The month of May 2008 saw more UFO headlines including the release of UFO files by the British Ministry of Defence and a report on the Texas UFOs by MUFON.  Although those intrigued by UFOs were excited, the general public were left with nothing substantial.

The recent files made available by the British Ministry of Defence make fascinating reading but offer nothing groundbreaking in terms of evidence.

MUFON recently released a summary on the Texas UFO sightings saying while no conculsions could be made, there was no evidence to prove the UFOs were simply mistakes made by observers.

No offence to MUFON or the BMO but the general public was given nothing.  All they got were a number of "big fish" stories - fantastic reports that offer no clear evidence of anything!

Once again, disinformation reigns supreme because the mass media message is "people report seeing UFOs but there is no evidence that the phenomena is real".

How many times have we heard this in the past? 

The news headine is never "Ellsworth 1953 UFO may Offer Intriguing Evidence that UFOs Exist".

It is always something like, "Airport Workers Claim to have Seen UFO but Nothing was Detected on Radar", etc.

This leaves the general public to conclude the stories are just a bunch of tall tales. Without anything to substantiate the claims, they can only laugh like goofballs.

It begs the question, "Why can't the news media give good UFO reports coverage?"

There are several and Ellsworth is only the tip of the iceberg.

Recently, there have been reports of new Pheonix lights. On Monday, April 21st, several witnesses including Air Traffic Controllers saw strange lights in the sky and there are many "photos" one can find through Google.

An man who wishes to remain anonymous claims the whole event was a hoax;  he put flares inside balloons to create the illusion of UFOs.

Before considering the possibility of hoax, there are some good questions to ask, including:

Can UFOs be faked in this manner? Can a hoaxer actually do this?

What do flares in balloons at night look like?

Who is the man claiming to hoax the event?  Is he spreading disinformation?

Do the lights and light formations resemble the famous 1997 Pheonix Lights?

Are these lights actual aircraft, experimental or otherwise?

Before passing judgement on a UFO event, it is best to ask such questions and perform some basic research.

'Jumping to conclusions' is a bad habit to acquire!

 

David Sereda? I didn't how to take this guy when I briefly heard him on Coast to Coast. But have to say, after watching his self-produced and directed 240-minute (apprx), February 2007, video "From Here to Andromeda", I am amazed by Sereda's hard work… Here is a ufologist who is trying to bring the right hemisphere in sync with the left, the technically inclined to the spiritual, and visa versa!  A tall order!  But in this video, Sereda succeeds on many levels and delivers the info in a way most people can grasp.  

The video is not a "high-budget production" but is compelling and informative just the same. Sereda addresses the environmental crisis we are facing and how the UFO is relevant.  I strongly recommend it to beginning and advanced UFO techs (the human ones) and to the so-called "new ager" as well!  

Techs will enjoy it because of some intriguing interviews with former Lockheed Martin and Howard Hughes employee, Boyd Bushman.  Listening to the elderly gentleman talk about gravity, etc, is worth the price of admission!  For someone like Bushman to come out into the open and talk about the fringes of science is almost too good to be true! Maybe it is… Sereda gives an introduction to his own hypotheses and brings some new ideas to light.  He does more than touch on UFO propulsion and tech, so this is a good video to watch for those asking the question "how?".  I would recommend this along with Nick Cook's "The Hunt for Zero Point", to those new to the topic.  

(From there, Paul R. Hill's, Unconventional Flying Objects (Hampton Roads Publishing) and Alan Watt's "Unidentified Flying Objects" (Blandford Publishing) …I'll list more in future posts!)

The spiritual end isn't preachy and brings forth differing perspectives.  I am grateful he does not overly push one bias  (I would distrust anyone who does that).  Even though he passionately gives his own views, Sereda allows film and time for other opinions. 

The film also features academic Robert Thurman (Uma's Dad), John Hutchinson, Roger Weir, Jesse Marcel III, Steve Bassett and Sereda's lady, Crystal Frost.  Frost plays perfect foil to Sereda's driven performance.  But it is the dog that steals the show!
 

The acting gets a little silly at times but it doesn't matter… there are far too many boring commentaries / documentaries! This 4-hour video includes something for most and I encourage checking out "From Here to Andromeda":

http://www.fromheretoandromeda.com/

 

 

The Ufology field has long been plagued by disinformation that acts to confuse and impede the researcher.  Since the time NICAP leader, Donald Keyhoe was hindered by various powers in the 1950s and 1960s, many UFO researchers question the validity of new information.

Disinformation involves the spreading of false intelligence to intended receievers, in order to confuse and disable a perceived enemy.  Sometimes a small amount of truth is added to make the disinformation believeable.  The "perceived enemy" ends up making poor decisions based on the disinfo and the other side "wins".

Debunkers have been known to plant false stories and photos and "expose" a researcher as a gullible "believer".  This harmed the reputation of an otherwise diligent UFO researcher in the UK.  Debunker hoaxing is one form of disinformation but the most destructive disinfo comes from military and intelligence sources.

A famous case involving Bill Moore in the 1980s, had the UFO researcher provide false information to another.  According to Moore, the disinformation program was under the direction of people in the military and he passed false information to the intended recipient because he wanted to see "how" the process worked. 

When new and exciting UFO information comes to light, experienced researchers place it under careful scrutiny.   They need to see documented proof that can be substantiated because a story is, after all, "just another story".

A subject of much discussion is the Hoagland-Morningstar report about the Secret UN meeting on UFOs.  Many across the UFO community wonder if the story is just planted disinformation.  Here is a link to correspondance between the two men:

http://www.ufodigest.com/news/0308/briefinghoagland.html

 

 

 

UFO Propulsion and Technology

Most people look at UFOs and ask the question "why?".  For example,  "Why is it there?",  "Why are they here?", etc.  

But a smaller group of people ask the question "how?"

"How does it work?"

"How can I build one myself?"

Considering the amount of freedom and wealth of possibilities such a vehicle could afford, there is much motivation for looking into the question of "how?"

For those who are new to the subject, I strongly suggest reading Nick Cook's "The Hunt for Zero Point" as a starting point. "The Hunt for Zero Point" details the author's initial investigation and speculation into anti-gravity and secret propulsion research by various groups and governments. There is also interesting UFO documentary video narrated by Nick Cook on You Tube.  -A Brown
 

Stephenville, O'Hare and UFO Evidence, Part Two of UFO Evidence that Demands a Verdict Series by A Brown

Recent UFO events - such as the 2008 sightings at Stephenville Texas and the 2006 Chicago's O'Hare airport event - have prompted many to ask the question, 'are UFOs real?'

In the public mind, there are famous UFO sightings and UFO-related cases. Roswell and The Phoenix Lights are exciting stories but fail to prove, by themselves, a reality to the phenomenon. Stephenville Texas and Chicago's O'Hare are the latest media-hyped UFO news but fall short of proving anything conclusive.

Although there are many popular books on the subject of UFOs, many do nothing more than cloud the issue.  In such books, high profile cases are mixed with brief presentations of good cases, stories of hoaxes, and even, cases involving famous persons! Intriguing UFO cases are interspersed with cattle mutilation stories, crop circles, and unfortunately, much sensationalism!  While phenomena like abductions, cattle mutilation and crop circles are real to many and could be related to UFOs, the question of the unidentified flying object itself, is obscured! In the end, the individual is left wondering if UFOs are real or simply a modern delusion.  Such books are nothing more than a form of commercialized entertainment.

Since many conventional methods fail when studying the UFO, a new approach is required. One approach society takes to assess the reality of an event is the legal court trial. Here, justice is dispensed by a weighing of the evidence. A preponderance of evidence in one direction often indicates the outcome of a trial.

In the case of UFOs, we must determine whether there is evidence that,

1.) A UFO event occurred,
2.) The preponderance of the evidence suggests no alternative explanation.

The meaning and reliability of evidence is often challenged by a contesting lawyer in a court case.  Likewise,  all of the so-called "evidence" in this study must be carefully scrutinized by opposing viewpoints. If all normal or mundane explanations can be ruled out, one may assert there is a good case for a UFO event.

We seek a verdict proven 'beyond a reasonable doubt', and so, require strong corroborative evidence, including as many as possible of the following:

1.) multiple witnesses, preferably both in air and on ground, observing from different vantage points
2.) confirmation of physical object on radar
3.) physical effects in the environment
4.) physical effects on witnesses
5.) object behavior that does not match known phenomena such as extreme speed or maneuverability
6.) other unusual case phenomena, such as intelligent control of flight or situation as though UFO was piloted
7.) official documentation of event

The more pieces of relevant evidence, the more compelling the case. If each piece of the evidence proves correct, we may have a real UFO event.

Still, we must look at alternative explanations for the UFO event such as:

1.) weather balloons
2.) the planet Venus
3.) electrical or drug-induced hallucination
4.) only one, arguably insane witness
5.) cloud formations
6.) meteorites
7.) man-made planes, gliders, balloons or helicopters
8.) carefully constructed hoax
9.) Plasma in the atmosphere caused by electrical discharges that are shaped by air currents to resembles flying vehicles

10.) Swamp Gas

11.) Other possible explanations

What is a UFO Event?

A UFO is a unknown flying object that defies conventional explanations, such as the eleven listed above.

UFOs are usually airborne and take many shapes.  They are often described as rounded or angular, egg-shaped, circular or disc-shaped, cigar-shaped, cylinder, rectangular or triangular objects.

In Stephenville, Texas, the witnesses saw many different shapes of UFO; from triangles to disc. A pilot named Steve Allen was quoted as saying he saw a UFO, "about a half a mile wide and about a mile long. It was humongous, whatever it was".

UFOs come in various sizes but are often categorized as either "Motherships", very large in size such as the one the Texas pilot spotted, or as "Scoutships" that are closer in size to human fighter or bomber planes.

The objects often exhibit the ability to sit suspended in the air and then accelerate away at extremely high velocities. The O'Hare UFO seemed to hover over the same spot for a few minutes before it moved upwards.

UFOs often exhibit an electro-magnetic quality as light halos are seen surrounding the UFO or emanating from their skin.  This is evident when people see UFOs at night.

For the Chicago O'Hare daylight sighting, many of the witnesses reported a metallic, disc-shaped UFO.  Metallic discs are common in sighting history.

Many UFO observers report the object being under the control of some kind of intelligence and behaving like a piloted or controlled vehicle.

A UFO Event is a combination of compelling and relevant evidence into a record.

In the upcoming e-book, "UFO Evidence That Demands a Verdict", we look at 6 of the best cases.  It presents the cases in terms of "UFOs are a reality" vs "UFOs do not Exist" as though two opposing lawyers were arguing over the evidence.

For an example of a compelling UFO case, check out the Ellsworth AFB UFO of 1953 in the UFO casebook website or via google search, and prepare to have your mind blown!

Before reaching a verdict, don't forget to contrast the advocate with debunker versions!  Also read all available source documents, witness testimony, other evidence, etc, you can find, to see if what the UFO advocate or debunker says actually matches the record!  People will go to extreme lengths, even lie, in order to present their version of the "facts". 

Weigh the evidence. Ellsworth has impressed many and you will find evidence that demands a verdict!

-A Brown, February 23rd, 2008
 

The Disclosure Project was initiated by Dr. Steven Greer in 1993. It is the accumulation of over 400 government, intelligence community and military witnesses testifying to their first hand experience with UFOs and ET technology. The highlight in the history of the disclosure project was an almost 2 hour long press briefing at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on wednesday, May 9th, 2001. You can watch the entire briefing below:

The Disclosure Project

Watch Fullscreen

Stephenville, O'Hare and UFO Evidence, Part One of Evidence That Demands a Verdict Series by A Brown

The media attention surrounding the Chicago's O'Hare Airport and Stephenville, Texas UFO sightings has given ufology a new life.  People are once again asking questions. The general public is fascinated.

The controversy between UFO advocates and debunkers is adding fuel to the fire.  Debunkers often say UFOs are merely misidentified natural phenomenon or man-made objects such as planes. Scientists and skeptics wonder if the people lied about what they saw. But to those who actually witnessed the strange objects at Stephenville or O'Hare, the UFOs were not so easily explainable.  The Stephenville pilot and the airline workers in Chicago reported something that did not belong to ordinary experience.

They are called UFOs or "unidentified flying objects" because they are unidentified.  A sighting of a UFO does not necessarily mean that aliens are visiting the Earth or Armageddon is near. A UFO report only indicates a witness could not explain the sighting in terms of known phenomena.

A Long-Term Study by Scientists

Although countless UFO reports exist around the world, a funded, long-term, well-coordinated and objective study of the phenomenon has always been missing.

The University of Colorado UFO Project, headed by Dr Edward U Condon in 1968 is widely regarded as a study with irrecoverable problems - part of the staff resigned in protest and an infamous memo suggests the study was "fixed" from the outset:

"Our study would be conducted almost exclusively by nonbelievers who, although they could not possibly prove a negative result, could and probably would add an impressive body of evidence that there really is no reality to the observations. The trick would be, I think, to describe the project so that, to the public, it would appear a totally objective study…"
-Robert J Low, 1966

Condon himself, seemed to have made up his mind before the study was complete:

"My attitude right now is that there is nothing to it… but I'm not supposed to reach a conclusion for another year"
-Dr. EU Condon, 1967

He is hardly being objective. Incredibly, some of the cases presented within the report contradict Condon's negative conclusions!

An honest effort would require substantial funding and the investment of much brain power. The pay-off could be immense if we were to learn the laws that govern the UFO and build them ourselves.  We might discover new energy sources that do not contribute to the greenhouse effect. If all we discover is that the UFO is Earth-produced plasma energy, our scientific understanding of the world is advanced and we still gain.

Sadly, the conventional scientific community shy away from UFOs.  No scientist wishes to appear a "crackpot" believer. To protect their careers, many scientists study UFO cases quietly in private. Brave individuals who risk their reputations to bring UFO information to the public - for example, physicists and astronomers such as the late James E McDonald, the late J Allen Hynek or Jacques Vallee - number too few to oppose the many closed minds of the scientific establishment.

A true scientist tries to prevent "belief" from playing a role in his assessment of data.  Yet he acts according to a hunch called a hypothesis or "educated guess".  So, to some extent, belief does play a role but experiments are designed to rigorously test a scientist's hypothesis.  An honest scientist will allow for outcomes that disprove his beliefs.

One could say, the "non-believer" scientist who clings to his belief that "there is nothing to" UFOs is actually a strong believer in the hypothesis "there are no UFOs". The University of Colorado UFO Project was flawed because Low and Condon expected to find nothing but the confirmation of their own beliefs.  In both quotes, a 'confirmation bias' seems to be in operation.

New and Unusual Methods of Doing Science May be Required

UFOs present a unique challenge to science because they do not lend themselves to present methods of scientific analysis. These objects are fast and elusive and not easily brought into the laboratory.  They seem to operate according to a science that exceeds our present understanding.  In many UFO reports we hear about incredible speeds and right angle turns that would rip most conventional aircraft to shreds. There are various scientists who believe such behavior is impossible for an aircraft. Because of such difficulties, only a handful of scientists look at UFO cases.

Cases such as Stephenville and O'Hare offer them little to work with.  They are mostly eye-witness reports; the photo and film footage is still under scrutiny. Even though credible people are sure what they saw, scientists are trained to deal with solid matter they can manipulate. A single report is just another story to them.

One could assume the witnesses at Stephenville and O'Hare believe what they are saying.  However, the cases boil down to 'eye-witness reports' and can be attacked by non-believers as 'delusions' and 'lies'.

People are often unaware that many UFO witnesses are credible. The witnesses in Stephenville included a police constable, a pilot and an airport technician. The dozen or so airline employees at O'Hare have seen many aircraft but nothing like the "metallic" object on November 7th, 2006.  Some of the airline employees at O'Hare were upset that federal employees seemed uninterested in further investigation. It was as though the federal investigators did not believe in the witnesses ability to discern unusual weather phenomenon from an unidentified metallic object.

Without the right kind of evidence, the public finds it difficult to demand a full inquiry and opportunities for science are lost!

However, if witness testimony can be matched with a radar report, a noticeable effect on the environment or other physical effects, the UFO may be able to gain the attention of interested investigators and scientists.
 
Fortunately, There are Better Cases!

Although the Stephenville, Texas and Chicago O'Hare cases are intriguing to the public, they represent the tip of the iceberg as far as UFO reports are concerned.  There are many cases where evidence for UFO phenomena is stronger.  These cases are enough to make the public demand a more thorough inquiry.  Such information is readily available and in future articles, I will present some of the best cases that suggest UFOs are worthy of further scientific investigation.  (see Part Two above)

-A Brown, February 2008