THE MYSTERY OVER THE EXISTANCE OF BIGFOOT

A great mystery is unfolding in the world of cryptozoology that is as interesting as

any plot found in your typical thriller novel. It has its unscrupulous villain, its weary
protagonist, and a cast of witting and unwitting accomplices. It may even have two
dead bodies.

The source of this bubbling cauldron of drama is a long awaited report by Dr. Melba
Ketchum on the DNA analysis of an animal that is currently relegated to the world of
American myth. Its been described by tens of thousands of witnesses over the
years and has reportedly appeared in thousands of blurry photos and shaky
videos. Perhaps its best known for the footprints it leaves behind, the first piece of
evidence that saddled it with an unfortunate moniker, Bigfoot. Its a name as
ridiculous as the idea of an eight foot, bipedal man/ape roaming the forests of North
America.

To many, the suggestion of such a thing is laughable.The skeptics on the subject are
as steadfast and obsessive as the believers. They spend countless hours decrying
the myth to the point that objective observers may think that they suffer from far
worse mental disorders than those who see Bigfoot in every photo with trees. The
Bigfoot phenomenon engenders the same kind irrational and passionate discourse
that one would expect to see in a political debate.

And that is why the Ketchum report has taken on so much meaning. The rumors
have been flying about her paper that she has co-authored with as many as five
other individuals and submitted for peer review to an unidentified scientific
journal. What does the paper say? Those who know arent talking, and those who
dont know are leaking information like a hole in a hot air balloon. In fact, there is
more disinformation than information circulating about the Ketchum report. And I do
mean disinformation

Its been alleged that a man by the name of Tom Biscardi has been purposely
planting stories in the blogosphere to discredit the Ketchum report. Biscardi is most
famous for hoodwinking the mainstream media in 2008 by attempting to pass off a
Bigfoot costume in a freezer with opossum entrails as a real honest to goodness
Bigfoot. They bought it hook, line, and sinker until he produced pictures of the
obvious hoax at a well-attended press conference.

Biscardi runs his own Bigfoot research organization (Searching For Bigfoot
Incorporated) that appears to be inspired more by carnival sideshow techniques
than by actual scientific methodology. According to another researcher, Steve Kulls,
part of Biscardis business plan states, should someone else find Bigfoot, it would
cause a loss of faith in SFBIs abilities The inference is that Biscardi will do
anything to be the leading Bigfoot research organization even if that means planting
false and inflammatory stories in the mainstream and virtual media about his
competition.
In addition to this plot that contains a dysfunctional dose of counter espionage and
crypto-intrigue, a blogger by the name of Robert Lindsay has introduced a startling
sub-plot. Lindsay has reported that a hunter by the name of Justin Smeja shot and
killed an adult female Bigfoot and her offspring.Smeja made the claim on a
taxidermy messageboard and was directed to contact a group called the Olympic
Project headed by Bigfoot researcher Derek Randles. The incident has been dubbed
the Sierra Shooting and numerous versions of the story have surfaced since Lindsay
first reported it, but the most astonishing claim from the story has not changed, and
that is two Bigfoot were killed in California near the Nevada border.

The story loses focus when one inquires about what happened to the bodies. Smeja
claims he and his fellow hunter left them behind because they were scared out of
their minds. Yet a substantial tissue sample from the alleged shooting did reportedly
end up in Dr. Ketchums lab. Smejas apparent explanation is that he returned to the
area sometime after the shooting and found the tissue sample. Many have pointed
out that this explanation doesnt really make sense when you take into account the
changing weather conditions coupled with the number of scavengers in the area
that would have consumed or carried off any remains of the bodies.

One is left with several burning questions after hearing the twists and turns of this
drama. The most prominent being is any part of it true? All of the major players are
only talking through intermediaries so its hard to say for sure. The only thing that
you could possibly take away from all this is that the people involved in the search
for Bigfoot are potentially more interesting than even the very creature they are
trying to prove exists. There is such a sense of conflict deeply rooted within the
community from both skeptics and believers that one cant help but get sucked into
the fray. Its truly a fascinating display of human behavior.

Note from author: In the interest of full disclosure I got involved in the Bigfoot
community because of a young adult novel I wrote about the topic. I hope that
Bigfoot is an actual creature because the world would be so much cooler with a
giant ape/man in my backyard. I await with barely-fettered excitement for the
release of the Ketchum report and a complementary documentary by Adrian
Erickson that is said to have conclusive footage of the creature.