Terrorism has changed our way of seeing UFOs

It's a sign of our times that when encountering unidentified flying objects these days, we no longer thinking of sentient extra-terrestrial beings, but of airborne devices sent in by extra-territorial terrorists. Delhi Police certainly has preferred to forego any rules of UFOlogy related to close encounters - sightings of alien crafts. They are now ordered to shoot down 'anything suspicious that flies over the capital'. Drifting Met weather balloons included.

UFOs and their alien cargo were largely the products of an imagination spurred by the Cold War between the USSR and the US. This usually involved members of a hostile civilisation with superior technology and a knack for abducting members of the common citizenry - a manifestation of a fear of 'Yanks' or 'Reds' invading not so much Earth, but one's way of life. In that sense, HG Wells' The War of the Worlds remains the only true depiction of an attack on humanity rather on one country.

But current worries over our skies have swivelled the old UFO metaphor around - back to its very human source. Which is a pity. For, any drone delivering pizza to an address will no longer be mistaken for a flying saucer from Proxima Centauri but hostile alien hardware from across the border. This is, one supposes, what alienation is about.