Drones and the cost of lost trust

Social media is full of conspiracy theories over the drones. Picture: X.

The loss of public trust in US institutions is well-chronicled, and for an example of its cost consider the national mini-panic over unidentified aerial objects. No one in America seems to believe what anyone in authority says about them, and unproven claims are filling the vacuum.

Thousands of Americans who aren’t cranks have seen drones or what they think are drones overhead. New Jersey of all places is a hotbed of sightings, for reasons no one has been able to explain. But sightings have occurred across the Northeast, as well as in California. Military facilities and critical infrastructure sites seem to be targets, if the eyewitnesses are right.

Yet no one in Washington seems to be able to convincingly explain the sightings. A joint statement Thursday by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security said: “We have no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus.”

The statement added that “Historically, we have experienced cases of mistaken identity, where reported drones are, in fact, manned aircraft or facilities. We are supporting local law enforcement in New Jersey with numerous detection methods but have not corroborated any of the reported visual sightings with electronic detection. To the contrary, upon review of available imagery, it appears that many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft, operating lawfully.”

A cluster of drones off the US Eastern seaboard. Picture; X.

Yet the unexplained sightings persist. One caused Stewart International Airport in New York’s Hudson Valley to shut down its runways for an hour on Friday night. Governor Kathy Hochul demanded answers from the Biden Administration. Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, not known as a show-boater, says he saw a flurry of aerial objects above his home in Davidsonville, Maryland.

Members of Congress are demanding answers or offering their own theories. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a New Jersey Republican, thinks the drones may have come from an Iranian “mothership” off the coast. The Pentagon rejects the claim.

Jon Bramnick, a GOP state Senator in New Jersey, told NewsNation that, “It must be something going on that they can’t tell us because they are so fearful of what the public’s gonna do when they hear what the drones are doing.” This is how deep the suspicion runs.

This is quite incredible footage.

What do you make of the drones in New Jersey? #newjerseydrones#UFO ? Project #BlueBeam ? pic.twitter.com/iUKPxKeD6U

— Bruce (@bruce_barrett) December 15, 2024

And when that happens, conspiracy theories fill the air as much as drones do. One Twitter account with some 192,000 followers posted on X that “WE ARE F —. THE DRONES ARE PROJECT BLUE BEAM.” We admit to not being fluent on this theory, but apparently Project Blue Beam refers to a plan by governments and the military to stage celestial events as a pretext to impose authoritarian rule. Don’t beam us up, Scotty.

🚨 Posts on X suggest that the Galactic Federation is revealing itself, with some expecting first contact next year. There's also a claim that the Galactic Federation controls the skies, land, and oceans w/bases and crafts everywhere.#ProjectBlueBeam
pic.twitter.com/QnXeV8rHvu

— 🌸 DigiGal (@DigitalGal_) December 14, 2024

We’d ignore this stuff, except millions of people might believe it. That’s the world we live in. And sorry to say, the reason isn’t merely the result of conspiracists or crackpots who will exploit doubt for attention.

The Biden Administration has squandered its credibility to the point that it’s rational not to believe what it says. Remember the Chinese spy balloon that travelled across the continental US? The Administration downplayed its importance while it was courting better relations with Beijing, only to shoot it down over the Atlantic Ocean. It also downplayed Rep. Mike Turner’s warning, based on solid intelligence, about the danger from a potential Russian nuclear blast in space.

The Administration failed for months to be candid about its migrant flights from the border to the US interior. And for months it covered up the truth about President Biden’s declining mental and physical fitness, only to have it exposed in a debate. The government’s attempt to censor alternative views about Covid shutdowns during the Trump Administration also spread mistrust. The more Americans don’t trust their government, the more panic or protests are possible.

On Sunday New York Governor Hochul said the feds are deploying hi-tech detection gear to her state to help with the drone swarms. The feds need to explain to Congress and the public with more specificity what is really going on. But the larger need is for a government Americans can trust.

The Wall St Journal