This long joint statement begins, in its English translation, with: "It is of general knowledge that the UFO phenomenon, represented by the constant visits of space vehicles to planet Earth, is genuine and has been independently confirmed by civilian ufologists and military authorities throughout the world for the last 50 years."

From the Internet we have learned that one Per Andersen from Denmark was incensed that his name appears as a "signing person" whereas he never even saw the document. Budd Hopkins apparently signed it and then regretted doing so; and immediately his unofficial spokesperson Jerry Clark rushed forward to explain that Budd had signed the document only because of "exhaustion and hunger". Actually, there was nothing all that bad about the joint statement, except that it was a terrible exaggeration of known facts.

We hear that attendance at the Brazil convention was so poor that the sponsors wanted to scrap the translators, in order to save money! Wish we had been there!...

• The first, from San Dimas, California is headlined "UFO Cult Denies Suicidal Tendencies" The Taiwan-based God's Salvation Church is in the process of gathering together about 140 members in Garland, Texas, where they believe God will arrive in a spaceship on March 31st. Similarities to the Heaven's Gate cult are somewhat obvious.

• In late December, members of the Raelian Church, which claims 40,000 active members worldwide, built a replica of their intended other-worldly embassy out of sand on Miami Beach, Florida. This group believes that the aliens will come if humans build a proper embassy here on Earth.

• Finally, in the Canary Islands in early January, police arrested a German psychologist hours before she planned to lead followers of her religious cult in a mass suicide. Authorities claim that 30 members of the cult planned to kill themselves at a predetermined time, because they believed that the end of the world was coming. A space ship would pick up their bodies, as with Heaven's Gate!...

Schuessler is a pleasant fellow, and has been on our mailing list for many years. However, we have always been upset by his handling of the classic Cash/Landrum Case (1980). This is one of the most interesting and baffling UFO cases of all time. But Schuessler's refusal to release medical records of the two women, from prior to the incident, makes it impossible to ever learn for sure whether they were harmed by radiation during the incident. Thus the case may never be solved.

Interesting but probably unrelated is the fact that, in John Schuessler's 1996 book "UFO-Related Human Physiological Effects", the cover art work is credited to Bill Moore's semi-mysterious former co-worker Richard Doty!...

The "cover-up" was stretched from the usual 50 years (starting with the Kenneth Arnold sighting and Roswell) to 100 years, by beginning with the highly questionable Aurora, Texas landing of 1897. Our olde pal Jerry Clark, among others, has researched this case and found it to be a probable hoax.

Clark was one of the principal narrators of the show, together with Karl Pflock, Kevin Randle, Timothy Good of England, and a few others. Pflock came off very well in the way he presented his recent reinvestigation of the classic Scoutmaster Sonny Desverges case of August 19th, 1952. The "bottom line" on that one is that though Desverges was a man of very questionable character, the Air Force investigators were never able to explain the peculiar way the soil was burned at the spot where the alleged incident too place.

Many other cases were presented on this show - some of them famous and others that were new to us. There were, as always, weaknesses and factual errors on the program, such as giving the wrong date for the Lonnie Zamora case, and putting the late Dr. J. Allen Hynek as a member of the famed 1953 Robertson Panel. (Actually, Hynek merely presented Air Force material to them, as an associate panelist.) But generally, the show was much better done than most, and we are glad to have seen it....

These evil interplanetary entities blew out the electric power in their home, burned out the engine of their car, and even melted down one of the family's guns! Most of the family got nosebleeds at the same time from implants, received red blotches on their backs, and were generally persecuted. Meanwhile, a young man in the family keeps grinding a home video camera while all this is going on. No one is ever out of focus, and the sound is good too. People scream and rave, but a 5-year-old girl stays calm throughout. Apparently she had not read the script!

The final blow to any hope of authenticity comes at the end of the show, when the actors are listed in the credits - even listing the guys who played the part of the aliens!

None of this would really matter, except that one of the three principal narrators is none other than former nuclear physicist Stanton Friedman, hitting a new Low even for him! He tells "Smear" that he was asked general questions without ever having seen the video, and had no idea how his answers would be used. All the more reason, one would think, for him not to ruin what's left of his reputation by taking part in this farce at all!

We understand that there is an equally-horrible video out there somewhere, regarding "Area 51", and this includes a short interview with a live alien, no less. Stan Friedman admits that he may be involved in that one, too!...

We have mentioned before that England's "Fortean Times" is at the forefront of information on UFOs and many other unexplained phenomena. In their October 1997 issue there is an article entitled "Everything You've Always Wanted to Know about Earth Lights", written by a serious researcher named Paul Devereux. Says he:

"Like Aesop's tortoise, earth lights research has progressed to the point where it has passed other ufological hares without them noticing. It can now attract significant funding and the interest of mainstream scientists, and is advancing informed, cutting-edge scientific hypotheses as well as speculations that make the extraterrestrial hypothesis look like the intellectual dinosaur it is. Moreover, earth lights research can offer more than just anecdotal evidence - a trend that looks set to outstrip any other ufological approach..."

Devereux does not deny the possibility that a very small percentage of UFOs may represent extraterrestrial craft. ...

"The most extraordinary development (in 1907) has been the proof afforded by the astronomical observations (showing) that conscious, intelligent human life exists upon the planet Mars... Dr. Lowell, director of the Lowell Observatory in Arizona... gives a number of photographs taken of Mars. . He sums up the testimony of these photographs by saying that they reveal to laymen and astronomers that markings exist on Mars which are, of course, the lines of the great canals constructed on Mars for the purpose of irrigating that globe..."

Of course, these straight lines turned out to be optical illusions, alas!...

Most of Jacobs' evidence comes from the shadowy realm of hypnosis. There seems to be no irrefutable physical evidence of anything, and worse, the rules of the science of biology are conveniently tossed out the window. For, even if the aliens are biologically closely related to us (which is very unlikely!), alien/human offsprings would be genetically impossible, or sterile at best! And, if the aliens are advanced enough to be able to overcome this little genetic problem, then they probably would not need to bother with us in the first place!

We met Prof. Jacobs for the first time last year, when he was one of the featured speakers at our annual National UFO Conference. He seems like a pleasant, rational sort. With his educational background, and with his book coming from a major publisher, we predict he will do very well indeed. The public loves paranoia, and in "THE THREAT" we get a major dose of it. Unfortunately, Jacobs' theories are probably unintentional dead ends, or at least we (shudder, gasp!) certainly hope so!

The author is famed folklorist Brad Steiger, and the title is "STAR GODS: Clone Masters of the Universe". Beneath this startling title,the colorful cover asks us, "Is Earth a vast cosmic laboratory for genetic engineering by extraterrestrials?" The sensible answer to this question is, of course, no, but cloning is in, genetic engineering is in, and we predict that Beckley has another Winner here. Wheee!...

Although neither "Saucer Smear" nor James W. Moseley are in the index of this tome, we are mentioned under "UFO Resources", and also in the Introduction, under "friends, colleagues, and informants (who) have in one way or another helped make this book possible." Which of these three categories do we fall into? We aren't sure, but in any case - bless you, Jerry!

Also included (Page 299) is a picture of your editor, with the caption: "Controversial UFO personality James W. Moseley has both perpetrated and exposed hoaxes during his long association with ufology." Egads!...

Unfortunately we have not yet seen the book, as our free review copy was somehow abducted by man-eating monsters from the planet Mentira. The price is $28.45 for those who wish to pay, and the address is: P.O. Box 960, Merndon, Va. 20172.

Well, well, Vol. 45, No. 1, sure brought in the new year with a bang. I can hardly wait to see the letters from those who know the photo on the back of your UFO Crash Secrets at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is an authentic image of an authentic alien. Of course, the important question is, how will it influence sales of your historic tome, which we know is not fictionalized as you claim. This, of course, will be revealed in our Shockingly Close to the Truth! (remember, Jim, "!" is part of our title!).

Speaking of being shockingly close to the truth, though not nearly close enough, consider our old friend and nemesis Phil "Oliver Stone" Klass--"OS" because of his amazing ability to get inside my and Cong. Steve Schiffs heads and comically MISread our motives. In his new book. "OS" really misses the mark not only on Schiff and me, but on the famous Twining-- "lack of.. crash recovered exhibits"-- letter In chapter 26. where he does a good job of surveying the formerly classifled, "no crashed saucers" record and how the pro-Roswellians have manipulated and, mostly, conveniently ignored it, Phil states the Twining memo wasn't published in its entirety until 1994. In fact, the entire letter was first made public in, of all things, the Condon report, published in January 1969 (that's `69, not `96). This is an odd error, since getting it correctly makes the crashed-disk heads look even worse.

Anyway, the formerly classified record--at least 26 army. air force, CIA, and other documents dating from late July 1947 through early May 1955--is a real killer for the crashed-saucer fiends. (If I'd started my Roswell research as I should have. with a literature search for any reference to physical evidence of saucers, I might have ended it there. Oh, I knew about the Twining letter, but hope springs eternal in the nuts-and-bolts heart.) All 26 were created decades before FOlA was enacted and five were Top Secret. Seven specifically refer to and lament the lack of physical evidence, one of them three times. Several others discuss the "elusive nature" of the saucers and/or that they and their source are unidentified--while at the same time unequivocally stating they're real. None of the documents makes reference to Roswell in any way, shape, or form. For those interested in more detail. I will soon spell everything out in an article tentatively entitled "Crash Go the Saucers?" (the "?" is part of the title, Jim).

But can I be believed? Perhaps I did go back to work for the CIA after January 5, 1996...

"I was rather surprised to see the hubbub still being made over the rather obviously fake photos on the back cover of your book. Antonio (Huneeus) seems to want to place the `blame' for his continuing series of ufological `errors' on me.

"He was the one who insisted that the source for the pictures was so great because they were given to him by a Russian cosmonaut and therefore they MUST be legitimate. I didn't make him rush into publication for the money. I think he only got $75.00. He's the type of `researcher' to back up a story 100% in the beginning and then shyly back down when it looks like the case may not turn out to be everything that it claimed to be.

"I suppose he wants to blame his eleven page article in `UFO Universe' about the Roswell UFO witness Gerald Anderson on me. I suppose I made him rush the 5,000 word article to me, when actually it took several months to `research'. He fell for that one and can't blame me. Also, it wasn't hard to convince him of the alleged UFO crash in South Africa where the documents looked so phony that the symbols on them appeared to be drawn free hand! I suppose I also rushed him into doing this story that ran about eight pages in the magazine. He stood behind the account until almost the last. Luckily most of my other writers tend not to go so far out on a limb. We merely report what others claim - we don't sit around making up the stuff!

"Also, you always give the impression that your book is a total hoax, when you've oontinued to sell it for years. The fact is that Gray Barker merely took the articles you did for the early issues of SAUCER NEWS and simply added a bit of `color' to them to make them more exciting. Correct me if I'm wrong - and I may be - but if my memory serves me correctly, going back over 30 years, every chapter was based upon an article you originally wrote....

"I'm beginning to wonder if we aren't getting a bit of `disinformation from Huneeus, what with his family's `connections' in Chile. It seems to me kind of misleading to build up a case to where everyone believes, and then go to the opposite extreme and try to make it look ridiculous. It's kind of a knock down effect to throw people off the track...

"It's a free country - anyone can believe what they want - but why blame everybody else's second guessing on Tim Beckley? I've been in this field for over 30 years and have never been involved in a hoax, though some people hate my guts because I'm friends with Moseley, (John) Keel and the late Gray Barker. Let them take a jump off the nearest bridge!...

"There are still mysteries out there and they intrigue me, and I'll keep up the search as long as I'm able...

"This is the longest letter I've written in months to anyone."

"Re Phil Corso: I wouldn't believe everything you read about those lawsuits. Birnes (his co-author) took him for quite a ride. The actions were unethical if not actually illegal, but courts will decide that. To the best of my knowledge, Simon & Schuster is still quite happy. Despite having his book on the New York Times bestseller list, Corso has yet to receive any money.

"However, your `less than illustrious military career' statement reflects a lack of knowledge about the system. After both WWl and WWII the military had large scale RIFs. In that process many people were cut back many levels in rank. For instance, George Patton was a colonel at the end of WWI and then reverted to captain. That was a three grade demotion. He did not regain his rank as colonel again for more than 20 years. Similarly, General William Westmoreland of Vietnam fame (later chief of staff of the U.S. Army) reverted from colonel to lieutenant colonel at the end of WWII. Many others did not retain their commissions at all and reverted to enlisted status.

Therefore, to not be reduced in rank or released from the service was a significant accomplishment for Phil Corso. Given that we had no further wars during his tenure, his rank is about what one would expect. (Korea doesn't count, as we did not mobilize for it.) In fact, I think his positions in the White House, as the first Nike battalion commander in Europe, and holding a key position in Army R&D, all speak to a rather respectable, even illustrious military career..."

"...The only news from here is about Erich Von Daniken (see photo at left. - Ed.) He has a big project to build a mystery theme park just outside Interlaken in Switzerland's Bemese Oberland. He now lives in that area, which isn't all that far from me, incidentally. He says he's got the financial backing, but now needs formal approval from local authorities. The idea of the park is to show the world's great mysteries, like the pyramids and UFOs. It will point out the still unsolved aspects of these mysteries, and use a lot of computer-aided visuals and information You might call it a high-tech Fortean exhibition. Von Daniken is determined to see this through, and I have a feeling he'll succeed..."

"...One reason your current newsletter is significant for me is your personal confession about your being a first time experiencer, 21 years ago, of the physical mystery known as `EVP' or Electronic Voice Phenomenon. EVP could be evidence of the fact that there's lots more going on in our current multi-dimensional reality than your old pal P. J. Klass cares to think about, let alone dream about. We applaud you for coming out of your EVP closet after 21 years..."

Our EVP experience is usually included (along with several other weird personal events) in our standard lecture, which we give any time an audience is willing to listen to it. We have also mentioned the EVP experience previously in "Smear". - Editor.

"...I agree that `Fortean Times' is (with the exception of `Saucer Smear' of course) at the top of the heap of ufological publications. I found the EVP article fascinating. To my mind it's a lot like the Ouija board: Somehow there are energies out there which can intercept our daily lives in the form of coherent messages. Almost always, though, the messages are unreliable and, if one gets too deeply involved with them, slightly malevolent. (In this respect Christian fundamentalists have a correct intuition about some occult practices.) Talk to anyone who's developed too obsessive a relationship with a Ouija board or been to too many seances and you'll know what I mean. These things can also jerk open a door to poltergeist-type activity. No one knows, of course, exactly what poltergeist-like activity is, but parapsychologists seem to think that it has little to do with `ghosts' per se, and a lot to do with the psychological states of the people involved..."

"I'm astonished that Gretchen Condon has found out about the T-CAP! This cap, when placed in a full tank of gas, will run your car for 100,000 miles before you need to fill up again. Of course, the oil companies refuse to let the T-CAP out on the market. Those people who know about the cap have all been mysteriously murdered!"

Except you, of course, dear DICK. - Editor.

"I hope you had a great holiday season. Yours is the only UFO publication that I subscribe to. I love the humor and your objectivity - no B.S. - take no prisoners approach.

"Keep up the good work!"