by Kandice Day

Created on: December 18, 2008   Last Updated: January 20, 2009

Clifford Stone is an interesting individual, to say the least. His 22 years in the military began by chance, or by divine intervention, as he might say. I true believer in Christianity, Stone seems to believe he was chosen for his underground life of E.T. hunting. His faith has lead him to conclusions about the world that are far beyond human understanding, mainly that there are nearly 57 classifications of extra terrestrials, many of which walk among us today. Our key to survival, according to Stone, is our deep faith in religion.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /

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Whether Stone is a preacher for the Right, a true abductee of EBE's (extraterrestrial biological entities), or simply a few fries short of a happy meal, his assertion that "we are not alone" has attracted the imagination of inquiring minds everywhere.

Since the beginning of time, aliens have both intrigued and terrified us. It is what we don't know that scares us, and yet inspires us to settle on conclusions about UFO sightings, alien abductions, and "top secret" cover-ups. From the earliest people's cave paintings in Iraq and Australia, to video recordings today, we are obsessed. Is it because, as Stone would say, we inherently know the truth and are simply seeking proof?

The debate rages on regarding the government's denial of EBE's. With the Freedom of Information Act, which was passed in 1966 and roughly amended and limited in 2002, came the freedom of information. Upon request, documents could be made available to the public. Documents that were admitted to, at least. Stone took advantage of this act by requesting, and obtaining, certain documents detailing his account of government agency's communication with EBE's. Documents which he categorizes in his book UFO's Are Real.

Clifford, himself, intrigues us because he offers supposed answers and proof. He intrigues us because he is faithful, and yet believes in these other 57 races of alien. He claims to have a strong desire to just be normal, "because every retired military officer just wants to be normal" after their service is complete, and yet he also claims to have seen his deceased son in an altered universe. This is what grabs our human emotions, our wild imaginations.

It's a fairy tale that lives because we allow it to. Maybe the question is not whether we are alone or not, but why the human condition requires us to persist. It reminds me of that movie Contact, with Jodie Foster. It reminds me of the search for the meaning of life, the answers to prayers, the proof that there is a god. A child believes in Santa Claus because there is no proof to the contrary, while there is no proof that there is a Santa Claus. We believe in a higher power because there is no proof to the contrary, and believe in aliens because we see no reason not to.

The idea that "we are not alone" is comforting, and the fact that Clifford relates his experiences to his religion and strong faith reassures us a hundred times over. Is he a genius, feeding off of our human frailties and insecurities, a mad-man who has nightmares and shares them with the world, or is he himself one of the 57 species of alien?

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