The Sky Is Falling?

With U.S. jets shooting down numerous unidentified flying objects seemingly every day over North American air space in the past week, we’re all wondering, “What the heck is going on?”

As this is being written, the only thing we know for sure is that the first object that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina was a Chinese spy balloon.

Our military reportedly has adjusted its radar to try to spot more incursions — which explains why the last three objects were picked up, whereas previously they may have gone unnoticed — but one thing that these incidents have taught us is that our radar detection apparatus needs a serious upgrade.

It’s tempting to joke about it — Saturday Night Live did a funny skit about the Chinese spy balloon. And for our part, as we were watching the home videos and comments made by civilians, it made us think of the episode from the old TV show “F Troop” from the 1960s (yes, we are that old) when a balloon was shot down with bows and arrows, whereas this balloon was shot down by an F-22 Raptor fighter jet.

But there are so many unanswered questions and so many theories. Were the three other objects that were shot down also spy aircraft from another country? And if so, from where? Or were they owned by a private entity that also might be doing some sort of covert surveillance? How about aliens from outer space?

We’ll only know the full story when all of those aircraft are recovered and analyzed. And it wouldn’t be surprising if a few more objects are shot down in the coming days. But in the meantime, let’s hope we don’t become a nation of Chicken Littles.