A few years ago I decided to do an experiment. I was tired of all the conspiracy theories and manufactured drama on TV, and online – so I decided to join in on the fun and make one myself. My purpose was a simple attempt to determine just how gullible people really are – and to have some good and harmless fun. So, I made a YouTube mini-series about “bigfoot” tracking.

My video series perfectly illustrates how so many people so eagerly and easily choose to absorb and believe the manufactured drama, pseudo-scientific, and even blatantly unscientific emotion and often fear-driven, non-peer reviewed videos, comments, out of context video clips, and even produced “documentaries” they find all over YouTube – as factual evidence only because it supports whatever utter nonsensical conspiracy “theory” they desperately want to believe as reality. These mostly well meaning people have a bad case of confirmation bias dictating their beliefs in so many unbelievable and often dangerous conspiracy theories, myths, and even total hogwash.

As an example of this madness, I offer up Episode Seven of my Sasquatch Tracks YouTube series that temporarily went “viral” on YouTube – even though it literally has written in the credits: For educational and entertainment purposes only…yet there were those who actually believed it as reality.

Some individuals actually believed my amatuer film making to the point of even thinking my disclaimer was a cover-up, a conspiracy to hide the truth. Others contacted me and asked me to do interviews on their programs/podcasts about my “discovery” and still others even asked me to take them into the woods to search for the “sasquatch.” It was truly and disturbingly unbelievable how fast my totally made-up and admittedly fake story about tracking a “sasquatch” went viral – with hits, countless comments, and even emails and phone calls from all over the planet – yet my hundreds of REAL videos following my REAL research tracking REAL reptiles – box turtles, Rat snakes, and rattlesnakes – and my REAL video documentation about my work with these REAL animals and me doing REAL science – have hardly ever even been noticed.

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I guess this just goes to show how so many people are so disturbingly and dangerously gullible and do not care one bit about the evidence and the facts as described and supported by science. They would rather wallow in myth, legend, conspiracy, fear, drama, and gossip – than to have anything to do with the actual facts…or maybe it is just evolution having its way with us.

If a simple naturalist and teacher, with a couple of GoPros, trail cameras, a low cost “sasquatch” suit, and a bit of editing knowledge, and creativity, can so easily convince so many people he has discovered a massive mythical monkey man lurking in the nearby forest, – then just imagine what a professional TV producer with all the right tools, money, and talent can do for a person wanting to sell their manufactured drama, books, ideals, beliefs, myths and conspiracy theories to you the viewer.

It is up to you to use your common sense and critical thinking skills to identify and not be swindled by the charlatans who want nothing more than for you to believe their fakery (and convert you over to their way of thinking so they can later take your money) about whatever the manufactured myth or conspiracy may be – be it sasquatch/bigfoot/the Chupacabra, aliens, COVID-19, the government, Bill Gates, vaccines, Elon Musk, the shape of the earth, the climate, the origins of life the universe and everything, whomever and whatever.

Please, find it within yourself to ignore the conspiracy theories and manufactured drama and those spreading it by not sharing it and thereby feeding their temporary dose of crazy and hopefully, maybe one day they will come back to reality.

Trust the science and the peer-reviewed evidence and toss in a big helping of common sense and critical thinking to balance it all out and let it guide your decision-making process.

Do your research.

Fact check everything.

Knowledge conquers fear.

If you would like to view the Sasquatch Tracks YouTube series in its entirety please visit the playlist and join in the fun.