Debate on the abduction/contact experience between Budd Hopkins and Dr. John E. Mack

Published by UFOTV The Disclosure Network on the 12th of October 2011: The Alien Abduction Experience - Budd Hopkins and Dr. John E. Mack.  Duration; 1:03:20.

From UFOTV®, accept no imitations. EBE Award Winner! Feature Length - In loving memory of Budd Hopkins 1931 - 2011, and John E. Mack, M.D. 1929 - 2004, and their contribution to Alien Abduction and Extreme Experience Research.

 Legendary Alien Abduction Researchers - Budd Hopkins - Author, Researcher and John Mack, M.D. - Harvard Professor of Psychiatry, come together to discuss what they believe is happening to people who report experiences of being abducted by Aliens and taken aboard their craft. Get the facts in this rare and heart felt presentation. Originally taped in 1997.

The debate or dialogue about the "alien abduction experience" between Budd Hopkins and Dr. John E. Mack is an informative introduction to some of the different views and opinions on the subject that I call the "contact aspect" of the UFO-phenomena.

The dialogue occured in 1997 and the first thought that hit me when watching and listening to Hopkins and Mack were: why don't we see and hear this kind of open and serious discussion about the UFO-phenomena in the mainstream media today? Or even in the so called alternative media?

Around the 38 minutes mark the audience gets to ask questions to Hopkins and Mack. Most of them very good questions that triggers interesting and respectful debate between Hopkins and Mack.

I highly respect both of the gentlemen, Budd Hopkins and John E. Mack, for their work and contribution to the study of the contact aspect of the UFO-phenomena. In particular I respect Dr. John E. Mack´s courage to risk his reputation as a clinical psychologist and his academic standing when he decided to listen to peoples stories about their extraordinary experiences.

In this debate, I mostly agree with Dr. John E. Mack´s perspective on the "alien abduction experience."  But I can also see and understand where Budd Hopkins is coming from.

My interpretation of Mack´s perspective is that he do not want to make the contact aspect a question of "good" or "bad" "aliens". He even thinks that we probably never are going to get the (full) answers to what is going on behind this contact/abduction phenomenon. Instead, Mack urges us to go from a literal interpretation of the phenomenon to an more ontological one. What does the phenomenon say about our perception of reality, ourselves and the planet we are living on?

The contact aspect of the UFO-phenomenon is complex, to say the least. It is up to each individual to make up their own mind about the contact/abduction aspect. But in order to do so, we at least have to give the research and material on the phenomenon a fair chance. We cannot dismiss the contact aspect of the UFO-phenomena without first looking at the material with both an open and a skeptical mind. If we have given the research a fair chance, then it is ok to disagree with parts of it or dismiss it as a whole. 

"Curiosity didn´t kill the cat. Ignorance did." - Unknown

Take care!

Janne