| EDITOR AND STILL SUPREME COMMANDER: James W. Moseley
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR:
|
NON-SCHEDULED NEWSLETTER Volume 46, No. 6 June 5th, 1999 |
MAILING ADDRESS: P. 0. Box 1709 Key West, FL 33041 |
Once again, the Firmage quote, from an April 4th, 195O press conference, is: "I can assure you that flying saucers, given that they exist, are not constructed by any power on earth". The key phrase here is "given that they exist". The obvious implication is that Truman did not believe they exist!
Firmage apparently obtained this quote from "The Unidentified Flying Objects Briefing Document", published in 1995 by Don Berliner and Antonio Hunneus. The problem is that according to MUFON Eastern Director George Filer, Stanton Friedman claims that there is no record of Truman having had any press conference on April 4th, 1950.In our opinion the quote is quite consistent with Truman's views as we knew them, but nevertheless it may be bogus.
We asked Antonio Huneeus about all this, and he admits that he obtained the quote from someone else (probably Berliner), and that he never had time to check it out for himself. Thus there is a bit of a mystery here.
Several of Firmage's thirteen other celebrity quotes in this ad are from the Berliner/Huneeus source, and it must be said that some of them (not necessarily the same ones) are misleading or taken out of context. (Our thanks to Karl Pflock & Antonio Hunneus for help on this item.)
Here, finally, is a UFO-related story from Plantation Key, just a few miles from Key West. On May 11th a new science teacher named Hugh Allan was abruptly fired when it became known he was telling students that he was an alien from outer space. (He claimed he was just kidding.) This and other strange behavior caused Allan to be escorted off the school property by the police and told not to come back. According to the article, there were concerns that he was "chemically dependent" and could become violent.
If we decide to investigate this case, we will be sure to ask Allan if he is interested in becoming a MUFON member!
The man, named Rene Joly, was suing the Defence Minister and several others, all of whom he connected to a plot to conceal his Martian origins.
We have chosen to do the latter. A person in Australia named Jim Owen wrote as follows about Ann's book: "Anyone who has the belief that he or she may be or has been involved in the Abduction Phenomena would find this publication an extremely rewarding experience.I would also suggest that anyone who has an interest in the subjects of UFOs or abductions will find this a most stimulating and rewarding book... "
It is available for $12 from: Crown Publishers, 201 East 50th St., New York, N.Y. 10022.
The two scientists, who are employed by the Canadian government, are concerned that "inexperienced UFO fanatics could inadvertently invite an alien invasion". In an e-mail to the Prime Minister and other officials, they complained that "sooner or later, messages carelessly designed might put Earth at risk".
A spokesman for the Prime Minister commented, "Come on, this is insane!", and another official wondered facetiously if communications with space beings would be conducted properly in both of Canada's official languages - French and English.
Confirmed speakers include Whitley Strieber, computer whiz Joe Firmage (pictured below), MUFON czar Walt Andrus, Roswell expert Kevin Randle, "Smear" Contributing Editor Karl Pflock, and several others. You can reach local host Dennis Stacy at: P.O. Box 12434, San Antonio, Tx. 78212.
See also the letter to the Editor, further along in this issue, from Bob's widow Edith Slaughter....
Now, thanks to researcher Jerry Lucci, we have a May 7th article, which tells us that Ford has pleaded "not responsible by reason of mental incompetence". Eventually, if Ford is found mentally able to return to society, he will be set free. If he had been found guilty, he might have been sentenced to 25 years or more, in prison!
Ford was originally accused of masterminding a conspiracy to kill 3 Suffolk County Republican officials by poisoning them, in a belief that the county government was hiding the truth about UFO crashes on Long Island. Most ufologists, however, do not believe there have been any UFO crashes on Long Island.
Ironically, one of the three public officials Ford is accused of plotting against has himself been charged with extortion and involvement in a truck-theft ring. Typical small-town Long Island behavior, we might say!..
Most pathetic of all is the authors' idea to dig into "rodent holes" at the famed "debris field", in the hope that tiny pieces of the Holy Grail might still be hidden therein, ever since 1947. Good luck, guys!
In response to overwhelming demand from "Smear"
non-subscribers and mindful of the howling mob of
ufological true believers trudging up the hill
toward dear ol' Hacienda Erehwon, this column is
devoted to a statement of my position on the nature
and origin of UFOS.
Yipe! The mob's at the gate. So without further preamble: UFOs are real - as yet unexplained phenomena. Many solid unknowns involving reports of strange craft and sometimes living creatures and/or physical evidence and visual records (photos, motion picture film) leave us with but two choices: hoax or real essentially as reported (a few admit of a psychological explanation as well). If what occurred in these cases was objectively real and reasonably accurately reported, they must have been encounters with nonhuman intelligence and its works.
Based on the data, I'm subjectively certain we have been visited by nonhuman intelligent beings - to my '50s-conditioned mind, most likely from an extra-solar planet of our galaxy. However, we do not yet have proof of this - as opposed to very strong evidence pointing to it - though such proof very well may be in the data already in hand, as yet unrecognized as such.
If we've had such visitors, I suspect they were here and left some time ago - arriving in the early to mid-1940s, and departing in the late 1960s or early 1970s. They came here because Sol and his planets seemed cozily familiar. They studied our entire system and us quite closely. Once in awhile a couple of grad students got out of hand and buzzed the natives. On occasion some ambitious scientists overstepped a bit and interfered with the locals - the famous and, in my considered opinion, real 1961 abduction of Barney and Betty Hill comes to mind.Then they left, leaving us wondering, dreaming, hoping...
Next time, a few more thoughts on what's right with ufology.
The latest to arrive is a 32-page softcover effort called "Rick Hilberg's Book of Weirdology",
written by (guess who?) Rick Hilberg of Cleveland's United Aerial Phenomena Agency (DAPA).This
booklet is an anthology of articles previously published in recent years in
UAPA's various books & magazines.
Says Hilberg: "Sometimes the UFO phenomenon gets so strange and almost unreal that one has to wonder if what we call 'UFOs' may be somehow related to all manner of things that we classify as 'Fortean'. This is a view that we at "Smear" have entertained for many years.
For a mere $5.95, an enlightened researcher can obtain this book plus a previous effort called "Around and About the Saucer World". Simply send your money to 377 Race Street, Berea, Ohio 44O17, and tell Rick that you are a hard-core follower of the late, great Charles Fort! ...
Summarizing Schwarz's work, we find every type of psychic manifestation known to the mind of man, all described in some detail. Much of it is merely anecdotal, while some of the research is conducted under supposed laboratory conditions.
Schwarz is a sincere, kindly, gentle person, and we hesitate to call him gullible. Yet it is well known that quite a few years ago, James ("The Amusing") Randi sent two of his young male proteges to Schwarz, and they succeeded in humiliating him by exposing some of his laboratory experiments as inept. This was deliberately done in such a cruel and mean-spirited way that we have always thought less of Randi for having done it!
We agree with Schwarz' statement on Page 32 of the book: "The fact that an event can be mimicked or faked does not mean that real events came about this way.This is a major problem for Psychical research. Sadly, in some instances high ethical standards that apply to parapsychologists in research do not equally apply to magicians - in reference to their veracity and their unwillingness (or inability) to duplicate specific feats under the exact same conditions that prevailed for the experiment being scientifically tested."
Randi, of course, is a magician.
The paranormal is a very complex and controversial subject, but if you want to see what kind of claimed psychic manifestations are going on, by all means read this book.
"Having just reviewed a copy of 'Fossil Remains of Mythical Creatures', I now fully understand why ufoology is in the state that it is in. When the Exalted Supreme Commander of MUFON can find an alien in the same book along with mermaids, leprechauns, etc., and even for a second give it serious thought, this tells you all you need to know!"Seriously speaking, Jim - having read the MUFON article and then viewed the book, I was shocked to say the least. While we might all sit down and laugh, it should give everyone pause to wonder what other crap is being passed off as serious research in the MUFON Journal!
"Speaking of esteemed researchers, I have enclosed the latest information on Long Island UFO expert John Ford, who never saw a forest fire that wasn't caused by a crashed UFO!"
This information is in this issue, under "Miscellaneous Ravings" -Editor.
"I was greatly amused by the 'Saucer Smear' issue about our alien, and the subsequent issue with commentaries was great too. Thanks so much for sending them..."Walt Andrus made several attempts to call me so,that he could get some samples for DNA testing. When we failed to touch base, he went to Ladonia (Texas) to investigate and to interview some people. He went to the purple Victorian house where the alien letter was discovered, and talked to its owner Pete Betters. I'm afraid Walt didn't obtain much documentation or evidence. But he still would like to have the alien for his MUFON museum, which I said I would consider if the rest of Bob's family was in agreement.
"Thanks again for your kindness, and I love your publication...
"...I liked the cartoon, and it sure looks like Marvin Martianius to me. Cartoonist Matt Graeber should have stuck to his guns.The 'skeleton' is obviously a Walt Andrus hoax. It can only bring disrepute to ufology.It seems to me that Mr. Andrus' MUFON does more harm than good and should be disbanded!..."
"In his last column, Karl Pflock dismissed as 'silly' my ... articles which posit a non-Mogul explanation for the Roswell debris field. It's possible that his pea-brained assessment of my research stems from his inability to comprehend the mathematics I employed in two of those articles. That said, perhaps he'll understand the very simple calculations and associated reasoning presented below, and admit that the Mogul hypothesis just won't work."The Air Force's 1994 report on the Roswell Incident claims the debris (most of which comprised thin, sheet-iike fragments) was scattered within a 600-foot-diameter circle. If Mogul Flight 4 caused the debris field, the aluminum foil/paper laminate from its three radar targets would have been the only possible source for the allegedly unusual thinshell fragments found at the Foster ranch site. All 54 square feet of it would have covered only 0.02% (a tiny fraction of one percent) of the 283,OOO square foot ground area.
"in order for an eyewitness to infer that the field had at least a crude circular shape, the laminate sheeting would have to break into countless pieces, with many of them located along the circle's nearly 1,900-foot-long circumference. But most of the latter fragments along any portion of this arc couldn't be too small; otherwise they wouldn't be visible from the center of the circle (or farther away) or from a vantage point outside of it. A measly 54 square feet of laminate clearly wouldn't provide enough material to satisfy both of these requirements.."
"You might recall that you telephoned me awhile back concerning the 'new' MJ-12 documents.I had not had an opportunity to examine the documents as of the tine of your call, and I said I'd let you know when I had taken a look at them."Well, I looked through the 'new' documents, and I am completely unimpressed. Even less impressive is the credulous attempt at 'authentication' carried out by Robert and Ryan Wood. I purchased their two booklets containing reproductions of the documents, and the reconstructions of the documents performed by the Woods. I also purchased their CD-ROM, 'The Secret', which apparently contains their current position on these documents. In all cases, I am tremendously unimpressed.
"The documents are pathetic, and that's being generous! Already the Woods are issuing preposterous rationalizations in an attempt to explain away the many flaws contained therein. Many of these flaws are fatal to the idea of authenticity, but it seems clear that nothing will deter the Woods from their mission.They are offering their collection for the price of $40.00, are planning to come out with a book, and hope to produce a television documentary. Perhaps the fact that Ryan Wood has a background in marketing has something to do with it.
"It appears that both the Woods and Timothy Cooper (their source) have withheld and are withholding certain materials. I'm sure they can justify this by claiming they are still carrying out investigations. Apparently everybody they take into their confidence has to sign a non-disclosure agreement. Essentially, the Woods and Cooper are controlling the whole show, making sure nobody shoots the documents down completely before the Woods come out with their book and documentary ...
"Fortunately, there are a number of competent and appropriately skeptical people involved in the debate with the Woods, and I have absolutely no intention of wasting the rest of my life trying to pick the documents apart ..."
"Your 'Pflock Ptalk' column in the latest 'Smear' was interesting as usual, but unfortunately I don't share your sanguine views on CUFOS and FUFOR. I wish I could, but I can't. I agree that both organizations are capable of some very good work when not promoting the Roswell crap, but this lapse of judgment is so egregious that it pushes everything else into the background. Their mindless promotion of Roswell casts a pall over everything else they do. At least that's the way I feel about it ..."Their promotion of Roswell is not a trivial item. To the contrary, it goes to the very core of one's perspective on the UFO phenomenon. Belief in Roswell not only means that our government had the smoking gun in their hands from the very beginning of the modern UFO era, but that they have engaged in a vast cover-up to hide this from the public. Dismissal of Roswell leads one to the opposite view. It does make quite a difference on perspective.
"Friends don't always see eye to eye on things, and I'm afraid that this is one area where we don't. In any event, 'Pflock Ptalk' has been a fine addition to 'Smear", and I hope it stays as a permanent column...
"Dear Capt.Jim Moseley:"I was very, very disappointed to learn (from the May 5th issue of Smear') that I am not on your 'Enemies List'. You are on mine, for the following reasons:
- You are critical of several ufologists whom I very greatly admire: Jerry Clark, Budd Hopkins, David Jacobs, and Bill Moore.
- You refuse to admit that you were in bed with Linda 'Cortile' the night she was beamed up to a hovering UFO, and that the ETs refused to take you along because your sperm was not up to their high standards.
- You refuse to allow me to make public the fact that you are my illegitimate son, the result of a liason with Glenn Dennis' nurse Naomi Selff when I was sent to Roswell Army Air Field in mid-1947 as a General Electric field engineer, to repair GE remote turret systems on the 509th's B-29s.
- You refuse to allow me to reveal that you were chairman of MJ-12 until you were replaced by Stanton Friedman."
"Regarding your 'Enemies List', it is obvious that these are all people whom you have deliberately pissed off by your National Enquirer type journalism in 'Smear'. No wonder they don't like you. You are just lucky you have never been sued!"I know for a fact that Jerry Clark is one of the most even-tempered, fair-minded gentlemen in the UFO field. No doubt you are merely jealous of his financial success. You should apologize to him and to Mr. Hopkins for your shameless attacks on them! Who cares if Hopkins doesn't know where the Brooklyn Bridge is. Frankly, I don't know, either! ...
"Having just read the May issue of the MUFON Journal, I have come to the opinion that ufology would be best served if MUFON were to set up a hot-line for people to report on missing elk, moose, and praire dogs. Also, an abducted elk support group would be helpful and humane ..."Of course, funding for these noble projects might be a little difficult to come by.But perhaps you could mention the need for these programs to Joe Firmage when you meet him. If he goes for the idea, we may even be able to have him contribute to 'the association of ufologically astute pathological fibbers' (AUAPF), which has a growing membership, especially in New Mexico!
"Till then, keep on watching the skies!.."
Saucer Smear Index
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