User:Martial Law/Contact Consequences

A recurring theme in works of science fiction is the consequences of humanity's contact with aliens. The contact is commonly portrayed as having been initiated by the aliens, as humanity currently lacks the technology necessary to visit other inhabited worlds. The contact is usually portrayed in one of two ways: friendly or unfriendly.

Friendly Contact
Friendly contact with extraterrestrials is often portrayed as being of great benefit to humanity. An example of friendly contact in fiction is the humanity's contact with the Vulcans in Star Trek. Predicted benefits include the following:
 * 1) All human diseases will be eradicated by the aliens' advanced technologies.
 * 2) Humanity will now become a player in a considerably larger interstellar community.
 * 3) An exchange of knowledge between the aliens and humanity will take place.
 * 4) Humanity will achieve peace within itself, as there are now more important matters on which it needs to focus.

Hostile Contact
Science fiction writers especially favor the idea of hostile contact between aliens and humanity. Such scenarios include:


 * 1) Earth is destroyed from a high orbit, before humanity can even communicate with the attackers. (Example: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.)
 * 2) Humanity is annihilated, and the planet is inhabited by the aliens. (Example: This is attempted in Independence Day.)
 * 3) Alternatively, humanity isn't destroyed, but humans are forced to serve a new role in society.  Examples include:
 * Food/Fertilizer (Example: War of the Worlds, V (TV series).)
 * Pets
 * Slaves
 * Shock Troops
 * Expendable stock for alien experiments

Resistance
Humanity is rarely portrayed as succumbing without a fight, and is usually portrayed in science fiction as resisting the aliens, and/or their human collaborators, as in what is portrayed in the TV series V, and in the recent Sci-Fi movie Alien Siege.

Possible reason,other than religious, for revolt, should aliens find this planet: The Robertson Panel 's recomendation that people who has had UFO/Alien encounters be ridiculed.

Beyond science fiction
Influenced by science fictions writings and by reports of purported contact with aliens, many people have engaged in serious discussion around this issue. Their predictions often resemble those of the works of fiction mentioned above. The field of politics related to human interaction with intelligent extraterrestrial life is called exopolitics.

Media Coverage
Due to the possibility that Martial Law may be implemented on a planetary scale, Media coverage of the alien contact will be tightly controlled, to prevent large scale rebellions that may appear for various reasons. However, due to the widespread presence of cameras of all sorts, some "non-approved' material may "get out". Even the Internet, originally a military application, may get either heavily censored or shut down, also due to Martial Law.

US Involvement
Should there be alien contact, Martial Law may be declared. Agencies involved: All of the "Alphabet Agencies",FEMA, Dept. of Homeland Security, the military and security services. The National Science Foundation, NASA, the US Dept. of Health, the CDC, UN and UN appropriate agencies. Known policy is a "wait and see" attitude. Martial Law may be declared to prevent rebellions as a result of recomendations made by both the Robertson Panel and the Brookings Report, rebellions triggered by religious reasons.

Other Nations
UK: Policies may be similar to the US.

EU: Policies are unknown, this is a new political entity.

People's Republic of China: Due to intolorance of anything inside its airspace and security protocols, they may actually fire on the alien vessels.

CIS: While this was the old USSR, a UFO landed there in 1989. This has given CIS some experiences regarding alien contact. Like China, they too do'nt like anything in their airspace.

Japan: This nation may have a similar policy as that of the US.

Due to the nature of other nations,they may either adopt a "wait and see" attitude or they may fire on the aliens outright, depending on the kind of government they have, such as a military government.

UN, Military Alliances
The UN itself, military organizations like NATO may have a "wait and see" attitude concearning alien contact.

Pre Wikipedia sources
"Alien Harvest" or "Strange Harvest", by Linda Moulton Howe - A appendix has material concearning mass alien contact.

''"Encounters with UFOs ?" by John Weldon & Zola Levitt'' - Material is about UFOs and aliens being Satanic creatures.

The USMC Training Manual: General Order 9. This depicts USMC protocol for dealing with unforseen incidents, such as UFO/Alien Contact. Recent USMC manuals have depictions of UFOs in them, as a example of Gen. Order 9.

The Bermuda Triangle by Charles Berlitz - This has material related to UFOs as well as to the Bermuda Triangle.

Some Alien Abductees and/or Contactees have also claimed that Alien Contact will be "soon".

Internet sources
From the official Firefighter's Manual, Chapter 13: In case of UFOs.........
 * Jeff Rense's site article:

Bible Life Homepage,a religious site that states that UFOs/Aliens ARE of The Devil and we're dealing with demons,NOT aliens.

http://www.news.yahoo.com/sprweb/20051124/bs_prweb_314382_1/ - Former Canadian Defense Minister says UFOs and aliens are REAL.

[http://www.mysteries-megasite.com/ Mysteries Megasite Homepage. Click on UFOs,aliens]