May 14, 2014

Online Bigfoot Ethics 101

Dr. Matthew Johnson contributed the following at his site, Team Squatchin USA:

1. Bigfoot Habituation/Research Areas:

A. Thou shalt not go behind a fellow Bigfooter’s back to find out the location of their Research/Habituation area(s). If they tell you “No!” or “I want to get to KNOW you better first”, then “No means No” or simply take the time to get to really KNOW them better first.

B. If a Bigfooter behaves in such an UNETHICAL manner (i.e., If they choose to go behind a Bigfooter’s back to obtain the location information of their Research/Habituation areas), they shall be publicly called out and brought to the attention of other Bigfooters because if they attempt to do it to one person, the odds are that they just might do it to other Bigfooters too.

C. If a Bigfooter is called out for UNETHICAL behaviors, thou shalt not “Shoot the Messenger.” Instead, thou shalt confront the Bigfooter who tried to go behind a fellow Bigfooter’s back in order to find out the locations of his/her Habituation/Research area.

D. Those who defend the offender (i.e., Take the side of the individual who attempted to obtain the locations of someone else’s Research/Habituation areas in an UNETHICAL manner), they’re merely shedding the light on their own UNETHICAL tendencies (i.e., One does not stand up for a friend when the friend engages in UNETHICAL behaviors. Rather, one confronts one’s own friend when they misbehave). Bigfooters don’t let Bigfooters engage in unethical behaviors.

E. If a “Public Apology” is to be made, it will be made by the offender who tried to go behind another Bigfooter’s back to unethically obtain the location information of their Research/Habituation areas. The individual who was offended is NOT responsible for issuing a “Public Apology.” Rather, they’re responsible for publicly calling out the unethical offender and to warn others about their unethical conduct.

F. If thou is invited to an individual’s Habituation/Research Area, thou shalt not go back to someone’s Habituation/Research area again unless they have been invited back by the founder/owner of the Research/Habituation Area.

2. Bigfoot Hoaxing/Hoaxers:

A. Thou shalt not ever fake a Bigfoot Track, a Bigfoot Picture, a Bigfoot Video, a Bigfoot Habituation/Research Area, or lie about having a Bigfoot Body.

B. If someone is hoaxing/lying about their Bigfoot evidence, they shall be publicly “called out” and brought to everyone’s attention.

C. If someone is called out for hoaxing/lying, thou shalt not take the side of the hoaxer/liar. Rather, thou shalt join in the process of publicly”Tar and Feathering” the hoaxer/liar.

D. Once the hoaxer/liar has been adequately “called out” and everyone knows about their hoaxing/lying, then the members of Bigfootdom will move forward and forever shun the hoaxer/liar.

3. Bigfoot Pro Killers/Murderers:

Bigfoot-in-Cross-Hairs

A. Thou shalt not ever kill a Bigfoot/Forest Person.

B. Thou shalt not ever hoax/lie about killing a Bigfoot/Forest Person.

C. Thou shalt not ever declare an intent to kill a Bigfoot/Forest person.

D. Anyone who engages in anyone of the three behaviors above will be forever shunned from the members of Bigfootdom. In other words, thou shalt not associate with a known Bigfoot Pro Killer/Murderer. It is NOT cool to hangout with a known Bigfoot Killer/Murderer. Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, and Jeffrey Dahmer wouldn’t be cool people to hangout with either.

4. Participation in Online Bigfoot Groups:

A. Thou shalt behave in a respectful and civil manner while posting in online Bigfoot groups (i.e., Don’t be a TROLL).

B. Thou shalt not use profanity or engage in name calling while posting in online Bigfoot groups because there are also children who belong to the groups (i.e., Don’t be a TROLL).

C. Thou shalt post under their own name instead of hiding behind a fictitious name or multiple fictitious names.

D. Thou shalt agree to disagree in a respectful and civil manner.

E. Thou shalt not block the Admins of a group.

F. It is the Admin’s group and, therefore, the Admin has final say over what is allowed and what isn’t allowed in their group. Thou shalt not argue with the Admin. If thou is not happy with the Admin, then thou shalt shut their “Pie Hole” and simply leave the group rather than create a big fuss/drama in the group.

5. Sharing of Bigfoot Evidence:

A. In order to solve the Bigfoot mystery/phenomena, it is necessary to freely share all of our evidence collection with one another via personal websites, online Bigfoot groups, YouTube Videos, Sound Cloud Audio Files, etc.

B. If posting alleged Bigfoot pictures/videos, it is mandatory to post both “BEFORE & AFTER” pictures and videos (i.e., Show the alleged subject in the pictures/video and then show the same area again without the alleged subject in the picture/video).

C. Rather than rudely and ignorantly responding with an impulsive “B.S.” response, thous shalt ask civil questions of the poster in order to better understand the evidence that has been posted/presented.

As with any body of ethics, this is simply a list of ideals to aspire to in order to be better and more ethical members of Bigfootdom. If you would like to add to this list of ethics, please contact “Dr J” at: DrMatthewJohnson@Yahoo.Com

Team Squatchin-USA
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About Craig Woolheater
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005. I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films: OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.

Filed under Bigfoot, Bigfoot Report, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Evidence, Expedition Reports, Eyewitness Accounts, Folklore, Pop Culture, Sasquatch