76 Spirituality Studies 10-1 Spring 2024 6 Conclusion What, to a Vermonter, is more probably an encounter with space aliens may, to a Mississippian, more likely be an experience of the demonic. There is as yet no scientific reason for dismissing the latter interpretation (and ridiculing Rep. Greene for adopting it). It may also be the case that negative spiritual experiences, regardless of how one interprets them, are more frequent in states in which atheists or Wiccans constitute a larger share of the population. In other words, perhaps faithlessness and Occultism render people more vulnerable to such spiritual events. Clearly, more research is warranted on this subject. To conclude, the spiritual theory on UFO events should be given a fair hearing for the same reasons that modern society has increasingly accepted the extraterrestrial theory. In removing the cultural blinders that obscure the former’s plausibility, people may discover that they are entering into a period in human history that is perilous for both spiritual and – what is relevant for the author’s discipline, Appendix Regional Averages of Reporting UFO Sightings (per 10,000 State Population) even if incomparably less important in the greater scheme of things – political reasons. Regarding the political dangers, if people come to believe that they are dealing with hostile physical beings (be they foreign or extraterrestrial in origin), then their government may decide to spend more money on the military, and less on necessary infrastructural or socioeconomic programs, in a futile attempt to shore up national or global security. Alternatively, if they end up viewing these otherworldly beings as benign space visitors who simply wish to assist human civilization, then the government may unwittingly come to cooperate with or obey them, thereby augmenting their pernicious effects on humanity. The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist. – Charles Baudelaire ID HI AK FL NH VT ME RI NY PA VA WV OH IN IL CT WI NC MA MO GA SC KY AL LA MS IA MN OK TX NM KS WY MT CO UT AZ NV OR WA CA TN AR MD DE NJ MI DC NE SD ND Averange UFO Reporting Score (as of 8/6/2023) 3.1 3.4 3.8 5.0 6.5 6.6 6.8
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