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struck by battles of the clans from which leaders emerge. Some spend more time murdering each other than trying to understand. This is one of the reasons why the study of UFOs has not made much progress. Ufology seems to be a private hunt, like intellectual property without a patent. As a consequence, the flying saucer phenomenon trans- formed from a bubbly torrent to a swamp of bitterness in the past fifty years or so, by continuously using the same investigation methods to no avail. To let the skeptics off the hook, it is not easy to see through the cloud of fiction mixed with the facts of authentic cases. Those who con- tinue to search despite numerous deceptions deserve our respect. We sometimes open our minds to the unknown in vain, or feel betrayed by the untruthful romantic image portrayed by certain minds in search of self-help, taking advantage of the good will of others. This is why my solidarity still lies with the enlightened skeptic. Nevertheless, ufology would benefit from changing tools without changing its vocation by building upon the proven powers of the psyche. The relationship we should have with the ETs requires maturity. While some ponder the UFO phenomenon passively by gathering eyewitness accounts — like ufological stamp collecting — others go about it more actively by com- municating with the UFO occupants. This may be the only possible way to proceed. Perhaps we should never have forgotten that “the oth- ers” exist in the first place! That is when we understand that the lights at night express themselves, too. They address us every time they show themselves and — if we believe absolute relativity — even more so when they do not show themselves. So what is their message? 30 The Science of Extraterrestrials: UFOs Explained at Last * Eric Julien