Why am I such a bear about intelligence [IQ] and cultural acumen (for uofology)?
Copyright 2017, InterAmerica, Inc.
Anomalist notator Bill Murphy, who has been kind
enough to list some of my postings for the past several months, was a bit chagrined, rightfully, by my resorting to comments referencing IQ among the
Reframing UFO book essayists.
Let me write that I think all of the persons whom Robbie
Graham picked for his book are smart people, many with high IQs I imagine.
For seven years plus, right out of college, I was selected
to test potential employees for businesses in Detroit, banks mostly:
Commonwealth, National, Security Bank & Trust, et cetera. The test
were psychological in nature: The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory,
The Allport –Vernon- Lindzey Study of Values, The Industrial Psychology C.P.F.,
N.P.F. and 16 P.F. Series, The Bernreuter Personality Inventory, The Lüscher
Color Test, and various IQ tests. [My IQ is 149, or was, before I got hooked on
UFOs.]
Psychometric Methods being my discipline in college, I (and
others) in my corporation, InterAmerica, Inc. continue to provide evaluations
of personalities for news media in Indiana and Detroit.
For me, intelligence is paramount in the pursuit of
anything, with a preference for intellectual achievement and academic study
held very high. A cultural substratum is a must also.
So railing about the nature of ufology and its practitioners
is a feature of my blog(s) that offends many but something that is endemic to
my personality.
Nonetheless, I apologize to WM and others for being rude
about intelligence and intellectualism with the UFO community, but there it
is….
In the case of Robbie Graham’s choices for his Reframing
book, which I have not read and will probably not read, I am familiar with most
of the persons contributing and note that while some are mighty smart in some
sense, maybe with high IQs even, they are not the crème de la crème of
the intelligentsia one would want to reframe the UFO topic, nor am I surely.
But there are a few people I could name who would fit the
bill – persons I regard with admiration for their writings and thinking about
UFOs and other more relevant things,
I could put Bill Murphy in that list I think, if I’m reading
his Anomalist listings correctly.
And bloggers: paranormalist Eric Wargo and parapsychologist
Eric Ouellet. Film maker and politician Paul Kimball. Peranormal journalist
Nick Redfern. Plus esteemed philosophical/ poetry teacher Bryan Sentes.
This select group of mine all have academic credentials and
intellectual acumen and are objective to the point of infallibility.
They are not connected by cronyism, the selected choice for
Robbie Graham’s list of reframers.
My criticsm of Robbie’s book is mainly that he picked
people he knew, not for their expertise but because he likes them and they are
his pals. They say nice things about him on Facebook.
Yet, among that group, I see some standouts too: Micah
Hanks, Chris Rutkowski, Curt Collins (maybe), and MJ Banias.
But there are more brilliant persons extant, many I don’t
know at any real level but surely persons who should have been approached or
considered if one really wants to reframe the UFO topic.
That’s the point of my “offensive” screed.
RR
posted by RRRGroup at
Saturday, June 17, 2017
2 Comments:
What disappoints me, Rich, is that the question of race and gender escapes you and everyone. You, a critic who has chosen to dissect the book, have failed to address the matter of demographics.
As I have often commented, ufology seems to be the pastime of a predominantly white male company - and this new anthology reflects that demography. The editor would have broken new ground alone, had he included a different demographic - half of it women - I think there's only one aboard now - and half of it AfroAmerican, native American, and any other colored persons such as I.
We read time and again the the UFO phenomenon is global. So where are the voices outside white western culture pondering this? Why do they not get a stage, are they not searched for, their opinions reflected in the blogs and articles, either as witnesses or as researchers?
As it sadly stands, ufology is a white male obsession - and what ranks higher than the white male? The alien species invading white culture obviously, as formulated in 19th century science fiction by H.G. Wells (War Of The Worlds) and others. This new anthology sadly doesn't change that archaic viewpoint - it merely enforces that tired old hat and stuffy tradition that wisdom on this anomaly can only be divulged by the white, male priests of the church of ufodom. In that respect, a missed chance.
Best regards,
Theo
By
theo paijmans, at Wednesday, June 21, 2017
You would do well Theo, to go to The Anomalist listings, and grab the link offering John Keel's little book about the UFO subculture.
RR
By
RRRGroup, at Wednesday, June 21, 2017
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