Tag Archives: Marist Poll

What Do We Think About Our Visitors?

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What do we think about our visitors?

Some of you may not be familiar with George Gallup (1901-1984). In 1935, he created the American Institute of Public Opinion, which would later be known as the Gallup Poll. Gallup was a pioneer in the art and science of public opinion surveys. His polling organization continues to this day.

What do we think about our visitors?

The Gallup Poll takes surveys on a wide variety of cultural topics. However, they are not well-known for conducting surveys on the subjects of UFOs or extraterrestrials. The first poll they conducted was in 1966, and the most recent poll they conducted was in 1999. But they conducted two in 2019, one in July and one in August.

In June, Gallup asked 489 American adults around the country the following question: “Do you think there are people somewhat like ourselves living on other planets in the universe or not?” (Question 1) The result was 49% Yes, 48% No, and 1% No Opinion, with a 6 percentage points margin of error. I consider the wording of the question to give the respondents some “wiggle room.”

Perhaps Gallup realized this and offered an alternate version of the question to 529 American adults around the country: “Do you think there is life of some form on other planets in the universe or not?” (Question 2) The result was 75% Yes, 22% No, and 3% No Opinion, with a 5 percentage points margin of error. I am not surprised at this result. Life is known to exist on earth in remarkably harsh environments. I would be interested in exploring the opinions of the No respondents.

In August, Gallup asked 1,521 American adults around the country the following question: “We have a question about Unidentified Flying Objects, also known as UFOs. Which comes closer to your view – [ROTATED: some UFOs have been alien spacecraft visiting Earth from other planets or galaxies, (or) all UFO sightings can be explained by human activity on Earth or natural phenomenon]?” (Question 3)

I consider the “ROTATED” to mean that half the time they offered one possible answer first, and the other half they offered the other possible answer first. The results was 33% “some UFOs have been alien spacecraft visiting Earth from other planets or galaxies,” 60% “all UFO sightings can be explained by human activity on Earth of natural phenomenon,” and 7% No opinion, with a 3 percentage points margin of error.

Both polls showed the responses of different subgroups, sorted by gender, region, education level and political affiliation. There were subgroup responses higher and lower than the total response. But all of the subgroup responses were close to the total response. There is no one subgroup that is driving the total response.

How many people are changing their minds?

What do we think about our visitors? Quite a few people are changing their minds, as it turns out. In 1999, 41% answered Yes to Question 1. An 8% increase works out to 19.2 million American adults changing their minds. In 1999, 61% answered Yes to Question 2. A 14% increase works out to 33.2 million American adults changing their minds. Question 3 has only been asked by Gallup in August of 2019.

I consider this to confirm the Marist Poll survey on this subject in February 2018. I have written about this poll here, here and here.

The Marist Poll shows a more dramatic change than the Gallup Poll. But both polls show that many Americans are changing their minds on the subject of the existence of intelligent life on other planets.

Why are we changing our minds?

What do we think about our visitors? Part of the reason people are changing their minds might be the explosion in exoplanet discovery. Exoplanets are planets orbiting a star other than our sun.

Some people are changing their minds in response to certain news items.

Is this a good thing?

What do we think about our visitors?

What do you think about our visitors? The number of people changing their minds might indeed be a good thing. The New Message from God teaches that our world is emerging into a greater community of worlds. This emergence requires significant changes and significant preparation. If this is so, then it’s a good thing that we wonder what this greater community might be like.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Contact Isn’t Personal, It’s Strictly Commercial

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Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls. Contact isn't personal, it's strictly commercial

I still have something to say about the Marist Poll of February 12. This was a public opinion poll of American adults asking for opinions regarding extraterrestrials. I have written about this poll here and here.

Contact isn’t personal, it’s strictly commercial

There are some remarkable things about this poll that I wish to repeat:

Marist Poll, 2/12/2018, Question 1. Contact isn't personal, it's strictly commercial

Marist Poll, 2/12/2018, Follow-Up Question 1. Contact isn't personal, it's strictly commercial

  1. 68% of American adults answered “Yes” to the question “Do you think there is intelligent life on other planets?”
  2. In May of 2005, only 52% of American adults answered “Yes” to that question.
  3. That works out to roughly forty million American adults changing their minds over the course of slightly less than 13 years.
  4. The 68% were open to the possibility of more advanced races in the universe.

The Marist Poll asked 68% a second follow-up question. The question was “Do you think they [the intelligent life on other planets] will find us before we find them?”

Marist Poll, 2/12/2018, Follow-Up Question 2. Contact isn't personal, it's strictly commercial

A supermajority of the 68% believe we will be found first, or that intelligent life from other worlds has already found us. I do not find this particularly shocking. After all, 46% of them responded that intelligent life from other planets were more advanced than humanity.

It might have something to do with the presence of craft in our skies that can neither be identified nor intercepted.

It might have something to do with the fact that humanity has been broadcasting radio and television signals into space for the past 70 years. It might have something to do with the fact that we are reckless blabbermouths. The image below was made roughly ten years ago. This means the signals have gone ten light-years further.

TV Signals in space. Contact isn't personal, it's strictly commercialBut none of the questions in this poll ask people to consider the intentions of extraterrestrials toward humanity. This is where the New Message from God comes in.
This is the first two paragraphs from the revelation “The Enemies of Humanity.” It was received by Marshall Vian Summers in May of 2014. It is one of the chapters of the book “The Greater Community.”

“Humanity has enemies in the universe. They are not opposed to you, but they seek what you have. They seek to take what you have from you without the use of undue force, relying upon the powers of persuasion and sowing the seeds of division amongst a contentious humanity.

They seek this world for themselves. They do not seek to destroy you, but to use you as a workforce for them. It is something very subtle in its application, but very real in its effect.”

The European explorers of the 1400’s and 1500’s were not motivated by mere curiosity. They made big investments of time and money. They were searching for resources, and ways to move those resources more efficiently. The extraterrestrial explorers of today have similar motivations. However, they consider you and me as resources to exploit. Contact isn’t personal, it’s strictly commercial.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

We Might Be An Utterly Average World

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Blackfeet in New York, 1913. We might be an utterly average world.

In this earlier post, I elaborated on a recent Marist Poll on the existence of intelligent life on other planets. They conducted this poll in both May of 2005 and February of 2018. They asked American adults, “Do you think there is intelligent life on other planets?” In May of 2005, 52% responded “Yes.” In February of 2018, 68% responded “Yes.” They asked the people who responded “Yes” to this question, a follow-up question. I wish to examine that response.

We might be an utterly average world

I believe that some people looked at the response to the first question and had a thought. The thought was, “It must have been a particular subgroup that raised the Yes response from 52% to 68%.” I surmise from the following image that this is not the case.

Marist Poll February 2018. We might be an utterly average world.The age, ethnicity or gender of the respondents doesn’t seem to matter. There is no one particularly credulous subgroup, except possibly young adults aged 18-29. There is no one particularly skeptical subgroup, except possibly those who identify as Republicans. For better or for worse, the idea that there is intelligent life on other planets has been embraced by American adults.

We might be an utterly average world. The follow-up question was, “Do you think life on other planets is more, less, or about as intelligent as human life on earth?” I confess to not liking this question very much. The word “intelligent” has multiple connotations. I sometimes think of intelligence as adaptability, the power to respond to challenges and take advantage of opportunities. I consider the question to mean “advanced” when the word “intelligent” is used. It could mean “possessing a richer history and body of experience.”

Marist Poll February 2018 Question 2. We might be an utterly average world.There is a significant plurality who think there are more advanced civilizations in the universe. I don’t consider this to be particularly shocking. Roughly fifty years ago, the crew of the Enterprise on Star Trek encountered more advanced races. They encountered the Metrons (TOS episode “Arena”) and the Organians (TOS episode “Errand of Mercy”). I am unclear as to the worldview of those who answered “Less.” Do they consider Earth to be the pinnacle of intelligent life in the universe?

The 52% who answered yes in 2005, offered an opinion as to the level of advancement of intelligent life. Forty million American adults changed their minds about intelligent extraterrestrials between May of 2005 and February of 2018. They considered Earth’s place in the universe as roughly the same as the 52% from 2005. I’m not sure what to make of this. I think it says we are open to the possibility that we might be an utterly average world.

The New Message from God teaches that there are more advanced races in the universe. Furthermore, there are more advanced races in the relatively nearby neighborhood. Consider this passage from “Who Are the Allies of Humanity?” This is a chapter from the book “The Greater Community.”

“Humanity is not alone in the universe, for the universe you will encounter is full of intelligent life. Living in a well-inhabited and long-established region of space, your world will find itself in a greater neighborhood.

“Within this neighborhood are many powerful nations that have created vast networks of trade and commerce that are tightly governed. And most nations in this region of space are dependent upon these networks for the essential resources they need to support their technology and, in some cases, essential resources just to provide the basic requirements of life.”

In the image at the top, 10 members of the Blackfoot Confederacy visited New York City in 1913. I wonder how they would have answered the questions of this poll. I don’t know what they experienced in New York City. All I know is that before too long, the people of Earth will have a similar experience.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Forty Million People Changed Their Minds

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Now that’s something you don’t see every day. Who said forty million people changed their minds? Well, I did, but I base it on a report by the Marist Poll.

Forty million people changed their minds

Some of you may not be familiar with the Marist Poll. It has been in existence since 1978. The Marist Poll is associated with Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York in the United States. It regularly measures public opinion on various subjects at the local, state and national level. The final Marist Poll of the 2016 US Presidential election was very close to the actual result. No one in my world complains about the Marist Poll. Therefore, I am taking their report at face value.

Forty million people changed their minds. Who were the forty million people? Forty million American adults, roughly. The Marist Poll conducted a survey in May of 2005. They conducted the same survey in February of 2018. So the forty million Americans changed their minds over a time period of a little less than 13 years. What did they change their mind about? The existence of intelligent life on other planets.

Forty million people changed their minds

In May of 2005, 52% of respondents answered Yes to the question “Do you think there is intelligent life on other planets?” In February of 2018, 68% of respondents answered Yes to that question. Suppose that these polls are representative samples of the United States. I have no good reason to believe that they are not. 16% of 240 million American adults works out to about forty million.

Exoplanet Discoveries. Forty million people changed their minds

What made the forty million American adults change their minds? It could be a number of things. I believe the explosion in the discovery of exoplanets, planets circling a star other than our sun, has something to do with it. The Kepler Space Telescope, launched in 2009, has been a remarkable scientific success in the time period between the two polls.

The New Message from God teaches that humanity is emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. This is the first paragraph from the revelation “Preparing for the Greater Community,” received by Marshall Vian Summers in April of 2011.

“Humanity is preparing for the Greater Community. It does not know this yet, of course, but that is its stage of evolution, and everyone is involved. The fact that humanity is unprepared for the realities of contact with life in the universe is very apparent, but at a more unconscious level, people are anticipating this. And that is why it emerges in your movies, in your books, in human imagination. There is a seed of truth, an element of truth here.”

Forty million people changed their minds. I consider this remarkable event to be part of humanity’s preparation for the Greater Community.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.