On Down?" at The Church of UFOlogy blog. Thanks to Aileen Garoutte for the link.

Two New Bigfoot Threads on JREF

Honestly, I just can't keep up! It's almost at thirty --- close to thirty threads about Bigfoot on the James Randi message forum.

There's Why is it that everyone who sees Bigfoot is a lousy photographer? This thread has a poll! The question posed: Is there a good reason for this? You can imagine the choices, but better yet, visit the forum. There are a few sarcastic answers but not surprisingly, the majority of responses are in favor of, to paraphrase, "there ain't no such thing as Bigfoot, no how!"

There's also the thread "Today in Bigfoot news"
http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=122947

"Seneca Sasquatch," Bigfoot, Mothman, TNT . . .

Now this is the kind of stuff that I love. Cryptomundo has a juicy Fortean post -- Seneca Sasquatch about Bigfoot in Seneca, Illinois, reports of which have been coming in for decades.These reports include sightings of Bigfoot swimming, among other things. But a most interesting fact is that a lot of the Bigfoot sightings take place in and around old Dupont (yes, that Dupont) TNT grounds, which shares a commonality with Mothman, who was seen hanging out in the TNT storage mounds in Pt. Pleasant. Coleman reports:

Now, as everyone knows, the reports of Mothman and Bigfoot, as well as other weird events, around Point Pleasant, West Virginia, were mostly in one specific spot - the TNT area, outside of town. The location was used to manufacture TNT during World War II. The first thing the “airport” gentlemen from Indiana whom I met, who is consulting in Seneca, asked me when I mentioned the WVA site was, “Was it a DuPont factory?”

I didn’t know, although I don’t recall hearing DuPont associated with Mothman. But I now wonder what company (or spinoff or parent company) owned the TNT site near Point Pleasant. Something to think about and research later, when I return home unless a Cryptomundian finds the answer before then.

And as Andrew Colvin, author of Mothman's Photographer, notes several times in his book, the corporate connection with Mothman and the paranormal-Fortean world cannot be ignored; if nothing else, there is a strange and strong relationship between the two. How and why, that's another story.

The swimming Bigfoot and underground tunnels, pathways, rooms, mounds, etc. gives support to the theory Bigfoot lives underground.

NEW Bigfoot Thread on JREF: Bigfoot and Fairies

I've lost count, this makes 29? Give or take one or two? This one is titled "Photo Captures Bigfoot With Fairy."

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=122365

Just for fun. . .

Weird Bigfoot Dream

I have a post up at my Mothman Flutterings blog, about turkey vultures and a strange dream I had about Bigfoot.

Yep, That's Right! A New Bigfoot Thread on JREF

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=121684

A new thread on the James Randi forum on why, how, it can't possibly be so, that Bigfoot exists. Or, doesn't exist. This one is called "Why Bigfoot Can't Exist in America."

On Machine Elf: Trickster or Liar?

On Lesley's excellent blog Machine Elf, she asks, about the whole hoaxed Bigfoot mess: Trickster or Liar? I respond with a comment.

Nick Redfern Interviewed on Blogsquatcher

A very good interview on "paranormal bigfoot" with Nick Redfern on the Blogsquatcher blog. This is part 1, look out for part 2!

Search Phrases

It’s interesting to review the search phrases for my blogs. What i find curious are the ones that seem to be a bit off the wall, or funny, etc. (See Women Of Esoterica.)

For this blog, I find that there a lot of searches, with variations, for Tom Biscardi, chupacabra, and "Georgia Bigfoot hoax." Someone wanted to know about “rickmat creature” I had to laugh at that: “rickmat creature?” Did they mean Rick and Matt, put together, equal a monster of some kind? Heh.

This is a paranormal blog, though I veer off from that when it comes to the mundane side of Sasquatch, like the recent RickMatt-Biscardi Mess. So I was glad to see people searching for “native american fairy,” and lots of searches for a native american/bigfoot connection, as well as “paranormal bigfoot” in general. Also for “giant rock joe fex” who is a researcher that doesn’t seem to get much attention, and a few for Mary Green, Tennessee Bigfoot lady.

This one has me baffled: “Oregon coast squirrels.”

Then there’s “does bigfoot” --- does bigfoot what? Inquiring minds want to know!

“Aliens and bigfoot;” and both Bigfoot on Mt. Rainer and Mt. Shasta are popular too.

Good Night, and Thanks for Dropping By! You All Don't Come Back Now, Ya Hear?

The Bigfoot -Hoax -Team -RickMatt - Biscardi -Carnival is over, pretty much. I suppose we'll hear some news in weeks to come about their whereabouts; found shooting at rusted cans in a swamp in Florida or something, what's left of the money they hustled (allegedly) out of Biscardi stuffed in the floorboards of their RV.

And I have a feeling we haven't heard the last from Biscardi. It may be six months, it may be a year, it could even be next month when he gets his money back -- if he gets it back -- but there'll be more from Biscardi.

As we all know everyone's been commenting on this, including me. For a slightly off kilter (that's a good thing) take on all this are the posts Adam Gorightly's been putting up on his Untamed Dimensions. Adam's deranged,(in the best of ways) and his blog is enjoyable no matter what's going on over there, but the Bigfoot hoax posts have also been enjoyable.

Georgia Bigfoot Hoax exposed

Lesley on the Bigfoot Hoax

Lesley (Debris Field, Beyond the Dial, Machine Elf, Land of Enchantment, just to name a few of her many blogs -- oh, and contributor to Women Of Esoterica) has her say on the Georgia Bigfoot hoax in Biscardi Gate: Bigfoot in the Freezer Hoax. I like what she says here:

Unlike some I do not believe such hoaxes harm true Bigfoot research in anyway. Just as I don’t believe ufo hoaxes harm true ufology research. The media was looking for exactly what it got. They love crap like that. Had it been a real researcher with some real evidence of Bigfoot (short of an actual body) it is unlikely he or she would have got any attention at all. I think it is likely that the media knew just as much about Biscardi as I do (they have access to google too) and they knew exactly what to expect. They played along because it was something to attract more viewers or readers, no matter that it was a hoax.

"The" Greg Long? : Gama-Go's Big Yeti

Is this the Greg Long, who writes (or used to) about UFOs and the like? See: Gama-Go’s Big Yeti – The Inception.

"Crazy Bear" and UFOs

My Fortean heart skipped a beat this morning when I saw Crazy Bears and Bigfoot, by Steiger, on the Alien Seeker News site. I have a deep interest in tales of Bigfoot-UFO encounters.

In this piece, Steiger references a journal he received years ago, dating back to 1888. In that journal are entries concerning Native Americans, tribal sacred myths about “crazy bears from the stars,” and feeding a Bigfoot in a cave.

The grandson of the journal author had sent this journal to Steiger, and he shares his theories on Bigfoot and the star people with Steiger.

Several months ago, I posted an entry here about "crazy bear" and UFOs in connection to material in Preston Dennett's book UFO's Over California.

Whatever one may think of the specific theories offered in the Steiger piece or in the book UFOs Over California,one thing is for certain, as Brad points out: among virtually all native tribes, there are stories about a Bigfoot type creature, as well as star people, and our relationship to them.

Happy Camp and Bigfoot

Bigfoot Sightings has an enjoyable piece about living in Happy Camp, and the Bigfoot vibe down there. Life in Bigfoot Country: Happy Camp, California