The Power of Belief

DENVER (soon perhaps World UFO HQ) — Is the government hiding its knowledge of and interaction with alien beings? Could they be on Earth right now, all around us . . . within us . . . up our . . . noses?

It depends on who you believe, and more importantly, what you believe.

I’ve written on UFO enthusiasts previously, and recent activity shows that there is no slackening of interest in the subject. On Jan. 26, theoretical physicist Paul Davies addressed London’s Royal Society on the subject of extraterrestrial life on Earth.

This discussion built on his article in the Nov. 19, 2007 issue of Scientific American, in which he posits a “shadow biosphere” of organisms that are undetected because their alternative biochemistry puts them outside the parameters of standard research techniques. (The article’s points stem from a study published in July 2007 by the National Research Council.)Davies’ thoughts are provocative and engaging. The idea that if you’re not looking for it, you won’t see it is, like many innovative concepts, self-evident. However, like the life forms it theorizes about, the concept lives in a scientific blind spot. How do you find something you can’t perceive? Science edges into philosophies of perception.

Meanwhile, a ballot initiative in Colorado slated to be voted on in August calls for the creation of an Extraterrestrial Affairs Commission. This body would investigate assertions that not only does intelligent extraterrestrial life exist, but that world governments have suppressed evidence of its existence, communication with same, and is sitting on extraterrestrial technological advances that could transform the world for the better.

I must state straight up that I don’t share in these beliefs; neither do I feel that I am part of a conspiracy to hide the truth from humanity. Nor do I feel that I have been brainwashed, hypnotized, or otherwise coerced into skepticism. Can I convince anyone who supports this legislation that this is so?

No. And I never will.

That’s because I think that when it comes to UFOs, we are dealing not with scientific reality but with the mechanisms of belief.

What prompts people to attach themselves to such causes? An excellent 2003 book by Michael Barkun, “A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America” breaks conspiracy consciousness into a few basic elements:

1. Nothing happens by accident.
2. Nothing is as it seems.
3. Everything is connected.

A world full of malicious intent is for many far more reassuring than one that’s random. The organizing principle of good/bad, dark/light surfaces again and again in human thought. It’s far easier to fight “evil” than it is to fight chaos. In truth, evil is mundane, confused, disorganized and none too bright. Just like good (us, we hope).

The idea that a secret reality exists also satisfies the dissatisfaction with the idea that the reality we find ourselves in, for better or worse, is what we have to work with. If forces of darkness constantly battle to keep the wool pulled over our eyes, we can perpetually defer the possibility that the tools we have to change the world are already in our hands.

And of course, if everything is connected it can become a life’s work to investigate and assert these hidden patterns and connections, brave and noble in the face of a scoffing world. Barkun states, “. . . the clear identification of evil gives the conspiracist a definable enemy against which to struggle, endowing life with purpose.” The pretzel logic of the true believer is capable of refuting any and every doubt, an endless exercise in self-justification.

The paradox of selfish selflessness is best described by philosopher Eric Hoffer, whose “The True Believer” is a masterful study of social psychology. “Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for the lost faith in ourselves,” he writes. “Take away our holy duties and you leave our lives puny and meaningless. There is no doubt that in exchanging a self-centered for a selfless life we gain enormously in self-esteem. The vanity of the selfless, even those who practice utmost humility, is boundless.”

I have to agree with another, seemingly more prosaic philosopher, too. “Basically, I’m in favor of whatever gets you through the night,” Frank Sinatra said. Belief is a fundamental condition of human existence. For all that we are grounded, rational creatures, I think that 90 percent of our reality is shaped by our beliefs – about ourselves, about what is real, what is important, what is of value. It’s a double-edged sword. It provokes heroic actions and despicable crimes alike.

And nothing provokes hostility more than challenging people’s articles of faith, yours truly included. It’s a slippery slope – once you question what you consider to be absurd credos, then doubts begin to creep in – doubts bout such doctrines as the resurrection and divinity of Christ, that Mosaic law was handed down by God himself, that Muhammad wrote the Koran at the dictation of the angel Gabriel. When doubts about these topics are voiced, those voicing them may find themselves shunned, persecuted or targeted for death.

Belief is empowering. Belief is salvation. It works in my life, every day, and I wouldn’t want it destroyed for the sake of argument. So it’s important to respect concepts that lie outside the boundaries of empirical proof. As long as they don’t result in the demonization, oppression or extermination of the rest of us. And if you must create a commission to study the imaginary, please set aside some tax money for me. I have some great obsessions I’d like funded.

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Image: Richard Dreyfuss as Roy Neary in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind:” Your tax dollars at work?

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