First, I think you're being a bit harsh. I'm a reasonable person who likes to have open discussions about things that are simply interesting. That's the spirit in which it was offered for discussion.Anything that involves alleged government conspiracies, or fringe "science", is going to bring out the crazy. This one has both!
I'll quote my initial post:
"It could be an elaborate hoax, though it seems plausible. In any case, I'm withholding judgment for obvious reasons. We haven't seen evidence beyond this official's report. So I'm a bit skeptical myself. On the other hand, I found it a fascinating read. So I'm sharing!"
It should be obvious that I posted it because I think it's an interesting read, not because I think it's true.
And as you can see by the tongue-in-cheek title of the thread, I tried to have a little fun with it.
Moving on to the 'fringe science' claim, from what I can see plenty of legit science is involved in exploring the possibility of extraterrestrial life. The search for 'habitable' planets capable of supporting life is something that NASA is involved in. Astronomers are looking for Habitable Zone planets constantly, and reporting their finds.
https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/resources/323/goldilocks-zone/#:~:text=The%20%27Goldilocks%20Zone%2C%27%20or,––and%20one%20day%20life.
The Big Questions - NASA Science
General questions What is an exoplanet? An exoplanet is a planet outside our solar system, usually orbiting another star. They are also sometimes called “extrasolar planets,” “extra-” implying that they are outside of our solar system. detailed answer Is there life on other planets? Earth is the...
exoplanets.nasa.gov
In any case the topic is interesting. If people want to go off on a tangent, that's on them, and I'm not going to feel bad about posting the topic!