Conspiracy theories and, relatedly, antigovernment sentiment could prove toxic to any factual and scientific discussion of unidentified anomalous phenomena
As the U.S. heads into another contentious election cycle, there is a glimmer of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill on an unexpected topic: unidentified anomalous phenomena.Both Republicans and Democrats in Congress support efforts to make more government records related to UAPs open to the public.
In theory, this should open the door to an objective and scientific approach to UAPs. But if the information release is haphazard, with a focus on one-off reports of sightings, that could backfire. U.S. national security agencies could suffer damage to their reputation. Those who work on, or report, such phenomena could be stigmatized.
In July, the testimony during the House Oversight Committee’s hearing on the issue included claims of a vast conspiracy by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. intelligence agencies and their contractors to conceal evidence of extraterrestrials. There were accusations that government officials threatened witnesses with physical harm. In response, government officials have spoken out, calling some of these claims insulting to those serving in the national security establishment.
Antigovernment rhetoric can also sow public distrust. Public confidence in major U.S. institutions is already low. Surveys find that only 8 percent of Americans have confidence in Congress and 26 percent in the White House. About 60 percent report confidence in the U.S. military.
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