Is it only the open-minded?

Something my mother theorized to me (open minded, never takes things at face value, possible crackpot, so maybe that's hereditary - love her):

Only those who are open-minded to the idea of extra terrestrials are actually able to see UFOs.
What do people think? Apologies if that's been discussed here before.

I saw a UFO from my bedroom window at my parents house about 10 years ago. It was so weird, I got my mum out of bed to come and look. It was a brightly glowing object, which I have always remembered like a streetlight in the sky. We watched it stay still, then slowly descend a little bit in a straight line, then shoot off into the distance, faster than anything on this planet (at least we know about) could possibly move.

My mum thinks we saw it because we are both open-minded...maybe that's true, or maybe somebody "closed minded" would place a logical explanation upon it and think about it no more?

Interested to hear your thoughts!

i like how you opened the thread

with a forest gump type intro. "momma always said life waz like ah box o choc-o-lates"

i think what your mom said is right on with how things work in this world. if your mind is open then things actually do show up.

theres an old saying that the teacher doesnt makes sence until the student ARRIVES. meaning you can sit in the front row of class but until you actually participate and listen and engage the teacher is just another body in the room.

The open-minded people are probably much more apt to take the "little green men" factor into accound, and actually think of them as UFOs.

Kind of like, you never find an Athiest who would say he beleives the devil is trying to possess him... that would be something completely different, to his frame of reference.

reply to post by 2012gal


Of course, that follows simple logic. Even skeptics in their logic aknowledge the fact but they dont like it applied to themselves, of course.

Just recently I was listening to the editor of "skeptic magazine" talk about how the mind "automatically" forms triangles from dots. I almost choked with laughter and wondered why he couldnt apply the same logic to how he thinks?

The mind doesnt automatically do anything, it does so through habit and condition, reflex and semantics.

A closed mind who has already decided nothing exists will immediately attempt to rationalise anything they see in favor of their own preconditioned beliefs. So if they do see a UFO, to them it will automatically translate into the quickest and simplest rationalization which fits, balloons, birds, basically anything they can convince themselves of.

They wont give it extended observation or consideration because their mind already placed it within a "safely tagged" box in their thinking and within that confine it exists only as the rationalisation you give it.

True skepticism, which is very rare, questions everything, every piece of information, every source, every presentation of reality of truth and runs it through a process of deduction and reasoning to determine the solidity of the "fact".

In most cases the true skeptic will accept nothing at face value, not daily news, not newspaper photos, nothing, if the information cant be stripped back down to facts and then processed through reason towards a likely or concrete meaning, it remains obscure and the true skeptic can accept absolute obscurity.

Im a true skeptic. I dont need meaning in the world around me. Its transient, distorted and misrepresented at all levels. Advertising, marketing, media positioning, juxataposition, political spin, they are tools , presenters of a flow of soiled truths which have no value. The only thing I require is to know what is not true and that is pretty much 80% of everything.

Lack of truth doesnt imply false, it simply leaves a matter undetermined which mean I can use the pieces to build a puzzle as I find links. This cant be done when you safely box every lie away under the illusion of truth.

Most things I pigeon hole as shadows of a truth and when I see something new I might reference it against other shadows and see what patterns emerge, I might compare patterns t motives, motives to results, results to methodologies, deductive reasoning until im satisfied I cant go any further.

Ill theorise on almost any given thing all the way down the line just to see how it plays out and what logical obstacles or indicators might pop up.

Does it impact living in the world? No. Why should it? The chair is real enough that I can sit on it, my food is real enough to eat, whatever the ture image of the social system and model is, it still exists in some form or other, money is required to buy things, things are born of needs and desires. I understand its operation, im able to function inside it but I have no need to beleive any of it.

For me that is skepticism and I like it that way. The only person that convinces me of anything is me and until im satisfied with something, I dont need to believe or disbelieve it. I mgith tend to one extreme or another on varying issues depending on how the pieces all knit together, on others I might just sit on teh fence and watch until something else catches my eye.

Perception is everything. Mulder said it very well, trust nobody.

Well I would have to say in my case not true. I saw one land in a field when i was about 6 years old. Too young to have formed an open mind I think.

Originally posted by TH3ON3
Well I would have to say in my case not true. I saw one land in a field when i was about 6 years old. Too young to have formed an open mind I think.

You are born with an open mind. Its life and conditioning that closes it down and creates all the little pegs and boxes for people pigeon hole their lives into.

Kids are born smart and grow to be stupid.

[edit on 30-10-2008 by silver6ix]

reply to post by silver6ix


i second that. kids are obviously special and are much more in tune with nature. we loose this ability with our 9-5 jobs etc.

if you are open minded- you know that what you see is real.
if not, you dont believe it, think at it or maybe see it.

open minded in family? of course
could mean the blood, or what your parents showed you.

Nia

Originally posted by NW111

if you are open minded- you know that what you see is real.
if not, you dont believe it, think at it or maybe see it.

open minded in family? of course

could mean the blood, or what your parents showed you.

Nia

Reality is a closed construct. The more constructs you have, the less open your mind is. Everytime you form a concrete perceptions of reality you, by default, close of all other conflicting possibilities limiting yourself to the one you have decided is true.

So the less you accept as real, the more open you mind is to possible answers which may be real or true.

It also can go both ways.Those of use that believe have to open minded to the fact that we could be wrong.That there are no such things a aliens.

[edit on 30-10-2008 by Tricky63]

I describe myself as an open minded skeptic, in that I look for a rational explanation and if I don't find one I then consider the incredible.

I've seen two UFO's myself. But they were just that - unidentified - Having been unable to identify them as anything man made or astronomical, I entertain the possibility that they were extraterrestrial or inter dimensional. I don't jump to a conclusion, I just accept the possibility.

I have an open mind and I've been interested in UFO's and Aliens since I was knee height to a grasshopper and I still haven't seen one. I don't think it's got anything to do with being open/closed minded. Plenty of close minded people have seen UFO's and thus have changed their opinion about them.

I'm open-minded to Aliens, ufo's, ghost and stuff like that but I have never seen or encoutnered such things. My boyfriend on the other hand is not open minded at all and is skeptical about everything has. Explain this to me?

reply to post by SlyFox_79


Being open minded doesnt mean you will, now, then or ever see anything, it probably means that if you do you are open minded enough not to dismiss it instantly and might study it long enough to determine if its unusual or not.

In the same sense im sure a closed minded person could have a space ship land on their head and open their eyes.

Predications dont make for absolute definitive limits.

Oh yeah I've seen some of the most fantastic lights I've ever seen fly into a cloud followed by a flash in the cloud.Seconds later a military jet came in right behind those things,but the jet came through the other side of the cloud.
I'm a believer through and thought,but I have to keep my mind open to the fact that those lights could have been anything other than alien ships. When I was 13 riding bikes in the country in North Carolina my cousin and I had close to 2 hours of missing time.One minute we are riding along talking the next we are a little ways up the road riding at full speed laughing and almost two hours had gone by.Now thats a classic abduction symptom,but I have to keep and open mind that something other that and abduction happen even though everything in my gut tells me that was case.


[edit on 30-10-2008 by Tricky63]

reply to post by 2012gal
Welcome to ATS!

I believe it is subjective to our conditioning and programming from our parents and family when we first learn to walk and talk, and the pre-concieved ideas and rationales they have formulated in their lives and pass on to us.

as an example, when the spaniards first arrived in the new world, the natives couldn't see their ships, for they had no frame of reference, hence they did not see them as being there; throughout our lives, we are shown programs like Star trek, Star Wars,etc., and therefore pre-disposed sub-consciously to accept that et and flying anythings might be possible;

Just as some people are pre-disposed to doubt everything due to experiences such as numerous un-kept promises or broken dreams.


Just my 2 cents



seeker

There are many people who's beliefs have been changed by witnessing a UFO &/or it's occupants. Alternatively there are people that truly believe that have never seen a UFO, though it's their wish to. I see the phenomena as being random - or down to dumb luck!

I don't think it increases the likelihood of witnessing a UFO simply because your mind is open to the idea.

I have an open mind and I was lucky to witness 3 UFO's up close in the 90's however, I am incredibly skeptical of other peoples accounts. It's not UFO's I'm skeptical about but more so the people. Too many hoaxers and attention seekers have ruined it for me.

IRM

I have always been open minded about alien existence and possible visition. But I don't think that the sightings I had was the result of open mindedness..

I live in Saudi Arabia, and in this country, sightings of UFO's/aliens are not considered UFO's/aliens. They are considered as Jinn... I know a lot of people that go to a certain deserted beach area known as "Khaleej Salman".. I went there a few times and saw some pretty strange things.. I saw these fireball like orbs that hovered a little above sea level.. My friend flashed his big and powerful flashlight towards these objects and they responded by coming closer.

People just told me that they were Jinn, I don't know what the hell they were, certainly unidentifiable.

Sorry for going off-topic, just wished to talk about my own paranormal experience lol

yes.. for those who are not open minded its a closed construct..
but for those, who are open... the construct fall down
and you see that everything is a "changing"

Nia