My oh my, the UFO UpDates List has been all a titter this past week with a 'thread' titled 'Making Sense Of It All' - which by itself sounds like a nice innocuous sounding thread but when you open it and start to read, you find out the hard way that you've opened a very large can of worms and when you see some of those words of wit that people are casting about you quickly realize that now that it's opened, nothing short of a larger can will be required to put the worms back in.

One of the posters said that he wasn't being pessimistic, he was being realistic, and gives us this quote, "This List has not solved any of the mysteries of the universe to my knowledge. This List has not solved any of the mysteries of the UFO phenomenon to my knowledge." Really? What was your first clue? The UFO UpDates list was never created to do anything other than disseminate information to likeminded individuals.

What is interesting to note is that there are obviously a few people out there that do not understand what the list is all about. The list is to give people of a like mind - in other words, those interested in the UFO Phenomenon - the ability to be able to have a forum for intelligent discussion. It also is, as its name suggests, a place to get updated about events and sightings that deal with UFOs. The List is not a place where you will find the answers to whether UFOs exist nor is it a place where you will find proof of UFOs. There is no such thing as a place, particularly on the Internet, where you will find definitive proof of UFOs. If anyone out there can prove me wrong on this, I welcome him or her to point out my mistake.

This past week has seen a lot of hand wringing and hair pulling with people crying in their beer about how nothing has ever been accomplished on the UFO UpDates List and my response to that is you really should pull your head out of the load of horse manure that you've dipped it into.

The List has allowed the discussion and transfer of knowledge between many serious researchers who are members of the list. (You know what serious researchers are, the guys and gals who actually get off their asses and go out and gather information and evidence.) Examination of photographs, documents, and discussions about witness testimony has all been evident on the list. Reports of new sightings, survey statistics, and even reports about what NASA is up to keep us all informed. And a conscientious and thoughtful moderator makes sure that we don't sink to calling each other names just because we don't like the cut of somebody's skirt. Skeptics, Debunkers, True Believers and regular run-of-the-mill people who just have a nagging interest in the subject of UFOs make worthwhile use of the list by just trying to make sense of it all.

But that's just my take on it.