Why are the aliens here?

[Lancer]

Assuming, of course.

I don't think anything we're doing is particularly interesting to creatures that can cross the galaxy. Politics, wars, blah, all boring.

This earth...maybe. The planet might be interesting. Who knows how common nice planets like this are? So, they might want it. However it's crawling with nasty bugs, germs, viruses, all likely to be particular to this planet.

Life. The defenses against germs and viruses might be interesting for the aliens. If the aliens have been traveling the galaxy for a billion years, might they also have been evolving themselves geneticly for eternal life. If you live forever things that can bring that life to an end would be interesting. Also, natural adaptions that coiuld improve ones life would be of interest.

So, if they want the planet or if they want to learn about life on earth, they would have a reason to come here.

Why then, remain hidden from human beings? Except for the odd sightings, like the recent one MtG described, or the sighting I had maybe 20 years ago. Unless of course the aliens are in contact with humans at some level. If it's a government or governments, why would they remain silent?

blah...

[Ted Striker]

Cross breeding genetic experiments with Ted Striker.

[Ted Striker]

[Lancer]

Maybe they want our WOMEN!!!

[Drake Tungsten]

The aliens are Chinese?!!

[bipolarbear]

Or maybe they've found a way to turn viruses into some form of energy or uber efficient uber powerful energy nad they jsut drop within the atmosphere every once in a while to pick up some fuel.

Maybe they are lost...nobody ever considered that.

[Last Conformist]

As I've already said, they'r carousing teens drunk driving their dad's saucer.

[Tattila the Hun]

They fear we might blow ourselves up...

[Dr Strangelove]

Water. There are some suspiciously missing lakes in California and Kazakhistan.

[Solver]

Lancer,

I believe the reasons for alien presence here are not understood yet and we can only guess. Possible reasons, all speculative, include that Earth is a planet with some rare characteristics (high amount of water or whatever) so it's of interest to the aliens, or that the aliens have been intervening on Earth for a long time and it's kind of an observation project for them, or that Earth isn't even of particular interest, but they observe all populated planets within their reach.

Making a healthy assumption that the government (this actually means several governments) knows about the aliens, it wouldn't be surprising that there's no disclosure. After all, such a disclosure would unfortunately have consequences too big. No, I'm an optimist, and I think that information should be disclosed. But the damage done to, for example, some religious groups could be very big, directly disproving that humans are the only intelligent beings. On the other hand, I believe that religion would deal with aliens just as it did with the revelations that the Earth is round, that the Earth goes around the Sun and that genetic traits exist.

As to why the aliens themselves are unwilling to show their presence, there can again be several reasons. One might be pretty much the same as above, them believing that the social consequences would be too bad. Another might be that they don't want us to have their technology, which could happen if they disclosed their presence (and obviously any alien race that has the capability to travel here has technology far more advanced than ours). If Earth is an observation laboratory for them, then they would try to stay hidden for the "purity of experiment".

[alva]

Why do we observe tribes in the amazon...

[child of Thor]

Originally posted by alva
Why do we observe tribes in the amazon...

So we can see an ancient part of our past and better understand how we got to where we are now?

What if earth was 'seeded' by an intelligent race of aliens in the first place? And they just pop back now and then to see how it goes.

hmmm........ maybe they are under threat in their own galaxy and being so civilised have forgotten how to be good warriors, so the earth is an alien military experiment to breed a violent psychopathic warrior race(might explain much of our violent history?).


but i think i could go for Ted's idea, if it became less exclusive

[Richelieu]

They're using Earth as the settings for the latest installment of alien Survivor.

[MrFun]

IF YOU BELIEVE IN ALIENS YOU SUPPORT TERRORISM!!!!!!

[Last Conformist]

If aliens rape your ass you support terrorism!!!!!!!!!!pink!!!