Does the UFO Subculture Really Want Them Involved?

Greetings. The UFO subculture has consistently claimed to want to get members of the scientific research community involved in investigating the UFO problem. Is this claim truthful? Let's take a look.

The late Carl Sagan (1934-1996) held skeptical views on the possibility of alien visitation, opinions which were not popular with many, if not most persons in the UFO subculture. Mr. Sagan often inquired about tangible evidence of such alleged events, and was never provided with any. The possibility of extraterrestrial life was something that Mr. Sagan fully embraced, including the existence of advanced extraterrestrial civilizations in outer space, however he felt that the likelihood of extraterrestrials visiting the planet was vanishingly small. Even to this day, Mr. Sagan, and his opinions, are still the target of less than civil commentaries, even by some well-known UFO researchers. 

Neil deGrasse Tyson, the director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City, is one of the most well-known scientists to today's general public. Like Carl Sagan, Mr. Tyson is a celebrity scientist who makes science more attractive to the masses, which is only a good thing in my humble opinion. His approach has made science far more relatable to people who did not have a prior understanding of the workings of the cosmos and the scientific method. Like Sagan, Mr. Tyson's opinions about UFOs are skeptical and not very popular with believers, but the questions that Mr. Tyson offers are reasonable and scientifically valid, particularly the question that asks for tangible evidence. Of course, nobody in the UFO subculture has been able to provide evidence of alien visitation. 

The UFO faithful usually respond to Mr. Tyson, as they did to Mr. Sagan, in a very personal and subjective manner, often making statements like "Tyson has never studied or examined the UFO literature," or "Tyson just doesn't believe in UFOs." I often wonder how those same people know what Mr. Tyson has or has not read about the UFO issue. How would they know? Do they live with him, or visit his offices in New York? As far as Tyson's beliefs about UFOs, we can safely declare that Mr. Tyson does believe in UFOs, since any reputable scientist is well aware of how unreliable anecdotal information is, including witness testimonials. People misidentify mundane phenomena all the time, making everyday events UFOs by definition. Unfortunately, according to a substantial majority of the UFO masses, anything unidentified is alien. What an embarrassment.  

To be brutally honest, the UFO subculture is far, far more interested in confirmation, not valid scientific inquiries. They don't want more unanswerable questions, they want unsubstantiated claims, void of tangible evidence. Even within the UFO subculture's own ranks there are researchers who are unpopular due to their skeptical and data-driven approach, people like Kevin Randle, Jack Brewer, and the late Stanton T. Friedman. Legitimate investigative efforts do not entertain unsubstantiated beliefs, instead, such efforts follow the available evidence, no matter where that information happens to lead. If the UFO subculture really wants the involvement of highly credentialed, highly educated scientists, it needs to put its dogmatic beliefs aside, and follow the evidence, even if that evidence leads to the mundane.

One noteworthy position should be made plainly clear. Both the late Carl Sagan and Neil deGrasse Tyson have stated unequivocally that the UFO problem is worthy of scientific inquiry. That speaks volumes in my humble opinion. 

Thank you for your time and consideration.