Well done Kent! The quality of your character shines through in every action you chose. Class act.

Since when is Kent required to tell his story from the hoaxer’s perspective, sympathetically? Ridiculous.

I worked as a Physical Scientist for Department of Interior agencies for 11 years before resigning from my position. The enormous gulf between the current state of science and what is reported to the public through the media and other official sources is enormous. Just as we are finding out now about Biological/Chemical/Radioactive weapons testing carried out on U.S. citizens a generation ago (due to de-classification of DOD research documentation), we will find out today’s secrets in 50 or 100 years. With cutting edge science only now leaking through to the public from films such as: “What the bleep!? Down the rabbit hole”, the average person is getting a small look into the vast world of science that was closed off from everyone except for top managers at Bell and Sandia labs, and their scientists. What is actually known about these things that inhabit the fringes of known “reality” probably won’t be disclosed to us in our lifetimes. I say “probably” because it is getting harder and harder for “official” sources to keep things hidden away and dark.

Courageous individuals with integrity like Kent are a big reason why!

Also, thanks to Loren for saying in your post, in an eloquent manner, what Ii was trying to figure out how to say in my own crude way.

Mr Ballard really seems to have struck a nerve with some of our members by critcizing a hoaxer. Why defend a hoaxer? I have little sympathy for these practical jokers, or pranksters, or frauds or whatever you choose to call them.

One of the great values of this blog is the wonderful detective work that Craig and Loren have done in exposing frauds like Tom Biscardi and the people at OurBigfoot.com and the rash of silly alleged bigfoot photos we’ve seen lately.

Keep up the good work Cryptomundo!

Can’t we all just get along.

My comments about the hoax were not meant to be “cruel,” as you say, nor do my comments indicate a lack of morals. While I’m somewhat sympathetic to someone who’s scared by such a hoax, I stand by my opinion that showing a gun around in an attempt to threaten the hoaxer was carrying things too far. Two wrongs don’t make a right, and all that…

And, for the record, I’m not a “city guy,” either. While I now live in Santa Monica, California, I grew up in a place called Hog Mountain, Georgia, and my family is from Ellijay, Georgia, the area that inspired the novel/film DELIVERANCE. Just because someone doesn’t agree with you does not mean that they come from a completely different background than you.

Since when is attacking the person of a cruel joke a good thing? Since when do we care so much about the opinion of the person commiting such a cruel act on somebody else? Melodramatic? Sure, maybe if you have no emotions, or cannot express feelings of fright, disgust and anger. I also live in a very rural area of forest, and let me tell you right now, all you city guys who are coming down on Kent for not “taking a joke” and “over reacting” need to come out here and drive down these lonely and pitch black roads late at night, and then see some thing walk across the road in front of you, and try not to steer your vehicle into a tree to avoid it and possibly kill yourself. This man, and his wife through him, were deeply frightened by this event, and all you can do is attack him? Try living in the country, with no street lights at night and pitch black all around you, and then tell me you wouldn’t be frightened after seeing this thing one night, and then thinking it was real because the cruel person who did this decided not to tell you for almost a year. What kind of morals do you people have?

Again, it never ceases to amaze me how cruel some people can be, and in my book, if you defend somebody doing such a cruel thing to someone else, you obviously have probably done something similar yourselves to someone, and believe it is no big deal.

Kent, I salute you sir, and I wish only the best for you and yours, and thank you for sharing your story with us. Please ignore those with no sense of what is right and wrong, luckily, they are outnumbered.

Hmmmm, maybe you’re right. Maybe hoaxes do have value. I recommend one for everybody that doubts this man. Let’s see if you act as courageously.

so I skipped ahead to the talkback without reading… and I have to say, I’m keeping my original opinion, and that 23. herpjitsu has said the smartest thing I’ve heard all day.