Finding Bigfoot

[JLibourel]

I didn't mention Meldrum because I wasn't sure how much time he has actually spent in the field. After looking into the matter, I gather he has done a fair amount. Obviously, Meldrum has a very respectable level of scientific training. I gather some other scientists at Idaho State want to shut him up as an embarrassment because of his BF research. This seems pretty chickenshit to me. Universities are supposed to be havens for the unfettered pursuit of truth although they seldom are in reality, I have found. I will add that Meldrum's credibility, at least to me, suffers from the fact that he is also a devout Mormon. Frankly, it seems to me that adherence to Mormonism involves a far higher level of credulity than belief in Bigfoots. (And lest I be accused of religious bigotry, let me mention that since boyhood I have known quite a few LDS. With but a single exception, all of them have been exceptionally friendly, pleasant people. Besides, who could not love Julianne Hough, for example?)

A related matter I have been pondering is this: According to Wikipedia, at this time there are 4.495 institutions of higher learning in the USA (universities, 4-year colleges, community colleges). Virtually all of these institutions have a number of faculty in disciplines germane (in varying degrees) to the matter of Bigfoot: Biology; Zoology, including Vertebrate Zoology, Mammology and Primatology; Anatomy; Anthropology; Paleontology; Forestry; Wildlife Management; Environmental Studies and no doubt some others I can't think of at the moment. In the more than 50 years that Bigfoot has been a matter of general public interest, tens of thousands (perhaps more than a hundred thousand) of men and women have taught and done research in these fields. Yet of all these scientists, only two--Krantz and Meldrum--have seen fit to make BFs a matter of sustained research, and neither of these men were at top-tier institutions. This probably says something.

Nonetheless, I have little love for American higher education, and it would be gratifying, were a BF ever actually discovered, to see the dismissive arrogance of so many credentialed people confounded.

At least take comfort in the fact that it is entirely possible to prove the existence of Bigfoot with some tangible physical evidence or even photography of unimpeachable quality. However, it is quite impossible to prove the non-existence of Bigfoot.

As to the Bigfoot Bounty Hunters show, I have some hopes for it. While it is obvious already that some of the hunters are flakes and crackpots, at least two of the three judges have sound scientific qualifications, and just getting that many bodies into the field ought to turn something up...if, indeed, there is anything out there to turn up.

 

[idfnl]



I didn't mention Meldrum because I wasn't sure how much time he has actually spent in the field. After looking into the matter, I gather he has done a fair amount. Obviously, Meldrum has a very respectable level of scientific training. I gather some other scientists at Idaho State want to shut him up as an embarrassment because of his BF research. This seems pretty chickenshit to me. Universities are supposed to be havens for the unfettered pursuit of truth although they seldom are in reality, I have found. I will add that Meldrum's credibility, at least to me, suffers from the fact that he is also a devout Mormon. Frankly, it seems to me that adherence to Mormonism involves a far higher level of credulity than belief in Bigfoots. (And lest I be accused of religious bigotry, let me mention that since boyhood I have known quite a few LDS. With but a single exception, all of them have been exceptionally friendly, pleasant people. Besides, who could not love Julianne Hough, for example?)

A related matter I have been pondering is this: According to Wikipedia, at this time there are 4.495 institutions of higher learning in the USA (universities, 4-year colleges, community colleges). Virtually all of these institutions have a number of faculty in disciplines germane (in varying degrees) to the matter of Bigfoot: Biology; Zoology, including Vertebrate Zoology, Mammology and Primatology; Anatomy; Anthropology; Paleontology; Forestry; Wildlife Management; Environmental Studies and no doubt some others I can't think of at the moment. In the more than 50 years that Bigfoot has been a matter of general public interest, tens of thousands (perhaps more than a hundred thousand) of men and women have taught and done research in these fields. Yet of all these scientists, only two--Krantz and Meldrum--have seen fit to make BFs a matter of sustained research, and neither of these men were at top-tier institutions. This probably says something.

Nonetheless, I have little love for American higher education, and it would be gratifying, were a BF ever actually discovered, to see the dismissive arrogance of so many credentialed people confounded.

At least take comfort in the fact that it is entirely possible to prove the existence of Bigfoot with some tangible physical evidence or even photography of unimpeachable quality. However, it is quite impossible to prove the non-existence of Bigfoot.

As to the Bigfoot Bounty Hunters show, I have some hopes for it. While it is obvious already that some of the hunters are flakes and crackpots, at least two of the three judges have sound scientific qualifications, and just getting that many bodies into the field ought to turn something up...if, indeed, there is anything out there to turn up.

You can add Sykes from Oxford to that list, and the scientist on the Bigfoot bounty show from NYU. Your point is still taken. I can imagine there are one or two others that may want to but I suspect funding would be very hard to come by.

I had no idea Meldrum was a Mormon, ha ha, I see your point.

Oh boy, that Bigfoot Bounty show is horrible. OMG as if this pursuit needed yet another reason to be ridiculed. They picked the most ornery bunch of weirdos possible. And the format of the show is really, really stupid. I mean, they have all these teams looking for evidence, but yet they vote someone off every show, which means, like, aren't there now fewer people looking for evidence each week? Its, its just stupid.

Anyone with a scientific background would run away screaming rather than be associated with this group of misfits.

 

[JLibourel]

Isn't Sykes more of a debunker than a believer? The DNA analyst from NYU specifically stated that he was a non-believer. Weird-looking guy, with his Mohawk 'do, but I gather his academic/scientific credentials are impeccable...or so they say on the show, anyway.

Although I don't believe she is affiliated with any academic institution, there is also Dr. Melba. Haven't heard anything about her for a spell, have you?

I haven't watched the show, just looked at some of the promo videos. From what you tell me, I guess they are following the format of the "Survivor" series and many of these other reality shows. I agree that it seems counter-productive. Do any contestants come across as seasoned outdoors people or knowledgeable field naturalists?

Just a couple of added thoughts. I had referred to "American" institutions of higher learning. Since Sykes is at Oxford, he really wouldn't qualify. I suppose I could have added Canadian institutions of higher learning as well. There once was a "Wildman/Bigfoot" conference at the University of British Columbia back in the 1970s, but it was a total fiasco from the perspective of serious BF seekers.

On the matter of the judges on the Bigfoot Bounty show, the monkey girl seemed to have some sound credentials as a serious field naturalist. She's cute. Were I still a lusty young buck, I wouldn't at all mind getting up to some "monkey business" with her!

 

[idfnl]



Isn't Sykes more of a debunker than a believer? The DNA analyst from NYU specifically stated that he was a non-believer. Weird-looking guy, with his Mohawk 'do, but I gather his academic/scientific credentials are impeccable...or so they say on the show, anyway.

Although I don't believe she is affiliated with any academic institution, there is also Dr. Melba. Haven't heard anything about her for a spell, have you?

I haven't watched the show, just looked at some of the promo videos. From what you tell me, I guess they are following the format of the "Survivor" series and many of these other reality shows. I agree that it seems counter-productive. Do any contestants come across as seasoned outdoors people or knowledgeable field naturalists?

Just a couple of added thoughts. I had referred to "American" institutions of higher learning. Since Sykes is at Oxford, he really wouldn't qualify. I suppose I could have added Canadian institutions of higher learning as well. There once was a "Wildman/Bigfoot" conference at the University of British Columbia back in the 1970s, but it was a total fiasco from the perspective of serious BF seekers.

On the matter of the judges on the Bigfoot Bounty show, the monkey girl seemed to have some sound credentials as a serious field naturalist. She's cute. Were I still a lusty young buck, I wouldn't at all mind getting up to some "monkey business" with her!

I offered up Sykes simply because he worked on the topic. I'm not really concerned what side of the argument someone is on.

Dr Melba became a bit of a quack. She released some self published document that was pretty incoherent from what I understand. She's not worth consideration.

I was amazed they kicked off a pretty hot girl on the first week of the show. She was worth watching. The monkey doc is pretty cute, but I won't waste time with another episode.

 

[JLibourel]

^OMG, you're getting almost as skeptical as I am.

Just got through watching the entire first episode of "Bounty" online. I was left with the sense if BFs are out there, they are not likely to be discovered by that motley rabble.

I felt the team that was expelled got a raw deal. They didn't find any good evidence, so came back to the lodge with nothing. They seemed like the most honest and sensible of the bunch.

The show does seem like a waste of time.

 

[JLibourel]

Cogitating on the "Bounty" show, I think my favorite part was when those two women were out at night, and they heard something hooting in the woods. They were stage whispering to each other, "It could be a Bigfoot call." Well, of course! It couldn't possibly be anything as mundane as an owl, now could it? Good Lord, you'd think anybody over the age of four or thereabouts with the veriest smattering of general knowledge, upon hearing hooting sounds in the woods, would conclude that what was hooting was an owl!

I note that quite a number of the contestants on this show are very fat. I think what the producers wanted was not a serious quest for Bigfoot but a freak show, akin to the innumerable "redneck" reality shows. This is probably why the team that got the axe got the axe.

Since the show is obviously pre-recorded, I would surmise that if they had turned up anything truly concrete, it would have "leaked' by now

 

[idfnl]



Cogitating on the "Bounty" show, I think my favorite part was when those two women were out at night, and they heard something hooting in the woods. They were stage whispering to each other, "It could be a Bigfoot call." Well, of course! It couldn't possibly be anything as mundane as an owl, now could it? Good Lord, you'd think anybody over the age of four or thereabouts with the veriest smattering of general knowledge, upon hearing hooting sounds in the woods, would conclude that what was hooting was an owl!

I note that quite a number of the contestants on this show are very fat. I think what the producers wanted was not a serious quest for Bigfoot but a freak show, akin to the innumerable "redneck" reality shows. This is probably why the team that got the axe got the axe.

Since the show is obviously pre-recorded, I would surmise that if they had turned up anything truly concrete, it would have "leaked' by now

Of course nobody will find anything when they are searching like that. The show is a clown car. Not that this phenomena had much credibility to begin with, its gotta be close to 0 now.

Anyway, this is known as the Craven footage, it was taken in Canada more than a decade ago:


[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

 

[JLibourel]

^A "clown car" is a good way to describe it. I just watched most of the second episode on-line last night. It is increasingly obvious that a freak show is what is wanted by the producers, nothing more. I gather they eliminated the African-American father-son duo, probably because they were serious, experienced hunters.

I can hardly imagine anything more counterproductive to finding a BF (assuming that any are out there to be found) than sending out a pack of inept tenderfeet tramping around the woods by day yakking and bickering, then doing strange yodeling at night as a supposed "BF call," as one of the "Squatchers" was doing. These clowns must have spooked every animal in the region!

Yet, I still think the concept was not a bad one. Had they assembled a team of seasoned competent people--big game guides, field naturalists, wildlife photographers and the like--it could have been a serious study. I still believe they would come up empty, but I do believe in the value of negative evidence. The only trouble would be that it would make for lousy TV: The searchers would probably be most "active" at dawn and dusk, when most wildlife is active. I put "active" in quotes, because they would be silent, stealthy and, for the most part still and well camouflaged. They could also take up positions in the forest in the night using modern night-vision and FLIR technology as well as saturating the area with trail cams. Patrolling logging roads by Jeep with a spotlight might also be productive. Such an effort really ought to turn up BFs if there are actually any in the chosen area.

On another note, I heard the other day that Hiroo Onoda had just died at the age of 91. He was the Japanese war survivor/straggler who held out the longest--having hidden on the not-very-large Philippine island of Lubang until 1974! I am re-reading his memoir right now. There were quite a few of these Japanese stragglers who held out on islands for many years after the war. I think I have mentioned this before in this thread, but I think one of the more cogent pro-BF arguments is that if these Japanese could hide out on comparatively small Pacific Islands for years, think how easily a creature with nearly human intelligence and the innate cunning, wariness and senses of a wild animal could avoid detection and capture in the thickly forested and immense areas of the Pacific Northwest.

 

[JLibourel]

I was just discussing "Bigfoot Bounty" with my great pal Mike Venturino, whose name may be familiar to some of you. He remarked that back in the '70s or '80s there was quite a Bigfoot scare in his native West Virginia. One couple even stated that the Bigfoot had grabbed their car by the bumper and held it fast as they hysterically tried to accelerate away. However, the "Bigfoot" was soon revealed to be a good ol' boy having some fun with a costume. However, he readily admitted that there was no way he could have held a car by its bumper. So-o-o, does this mean that maybe there was a real Bigfoot operating in the same area and at the same time as the hoaxer?

 

[JLibourel]

As it turns out, I watched seven of the eight episodes of "Bounty" online. Obviously, nobody won the $10 mil, but the winners of the $100K consolation prize announced they were going to use it for further pursuit of BFs. A number of the eliminated teams said they were going to continue "squatching" as well

A couple of weeks ago my wife and I were having dinner with a beloved neighbor of ours, and I mentioned the show and the topic of BFs in general. To my surprise, she informed me that as an adolescent she had spent a great deal of time searching her native Black Hills in pursuit of BFs. I have made the point before in this thread, but, given the vast number of people who have actively sought the BF over the last half-century, somebody ought to have come up with tangible evidence by now.

Looking at some of the BF videos and sighting reports, I am inclined to believe that a lot of the reports made in good faith do involve sightings of large bipedal primates. The only thing is, the "primates" are ordinary humans seen in silhouette or deep shade!

Looked up a bit about Natalia Reagan, the monkey scientist who was one of the referees on "Bounty." It seems she is primarily an actress and comedienne. She does, however, have a master's degree in anthropology and has done research with monkeys. She uses comedy as tool for science and conservation education. She definitely seems like a very interesting and appealing lady.

 

[Harold falcon]

Well, I guess if you don't have access to cable tv or the internet growing up you'll find things to do outside. I used to skateboard without a helmet before I got HBO in the '80s.

 

[craycray]

They must have had "beef" with that cow! lol jk jk thats terrible to say

 

[Harold falcon]

Not that terrible. The posters who believe in Bigfoot are ******* marsupialed, so no problem here.

 

[JLibourel]

I have to question whether there even are any posters who believe in Bigfoot anymore. Even idnfl appears to have lost his faith. At least he has been very quiescent of late.

I have remarked before that otherwise very bright, capable people can believe all kinds of strange things. I would put many (but by no means all) religious beliefs in this category.

 

[imatlas]

I believe. In fact, there is very solid evidence that Bigfoot was recently discovered, in Alaska not too surprisingly:

Carl Dean Bigfoot Jr., 27, of Fairbanks, was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly hitting a stranger in the head Jan. 28 on Fourth Avenue. The charge was filed last week. An employee at design firm USKH reported Jan. 29 that a man approached her as she was leaving work the night before. The man hit her with the side of his arm, and he tried to shove her into her vehicle, she said. She said she yelled at the man, shoved him away and drove off.
She saw the man near her office again Feb. 10 and took his picture. Police identified him as Bigfoot. The victim told police she wanted to press charges. Police were not immediately able to find Bigfoot.