New Bigfoot Clip Unlikely to Legitimize Mythical Beast

COMMENTARY | Anyone who reads my writing knows I like oddities of nature, having often been accused of being one myself. So when I read that Bigfoot had been spotted again, I had to investigate. And, again, we must ask the question "Is there really a Bigfoot?" After all, he (or she) keeps showing up.

Dennis Bodzash has posted an article on Examiner.com titled "Woman claims to catch Bigfoot on her iPhone."

This new excitement centers on a video posted on YouTube where two hikers claim to have captured Bigfoot "accidentally" on the film of them hiking. By the way, if you follow the link, make sure and watch the close-up.

However, we are all open-minded, right? We owe it to ourselves to take a bit of a look at this phenomenon.

The first litmus test would be the readers of Bodzash's article. What does their commentary imply? As a group, they believe it is a hoax and they are not necessarily reverent about it.

Let's now turn to history.

I offer to you a list of Bigfoot hoaxes. There are no less than nine that you can indulge in reading about dating back to the 1830s. Probably the one most people who are old enough to remember is "The Patterson-Gimlin Film" from 1967, where the supposed Bigfoot saunters across the screen and even takes a direct look at the camera. A guy later confessed to dressing up in the suit. I would say that is strike two against the reality of Bigfoot.

Despite nearly two centuries of sightings in, much of the time, a fairly confined area, there has never been the skeleton of a Sasquatch found or any other physical evidence found. That could be strike three, but let's keep going.

To believe the YouTube clip, there are a number of things we must believe. First, people would film a boring hike through the brush for just that reason. That is possible but not probable. Next, the two hikers would not catch the alleged Bigfoot's movement, or hear it for that matter. Finally that the videographer would not catch it it isn't that "unnoticeable."

I really think we can safely say "Strike three, you're out!" once again to the Bigfoot controversy.

While I'm sure Bigfoot, the Abominable Snowman and the Loch Ness Monster will be back (among others), I'm going to take a break and watch the Cubs' game.

References:

Museum of Hoaxes Website, "Bigfoot Hoaxes"

YouTube.com Website, "Bigfoot Sighting Video"

Examiner.com Website, Dennis Bodzash, "Woman claims to catch Bigfoot on her iPhone"