Hello,
In a couple of days, Fakeologist and I will discuss the claim that Mad Mike didn’t actually die on 2/22/2024. I wanted to make a few points to address this in advance just in case people aren’t familiar with a few pertinent facts such as:
IPS financed the successful 2018 launch.
The 2020 launch was financed by a dating app and the Science Channel
Mike was rejected by the Flat Earth community who preferred convicted pedophiles, sex offenders, and racist antisemites as representatives.
The launch site was an open set with no place for Mike to have disappeared to.
His death hasn't been challenged with additional information but rather a knee-jerk “everything is fake” kind of claim. The that a) the rocket crashed with Mike in it, and b) it was unsurvivable.
I argue too that a daredevil dying doing a deadly stunt is not any more of an extraordinary claim than a skydiver or mountain climber dying. Therefore, the burden of proof isn’t necessarily higher.
I distinguish between “informed disbelievers” and “low information disbelievers,” the former being skeptics who suspend judgment is voluminous information, witnesses, and corroborating evidence and the latter being auto-disbelievers with prejudice to call everything fake without having countered the available facts.
I hope this background helps everyone reach a better-informed conclusion.
Tim Ozman
IPR Host
'Mad' Mike Hughes and the Infinite Plane Society