> We have no physical evidence of extraterrestrials but we do have physical evidence that the CIA engages in sometimes ridiculous operations to psychologically manipulate people

That’s true. And I would even say a CIA psyop is more likely than aliens. But its still purely speculative.

Right, and evidence free indulgences into fan fiction speculation about the CIA etc etc are unnecessary detours.

If you define aliens as a long separated branch on the tree of life with significantly more advanced technology, then alien encounters are more common in history (hawai’i in 1790’s being most recent i can think of).

So mathematically its rare, but perhaps an experience of 1% of societies . And perhaps strongly correlated with one branch undergoing a rapid technological advance.

i think it’s perfectly rationale and not fantastical, as long as its kept in mind that its a low probability event.

Yes, it really is fantastical. Six-degrees-of-Kevin-Bacon style associations to unrelated historical events, just to motivate fan fiction writing about psyops is not healthy engagement with the state of reported evidence, much less the only reasonable course of action. I can think of another, refraining from entertaining in elaborate explanations born of speculation unsupported by evidence. Boom, done.

The fanfiction writing serves to validate the manner of thinking that would motivate people to believe the most extreme possible interpretation of this reporting, effectively extending a vote of approval toward people inclined to look at this and put themselves in a headspace of entertaining speculative beliefs without evidence.

I don't think it's charitable or polite to refer to GP's argument as fan fiction. They're making a genuine argument about what they think could have happened, not writing a made-up story, regardless of how unlikely you think their psy-op hypothesis is.