Is it real... or isn't it?
That’s what we’re all waiting to find out. If you haven’t heard, two Georgia residents – Matthew Whitton (who also goes by Gary Parker), a police officer, and Rick Dyer, a former correctional officer – say that they literally stumbled upon the body of a large, dead hairy creature in the northern Georgia wilderness. It could be, they say, the creature known as Bigfoot. In the description they provide in their press release, it matches centuries-long witnesses’ descriptions of the legendary, elusive creature.
PRESS CONFERNECE
On Friday, August 15, Whitton and Dyer are planning to hold a press conference in California in which they will present more photos of the creature as well as results of DNA analysis. So far, just one photo has been released, showing the crumpled body of a hairy “something” in a freezer.
IS IT REAL?
That’s what we’re all waiting to find out for sure. And the best way to convince the world is with the body – present the body. Photos will not suffice. The DNA results may not even be enough. Produce the body for experts to examine.
With good cause, most people in the cryptozoological and paranormal research fields are being cautious, if not downright skeptical. We’ve been burned before with hoaxes of phony prints, fabricated videos, even past claims of discovered bodies. In fact, one of the participants in the upcoming press conference – a Bigfoot hunter – was involved in such a claim in 2005. So we can’t be blamed for being suspicious.
On the other hand, what will these men gain with a hoax of this magnitude? A few days of attention? If it’s phony, they are not likely to make any money. And any money they did make from photos, videos, or TV coverage could possibly be reclaimed with the charge that they perpetrated a hoax. Lawsuits and possibly even criminal charges could be levied, I would imagine.
- The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) is calling it a hoax.
- This post at Cobalt 2.0 makes a very good case that Whitton and Dyer are far from trustworthy. They made up a scientist and even admitted lying about having a Bigfoot corpse at one point.
- The case is being made that the “body” is nothing more than a costume, like the one being offered at this website.
If this is a hoax, these guys are going to have an awful lot of people pissed off at them – and their credibility will be absolutely shot. (Maybe they don’t care?)
Meanwhile, Tom Biscardi of Searching for Bigfoot has been interviewed by Fox News where he again asserts that the body in genuine.
Will these guys actually produce some evidence on Friday? In the Paranormal Forum, "thatmagicguy" makes this prediction:
- The beast will disappear.
- The DNA evidence will either disappear or be inconclusive.
- The two men will claim some type of threat has occurred to prevent them from further participation.
- The press conference will not occur.
The way these things go, that is a likely scenario.
If the body is real and they can prove it, of course this will be a monumental discovery. If it’s a hoax – and it seems that’s the way it’s leaning now – it will just provide more fuel for the skeptics. We’ll just have to keep in mind that irresponsible hoaxes in no way refute the legitimate evidence that we do have – the many hundreds of footprints, the hair samples, and the countless sightings by credible witnesses.
In any case, I think Bigfoot is out there.
