Rewrite this headline to feel natural, engaging, and SEO-friendly, as if written by a professional journalist. Use relevant keywords like ‘UFO,’ ‘UAP,’ ‘paranormal,’ and related terms to make the headline eye-catching and rank well on search engines. Ensure the tone feels authentic and conversational, avoiding robotic or overly optimized patterns: Subscribing to the ET hypothesis of the UFO phenomenon does not necessarily mean taking every outlandish UFO conspiracy theory at face value

Over time, I have noticed that some skeptics tend to associate people who seriously consider the possibility of extraterrestrial involvement in the UFO phenomenon with those who believe in outlandish stories, including claims about secret underground bases like Dulce, alleged treaties between extraterrestrial beings and the U.S. government, or interdimensional entities that feed on human souls. However, I think that this association is both misleading and unfair.

Not everyone who believes that some UFOs could be extraterrestrial spacecraft automatically buys into the more extreme and absurd stories that are part of the broader UFO lore. It is possible to consider extraterrestrial visitation as an explanation for certain UFO sightings without simultaneously subscribing to the idea that aliens have signed secret agreements with governments, established underground facilities for genetic experimentation in collaboration with military forces, or harbor some nefarious agenda to harvest human souls. These ideas are not intrinsically linked, and it is erroneous to treat them as such. Personally, I categorically reject these stories and feel frustrated when I am associated to them simply because I take the UFO phenomenon seriously.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that the U.S. government has actively promoted these kind of bizarre conspiracy theories. Think about it for a moment. Who is behind the story of the Dulce Base and the idea of underground alien bases in general? A former CIA agent, and a government agent who worked in counter-intelligence. Who planted the idea of secret treaties between the U.S. government and the "Grey aliens" from Zeta Reticuli? A government agent who worked in counter-intelligence. Who pushed the notion that cattle mutilations were caused by extraterrestrial activities? A government agent who worked in counter-intelligence. Who promoted and spread the idea that one of the Roswell aliens survived to the crash and was held in custody in Area 51 until his death? A government agent who worked in counter-intelligence. Who is behind the idea that the aliens are implanting millions of abductees with the purpose of controlling their bodies and taking over the world? That's right, a government agent who worked in counter-intelligence.

Even a blind person can see that there is a pattern here — a deliberate, orchestrated effort by individuals trained in disinformation to promote these wild ideas, in order to make the entire UFO topic look absurd and ridiculous. Each of these stories, which have become so deeply embedded in UFO lore, didn’t come from credible, independent sources but were instead carefully crafted by people whose job was to manipulate and control narratives. Therefore, if we really want to be consistent, the best way to support serious UFO research and the broader UFO community is to actively oppose these tales. They have nothing to do with seriousness or scientific rigor, and were deliberately fabricated by hostile forces.

Ultimately, serious consideration of extraterrestrial involvement in the UFO phenomenon should not be confused with support for every bizarre conspiracy theory. These are separate issues, and it is important for people to recognize that distinction.