Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 ^I get your point, and it's well taken, Melissa. That said, I think it's obvious that someone with extensive experience with the subject, or even better someone with extensive experience buttressed by appropriate related credentials is a preferable source for knowledge than some random internet Skeptic with a closed mind and narrow vision of "what is and what isn't"
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 I completely agree with you Mulder. Why? It would be silly for someone to come to me with a question about Primate Anatomy - when they have access to someone such as Dr. Meldrum (note the Dr. Before his name).. LOL. I do not think there are "Experts" in this field of research. BUT - there are many who have verying degrees of education and knowlege through employment - who's skills and knowlege should be held in high regard. A PHD means something to me. This community is strange in this regard. We beg and plead for science to get involved. Then - we have someone like Dr. Meldrum who does - and suddenly he knows nothing. It's little wonder we are not crawling with the scientific community anxious to have their degrees come under scruitny.. LOL. Again, just my opinion...
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 I have a friend whose hobby is astronomy. He has no degree, however, his field of interest is meteor spectroscopy. He deals with many PhD's in his research, and all of them consider him an expert in meteor spectroscopy because of his knowledge and contributions to the science of astronomy. Is Bigfoot really that much different?
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 Depends on who you talk to Chris. People involved in this pursuit can make this as easy or as difficult as possible. Education and/or experience can be as expendable as the person attached. Often times I think this is more about the people and less about Bigfoot. Just my opinion....
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 I'm a deep thinker, Mulder.. bet ya didn't know that.
Guest baboonpete Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 (edited) Let's take this from the practical perspective... Whom would you turn to to learn more about BF? Someone with years, sometimes decades of field research time like John Green, Derek, Rick, Stan, et al or who has used existing scientific training to expertly analyze BF evidence like Dr Meldrum et al. or would you turn to some random JimmyJoeBubbaBob, or worse, to some Keyboard Kommando Skeptic? I know who I'd choose, and I know who reasonable people would choose. Still not true. nope just strikes, Meldrum may be an ""expert"" in unproven bigfoot theories, he doesnt know than the rest of us about what may or may not exist. And 3 months Hey I got that list from Mulders link in his signature line. I just substittued "belief" and "views" for "dogma" and "orthodoxy". And I got the gorilla timeline from wiki. thats where many of his "experts" come from to, the veneration of those that further (you're not allowed to use the R word) his belief system. Edited October 12, 2012 by baboonpete
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 I was unaware that Dr. Meldrum had defined himself as a "bigfoot expert". I'm not even sure why his name always shows up as a point of contention..... If he has - can someone point me to a quote? Thanks in advance.
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 Thermalman, Janice Carter is a person who claims 50+ years of a family of BF living on her farm and interactions including having them knock on her door and ask for garlic. Google Janice Carter Bigfoot for more details. Many, if not most, think her stories are "creative" for lack of a better term and would discount all of the details she includes on BF behavior ect. That being said, she has brought as much "proof" to the table as anyone else, so she is as much of an "expert" as anyone else. As Denialist said "all we have are stories". The stories can be detailed scientific looking field notes from a "respected" organization or tales of "Fox" the bigfoot knocking on the back door and asking for some garlic, but they are still just stories. One is just as valid as the next until something is physcially proven. When someone says "we know bigfoot _________" (fill in the blank.....are nocturnal, are migratory,are predatory, avoid cameras, use infrasound, .........) its just a guess based on what evidence their own personal filter decides is "real" and not on a verified fact. As I said in the old BFF " A bigfoot expert is someone who doesn't know what he doesn't know - and he doesn't know what he knows either"
Guest Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 While I have never heard Dr Meldrum refer to himself as a "Bigfoot expert" , I have seen him on Television shows that refer to him and others that way. I have even seen Melissa herself billed as "The best female Bigfoot researcher" or something to that effect at the Chautauqua Lake Bigfoot Expo last year. It is all hype for these TV shows and conferences to make a buck. No one is a Bigfoot expert. You cannot be an expert on something you cannot even find and for most of these "experts" , have not even seen.
Guest RayG Posted October 12, 2012 Posted October 12, 2012 Unless you go in the woods and look for them you can't be a real bigfoot expert. Or so some would have you believe. Doesn't matter that you can't find them, haven't a clue what their diet consists of, have no idea how long the gestation period for a bigfoot momma-to-be is, couldn't describe their courtship rituals if your life depended on it, can't decide whether they're nocturnal or diurnal, and can only guess at how many teeth they have. You're a bigfoot expert gosh darn it, because someone else thinks you are. How come those with a skeptical mindset aren't considered bigfoot experts? Haven't they produced just as many bigfoot as the experts who are proponents? Skeptics like Daegling, Regal, Radford, Nickell, Blu Buhs, McLeod, Dennett, Lozier, and Goodavage, even though all have written books or articles on the unproven critter, never get mentioned as bigfoot experts. I think that's because of their demonstrated skepticism, not because of their success or lack thereof to bag a squatch. No, I'll call a person a bigfoot expert the day they drag one in for examination. Until then, I'll refer to those that have invested time & money on bigfoot as enthusiasts, regardless of whether they're proponents or skeptics. Enthusiasts like me. RayG
Guest Transformer Posted October 13, 2012 Posted October 13, 2012 "An expert is just some guy from out of town." Mark Twain
Guest thermalman Posted October 13, 2012 Posted October 13, 2012 Thermalman, Janice Carter is a person who claims 50+ years of a family of BF living on her farm and interactions including having them knock on her door and ask for garlic. Google Janice Carter Bigfoot for more details. Many, if not most, think her stories are "creative" for lack of a better term and would discount all of the details she includes on BF behavior ect. That being said, she has brought as much "proof" to the table as anyone else, so she is as much of an "expert" as anyone else. As Denialist said "all we have are stories". The stories can be detailed scientific looking field notes from a "respected" organization or tales of "Fox" the bigfoot knocking on the back door and asking for some garlic, but they are still just stories. One is just as valid as the next until something is physcially proven. When someone says "we know bigfoot _________" (fill in the blank.....are nocturnal, are migratory,are predatory, avoid cameras, use infrasound, .........) its just a guess based on what evidence their own personal filter decides is "real" and not on a verified fact. As I said in the old BFF " A bigfoot expert is someone who doesn't know what he doesn't know - and he doesn't know what he knows either" Ok, now I've heard of her. One word comes to mind....."wacko", not expert. Thanks
Guest Posted October 13, 2012 Posted October 13, 2012 No, I'll call a person a bigfoot expert the day they drag one in for examination. Can I use this quote Ray?
Guest thermalman Posted October 13, 2012 Posted October 13, 2012 I have a friend whose hobby is astronomy. He has no degree, however, his field of interest is meteor spectroscopy. He deals with many PhD's in his research, and all of them consider him an expert in meteor spectroscopy because of his knowledge and contributions to the science of astronomy. Is Bigfoot really that much different? Nope....+1
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