I haven’t written much about the balloon shoot-downs
But my summary reaction is no, I don’t think it’s aliens.
However, people seem to love to talk about the issue, so here’s a thread for it.
The New Neo
A blog about political change, among other things
Talked to a former carrier pilot (A4) who remarked that a guy who shoots down a balloon is NOT going to want a victory decal on his aircraft.
Undocumented, not aliens?
It absolutely was aliens. After they saw how weak we were against a balloon, they decided the time was ripe.
I have come to conclusion the Chinese Spy Balloon shot down off South Carolina coast they had no expectation of recovering it. Better not know than know what it was doing.
It was aliens, just not the ones from outside our atmosphere.
Some guy in Billings with a telephoto took a picture of a balloon and posted it. That’s how we know there was an actual balloon with a substantial payload.
Now, IMO, there is all this misdirection about several “objects” being shot down. Our military is on top of it now and they are being tough. Sure.
They used a dummy training missile to “puncture” the “object.” Excuse me. Balloons get punctured, not objects.
Oftentimes a balloon is just a balloon.
It would seem that the Pentagon needs to mount powerful lasers on high altitude jets if they plan to shoot a lot of these things down. Surely that would be less expensive than using missiles, if this goes on for a while.
@TommyJay
Well said. This is also why I do not buy the hooey about “it happened under Trump too!!”
America has had large communities of sky watchers since far before the US was a country. That only expanded as time went on and so did the population and tech. There is a reason why stealth is maddeningly difficult in the sky. Not impossible but unlikely.
John baker:
The US DoD tried that with chemical lasers mounted in a modified 747. It didn’t work, although they weren’t targeting balloons.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UythVvkS6cA
@ Neo > “I don’t think it’s aliens.”
Snow on Pine hardest hit.
😉
Rex Murphy chimes in with a view from the “True North strong and—cough, cough, sputter, choke—free!”
“…Unidentified balloons, and Mary Ng’s inability to identify conflict of interest;
“The PM says he’s ‘serious’ about flying objects. What about ministerial ethics?”—
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/on-unidentified-balloons-and-mary-ngs-inability-to-identify-conflict-of-interest
Key graf:
“…Earth is being invaded by an alien species that has mastered the great challenge of interstellar space travel by balloon….”
Has anybody seen an actual picture of the three “objects” we shot down? Lots of pix of the Chinese spy balloon but why none so far of the others?
In 1958 ( about 65 YEARS ago ) the USA and Canada established NORAD; a joint air defense system to monitor anything flying / hovering over North American airspace.
The notion that the US / Canada is unaware that something is flying or hovering at all times over N.America is total BS.
Whether or not it is decided to shoot down what is over N. American airspace is another matter.
Frankly, I do not understand why these balloons are not shot down as soon as they spot them.
As usual, the US Govt, a govt. of , by, and for the US govt. agencies that run / control , and rule over the citizens of the USA have decided to keep the citizenry in the dark.
Om,
Yes but how fast were their test targets going and how far away? These balloons are not moving like a missile. Laser are limited in range in atmosphere by atmospheric scattering.
This around the time of project bluebook related in a series in the 70s
Elsewhere I have speculated that the “second wave” objects shot down may be “pathfinder” balloons used to monitor winds at various altitudes, as a way to more precisely target the main spying balloons.
I will add here that there may well be a de facto “open skies” policy between the US, China, and even Russia with respect to spy balloons, and it is only the recent accidental discovery by a citizen of one of these balloons that necessitated shooting a bunch down for public consumption!
Ps. I believe as part of current arms control agreements there are perfectly legal “open skies” aircraft flights conducted by the U.S. and Russia over each other’s territory. Whether China is included, or whether the recent Russian saber rattling has terminated all of the agreements, I do not know.
John baker:
How much do you want to spend? How much does the alternative cost? Pie in the sky isn’t paid for with Unicorn skittles.
Omri Ceren comments on a CBS report which says
https://mobile.twitter.com/omriceren/status/1625852475143245828?cxt=HHwWiMDS4ciNmJAtAAAA
Ceren:
They are just shooting down balloons because Biden embarrassed himself letting the Chinese spy balloon transit the US.
It’s just another US government information operation against the American people.
Grandpagrumble on February 15, 2023 at 8:25 am said:
Has anybody seen an actual picture of the three “objects” we shot down? Lots of pix of the Chinese spy balloon but why none so far of the others?
Because it would undermine the desired narrative. Something of a modified limited hangout. As the story fades we will probably get to see the pictures.