Little Hawk:

Not the message hidden in what "appears."

The "agenda" of the person who believes.

I note that your list of reasons for no contact does not include "There's nobody out there." (Or they haven't gotten this far yet.).
Some might think you "want" to believe we are not alone?
Not accusing you of anything, mind you. Just trying to clarify that it seems, often, that what one wants to see has more real effect on what is "seen" or "believed" than what is actually there.

And yes, there are probably more than enough faeries right here to keep the locals busy.

John