After decades of official denials about unidentified flying objects (UFOs) the U.S. Pentagon is expected to publicly release what it knows about this phenomenon by the end of this month. The timing of such an announcement has many people scratching their heads, particularly given the current political crisis in the U.S. and the global lockdowns.

At the heart of the issue has been the release of photos and other data about sightings of UFOs that have been called ‘tic tacs’ owing to their shapes resembling the popular candy of the same name.

For our purposes, what makes the issue particularly fascinating are the public discussions surrounding UFOs, given the vacuum of knowledge inherent in the nature of the phenomenon. Particularly egregious was a May 27 panel discussion hosted on the Daily Wire wherein all the panelists failed to provide any credible theories or perspectives about the many issues involved. Unable to discuss the possibility of extra-terrestrials objectively, they resorted to the use of non sequitur, irrelevant equations of ‘probabilities’ and even introduced elements of the supernatural in an attempt to minimize the possibility of life not of this earth. Should extra-terrestrials actually prove to exist, many fundamental religious and philosophical assumptions could be rendered invalid, challenged by the contradictions inherent in those beliefs that consider humanity to be utterly unique in the universe. Consequently, many fear that some kind of moral crisis could ensue leading to chaos in the social and moral order of humanity. It is perhaps considerations like this that may account for the government’s historical reluctance to reveal information about UFOs, particularly anything that might entail evidence of extra-terrestrials.

Whether ‘aliens’ exist or not, discussions of this nature, while often frustrating, serve as ‘Exhibit A’ in demonstrating how so many otherwise intelligent individuals refuse to apply known epistemological principles (or even common sense) to circumstances outside of normal experience. In the case of ‘aliens,’ it is a conscious effort driven by a fear that deeply held beliefs may no longer correspond with reality.

However, it seems to us that there is nothing threatening about the possibility of extra-terrestrials that should concern anyone whose interpretation of reality is based on any epistemology that is Just Right.