Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) A recent news article states that 1/3 of the people who live in the PNW "Believe in Bigfoot". This got me thinking about the language we use in our unique community... Personally, I hate using the words Believe/Belief when discussing the existence of Bigfoot. In my humble opinion, and I might be wrong, belief in something implies a matter of faith and/or supernaturalism because there is no evidence to support the claim. Regarding Bigfoot there is no need for belief, as there are various forms of evidence to support the theory of its existence. This evidence includes an anthropologic litany of relic hominids, some known to have lived along side humans many years ago, and a geologic history that supports migration to North America via the bering land bridge. Therefore, I suggest, instead of stating a belief or disbelief in Bigfoot we should actually be stating an acceptance or a rejection of Bigfoot; an acceptance or rejection that it is possible that Bigfoot could exist. And, we should base our position on available evidence, testimonies and established scientific knowledge, not based on faith and hope. So, which term best suits you? And please correct me if I'm wrong or if you have a different opinion. Edited December 20, 2012 by Mounty
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 I agree with you on every point. But society has kind of accepted that as the normal thing to say, like, "I believe in aliens, I believe in the Loch Ness Monster." Personally, I always end up saying, "I support the existence of Bigfoot," and I prefer people saying, being that it's more appropriate, "I support the possibility of the existence of Bigfoot."
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 I wonder what the fraction would be if all the fine people of the PNW were given a Bigfoot specific science lesson regarding Anthropology and Geology and then asked the intentionally worded question "Do you accept the possibility that Bigfoot could exist"? I would hope the positive response would be higher than 1/3.
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 I think it's just a question of semantics. If 1/3 of the PNW believes in Bigfoot, we all know what that means.
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 It is semantics, but many here do ascribe supernatural attributes to Bigfoot. I Acknowledge their existence, and will not tell anyone else what to believe.
BobbyO Posted December 20, 2012 SSR Team Posted December 20, 2012 Personally, I hate using the words Believe/Belief when discussing the existence of Bigfoot. In my humble opinion, and I might be wrong, belief in something implies a matter of faith and/or supernaturalism because there is no evidence to support the claim. So, which term best suits you? And please correct me if I'm wrong or if you have a different opinion. My personal err cough cough belief is that belief in Sasquatch is a very naive thing for someone to believe in, especially so without a sighting or decent evidence seen with your own eyes. I'm sorry if that offends people but it's just what i think. If i hadn't have seen one of these things there is no way in the world i would believe that they exist, and more fool me as they undoubtedly do but let's being honest, publicly at least people are doing a pretty ( and i don't include researchers that volunteer their time and money on this subject ) horrible job of finding them and professionally the subject is scoffed at completely by the vast, vast majority.
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) I think it's just a question of semantics. If 1/3 of the PNW believes in Bigfoot, we all know what that means. I don't think it is semantics, because if the question was posed differently to those 2/3 who don't "believe", would their answer be different. Maybe phrasing the question like this: So you don't believe Bigfoot exists, but do you think it is possible for Bigfoot to exist? Why or why not? Edited December 20, 2012 by Mounty
Guest poignant Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 It's just colloquial/non-standard English; understood by all but sounds ridiculous in professional fields or at interviews.
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) It's just colloquial/non-standard English; understood by all but sounds ridiculous in professional fields or at interviews. Really, understood by all? Am I so out of touch with the rest of the world? I hope not, because I'm hardly a professional at anything, but stating a belief in Bigfoot sounds so moronic to me. If I'm the odd one out, then I suppose my dream of a slightly more enlightened society might end up just that, a dream... Oh well. Edited December 20, 2012 by Mounty
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 I don't know what to tell you- you might be the odd one out. If you ask the average person on the street if they believe in Bigfoot, they know you are asking them whether they believe it exists or not, not whether you "believe in him" as a diety lol...
Oonjerah Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) Recent Bigfoot opinion poll that I saw said 30% of us in the USA think Bf is real or likely real. i.e., It asked which way we lean. Mounty, when you say "belief" has a religious overtone, I totally disagree. Non-religious people have beliefs, too. Are you trolling? BobbyO, you indicate that it's OK believe in Bigfoot if you've seen one. But those who can believe without seeing one are pretty gullible. That's offensive. Perhaps those who can credit Bf based on evidence are simply more rational and open minded than the average person. Edited December 20, 2012 by Oonjerah
Guest poignant Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 Mounty: This argument has been done to death on these forums, but I'll just tell you where I stand. If someone in a casual / informal setting says he believes in bigfoot, I'll let it slide...no hate, no need to feel that I have a 'better command of English'. If someone says that in a formal interview / academic setting, it makes me flinch, facepalm ,and then tune out. I'm actually quite disappointed when prominent researchers like Bobo or Cliff allow the use of 'believe in BF' to slip by them (outside of the Finding Bigfoot show). As an aside, it also bugs me when prominent researchers allow interviewers to say "bigfoot exists" as if it were one animal roaming the continent.
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) Recent Bigfoot opinion poll that I saw said 30% of us in the USA think Bf is real or likely real. i.e., It asked which way we lean. Mounty, when you say "belief" has a religious overtone, I totally disagree. Non-religious people have beliefs, too. Are you trolling? I never once said anything about religion. Religion is not allowed to be discussed here. I'm sure people who do not subscribe to faith can still have belief in things. For example, I believe my son hasn't stolen any cars, because I have no proof to the contrary, but I can't be certain he hasn't. So sometimes I guess its better to say "I don't know" as opposed to "I believe". For me, saying "I believe in Bigfoot" is like a short way of saying, Yup, I believe Bigfoot exists, but don't ask me why because I have no reason for why I believe. Edited December 20, 2012 by Mounty
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 You're all over the place here- using your non-car thief son as an example (I also believe he has never stolen a car), you are saying we can't know about Bigfoot because we have no proof, but if we believe, it doesn't necessarily mean we think it's real? Can you sum it up for us please?
Guest Posted December 20, 2012 Posted December 20, 2012 You're all over the place here- using your non-car thief son as an example (I also believe he has never stolen a car), you are saying we can't know about Bigfoot because we have no proof, but if we believe, it doesn't necessarily mean we think it's real? Can you sum it up for us please? No, I support that Bigfoot might be real because of all kinds of various forms of evidence. I don't believe Bigfoot is real just because I like the idea of Bigfoot.
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