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Tracking Belief in Bigfoot


DieChecker

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http://www.livescience.com/19178-tracking-belief-bigfoot-infographic.html

go-figure-bigfoot-sightings-120319.jpg?1332267451

Interesting that 30% of people (In the US?) belive BF is really out there. That is around 100 million people in the US. How can so many be wrong? Is it the bad education system? Are we (US citizens) just stupid? Or is there actually something going on here?

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http://www.livescience.com/19178-tracking-belief-bigfoot-infographic.html

go-figure-bigfoot-sightings-120319.jpg?1332267451

Interesting that 30% of people (In the US?) belive BF is really out there. That is around 100 million people in the US. How can so many be wrong? Is it the bad education system? Are we (US citizens) just stupid? Or is there actually something going on here?

I believe the article offered one plausible answer. There are more answers than your three above.

Besides, these aren't 100 million encounters.

Not sure how the data was collected and from whom and I have problems with polls like this, but I don't doubt some people say "yes" because they haven't considered one logical thought about bigfoot.

Give Finding Bigfoot a chance to dissuade about half of those believers.

Edited by QuiteContrary
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Not sure how the data was collected and from whom and I have problems with polls like this, but I don't doubt some people say "yes" because they haven't considered one logical thought about bigfoot.

Apparently an online survey of 1,000 people on Springboard America. A site that pays people to take surveys. Wonder how intent many were in answering accurately.

Edited by _Only
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thanks for the interesting infographic. I think people want to believe. I think that the average Tom, Dick, and Mary want to find something to believe in. We can't believe in our political system, we can't believe in our economy, we get let down by the shenanigans of idiot celebrities left and right. The people need something to believe in, why not Bigfoot? It's kind of a thrilling tale, it's fun to think that we don't know everything there Is to know, and the chances of there being a large, bipedal ape-human out in the woods somewhere seems like a safer bet than believing what any of the next presidential hopefuls will tell ya.

I think in our age of information perhaps all the magic is being drained out of life. Maybe people believe just to hang on to that little bit of missing magic.

And now that I put it like that i wonder, what's the harm in that anyway?

Edited by orangepeaceful79
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I believe the article offered one plausible answer. There are more answers than your three above.

Besides, these aren't 100 million encounters.

Not sure how the data was collected and from whom and I have problems with polls like this, but I don't doubt some people say "yes" because they haven't considered one logical thought about bigfoot.

Give Finding Bigfoot a chance to dissuade about half of those believers.

The article was not about encounters, only Belief. True one answer could be that it is simply that people want to believe. But, would that be enough for them to answer a poll that a monster possibly could be real? Maybe...

I think if the entire population of North America watched Finding Bigfoot and was convinced it was bogus, Moneymaker would still celebrate. That would be fantastic weekly ratings!

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thanks for the interesting infographic. I think people want to believe. I think that the average Tom, Dick, and Mary want to find something to believe in. We can't believe in our political system, we can't believe in our economy, we get let down by the shenanigans of idiot celebrities left and right. The people need something to believe in, why not Bigfoot? It's kind of a thrilling tale, it's fun to think that we don't know everything there Is to know, and the chances of there being a large, bipedal ape-human out in the woods somewhere seems like a safer bet than believing what any of the next presidential hopefuls will tell ya.

I think in our age of information perhaps all the magic is being drained out of life. Maybe people believe just to hang on to that little bit of missing magic.

And now that I put it like that i wonder, what's the harm in that anyway?

Have you heard of Joan Ocean? Her site was posted here a couple times. She basically has replaced Jesus, Budda, Mohammad, Krishna, ... What have you... With Bigfoots. She says they are her mentors and are helping her become an enlightened being. And... She lives in Hawaii.

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I saw the new episode tonight - According to Ancient Astronaut theorists - Bigfoot is an Alien - no kidding, that is what they said.

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Apparently an online survey of 1,000 people on Springboard America. A site that pays people to take surveys. Wonder how intent many were in answering accurately.

That right there is very important, and should not be ignored.......Thank You :yes::tu:

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There are a substantial number of biologists routinely using very sophisticated remote imaging and audio equipment to record deep forest activity. Yet, from these credible sources, have we read of research supportive of bigfoot? If bigfoot did exist, we could more easily argue that that he/she was some unfortunate person with a generic anomaly, such as hirsutism, who hid in the woods to escape persecution or harassment. And, the rest is just lore.

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There are a substantial number of biologists routinely using very sophisticated remote imaging and audio equipment to record deep forest activity. Yet, from these credible sources, have we read of research supportive of bigfoot? If bigfoot did exist, we could more easily argue that that he/she was some unfortunate person with a generic anomaly, such as hirsutism, who hid in the woods to escape persecution or harassment. And, the rest is just lore.

Good point - folks seem to forget that our "uncharted forests" are full of biologists, entomologists, geologists, etc. etc. and these guys never seem to find any evidence of bigfoot. Let's also add park rangers, fish & game officers, game wardens, etc. In other words, experts who are very familiar with the wildlife in the areas in which they work.

Edited by Rafterman
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I saw the new episode tonight - According to Ancient Astronaut theorists - Bigfoot is an Alien - no kidding, that is what they said.

Yeah, I saw that as well on Ancient Aliens. WOW! is really all I can say. I sat in front of the TV with a confused look on my face for the entire show. I really could not believe that grown, educated people could come up with some of the crap that was spewing from their mouths. Of course whats his name with the funny hair thought everything was an alien, but the rest were coming up with some off the wall stuff. Bigfoot was actually a race of workers created by aliens with human dna to mine precious metals from the earth. They move about through an intricate maze of cave systems under the earth. This is why we don't see them very often. It was interesting to say the least.

Mike

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I live in the Pacific Northwest. I guess if you have never personally witnessed the evidence, you wouldn't believe. Perhaps they should conduct the poll in our neck of the woods.

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I wonder if humanity will ever figure this one out so it can be laid to rest? It seems like the proof that is needed to actually say for certain one way or another will never be forthcoming. If we haven't laid our collective hands on a squatch that somebody can study at this point I don't really see it getting any more likely. "Finding Bigfoot" is never going to find bigfoot.

I often wish I lived in the pacific northwest. Because by all accounts you should be able to see these darned things in the woods all the time up there.

Still though. Why no bodies? If squatches are the missing link or even if they aren't, they've been around for a good long time, living and dying. There are way more dead ones out there than live ones if we follow the logic trail. Where are the bones? I just have so much trouble believing that an animal exists and mostly what it does is avoid being seen and studied, except for sometimes when it allows a person to see it long enough to take a fuzzy picture or video, and then it disappears without any trace at all.

People have tried to answer these questions, but no answer is ever any more than speculation. I would sure love to know what the real answer is, regardless of what it is. I'm only skeptical of things until someone shows me some evidence that changes my mind. I'm waiting on that evidence. So are many of us.

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http://www.livescience.com/19178-tracking-belief-bigfoot-infographic.html

go-figure-bigfoot-sightings-120319.jpg?1332267451

Interesting that 30% of people (In the US?) belive BF is really out there. That is around 100 million people in the US. How can so many be wrong?

Inversely 60% of Americans do not believe in bigfoot. So at least over half of us paid attention to school courses that taught critical thinking and problem solving skills.

I wonder how these numbers correlate with deeply religious folks (creationists) whom are taught not to question their religious doctrine, or the pseudo scientific drivel they preach? You know the sheep whom follow blindly and believe what they are told to believe despite the facts.

Could we also infer from this study that all men whom believe in bigfoot are democrats and nearly all women whom believe in bigfoot are republicans? That seems very odd to me for some reason.

Perhaps we should start our own poll to see how closely our results would align to this one.

Is it the bad education system? Are we (US citizens) just stupid? Or is there actually something going on here?

Probably a bit of all of them. I think we are dealing mostly with folks whom get their biological science education from church/the bible and people like Matt Moneytaker.

I do think there is something to this bigfoot phenomena...but I do not think it is bigfoot.

Edited by evancj
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Inversely 60% of Americans do not believe in bigfoot. So at least over half of us paid attention to school courses that taught critical thinking and problem solving skills.

I wonder how these numbers correlate with deeply religious folks (creationists) whom are taught not to question their religious doctrine, or the pseudo scientific drivel they preach? You know the sheep whom follow blindly and believe what they are told to believe despite the facts.

Could we also infer from this study that all men whom believe in bigfoot are democrats and nearly all women whom believe in bigfoot are republicans? That seems very odd to me for some reason.

Perhaps we should start our own poll to see how closely our results would align to this one.

Probably a bit of all of them. I think we are dealing mostly with folks whom get their biological science education from church/the bible and people like Matt Moneytaker.

I do think there is something to this bigfoot phenomena...but I do not think it is bigfoot.

I think that when trying to disaggregate data samples like this it may be helpful to know the makeup of the sample to a degree, but unhelpful to cast about with stereotypes of one group or another.

Not all religious people are bible-thumping, chicken-swinging fundamentalists. Within every possible subgroup of the population that you could possibly think of, there is going to be a spectrum of folks ranging from one extreme to the other.

I think that it is probably also to unwise to characterize all bigfoot believers as people whom the public school system has failed. Some of the most staunch supporters are educated, intelligent, and are able to problem-solve and articulate their positions. They just happen to hold different views.

As a skeptic, it is frustrating to see what I think is the truth about this phenomenon and not be able to convince a believer to change their mind - but we must all agree in this debate that all of us have a right to our opinions on the topic, and to not be lumped into this group or that group simply because of our belief.

I am always astounded on this site to see someone who I tend to align with in this forum go into another forum on another topic and express opinions which might be completely and utterly opposed to mine in a different subject.

When talking about groups of people in general it is always wise to avoid painting with a broad brush. Its our differences and diversity that make this interesting. :)

Edited by orangepeaceful79
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I think that when trying to disaggregate data samples like this it may be helpful to know the makeup of the sample to a degree, but unhelpful to cast about with stereotypes of one group or another.

Not all religious people are bible-thumping, chicken-swinging fundamentalists. Within every possible subgroup of the population that you could possibly think of, there is going to be a spectrum of folks ranging from one extreme to the other.

I think that it is probably also to unwise to characterize all bigfoot believers as people whom the public school system has failed. Some of the most staunch supporters are educated, intelligent, and are able to problem-solve and articulate their positions. They just happen to hold different views.

As a skeptic, it is frustrating to see what I think is the truth about this phenomenon and not be able to convince a believer to change their mind - but we must all agree in this debate that all of us have a right to our opinions on the topic, and to not be lumped into this group or that group simply because of our belief.

I am always astounded on this site to see someone who I tend to align with in this forum go into another forum on another topic and express opinions which might be completely and utterly opposed to mine in a different subject.

When talking about groups of people in general it is always wise to avoid painting with a broad brush. Its our differences and diversity that make this interesting. :)

I agree. There are so many people and so much diversity, I think it is hard to stereotype anyone, let alone a large population. No one fits perfectly into any one preconceived mold. Even if they label themselves. IMO

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I think that when trying to disaggregate data samples like this it may be helpful to know the makeup of the sample to a degree, but unhelpful to cast about with stereotypes of one group or another.

Not all religious people are bible-thumping, chicken-swinging fundamentalists. Within every possible subgroup of the population that you could possibly think of, there is going to be a spectrum of folks ranging from one extreme to the other.

I think that it is probably also to unwise to characterize all bigfoot believers as people whom the public school system has failed. Some of the most staunch supporters are educated, intelligent, and are able to problem-solve and articulate their positions. They just happen to hold different views.

As a skeptic, it is frustrating to see what I think is the truth about this phenomenon and not be able to convince a believer to change their mind - but we must all agree in this debate that all of us have a right to our opinions on the topic, and to not be lumped into this group or that group simply because of our belief.

I am always astounded on this site to see someone who I tend to align with in this forum go into another forum on another topic and express opinions which might be completely and utterly opposed to mine in a different subject.

When talking about groups of people in general it is always wise to avoid painting with a broad brush. Its our differences and diversity that make this interesting. :)

I agree. I do not think it is possible to stereotype anyone into one specific mold. Hollywood makes its money on it, politics bet on it, the media loves it, but it isn't that easy in the real world.

Even if we label ourselves. My definition of said stereotype would have to fit your definition.

And there are just too many people and too much diversity.

I meet people that defy a particular sterotype all the time.

Also, Meldrum is a scientist and a professor. And he has a team of scientists that have accompanied him looking for bf.

Edited by QuiteContrary
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We don't know unless we uncover dna proof from this species to know what they really are or are not. I'm sure what ever species is out is as varied as the apes, that is the ones that aren't just hoaxes. There are many mythical creatures or exict creatures that have been found. A certain species of gorilla was once considered a mythical tribe of hairy men until the scientists found a group of them and placed them in captivity. Likewise, Big Foot, Yeti or whatever you call them have been going through the same process in many different places worldwide. Until they are proven many people put out crap to make money off of the legends which they create or exagerate. That doesn't really help scientific research does it? It only gets the real cases laughed at when they prove a hoax. Serious research would not be a very encouraging job to do. The sad truth is the serious researchers or some hunter might have to kill one not to get laughed at.

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To those who question the lack of evidence in bones and bodies,as one who spends a lot of time in these woods I can assure you that one can spot many deer and elk, and find relatively few remains. One can also be surrounded by these animals, and never see them. Take your poll among those who are in a position to judge the environment. Also consider that other animals may not be as stupid as you think, and are perfectly able to avoid contact with humans if they so choose, and they usually do. My coworker and I reported a wolverine sighting once, which was met with disbelief because they are rare. It was only after someone else reported one nearby that our sighting given credence. How many of you have seen a wolverine in the wild?

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We don't know unless we uncover dna proof from this species to know what they really are or are not. I'm sure what ever species is out is as varied as the apes, that is the ones that aren't just hoaxes. There are many mythical creatures or exict creatures that have been found. A certain species of gorilla was once considered a mythical tribe of hairy men until the scientists found a group of them and placed them in captivity. Likewise, Big Foot, Yeti or whatever you call them have been going through the same process in many different places worldwide. Until they are proven many people put out crap to make money off of the legends which they create or exagerate. That doesn't really help scientific research does it? It only gets the real cases laughed at when they prove a hoax. Serious research would not be a very encouraging job to do. The sad truth is the serious researchers or some hunter might have to kill one not to get laughed at.

I believe along with accounts from native peoples, physical evidence -bones- of these illusive gorillas may have been found before the apes themselves were evidenced by some white people. But I could be wrong.

We have no huge bigfoot skulls to spur some of us on, or the scientific community either, it appears.

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To those who question the lack of evidence in bones and bodies,as one who spends a lot of time in these woods I can assure you that one can spot many deer and elk, and find relatively few remains. One can also be surrounded by these animals, and never see them. Take your poll among those who are in a position to judge the environment. Also consider that other animals may not be as stupid as you think, and are perfectly able to avoid contact with humans if they so choose, and they usually do. My coworker and I reported a wolverine sighting once, which was met with disbelief because they are rare. It was only after someone else reported one nearby that our sighting given credence. How many of you have seen a wolverine in the wild?

Wolverine tracks, dens, scat, kills, thousands of photos can be found. Plus a wolverine isn't the size of a small elephant. If I stepped in bf's scat I'd notice. If I had 16" tracks before me, I'd notice.

Edited by QuiteContrary
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To those who question the lack of evidence in bones and bodies,as one who spends a lot of time in these woods I can assure you that one can spot many deer and elk, and find relatively few remains. One can also be surrounded by these animals, and never see them. Take your poll among those who are in a position to judge the environment. Also consider that other animals may not be as stupid as you think, and are perfectly able to avoid contact with humans if they so choose, and they usually do. My coworker and I reported a wolverine sighting once, which was met with disbelief because they are rare. It was only after someone else reported one nearby that our sighting given credence. How many of you have seen a wolverine in the wild?

I hunt, and I live where there are a lot of hunters, probably 7 out of 10 people here at the least hunt, and know the out doors......Not sure how many people I know well, or enough to say, but let's go low and say 25.....None of them believe a large primate could be alive today, and not have been found out to exist.....Bones, bodies, etc.

I used to go out in Nevada after the rut to get antlers ( dropped antlers ), they were easy to find, and abundent....Found them also while Chukar hunting all the time.

I have never seen a Wolverine in the wild, but I am not so sure I have ever lived where they are KNOWN to have a population....I have seen pictures in educational books, and I have seen them on TV ( educational shows ), and I have seen them in Zoo's, and in wild animal parks.

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Since this thread started out with an infographic on bigfoot belief. I'd like to ask a non-threatening, non-loaded, and non-skeptical question of the believers. What is it about Bigfoot and all the surrounding lore that fundamentally drives your belief? I was a believer once and looking back I can chock my beliefs up to:

1) a personality that has a mild distrust of authority so cryptids and the manner in which believing in them sort of bucks the system appealed to me at that level.

2) crytpids are exciting, magical almost.

3) The information I had at the time was all I knew.

But seriously, what is it that makes you believe? Personal experiences? The whole "what if" mindset?

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On the question of scat, they may bury it, especially if they are intelligent enough to avoid us. On the question of sizable animals, bears and especially cougars tend to be rarely seen. On the question of why one would believe, it is based on the personal witness of evidence, as well as on the faith in the reports of credible others, who have often presented tangible evidence. On the subject of aliens, what is the hubris of mankind that allows people to discount the experiences of others, based on their own lack of experience?

Edited by Zarifa
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