http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100425...estrialhawking

Aliens may exist but contact would hurt humans: Hawking
Sun Apr 25, 6:56 pm ET

LONDON (AFP) – Aliens may exist but mankind should avoid contact with them as the consequences could be devastating, British scientist Stephen Hawking warned Sunday.
"If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans," said the astrophysicist in a new television series, according to British media reports.

Sir, I think they should probe you first! Is it improbable that they have been here already? Is it improbable some are here now? Is it improbable that there is a "United Federation of Planets" Fighting against the "Evil Empire" resource grabbers? Why does the "world's smartest man" attribute much of our own behaviors to aliens? It's sort of like (no surprise here) something from Plato's writing saying, "we Greeks attribute too much the behavior of man with the Gods. They seem to suffer all of our conditions."

In the first comment on the page, I saw a remark about ... "if traveling light years in space is as hard for them as it is us," .... I have a similar problem with this. Why do we attribute all of our problems, or lack of understanding or know-how to an alien race's ability to travel great distances in space? We know it all?