T h e--N e e d--f o r--N e w--U f o l o g i s t s
By Thomas Wertman
We all have those jobs that we put off until another day. That project around the house that’s long overdue, straightening out the closet, or cleaning out the attic. Mine is in the attic and specifically going through the boxes of pictures from six generations. Here laid out before me are photos of my parents, brother and sister, grandparents, great-grandparents and an untold number of relatives and friends.
Someone once said “Nostalgia is not what it used to be”. While this was said as a joke, it also has a level of truth. Why, I’m the one getting nostalgic, not my parents. I refer to these as my “In my day stories”. There are photographs of our old house that I thought was so big, my first dog tied to a tree in the backyard, and the Ford station wagon that we took to drive-in movies. But what does all this have to do with ufology and the need for a whole new generation of ufologists?
“In my day” we watched television on a black-and-white screen TV, made popcorn in a pan on the stove, called our friends on a rotary dial phone, paid $.30 a gallon for gas, and if you talked about visitors, they called them Martians and you nuts. The ufologists of that era held meetings and sent out newsletters like we do today but didn’t have to compete with the Internet or an unlimited number of satellite or cable channels. Researchers had a difficult time even accessing weather conditions, much less flight paths, and satellite data. As a matter of fact, the number of satellites were minimal and one called Echo even had its viewing times posted in the local newspapers.
My generation of ufologists is experiencing a greater openness of the subject. The terms Martian and flying saucer were replaced by unidentified flying object and now UAP. A 2013 survey by the Huffington Post showed 50% of Americans believed there’s some form of life on other planets, 17% thought there were not, and 33% were unsure. This more open attitude towards acceptance has also spilled over into media. Television shows have evolved from “My Favorite Martian” and “Alf” to “Ancient Aliens” and documentaries such as “I Know What I Saw”. Who knows, maybe someday news channels will no longer play the X-Files theme when discussing a UFO sighting. While disclosure has still not come, public acceptance of the possibility of extraterrestrial life is at an all-time high.
What we need now is a new generation of ufologists to pick up. not just where we leave off, but before we leave off. A generation to learn from our experiences and use it to their advantage in the future. This new generation is being raised on cell phones, flat screen televisions with a seemingly endless number of channels, not to mention the Internet and the entire world at your fingertips and the click of a mouse. The ability to reach a global market will not be without challenges. Just as the older generation had individuals who would discredit the subject or pass on disinformation. This new generation will have their own unique challenges to overcome including individuals who sit behind a computer desk developing CGI UFO hoaxes, changing technologies such as drones and nanobots, along with a new generation of individual’s intent on hiding the existence of UFOs.
I would like to challenge anyone attending meetings to bring at least one new attendee of the younger generation. By doing so we can develop a whole new generation of ufologists raised on today’s technology and leading to the answers we’ve all been looking for. Maybe their “In My Day Story” will be "I remember when the government denied the existence of UFOs and even tried to cover up such events as Roswell".
© 2021 MUFON of Ohio.