| Do
we have >> A Montreal man wants
to ask
There aren’t that many more sure-fire
ways to ensure your own mockery than to bring up UFOs in a serious conversation.
Sure, UFOs are cool, and the effects they’ve had on popular culture
are profound, but c’mon. Who really, truly thinks Earth’s
been visited by star-hopping extra-terrestrials out on galactic joyrides? “The question that came to my mind is, what do we know about this so far?” says David Hachey, a 63-year-old former insurance adjuster and security guard. “It’s the ‘so far’ that got me going.” Hachey says his study group is for serious enquirers only. No kooks, no nuts, no Raëlians, no Hale-Bopp-comet-end-of-the-world weirdoes. To him, they have only served to detract from a legitimate question too often dismissed by those put off by the claims of a marginal minority with a questionable hold on their own sanity. The study of UFO phenomena, Hachey believes, should be a serious topic indeed. “There are so many hoaxes and jokesters out there.” Hachey says. “I don’t want people to treat this as a big joke, or go to it for fun. This group would not serve that purpose.” Hachey’s ideal group would include UFO enthusiasts with backgrounds in astronomy, psychology, aeronautics, sociology and physics. He also invites people who have professional investigative backgrounds, such as police officers or insurance claims adjusters (Hachey says that throughout his career as an insurance investigator, he has never encountered victims who have faulted the paranormal for their mishaps.) Anyone, he says, with a legitimate interest in the field are invited to participate. Members must be at least 18.
Hachey knows what he’s getting into. There is no solid body of evidence that proves that aliens exist, much less been seen ’round these parts. But, between the estimated 250 books he has read on the subject, the magazines he has bought and the Web sites he’s visited since becoming interested in the subject in the ’70s, he is convinced that the denizens of other worlds have visited our little planet out here on the edge of the galaxy. “I say ‘I’m convinced,’ and not ‘I believe,’” he points out. “Belief has a religious connotation, and this is not a religious thing. I don’t want to be confused with Raëlians.” He is also skeptical of every sighting reported (the National UFO Reporting Center in Seattle-www.nuforc.org-lists hundreds of sightings every month, most from small-town U.S.A.). “At one point, there were so many sightings over New England that someone said the UFOs were like planes stacked up over LaGuardia,” he says. “But even if these are all hoaxes, we need more research on why there are so many hoaxes.” UFOs certainly excite the imaginations of millions of people across the world, and unite them all in a search for life besides our own in the universe. And while Hachey hasn’t been in contact with the largest, and by far the most resource-rich, search, SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), he has been in touch with several amateur colleagues across Canada and the States who share his conviction that not only are we not alone, but that we’re being spied on. There is no shortage of them. “It amazes me how many [fellow enthusiasts] there are,” Hachey says. “It’s in the millions. The interest is not going away, this isn’t just a fad.” True, there are a lot of people interested in alien visitors. A quick Google search for “UFO” will list almost 1.9-million sites. “It’s the second most popular subject on the Net after sex,” Hachey says. He is now looking for at least a few people to join his group before he formally launches his own Web site. Interested parties can call 768-5688. Kooks and Raëlians need not apply. : |
Earth,
a popular galactic getaway