A Room 101 Interview with Steve Watson

Steve Watson is the webmaster for independent journalist, political activist and documentary filmmaker Alex Jones at Infowars.net. He is also a regular contributor to and editor of Jones' Prisonplanet.com. Holding a BA Degree in Literature and a Master's Degree in International Relations, Steve and his brother Paul Watson first became aware of Alex Jones after watching Jon Ronson's Channel Four documentary series: The Secret Rulers of the World. In 2005 both brothers appeared in Alex Jones' documentary film Terrorstorm.

Richard Thomas: Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions mate, I'm sure you're constantly busy so it's really appreciated.

Have you always been interested in what the mainstream media like to dismiss as “conspiracy theories” or was there a particular book, documentary etc that first caught your attention and things developed from there?

Steve Watson: I was always interested in alternative theories and questioning the accepted version of the truth regarding major historical and political events. I remember when I was in school, about 13 years old, my history teacher (who was also my brother's history teacher) would show video of the JFK assassination and would raise questions over the government's explanation of what happened. That stuff wasn't even part of our curriculum - we were supposed to be learning about the Second World War - but before the lessons began, as we filtered into the classroom, he would be playing these videos and telling us about the facts and discrepancies of the lone gunman explanation - I'm certain that prompted me into exploring things more and looking for alternative explanations and I thank him for that.

Richard Thomas: How was it that you and your brother, two “red coats,” started writing for Alex Jones' website infowars.com?

Steve Watson: We both saw Alex on a British documentary called Secret Rulers of The World made by Jon Ronson, who went on to write The Men Who Stare At Goats. It was 2000, when Alex infiltrated The Bohemian Grove. We began listening to his radio show on the internet, Paul started up his website and his own radio show, as Alex always encourages his listeners to do. I began helping him with the website and eventually it got popular enough for Alex to notice it. He liked what he saw and asked Paul to write for him and create the websites that became Prisonplanet.com and Prisonplanet.tv. I was studying at university during this time, but I kept contributing and helping out and in 2005 when I finished studying, Alex brought me in full-time.

Richard Thomas: What do you think the biggest misconception is towards people interested in the kind of topics you cover at infowars.com?

Steve Watson: That we are pushing a one-sided political viewpoint like the mainstream media does. Left and right is part of the same control system, anyone who looks at what we do for long enough will see that.

Richard Thomas: I noticed your brother goes by “Number 6” and I've heard the classic 1960s Doctor Who theme more than a few time on the Alex Jones Show. Are you, your brother and Alex Jones big science-fiction fans, and if so what are some of your favourite shows/films/novels etc?

Steve Watson: I am not particularly a science fiction fan (sorry!). In terms of entertainment culture I am a fan of anything stimulating and thought-provoking, no matter what genre of entertainment it belongs to. In relation to science fiction, Patrick McGoohan's The Prisoner fits into that category for me, as does the writing of Philip K. Dick and some of John Carpenter's films. I can't say I like Dr Who at all, especially in its modern incarnation. I think Alex just uses the theme tune because it sounds good!

Richard Thomas: About 90% of what Alex Jones talks about seems to be based directly on what governments have already openly admitted to. In light of this what do you think the most disturbing document you've ever come across is?

Steve Watson: The ones that relate to biowarfare and eugenics. There are countless examples of the US government having illegally tested and used bio-weapons on its own citizens. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study, The Program F fluoride study, Project SHAD which used live toxins and chemical poisons on American servicemen on American soil, spraying clouds of bacteria over San Francisco, releasing toxic gases into the New York subway, holding open-air biological and chemical weapons tests in at least four states in the 1960s, the list goes on. These are only a few examples of what has become public knowledge. Then there are documents like the 1974 declassified document of the National Security Council, entitled "The Implications of World-wide Population Growth on the Security and External Interests of the United States" in which Henry Kissinger calls for programs of sterilization and depopulation in the third world in return for increased aid. John P. Holdren's Eco-Science is another eugenicist's masterpiece. The most disturbing material is covered in Alex Jones' film Endgame.

Richard Thomas: Did you vote in the recent General Election? And what, if anything, do you think the result showed?

Steve Watson: Yes I did, though I didn't expect anything to change because all three candidates are establishment career politicians with broadly the same agendas. The result showed that people are utterly sick of the political system in the UK. The relatively high turnout also showed that people are desperate for some meaningful political change. Some people say everyone should stop voting in protest - I don't think that would achieve a great deal other than devaluing our right to vote. You have to effect change from the bottom up, that means ensuring the right candidates win locally. Though there is a great deal of optimism in our movement, there is also a great deal of defeatism - I mean people declaring that it doesn't matter whether they vote or not because everything is controlled and manipulated by the powers that be. Power is as much a state of mind as it is an actuality.

Richard Thomas: What role, if any, do you think the British Royal family plays in the New World Order?

Steve Watson: They represent an elite bloodline that has for centuries declared itself as God's appointed rulers over half of the planet, killing, torturing and maiming anyone who crosses it in order to hold on to that mantle. Are we supposed to believe they've had a sudden change of heart? Today many people in Britain suggest that these facts are no long relevant because the royal family has very little power. This is a huge myth. The Queen is the head of state and as such she can simply replace the British government at any time she chooses, should she wish to do so. The royal family still owns vast swathes of land throughout Britain and the rest of the world, and the Queen still presides as head of state in Canada and Australia. They also exert influence on the global stage through groups, bodies and corporations they charter and provide patronage to.

Richard Thomas: Why do you think Russia Today is the only mainstream media channel to take subjects like the recent Bilderberg meeting in Spain seriously?

Steve Watson: I understand why you ask this question, but I don't believe it is. This year there was much more mainstream media coverage of the meeting this year, though it takes someone like Charlie Skelton to approach it from out of leftfield for it to get into mainstream sources such as the London Guardian. Russia Today has become a prominent news provider because it has embraced the internet, while much of the mainstream resides in dinosaur land.

Richard Thomas: How long, if ever, do you think it'll be before the BBC are forced to let serious 9/11 researchers and climate sceptics on shows like Question Time?

Steve Watson: Never. The BBC is a state-controlled propaganda machine. If you buy a TV or any form of television receiving equipment in the UK you have to pay for the BBC by law. If you gave the British people a choice of whether to pay for the BBC or not, as part of a subscription deal for example - which should happen because it has violated it's charter over and over again - the majority would opt out and the BBC would cease to exist - simple as that.

Richard Thomas: I know Alex Jones doesn't discuss them much on his show, but what's your take on UFOs?

Steve Watson: It's a very broad subject, and I'm no expert. Some of the research into the topic is interesting, some of it is useless and ridiculous from what I've seen. I've never personally seen a UFO, but my gut feeling is that some are advanced military technology and the others are natural phenomena. That doesn't mean I don't believe there isn't life on other planets though - of course there is.

Richard Thomas: Thanks again mate, where can people contact you and read your articles? (Please feel free to plug anything you like here mate)

Steve Watson: prisonplanet.com, my MySpace page, and the news website of syndicated radio host Alex Jones - because there's a war on for your mind!

READ RICHARD'S ROOM 101 COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

A Room 101 Interview with Dean Haglund: Star of The X-Files and The Lone Gunmen

Did the US Government have foreknowledge of the 9/11 attacks and filter it out to the writers of The X-Files spin-off series The Lone Gunmen? It might sound unlikely to some but that's exactly what Dean Haglund - who played the recurring character Langly in both series - seemed to be hinting at when The X-Files star appeared on a memorable December 15 edition of The Alex Jones Show back in 2005.

To summarise: The Lone Gunmen pilot (broadcast before 9/11) involved a government conspiracy to 'hijack' a commercial airliner via remote control and fly the aircraft into the World Trade Centre. Why? You ask. According to dialogue in the script, the plan was to blame the terrorist atrocity on rogue third-world nations and launch a new global conflict against terrorism to replace the much missed Cold War that had given America so much direction and purpose in the world … not to mention keep the arms trade afloat following the collapse of communism in the early 1990s.

"The Cold War is over, John. But with no clear enemy to stockpile against, the arms market's flat. But, bring down a fully-loaded 727 into the middle of New York City and you'll find a dozen tin-pot dictators all over the world just clambering to take responsibility and begging to be smart-bombed."

Intrigued by his more recent appearance on the AJ Show earlier this year and the news that Mr Haglund is in the midst of making a new feature documentary about believers in conspiracies and their search for "the truth," I thought the Lone Gunman might make an interesting interview.

Richard Thomas: First I just want to say thank you for agreeing to answer my questions, I've been a huge fan of The X-Files since it first aired on the BBC back in 1993, so you doing this interview is much appreciated.

Your first line in The X-Files was, "Check it out, Mulder: I had breakfast with the guy who shot John F. Kennedy." That still makes me chuckle, but I'm a lot more open to that kind of thing now. What did you think of that line when you first read it in the script and have your own perceptions of the character you played changed at all since then?

Dean Haglund: I didn't know what the writers were really talking about then. My brother was more up on that stuff than I was, so I started talking to him. The other part of that line was... "old dude now, but said he was dressed as a cop on the grassy knoll". And that was funny, because a year later I was down in Dallas and went to the book depository which is now a museum and went to that grassy knoll. From then on, it was fun tracking down these theories and ideas and experiencing first-hand so many of the things that The X-Files talked about. That naturally changed my perceptions and they continue to change to this day.

Richard Thomas: Did you do much research for the character, i.e. did you read any conspiracy-related books or magazines, or start listening to paranormal talk radio shows or anything like that?

Dean Haglund: Yes. I got to be on the paranormal talk radio programs as a guest. Then I was introduced to many of the researchers in the various fields and really got to know them well. Everything branched off from there. Many of them appear in my documentary that we are doing called The Truth is Out There.

Richard Thomas: There are other characters in the first series of The X-Files that we never saw again, why do you think The Lone Gunmen kept returning and were ultimately even given their own spin-off series?

Dean Haglund: One word: Internet. The early newsgroup alt.tv.x-files was one of the first online gathering spots for the fans of a TV show. There they would talk about the episodes, and the writers would lurk in there and get honest feedback of the show. Thus, the Gunmen sort of reflected this culture and even some of our lines came from this news group. And they would bring us back to boost chatter on the newsgroup, and use that traffic as a proof of our popularity. It was a fun symbiotic relationship.

Richard Thomas: Do you have a favourite episode or moment from either The X-Files or The Lone Gunmen? And is there a particular type of episode you prefer to watch yourself as a fan?

Dean Haglund: In our origin episode, called Unusual Suspects, my playing Dungeons and Dragon for money, was a really fun moment. And got me invited to a lot of games. I liked the monster of the week shows that they did, but the story was compelling when you had the time to invest in it all.

Richard Thomas: The subtitle of the new X-Files film was "I Want To Believe," do you think people really simply 'want to believe' or do you think something more meaningful might explain the growth of the 'alternative media' in recent years? Guess I'm really asking do you think people believe in conspiracy theories because they're true or because they need to believe in something and religion etc doesn't make the cut?

Dean Haglund: Belief and Truth! Two great ideas that are often jammed into one. For the last year, as a camera followed me around the world and we interviewed many people, like Alex Jones, Jordan Maxwell, etc, I asked them the question what is the truth and why do they believe they know it and not the other guy with a completely alternative viewpoint. Some said because they felt it or that history beard them out. But the thing that all of them had in common was the need to follow this path regardless or the personal toll it took. That the truth, however subjective it may seem, was ultimately an objective quantity that they were getting to.

Richard Thomas: What was your reaction after 9/11 and what's your current opinion on The Lone Gunmen pilot? In your interview with Alex Jones you said the writers would sometimes be approached by people from the CIA, FBI and NASA, was this the case with the pilot?

Dean Haglund: I asked Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad) this very question when he was on my podcast and he said that this was a case of an artist tapping into some bizarre collective un-conscience item, and he said that he read about the idea in a Tom Clancy novel, so there was no direct involvement in this case. My current opinion is that the pilot now stands as a chilling time capsule when we were just a little less scarred by real-life events.

Richard Thomas: If the pilot was indeed based on insider knowledge of some kind, why do you think they would feed it to the writers of The X-Files of all people? Do you think the purpose might have been to discredit the 'government did it' theories in advance?

Dean Haglund: Separate from the pilot, I have heard that the popular culture is used as a tool by whatever elite (business, govt, Illuminati, etc.) to both gauge and control the populace. That is, the conspiracy is the conspiracy theory itself, making its way into the mainstream culture, thereby usurping the power of the populace to alter it, because one can diminish some researcher or whistleblower as someone who "just watches too much X-files."

Richard Thomas: What's your take on the theory that sci-fi shows like The X-Files and Star Trek are intended to be a form of 'predictive programming' aimed at slowly acclimatising the public to ideas they would otherwise be hostile towards, i.e. world government?

Dean Haglund: This seems to give more power to an elite ruling body and removes the power of the artist to create shows that are tapping into the zeitgeist of the moment. It involves the idea that we all already know the future and we just connect to shows or artwork that reflect what we are thinking in a pre-cognitive level. To say that a small group dictate those idea memes into our minds and then have Hollywood or the BBC then make entertainment that matches what they preloaded I don't think can work. I think that they would like that to happen, but ultimately, creating art is not a simple cut-and-dry business exercise, it has to include some 'other' things to make it a "hit"

Richard Thomas: The final X-Files episode The Truth left us with a very ominous prediction about 2012, is it possible that this might have been based on some kind of insider information? Perhaps even preparation for something very nasty coming down in 2012?

Dean Haglund: Here is an excellent example of a collective fear manifesting itself into popular culture. Since this airing, 2012 has become the hot topic at all the conventions, however, as Paul Dean said in our documentary, when he was talking to a Mayan priest about all of this, he said that "western society has it all wrong" and that since we cannot hold a duality in our minds, a quantum "Schrodinger's Cat" scenario if you will, then we can only picture the end of something as a finite disaster and not both that and the re-awakening into the light.

Richard Thomas: It took the best part of thirty years before Oliver Stone's 1991 film JFK broke the taboo and featured a pro-conspiracy plot about the assassination. How long do you think it'll take before Hollywood or even TV do the same thing with 9/11? Also do you think if The X-Files had not ended in 2002 Chris Carter might have tackled the issue?

Dean Haglund: I think that The X-Files would have been painted into a corner because it would have had to address it in some way, and yet to come out on the conspiracy side would have sat very harshly for some. Because the implication on the 9/11 truth movement is very sinister and somewhat hopeless even, in that, if it was all an inside job and all the people that had to be involved to make that happen, means that the cynicism that runs through whatever entity was behind that and whatever motive that was the compelling force to achieve that, is a lot of negative energy. Whether greed of Halliburton, or terrorist zeal of Al-Queda, either case makes for some heavy karmic weight some are carrying regarding that day. And to put that on TV even now would require either fancy footwork or a counterbalance. I think that the only work thus far that was able to embrace that would be Art Speigleman's comic book about the day called "In the Shadow of No Towers". His fun drawing style works to balance out that story nicely.

Richard Thomas: I noticed on your website, that you've done a comic book called Why The Lone Gunmen Was Cancelled, so why do you think The Lone Gunmen and ultimately even The X-Files were cancelled? Jack Bauer was quite a departure from the kind of American hero the Gunmen and Spooky Mulder represented, do you think there was an agenda to replace pro-conspiracy type programming with pro-government shows like 24?

Dean Haglund: To answer the first part, you have to get my comic book because it is a long story. Here again, popular culture reflects the times we live in. The X-Files would never get off the ground today because we don't have room in our brains to contemplate an "evil syndicate that is working with Aliens to create a human hybrid." When you think back to the time the show started in '93, there was so much optimism - the wall had just come down, there was the Oslo accord, the atomic clock was set BACK, etc. - so that we could be entertained by a "Trust No One" anti-hero, who rarely even used a gun. Now Jack Bauer is more comforting in our times because as all elements seem to spin out of control, this guy can work non-stop (within 24 hours) to stop and solve global crisis. That is cathartic at the same time as it is soothing.

Richard Thomas: I understand since the end of The X-Files you've been working on a documentary film about people who believe in conspiracy theories, what exactly is the film about and why did you decide to do it after doing The X-Files for so long?

Dean Haglund: As I alluded to earlier, The Truth is Out There, is a documentary about why conspiracies exist in the first place and what function do they serve, and ultimately, about what is "truth" and how do you know in our present 'information blizzard' when you have found it. I decided to do it after my co-host on my podcast, Phil Leirness, came to a couple conventions and saw that my life was interesting in that I dealt with these concepts daily, and because of the people that I knew from researching my role as one of The Lone Gunmen I had unique access to many people in the field that probably would not talk on camera to anyone else. So what I thought would be a few interviews has become a year-long travelling document about what is really TRUE and how that affects all those who seek and live it.

Richard Thomas: I know Alex Jones is one person you've interviewed but who are some of the other personalities you've encountered, and does anyone stick out in particular?

Dean Haglund: Jordan Maxwell, Dr. Roger Leir, David Sereda, Dr. Miller who started the Institute of Noetic Sciences with Edgar Mitchell, and many more. Alex Jones was illuminating because for the number of times I had been on his show I didn't really know that much about him. So for me to ask him questions and to see his passion behind why he slaved away on the radio and fighting against the machine was really cool. This documentary should be ready in November and then we head off to the film festivals for some screenings.

Richard Thomas: Other than 9/11, what other conspiracy theories have you investigated or looked into? For instance what's your opinion on the 1960s assassinations of JFK, RFK and MLK; the New World Order conspiracy theories surrounding the Bilderberg Group and other secret societies; and, of course, Roswell and UFOs?

Dean Haglund: Let's see, we look into the GMO food alteration of our diet. Our food has been the same for 50,000 years except for the last 30 where we have completely changed how and what we eat. This may or may not be a specific plan to reduce the human population back down to workable levels using nothing other than our own gluttony. We saw labs where experiments are going on in a level of science that is beyond the orthodox three-dimensional sciences that would require this answer to be about 25 pages long. My theories on all of these are now, after hearing all of these people in a state of flux, since all of it, even though it contradicts each other, seems to be true is some way. Hopefully, we'll find an answer in the editing.

Richard Thomas: What other projects are you working on and where can people contact you and find out about the documentary?

Dean Haglund: I am reconfiguring everything as we speak. So go to Deanhaglund.com for links to everything, and you can contact me there for more info.

Richard Thomas: Thanks again Dean, hope we can do this again sometime.

READ RICHARD'S ROOM 101 COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

A Room 101 Interview with Karyn Dolan

Other than BoA: Audio, of course, the only other 'esoteric' type radio show that I enjoy listening to regularly these days is Karyn Dolan's excellent Through the Keyhole. With her characteristically friendly manner and down-to-earth approach, Karyn's interviews are both fun and informative. Karyn often asks the questions the ordinary, intelligent listener at home wants to ask that, often, other radio show hosts just don't think of. 

  

So after interviewing her husband Richard Dolan, author of UFOs and the National Security State, I was very pleased when Karyn also agreed to answer a few questions for a Room 101 interview. We'll be discussing UFOs, parapolitics, 911, Karyn's evolution as an active media member in the esoteric field, the dynamics of the Dolan family, ET elements in childrens' programming and a whole lot more. 

  

Richard Thomas: Thanks for agreeing to this interview Karyn. I'm sure you and your husband are pretty busy with the recent release of Richard's new book UFOs and the National Security State volume II so it's much appreciated.

  

How did you first become interested in UFOs and other 'esoteric' type topics and where did the idea to do your own radio show come from? Also, do you think you might have ever seen a UFO, or, perhaps had any other kind of paranormal experience yourself? 

  

Karyn Dolan: Thanks so much for asking me, Richard, and thanks for your kind words about Through the Keyhole! I'm so glad to hear that you enjoy it. I started with a guest spot on Live from Roswell, which is hosted by a friend of ours named Guy Malone. He invited me to come on and talk about what it's like to live with a UFO researcher, for a unique take on the subject when everyone else was interviewing the researchers themselves.

  

I had a great time, even though I was really nervous at first, and our ratings were quite good. After a couple more guest spots with Guy, I was offered a show of my own on the Paranormal Radio Network. I hesitated, but decided that I'd probably never get an opportunity like this again; and besides, the worst that could happen was that I'd be bad at it, maybe be a little embarrassed, and my time slot would be given to someone else. It was nothing I couldn't survive, so I went for it, and I'm so glad I did. I got to interview people like George Noory of Coast to Coast AM after just a few months at it, I've met all kinds of really fun and interesting people, and I've learned so much about their research. I never thought about UFOs until Rich told me he was writing his first book; but I'd been interested in other esoteric subjects all my life. Since I was a child, I've read ghost stories, books about vampires and witches and the Loch Ness Monster, and any other unexplained phenomena. I've always been fascinated by anything that couldn't be explained by mainstream science. It proves to me that conventional wisdom, in any subject, is simply not all there is to life -- there's so much more, if we just open our minds to it. 

  

Also, when I was about eight, I discovered a book on Wicca. The thing about Wicca is that no one ever "converts" to it -- people say they finally learn the name for what they've always believed. That's how I felt. Even though I was brought up in the Roman Catholic Church, I've always felt more Wiccan; and that is a religion that embraces all others as valid paths to the Light. Some of the main tenets of Wicca are to harm none, to respect all life, and to take responsibility for your own actions. It also teaches that everyone has potential psychic ability, which appeals to my belief that there's more to life than what appears in the newspapers.

  

And yes, I actually did see something in the sky that I still can't explain. In the summer of 2006, years after Rich's book came out, I was in a coffee shop with my son. We were sitting by the window, watching the full moon rise, when we both noticed a diagonal shadowy line across the moon. It was motionless, and we spent several minutes trying to find something in the shop that could be causing a reflection on the window, and changing our position to see if it moved. All the reflections on the window moved as we moved around, but that line didn't. After about five minutes, it slowly moved forward and upward, and once it was no longer in front of the moon, we couldn't see it against the darkening sky. 

  

We live near an airport so we see planes all the time. This looked similar to a plane, but it had no lights at all and it was perfectly straight. A plane has a raised tip on the tail. Also, no plane ever remains motionless that long. I wondered whether it had only appeared motionless because it was coming toward us, but we were clearly viewing it from the side. I still don't know what that was. 

  

Richard Thomas: While preparing for this interview, I was conscious not to overload you with questions about your husband. Do you ever get a little tired of being compared to Richard or having to answer questions about him? I'm sure you've been asked numerous times over the last few years about when his next book would be out and that must get a little annoying sometimes. 

  

Karyn Dolan: It used to be common for people to talk to me only when they wanted to reach Rich. Since I've been hosting the radio show, and have been attending conferences, talking with people, reading the literature, listening to presentations...now I'm finding that people want to talk to me as well. I get people contacting me all the time, asking if they can come on the show, and I love that. Sometimes, people will ask me to sign a conference poster or something, and that's really fun too. I'm also now a member of the Board of Directors for the International UFO Congress, and have contributed a chapter to a book on UFO and alien images in society which we hope will be published in 2010. So I really feel that I can stand on my own feet in this field.

  

Rich is a brilliant man, an amazing writer and a very talented speaker. He introduced me to this field, and to a lot of the people in it. There are things that each of us does better than the other. At the end of the day, I know that I can't please everyone, so I do my best at whatever I'm doing, and make sure I can still respect myself. I have my own way of doing things and people seem to enjoy it. I'm not Rich Dolan and I don't pretend to be, but I am Karyn Dolan, and I'm very happy with that. 

  

BTW, I never get annoyed by questions about when the next book is coming out. I'm not the one who has to write it, so it really doesn't bother me. :-)

Richard Thomas: In my interview with Richard (I'll mention him just the once, promise), we focused more on what is sometimes called parapolitics, in particular 9/11 and its aftermath. Your husband seemed to be a big fan of Alex Jones' films, especially his latest addition to the InfoWar The Obama Deception.

  

I know your family is primarily associated with UFO research, but given Richard's outspoken take on 911, what are your thoughts on that fateful event? 

  

Also, if you had the chance to ask Obama two questions on Through the Keyhole what would they be? They don't have to be 9/11 or Alex Jones related they could be on UFOs or anything. 

  

Karyn Dolan: I completely believe that 9/11 was an inside job, and I said so to Rich the day it happened. By that I mean that someone in our government either helped plan it, perhaps only knew about it ahead of time and didn't do anything to stop it, or did something that day that allowed the attacks to occur. I believe that the most horrifying thing about that day, and there was plenty of horror in it, was the realization that human life is of no account to those who were supposedly elected to lead us, to look out for us. We are totally expendable, and they will sacrifice us in a heartbeat for their personal gain. That kept me up for a lot of nights after 9/11, and sometimes still does. Rich didn't agree with me at first, but later, as we both watched the investigation and the evidence that was uncovered, he began to believe it as well. What actually happened that day? Setting aside the loss of human life (which was horrific, but clearly of no account to the perpetrators), the World Trade Center was attacked. The two tallest towers and one smaller building were destroyed. So the two most visible parts of the complex were the first to go; that was a shocking visible reminder of the "Terrorist Threat" that was pounded into our awareness over the following weeks, months, years. Yet, the businesses that had offices there, also had offices elsewhere. It didn't really cripple our nation financially, not in the way the newscasters told us it would. The important thing about that was the fear factor. And I think that's a big reason why the towers still haven't been rebuilt, even this many years later. That scar on the skyline is more important in some ways than building the memorial; otherwise, it would be done by now. It's been eight years, for heavens' sake, and the site was cleared quickly -- all the evidence was removed immediately and sold as scrap metal before it could be examined by any forensic specialists. 

  

The destruction of the smaller building, Building 7, has never been satisfactorily explained. The best theory I've heard is that the command center for the events of 9/11 was located in that building, and it was destroyed in order to hide evidence of that fact. I don't know enough to say it's true or not, but it sounds more plausible to me than any of the official explanations that I've heard so far. 

Aside from that, the Pentagon building was damaged, but not too badly. There was, again, a shocking loss of innocent lives, but the facility was up and running in a very short time. There is also some indication that some embarrassing financial records were conveniently destroyed. Finally, we were told that the last plane was heading toward the White House, but it never came anywhere near hitting its target. So the public's perception was that our nation's capital, our defense system, and our financial system were all attacked, but truly, no real damage occurred to the systems themselves. A couple of buildings were destroyed, a few more were damaged, some evidence of financial misconduct was disposed of, and it was all covered up by the deaths of thousands of innocent people. We were mostly too stunned and grief-stricken to raise any questions, and anyone who tried to do so was labeled unpatriotic and told to go shopping to stimulate the economy. The real result was fear, which allowed the passage of the Patriot Act and a host of other laws that would never have been tolerated prior to the 9/11 attacks.

There's a huge body of research that's been done on this. I highly recommend David Ray Griffin's book, The New Pearl Harbor, for anyone interested in pursuing this any further. I saw enough to convince me that the official explanation requires more credulity than most of the alternative theories, but I haven't tried to solve the mystery of what actually happened that day. Many others have taken up that task, and I urge everyone reading this at least to consider with an open mind, the evidence these people have amassed before making your decision either way. 

  

As far as asking Obama anything...I don't know that I'd bother. I wouldn't expect to get a straight answer from anyone in his position. He may not even have the answers to my questions. I don't think the person holding the office of President necessarily knows all the secrets; I bet people like Dick Cheney and Bush, Sr. have that information. But if I thought he could or would answer, I'd ask Obama who was really behind 9/11, and what's being kept secret about UFOs. 

  

Richard Thomas: Speaking of parapolitics, what are your thoughts on David Icke? Is he somebody you'd like to interview and have you read any of his books? If so, which ones and what did you think? Personally, I'd love to ask him a few questions myself because, if nothing else, he's lived a fascinating life and I think he has a great approach to life.

  

Karyn Dolan: A friend told me about David Icke years ago, and on that recommendation I went to Icke's web site. My first impression was that the man was a complete lunatic, and I didn't look at it again for about a year. The second time I looked at his site, however, some of his predictions had come to pass. So I looked again, and found that a lot of what he said made more sense than I had thought. I'm still trying to come to terms with the whole "shapeshifting, cannibalistic reptilian/humans in the royal family" thing, but my impression is that he feels the same way. I read something he wrote about that in which he said that he knew how crazy it sounded, but people kept coming up to him all over the world and telling him about it. It gave him the impression that there must be something to it, and he put it out there in case someone else could make some sense out of it. 

  

I think now that it's entirely possible that someone was feeding him ridiculous-sounding stories in order to discredit him; or maybe, just maybe, they're actually true. I'm sure a lot of people will be groaning at how gullible I sound, but the truth is that I haven't looked into it, I don't have the facts, and what do I know? The one thing I do believe is that almost anything is possible. I don't accept stories without proof; but I try not to dismiss them without proof, either.

  

I think now that David Icke is a brilliant, perceptive and courageous man. I would be deeply honored to shake his hand one day, and I sincerely hope I get a chance to do that. The bulk of what he writes, and talks about, is our own ability to take charge of our own lives if we just stand up to those who are telling us we have no power. They're lying, and all we have to do is realize it and say no. 

  

Richard Thomas: Back to Through the Keyhole, do you have a favourite topic of discussion and is there a topic you haven't covered yet you really want to? 

  

Karyn Dolan: There are a few things I've been thinking about. I'm interested in ancient and anomalous structures in the United States, like Coral Castle in Florida, America's Stonehenge in New England, and the ancient mounds in the midwest. People write to me all the time and tell me about their work, and often it's something I never heard of before, that sounds really fascinating. That's the best part of the radio show for me, getting to talk with all of these people about their work, getting to ask the questions that I believe my listeners would ask if they were in the room with us. I especially enjoy it when my listeners ask questions through the chat room, when it becomes a conversation that includes more than just two people.

Richard Thomas: You've been doing Through the Keyhole for over two years now, which interviews stand out for you as the most enlightening or surprising and why? 

  

Karyn Dolan: I think I would have to say that my interview with Lloyd Pye about the Starchild Skull really stands out in my mind, because there's this incontrovertible piece of physical evidence that no one can explain away. No one has proven that it's an alien skull, or that of an alien-human hybrid, but no one has been able to prove that it's a fake, either. It's a real skull, and no one can get around that. It has cellular structure that's consistent with, but still different from, normal bone. The most anyone has been able to object to is where the skull has been since it was brought out of a cave in Mexico, saying its "provenance is unproven." Fine, but that doesn't change the fact that it exists, that it's composed of real bone cells, and that no one has yet identified it. 

  

This really appeals to me because I'm fascinated by forensics, by anatomy and physiology and biochemistry. I studied veterinary medicine for a while before we decided to start a family. I may go back to it one day. 

  

Richard Thomas: I've often heard it said by some that the 'Space Brothers' are coming to save us. If that's true great but I can't honestly say I see any real evidence for this interpretation. If anything the UFO occupants (whatever they are or represent) seem ambivalent or worst maybe even hostile towards us. What are your thoughts on this? Karyn Dolan: I'd love to think that the UFO occupants are benevolent. I just don't feel that I have enough information to justify that belief. I've heard people say that if they wanted to harm us, they would have done so by now. To me, this presupposes that we know their motivations. I don't think I know what they want. They may have very good reasons for waiting a while before they harm us. The fact that they're telling us they don't want to harm us doesn't reassure me, either, since we have absolutely no way to judge whether they're telling the truth. 

  

Of course, they may not be as harmful as we think, either. It's true that they haven't tried to round us all up into their spaceships and eat us, or to simply shoot us all with lasers on the ground. (See how goofy it sounds when you actually say it?) Many people have pointed out that they seem to be studying us in the same way that we study animals. Human researchers shoot an animal with a tranquilizer, abduct it, study it, take tissue samples, and return it to the wild -- sometimes in the right place, sometimes not. I like to imagine the animal returning to its family and debating whether to tell them about its abduction experience. Will anyone believe the story? Will they be ridiculed? Will they forever have to fight harder for a place at the watering hole? 

  

Contact with aliens can be a terrifying and traumatic experience for those who live through it. I have a great deal of sympathy for people who've experienced this, and I can't tell you how much I admire the courage of the ones who choose to share their stories. Because that's the only way we learn about what's happening, and that's the only way others who go through the same thing can come to terms with their own experiences. It's incredibly important, and it's incredibly difficult to do. These people are heroes in my eyes, just for living through what they have and not letting it beat them down. 

  

 I think there is no single answer to this question of whether they mean us harm or good. I believe there are several groups here, I don't know how many, and I don't think they all have the same motivations. So trying to ask, "what do they want?" is an oversimplification, to say the least. It's simply not possible to answer that question without a lot more information, beginning with "whom do you mean by 'they'?" 

  

Richard Thomas: I understand you're not a big fan of the children's BBC series The Teletubbies. You even did a lecture on it for the Crash Retreival Conference in 2007. 

  

The Teletubbies was an incredibly popular children's series in the UK about a decade ago, when it first started. I remember my mum had to try really hard to get my younger sister a toy Teletubby for Christmas once, they would sell out incredibly quickly and people would queue for hours to try and get one. There were even stories of people snatching them from other people's trolies if I remember rightly. 

  

What do you think The Teletubbies could represent that's so dangerous? Do you think this might be an example of predictive programming? 

  

Karyn Dolan: I don't really think The Teletubbies in themselves are dangerous; but I don't like thinking that small children will see creatures that so strongly resemble alien greys presented in such a positive way. As we discussed earlier, I don't know what the alien beings want, but I don't feel that I have enough information to trust them. Because of that, I don't want kids to start thinking they can be trusted either, not without knowing a lot more about them. I raised the question as to whether their appearance might be a deliberate effort to make the general public more accepting of beings who look something like that, and almost immediately found government documents that supported that conclusion. I first spoke on this topic at the Roswell UFO Festival in 2007, and immediately afterward so many people contacted me with information and leads that I rewrote the presentation with probably twice as much material, and gave that talk at Roswell in 2008. I also presented this material at the Crash Retrieval Conference and at the UFO Congress in Bordentown, NJ. Not everyone agrees with me, and that's fine. I just wanted to get people thinking about it at first, and now I really do think there's something here that's important for people to know about. 

  

I find it interesting that many people have reacted very positively to my presentation, in particular a police officer who works mainly with child victims of sexual crimes. So a man who spends most of his time defending children from predators is totally in agreement with this concept. In fact, he sought me out at the Roswell UFO Festival last year and told me that he watched my presentation on DVD, then went over it again and again in an attempt to analyze the evidence as he would if he were trying to make a case in criminal court. He said that he hasn't been able to poke a hole in my case, and that's very gratifying to me. Had he found evidence to prove that I was completely wrong, I would have wanted to hear about it; but I was glad to know that my work was checked so thoroughly and apparently passed the acid test. 

  

By contrast, only one or two people have told me they disagree with my conclusions, and they were self-proclaimed contactees. I've found that the people who are most insistent that the aliens mean us no harm are those who believe they have had direct contact with these beings. One could say that they're in a better position to know the truth, since they've had more contact than the rest of us; but they're also in a better position to receive whatever information these beings want to give out about themselves, and we have no way of knowing whether the aliens are telling us the truth. Ultimately, I have to ask myself about the aliens -- would they have a reason to lie? Yes, if they are here with the intent to harm us, they would have every reason to lie. Does that mean they are lying? No, it means they might be, and I don't have enough information to prove it either way. 

  

Richard Thomas: Since you first started looking into this, have you noticed any more TV shows with ET elements in them you think could be significant?

  

Karyn Dolan: I actually haven't, since we don't watch TV. I watch The Office, The Simpsons, Heroes and Lost on DVD, but we never watch live broadcasts of anything anymore because I can't stand the commercials. And yes, our whole family loves the Simpsons. The episode in which Homer sees an alien in the woods and is later visited by the X-Files' Mulder and Scully is priceless! I'm just sorry the Lone Gunmen didn't make it into that episode. 

  

Richard Thomas: Aside from the ET elements in children's programming, what other types of big picture issues in Ufology have caught your interest in recent years? 

  

Karyn Dolan: I've been watching the development of physical trace cases that people like Ted Phillips have been working on. I'm also fascinated by the assortment of anomalies that appear together in some of these cases. The Skinwalker Ranch, that George Knapp and Colm Kelleher wrote about, is a great example of that. Researchers found UFOs and cattle mutilations in conjunction with poltergeist activity and Bigfoot sightings. It proves to me that we can't call ourselves UFO researchers and turn our backs on cryptozoology and other fields; these things are all occurring side by side, and there must be some reason for it, which we'll never discover unless we drop the ego and start focusing on the cases. So many people seem to be adopting an elitist attitude toward this field of study, and it's both silly and self-defeating. Yes, we have to weed out the sad cases of people who don't have real information, but claim to have witnessed UFOs in order to get attention. These people do exist. But we also have to be careful not to dismiss or ignore valuable information.

Richard Thomas: I'm not sure how old your children are but are they showing any signs of becoming interested in either parapolitics or the paranormal at all? Given their para pedigree if I was a betting man I'd put serious money on one or more of them becoming big esoteric stars someday. Would you be happy to see this or is a Dolan dynasty of paranormal and/or parapolitical researchers something your trying to actively discourage? 

Karyn Dolan: I love the term para pedigree; I'm going to have to remember that one! Our son and daughter are both are very comfortable with the fact that there's a lot more to the world than what you can see and touch. They accept the reality of UFOs as a given; if anything, they wonder why anyone would doubt their existence. They've already moved on to the next question, which is where they come from and who's flying them. Both are also very much interested in the spiritual world, with a strong belief in the existence of ghosts, spirits, and psychism. We've experimented occasionally with Zener cards and they both did quite well.

Mike is very much involved with parapolitics, as is noted on our website, keyholepublishing.com. Although he's only thirteen, he belongs to a local environmental group and is also a member of Students for a Democratic Society, and recently attended the G-20 protests in Pittsburgh with them as well as a protest against the war in Afghanistan that was held here in Rochester recently. He's already had experience with tear gas. I have mixed feelings about that; mostly I'm just glad he's home safe, but we're also tremendously proud of him for standing up for what he believes in. 

Our daughter, Elaine, is eleven. She's a very talented musician and filmmaker, and makes a lot of funny animated videos which actually got kudos from someone at the Discovery Channel last year. Both the kids are very talented writers, as well, so I wouldn't be at all surprised to see more books being written in this family. 

Every once in a while, I joke about buying an RV, painting it purple and green like the Mystery Machine on Scooby Doo, and driving it around the country to investigate mysteries. We have a big dog now, and there are four of us, so I guess we could do it. But I guess my cats probably wouldn't enjoy it as much. :-) 

I never try to push the kids into anything. I'll nudge them to try something new and broaden their horizons, but they choose their own interests. I'm pleased to see them pursuing UFO research if this is what grabs them, but I'd be just as pleased to see them in a different field. What matters is that they find the thing that makes them want to jump out of bed in the morning and get back to it, and that's different for everyone. We've homeschooled them both for years, and I think it really helped them learn to think for themselves and make a lot of their own decisions in a way that public schools simply aren't able to do. I have the greatest respect for public school teachers, I just think they're overwhelmed with the amount of work they have to do, and the number of students they have to teach, with limited resources. It's so much easier for me, with only my two, whom I've known since before they were born. We can allow more freedom since we have so much more flexibility. Both of the kids have tried public school, by the way, and excelled at it, though both chose to return to homeschooling.

Richard Thomas: Thanks again Karyn, please tell our readers where they can listen to Through the Keyhole and find any websites or blogs you might have. 

 

Karyn Dolan: Thanks so much for asking me, Richard. It's been a pleasure. Your readers can find out more about me and about my work at keyholepublishing.com/karyndolan. All the information about Through the Keyhole and my guests can be found there, as well as links to listen live or to access the archives. The show airs on the Paranormal Radio Network at paranormalradionetwork.org. Archives can also be found at blackvaultradio.com and on iTunes, by searching for Paranormal Radio Network and selecting Through the Keyhole. As I mentioned earlier, I'm now the Media Relations Director for the International UFO Congress. Information on that organization and their yearly conference in Laughlin, NV, can be found at www.ufocongress.com. 

I also write occasionally for Women of Esoterica, at womenesoterica.blogspot.com. Other contributors to this blog include Regan Lee, Lesley Gunter, and Farah Yurdozu. I'm very pleased to be able to work with such excellent writers. 

And for fun, check out this website, which relates to my day job: I'm an assistant to world-class balloon artist Larry Moss. He calls his work "the fine art of folding air," and you can see his work at www.airigami.com. (I'm trying to get Larry to come to Roswell and fly a balloon UFO over the city.)

READ RICHARD'S ROOM 101 COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

A Room 101 Interview with Richard Dolan

I first discovered Richard Dolan when he was interviewed for BoA: Audio back in 2006. Still studying for my BA at the time, I was impressed by his credentials and quickly got myself a revised edition of his excellent UFOs and the National Security State. That book was covered in tremendous depth during his BoA: Audio appearance, so here we're going to focus a little less on UFOs and get Dolan's thoughts and opinions on some other parapolitical topics instead. Most notably: the Kennedy assassinations, 9/11 and the Terror Wars, secret societies and the New World Order.

  

Richard Thomas: First things first, thank you so much for giving the Room 101 readers the time to answer these questions. I've read both editions of volume one of your book several times and am currently reading volume two, so it's really appreciated.

I was only 15 when 9/11 happened. Looking back on it now, I think that event and, more importantly, its aftermath (the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan) probably played the biggest part in me becoming interested in conspiracy research or parapolitics. When the War in Iraq first began, I was studying Hitler's rise to power for A-Level History and the parallels between what had happened in 1930s Germany and what was happening today, globally, just seemed obvious to me. In particular, how Hitler exploited the Reichstag fire (which he probably started) to make himself dictator and curtail civil liberties.

How do you think you first became interested in parapolitics (I'm guessing the Kennedy assassination probably played a big part) and do you share my concerns about the parallels between the transformation of the Weimar Republic into the Third Reich and what we see in the world today? 

 

Richard Dolan: I think that there are very serious and scary parallels between what is going on today and what happened in Germany during the 1930s. The connection of 9/11 with the Reichstag fire is the obvious example, but there is much more. The existence and promulgation of The Big Lie, for instance. Hitler (and Goebbels) shamelessly exploited the fears of German people by repeating the most absurd lies over and over again, whether these were about the Jews, or about the Versailles Peace Treaty, or numerous other issues – and it worked. Or, I should say, it worked enough for them to have their way. 

Today in the U.S. under Presidents George W. Bush and now Barack Obama, The Big Lie is promoted and peddled to an overstimulated, overworked, and undereducated American public. 9/11 is the linchpin of the entire edifice of deception that has grown around it.

  

My interest in parapolitics developed by degrees during the 1980s and 1990s, during my twenties and thirties. It didn't happen all at once. Even during my teen years, I was always a bit unconventional in my tastes: I was reading Plato and Shakespeare on my own when I was 14 or so and never stopped reading classical philosophy and literature. During my twenties I did a lot of standard political theory: from Hobbes through Locke and Marx and Weber and everything else. I studied the rise of Hitler to an excruciating degree. All of that was fairly 'conventional,' you might say. By the late 1980s, I was reading the essays of Gore Vidal, which was very influential on my thinking. Vidal wrote some outstanding analyses of the American political scene during the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. One, in fact, later inspired the title of my own book: an article he wrote in the late 80s called "The National Security State." His piece was a critique of the Reagan administration, but I ended up taking that phrase as a concept to describe all of post-WWII America.

  

But the early 1990s, around the time I turned 30, I had discovered Noam Chomsky. Rather late in the day, when I look back on this all. Still, better late than never. Chomsky, like Vidal, was very influential on me. Still, his writing stops short of what we would call 'parapolitics.' As anyone who has read him knows, Chomsky doesn't really "do" conspiracies. I have always found this a little strange, as his general "big picture" political analyses is otherwise frequently so very good. He understands how powerful nations and economic entities systematically pillage the world for their own good – and call it "democracy." But perhaps it's because he is in the academic world that he has never taken the final, necessary, step. That is, to recognize not only that the elites "manufacture dissent" and control the very parameters of what most people even think, but that through black-ops and intelligence community manipulation of the academic world and media, are able to create entirely fictitious scenarios – the kind imagined by George Orwell – and pass it off as truth. In other words, the reality of our world is well beyond even the mendaciousness that even Chomsky sees. And that's pretty bad, indeed. 

  

By 1994, when I began studying UFOs seriously, I was still very much in the "Chomsky mindset." During much of the period of writing my first book, UFOs and the National Security State: An Unclassified History, 1941-1973 (later republished with the subtitle Chronology of a Cover-Up), I was in that frame of mind. In other words, that – while there were lots of 'little' conspiracies, I was not a believer in grand conspiracies.

  

It wasn't until I became fascinated by the UFO topic that I became convinced that there was something bigger going on. I continued asking myself why wasn't this topic handled with more seriousness in the mainstream avenues of our society? Why did the universities ignore this topic? Why did the newspapers? After seeing the deep national security connections to the UFO topic, it became clear to me that a real, bona fide conspiracy is going on.

  

Coming to grips with the fact that there was a substantial conspiracy in that arena, it became easier to recognize the existence of other types of conspiratorial activity operating on a grand scale. But all of this took a number of years.

  

Richard Thomas: Lets take a step back in time before we go on. For me, the sheer number of high profile assassinations in the 1960s is reason enough to at least suspect conspiracy: JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X, even Marilyn Monroe died under suspicious circumstances in that decade. Do you think that the same force could have been responsible for these deaths and what are your thoughts on the two Kennedy assassinations in particular? For instance, do you think Sirhan Sirhan could have been a "Manchurian Candidate"? 

  

Richard Dolan: Every one of those assassinations is deeply suspicious, although I confess I've done comparatively little research on the assassination of Malcolm X. Regarding JFK, it is plainly obvious that he was killed in a conspiracy of some sort, most probably involving the CIA. Other researchers have done a vast amount of work on this, much more than I will ever read. Still, it is clear that after you tally up the many pieces of evidence, a conspiracy was involved. Some of these are: 

• the protestations of Kennedy's secret service officer (captured on film) after he was ordered away from the vehicle moments before Kennedy was shot; 

 • the testimony of many eyewitnesses of four or more gunshots being fired at Daley Plaza; the testimony of the Parkland Hospital surgeons, all of whom described a massive exit wound in Kennedy's right parietal lobe – that is, the right side of the back of his head – indicating an entry point from the front of the head and exiting through the back;

• the destruction of JFK's autopsy records;

• the strange connections to the world of intelligence by such innocuous people as Abraham's Zapruder, who filmed the assassination. Zapruder, for instance, employed as his secretary the wife of a man named Georg von Mohenschildt. Mohenschildt was ex-Abwehr, currently working for the CIA – and the handler of Lee Harvey Oswald. Strange coincidences.

  

• Then there is the story of the Warren commission, headed by ex-CIA Dir. Allen Dulles, in which included such up-and-coming stars as Gerald R. Ford.

  

There is so much about the JFK assassination screams conspiracy. 80% of Americans know it was a conspiracy, and 100% of the rest of the world knows it. Yet, the "official" truth is quite otherwise, as we all know.

Regarding Robert Kennedy, yes, this is deeply suspicious. Sirhan Sirhan has never been able credibly to remember the details of the day of the assassination. He kept a diary in the period leading up to the assassination, and I seem to recall that the contents of the diary were very suspicious to investigators, and suggestive of mind control.

  

The technology of mind control is more substantial and goes back much farther than many people realize. There were substantial efforts by the CIA and other agencies from the 1940s onward to find ways of harnessing the human mind. We all know about how the CIA pioneered the use of LSD during the 1950s, but many people forget it was in order to find the ultimate mind control chemical. Advances in hypnosis were also far more profound than is generally believed. 

  

When we are dealing with the national security and intelligence community – which steadfastly refuses to open its records for public viewing – we will always be at a disadvantage. Yet, to paraphrase an old comedy routine: it looks like it, smells like it, feels like it, and tastes like it. 

  

Richard Thomas: Moving back to present times, there's no doubt at all that 9/11 was misused terribly by the Bush/Blair Axis, but I've heard you go a lot further in other interviews. Do you still believe (like me) that 9/11 was an "inside job" and what, for you, is the best smoking gun evidence? In hindsight, aside from the extremely suspicious way the buildings collapsed, the paper passport, supposedly found in the ruins of the WTC, was the first thing that really raised my suspicions. 

  

Richard Dolan: Certainly, finding Mohammad Atta's passport on the street of New York City following the collapse of the towers – in perfect condition – it is eerily reminiscent of the so-called magic bullet being found on JFK's stretcher at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. As everybody in the world knows, the wreckage following the collapse of the World Trade Center towers was almost beyond comprehension. My father, who worked at the World Trade Center for its final seven years – and who thankfully had the day off – told me that his colleagues described the remains afterward as absolutely disgusting. Remember, human body parts were liberally distributed throughout the wreckage. I don't mean to be excessively graphic here, but amidst the explosions, fire, dust, rubble, and dead bodies, how did this passport fall all that distance without suffering any damage? Here's another question: how did it get separated from the body of Mohammed Atta? When you travel, you carry your passport with you. Even for an alleged terrorist, he would, after all, need his passport with them in order to have boarded the plane.

  

But really, the thing that does it for most of us when looking at the evidence of 9/11 is the speed of collapse of the three primary buildings in New York City. All of them dropped at the speed of a brick falling through the air, unimpeded by any resistance. The airliners each struck the North and South towers roughly three quarters of the way up. That means roughly 80 floors of steel below the level of impact. These floors suffered no damage.

  

Here is a simple question. You can make it multiple-choice, if you like. Would 80 floors of steel offer (A) a lot of resistance, (B) some resistance, or (C) no resistance to the speed of collapse of those buildings? Even if they were to offer as little as, say, one second per floor – which really isn't a lot when you think about it – that would still add roughly 80 seconds to the speed of collapse. And yet the North and South Towers collapsed in about 10 seconds. In other words without any measurable resistance whatsoever. This is simply not credible.

  

This point is even more significant for the destruction of Building 7 of the World Trade Center complex. This was a 47-story tall steel frame structure which was hit by no aircraft, although it did suffer damage from the North Tower when that tower collapsed. Yet Building 7 came down seven hours later, also at virtual freefall speed, and also in a pile of dust like the other buildings. 

  

It's important to mention these facts because such cases of building collapse are only consistent with those of controlled demolitions. Indeed, fires had never before (nor since) caused steel frame structures to collapse. Never. And there have been fires far worse even than those which ravaged the World Trade Center buildings. The World Trade Center buildings were not made with design flaws, as some people have tried to argue. They were made competently to say the least, and indeed were designed to withstand multiple impacts of commercial airliners.

  

That's only a beginning, of course. There are so many more questions one can raise, not simply with the New York City aspect of 9/11, but with the Pentagon, Pennsylvania, the fact that NORAD was asleep at the wheel, the connections that existed between members of Al Qaeda, the CIA, and the Pakistani ISI. All of these and more lead us to become very deeply suspicious of what happened on September 11, 2001. 

  

Richard Thomas: What exactly do you mean by the term "inside job?" Do you think 9/11 was a Bush/Cheney led plot or do you believe the Neocons were just small pieces in much larger globalist game of chess? I've heard you talk about the Bilderberg Group a little on certain podcasts, do you think they or other secret or quasi secret groups might have been responsible in some way? 

  

Richard Dolan: I'm glad you asked this because I have maintained for years that to call 9/11 an inside job does not necessarily mean that it was planned out of the Bush/Cheney White House. Any reasonable study of the office of the U.S. presidency shows us that the office has been beholden to international financial interests for many, many years. In my new book, UFOs and the National Security State: The Cover-Up Exposed, 1973-1991, I point out that Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George Herbert Walker Bush all were beholden to financial interests that were vastly more powerful than the office of the President. Indeed, it is not an overstatement to describe David Rockefeller as America's kingmaker for the past half-century. 

  

Therefore, calling 9/11 an inside job is more likely to mean that there are strong international components to it. Also, we must remember the nature of the intelligence world. Not only United States intelligence community, but all intelligence communities tend to operate with little to no public oversight, and have developed relationships among themselves in ways that most people can't even fathom. There are also innumerable rogue elements within the intelligence world. There is a lot of money – a great deal of money – floating around in that world and very little effective oversight. How hard is it to imagine that a powerful rogue group might decide that an event like 9/11 was necessary for them to further certain ends? The U.S. president would be utterly irrelevant in the planning process, and indeed would be a hindrance. The President's job would be simply to go along with the program once everything went down. That, and presumably not to ask too many uncomfortable questions. 

  

Richard Thomas: If Osama Bin Laden wasn't behind 9/11, why do you think we're still in Afghanistan? One of the more alarming things I've heard you talk about in your lectures is that illegal drugs are actually big business, on a par with oil and arms. Do you think this might be the real reason for the continued NATO occupation of Afghanistan? 

  

Richard Dolan: Drug trafficking is unquestionably one of the world's largest businesses. Nobody knows if it's the largest, the second-largest, the third-largest, or even the fourth-largest. You've got weapons, cars, oil, and drugs. Simply because narcotics are illegal doesn't mean that nobody wants all that money. Everybody wants that money, from streetcorner pushers, to police officers on the take, to local public officials, to federal officials, to intelligence agencies, to major banks and financial entities that receive fees for laundering the proceeds. Everybody wants that money. It so happens that the Taliban, for all of their horrible deeds, nevertheless suppressed opium production in Afghanistan during the late 1990s. And it is also true that opium production dramatically rose after the invasion in 2001. 

  

There are other things to note about Afghanistan, however. One is the natural gas pipeline, which had been a dream of leaders of industry and finance for a long time. An enormous amount of natural gas lies to the north of Afghanistan. Getting it to industrial countries like the U.S., is not so easy, however. The idea was to create a pipeline to the sea, compress it into liquid form, and ship it. That's expensive, but in an era of uncertain natural gas availabilities, still an attractive option. If you look at a map of the region, you'll see that a faster, more direct route actually lies to the nation of Iran. But during the late 1990s, Afghanistan seemed to be a more likely route for the pipeline: Afghanistan to Pakistan and then to the sea. Now, that pipeline has had all kinds of problems of construction during these years. Most likely, we can attribute this to the nonstop fighting that has occurred in that country since 2001. Nevertheless, this is a major geopolitical reason for the U.S. presence in that country.

  

Richard Thomas: I suspect getting control of Iraq's oil was the major reason for the Anglo-American 2003 invasion of Iraq, but what do you think of the idea that capturing ancient astronaut technology left behind in the country could have been another reason?

 

Richard Dolan: That idea has been put forth by several researchers, most notably Jim Marrs, who has done some outstanding investigation during his lifetime. It's still hard for me to make my own determination on this thesis, so I'm going to pass on that one for now, except to comment on one thing. This was the systematic plundering of the Baghdad Museum. Most people probably remember this. This was a massive and yet surgical-like looting of perhaps the most important ancient museum in the world. All of this was done under the watchful eye of U.S. troops, and the entire world followed the progress, which lasted several days. If there were ancient secrets to be stolen and exploited, we may presume that they existed within that museum, perhaps within the many secret underground layers that have been rumored to exist.

  

There is no question, however, that international financial groups have wanted to privatize Iraq's oil for many years. Indeed, David Rockefeller himself met with Saddam Hussein during the late 1980s to try to make that happen. Also, representatives of Kissinger Associates. Back in the bad old days of Saddam, all that oil was owned and controlled by the Iraqi government. That meant that, yes, Saddam and his family could skim and live like kings, but it also meant that the oil paid for the Iraqi infrastructure: hospitals, schools, roads, and so on. 

  

The problem, however, from the point of view of international finance, was very simple. They did not own that oil, and hence could derive no profit from it. After the Gulf War of 1991, Saddam's government retained control over the Iraqi oil fields. However, after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, all changed. It's one of the great, unremarked stories of our time how the Iraqi oil has now gone over to multinational – that is private – control.

   

Well, not unremarked upon in Iraq, of course. Those people know full well what has been going on. 

Richard Thomas: 9/11 was eight years ago and Bush as well as Blair are long gone. Do you share my concerns that the general public seem to think President Obama, in and of himself, is some kind of resolution to the last eight years, even though Obama has actually only expanded the War in Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan? Also, have you seen Alex Jones' latest film the Obama Deception and, if so, what are your thoughts on it? 

  

Richard Dolan: I think The Obama Deception is a fine piece of journalism. Barak Obama campaigned on a platform of "change you can believe in." But as you suggest, there has been no change. One journalist recently made the apt remark: "want to know what Bush's third term would have looked like? You're living it." And it's true that Obama's major policies are all extensions of what we were seeing under George W. Bush. From the expansion of the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan, to the trillion dollar "stimulus package" for which there is no money to pay, to the ever-increasing power of federal agencies to spy on citizens, and especially to the increasing speed of the creation of a kind of global hegemony by financial elites. One fact pointed out in the Obama Deception was how this current administration is dominated by Wall Street finance to a greater degree than any previous U.S. presidency. All of Barack Obama's top advisors come from Wall Street.

  

Barack Obama attended, along with Hillary Clinton by the way, the 2008 Bilderberg Group meeting. This is now an open secret. It should be clear to anyone who has done some investigation on this that Barack Obama became President in order to clean up America's dirty face. To give America a better public image. To give the appearance of change, while moving full speed ahead with the actual agenda, which includes globalization, stripping away of personal privacy, and the continued privatization to select hands of the resources that matter: oil, water, and so on. 

  

Richard Thomas: Speaking of Alex Jones, in his film Endgame, he documents the dark history of Eugenics and argues that the whole point of the New World Order super-state being constructed is to carry out Eugenics on an unprecedented global scale. The elimination of at least 80% of the world population and the transformation of the global elite into super beings via the merger with advanced technology. 

I know you have at least some interest in Transhumanism and what is called the Technological Singularity (as do I) so what do you think of Jones' Endgame scenario and assertion that Transhumanists are crypto Eugenicists? 

 

Also, do you think we need some kind of international law or agreement to insure the technology involved in creating a Trans or Post-human is not abused?

  

Richard Dolan: I think all of these points are valid and there needs to be a greater public discussion about it. Our technology is evolving so rapidly, and I'm afraid our ability to grasp the implications of what we are doing is continually lagging far behind. We have now deciphered the human genome. We are very close to having advanced nanotechnology. The combination of those two sciences can mean all kinds of things. It could mean a virtual utopia for all human beings, provided that such technology were used for the benefit of humanity at large. 

   

And yet, we must assume that those individuals who have hitherto been "Masters of the Universe" would have no desire to for this outcome. It isn't hard for them – or for most of us, for that matter – to see that we are in the midst of a dangerous population explosion. We are sucking down global resources at a rate that is probably not sustainable. A mere century ago there were about 2 billion people in this world. We are now approaching 7 billion people, with each person using vastly more natural resources than did our ancestors. It's almost certainly not sustainable in the long term. 

  

The global elites who are creating this new world system presumably see this and more. They also see the opportunity of creating their own form of Utopia. Most of us, unfortunately, are standing in their way. 

  

Richard Thomas: While on the topics of Eugenics and population reduction, like me, will you be refusing any compulsory Swine Flu vaccination or are you unconcerned? Also, do you give any credence to the idea that Swine Flu could be some kind of manmade bioweapon? 

  

Richard Dolan: There is no way that I will allow anyone to poke me or members of my family with a swine flu vaccination. There are too many risks associated with the vaccination that have already come to light. We don't do many medications in my house, anyway. I'll stick to my carrot juice, thank you very much.

  

As to whether or not the current swine flu is a bio weapon, I'll wait until I encounter tangible evidence before I make a strong statement about. But this is the kind of thing has been done before. We know for sure that U.S. military and intelligence groups have played games with diseases in the past. This goes back to the 1940s and 50s at the least. Indeed, the anthrax scare of 2001 has now been traced to Fort Detrick Maryland. I assume most people can readily understand what that means. 

  

Richard Thomas: Somewhat disturbingly, of course, the idea of using advanced technology to create a new superspecies isn't too far removed from David Jacobs' hybrid theories as outlined in The Threat. Also, we can't really talk about human-alien hybridisation and the New World Order without at least mentioning David Icke's extremely controversial reptilian ideas.

  

I suppose my question is do you think the alien agenda and the New World Order endgame could in fact be one and the same, or, to put it another way, could the aliens be the secret rulers of the world? If so, how old do you think this conspiracy could be: for instance, do you think it's possible mankind could be their creation?

  

Richard Dolan: With questions like these, we naturally enter a realm of speculation. Jacobs' theory does have a certain compatibility with what you're talking about. The real question is, if there has been a long-standing alien presence on our world in some form or another, have they been manipulating us? Although definitive proof eludes us, there are suggestive reasons for thinking this is the case. 

  

One of my friends, Colleen Clements, who has a PhD and formerly taught at the Rochester Institute of Technology, has written a number of books that suggest this scenario. If so, if we have been "developed" in some way, it's not much of a stretch to assume that these other beings would consider us something of an investment. Would they want to control, at least in broad terms, our social and political and intellectual development? Might they be doing so now? These are the themes that people like David Icke discuss, and as crazy as they sound to the uninitiated, responsible investigators are obligated to inquire. We may not have answers easily forthcoming. But when you are doing an investigation, you have to do it honestly and courageously. You can't rule things out because they seem absurd to you at first glance. You have to look at the facts and decide what scenarios fit within those facts. 

  

Richard Thomas: We've discussed some deeply dark and scary topics in this interview do you have any solutions to the problems the world faces that our readers can put into practice? 

  

Richard Dolan: We all need to keep in mind that human history is filled with crisis and suffering. There has been no period, ever, in our history in which people did not face serious difficulties and even questions concerning their very survival. It's nothing new.

  

For all people, at all times, facing difficulties requires a kind of calm courage. You have to stay calm in order to learn the facts that you need to know. And you have to be brave. I've come to see our life as something akin to flying a glider plane through a hurricane. It's a hell of a wild ride, and at the end of it we all crash and burn. There is no way out of that. So what we have to do is first accept the hurricane, and secondly experience all that we can from it – learn from it, and enjoy whatever we can along the way. Because that's our life.

  

We have been handed this precious gift. We could just as easily not exist at all. And yet here we are. What do we choose to do with this existence of ours? Sadly, most people basically throw it away. But for every person there is the opportunity to begin the long journey of expanding their awareness and consciousness. It is only through heightened awareness of ourselves and our world that we can find meaning in what we do, and organize with each other to the extent that we can actually effect positive change. 

  

To put it another way, most of us sleepwalk our way through life. Now it is time to wake up. 

 

Richard Thomas: Thanks again Rich, please tell our readers how they can get signed copies of both volumes I and II of UFOs and the National Security State and when they may expect to see Volume III? 

  

Richard Dolan: My books are available at my website: keyholepublishing.com. I sign all copies of books that are sold directly from my website. Of course the books are also available at Amazon.com. 

I do not expect the third volume of my history to take nearly as long as it took for the second one to appear. Nearly all of the research for volume 3 is already completed. I think two to three years is reasonable to expect. At that point I will have completed a three-volume, 1,600-page history of UFOs. Even now, it surprises me when I think about it. I've enjoyed this journey of mine, of delving into this topic and having the opportunity to learn the things I've learned, and to communicate what I've learned to other people. There is still a long way to go, and there is still a great deal for me to learn. I want to live long enough to make some real progress on this issue.

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