Aliens at Pittsburg

The following guest article is by Rupert Matthews, author of the book Roswell.

-----------------

Aliens at Pittsburg
By Rupert Matthews

Perhaps the first case of a close encounter of the third kind to be made at the time it happened, rather than in retrospect, occured on 25 August 1952. William Squyres, a radio worker in Pittsburg, Kansas, was driving to work through farmland at 5.30am along Highway 60. As he drove he saw something odd in a pasture field that usually held cattle. As he drew closer he saw the object was silvery grey in colour, about 70 feet across and 12 feet high. It was shaped, Squyres said, rather like two soup bowls placed rim to rim and then flattened somewhat.

Squyres drove up until he was alongside the field and only about 100 yards from the object. He then stopped his car and studied the object more clsoely. He could now see that the underside of the object had a faint bluish glow to it. Around the edge of the object was a rim or walkway. From this rose a number of vertical poles, each topped by what seemed to be a spinning propeller. The object was making a dull, throbbing noise.

At one end of the object there were what seemed to be opaque windows through which indistinct objects could be seen moving. At the other end was a completely clear window through which could be seen a man apparently fiddling with controls or instruments. So far as Squyres could make out, the man was entirely human.

Fascinated, Squyres got out of his car to get a better look. Instantly the object began to rise vertically, the throbbing noise increasing in volume as it did so. The object continued to rise slowly for some seconds, then suddenly accelerated and flew off at high speed.

Squyres reported the incident to the USAF in case he had seen some sort of advanced foreign aircraft. An Air Force officer turned up a couple of days later and asked to be shown the site. He found that in the centre of the field the long grass had been squashed flat in a circle about 60 feet in diameter. The grass stems had all been bent over, not broken, and formed a swirling spiral pattern. The officer collected samples of grass and soil and sent them off for analysis - which later found nothing at all unusual.

The sighting of the UFO was in many ways routine and shows many of the usual features of a close encounter of the second kind. The sighting of a pilot for the UFO inclined the Blue Book investigator to put the incident down as an hallucination, if it had not been for the flattened grass. In the event it was put down as unexplained.
 
 

Rupert Matthews is the author of the book Roswell which is available on Amazon and from all good bookshops. You can find Rupert’s website at www.rupertmatthews.com. He also maintains a blog about the unexplained at www.ghosthunteratlarge.blogspot.com.

The Dr. Enrique Botta UFO case

The following guest article is by Rupert Matthews, author of the book Roswell.

-----------------

The Botta Alien
By Rupert Matthews

 

Dr. Enrique Botta in 1950, though he did not talk publicly about the event until 1955 when persuaded to do so by friends. Botta was a former pilot aged about 40 who was in 1950 employed as an engineer working on a construction project in the rural area of Bahia Blanca some 75 miles from Caracas.

 

Botta was driving back to his hotel one evening when he saw a strange object resting in a field. He stopped the car to get a better look. The object was shaped like a domed disc made of a silvery metal. It had no legs or landing gear and seemed to be resting slightly askew. There was an open door on one side.

 

Getting out of his car, Botta walked over the field toward the object and peered through the door. Inside he could see a small, empty room lit by a vague glow and a flashing red light. As Botta touched the object he noticed that although it looked as if it were made of metal, the skin of the craft had a jelly-like softness. Walking inside, Botta passed to a second, much  larger room.

 

In that room Botta saw a curved bench or sofa on which sat three figures facing away from him. Each figure was about four feet tall and dressed in a tight-fitting overall that reached to the neck. The heads were rather large and looked bald.

 

Botta stopped in alarm, but when the figures took no notice of him he approached them. As he got close he saw that the three figures were facing what he assumed to be a control panel. It was filled with guages, lights and what seemed to be meters. Above the panel floated a transparent sphere which rotated slowly.

 

As the figures still took no notice of him, Botta reached out and touched one. The humanoid was rigid and hard, while the skin had the texture of charred wood. Believing that the beings were dead, Botta fled. He dashed to his car and drove off to the hotel where he and fellow engineers working on the project were staying.

 

Botta blurted out his story to his two closest colleagues. One of these men had a gun he used for hunting, and suggested that all three men should return to the craft to inspect it further. It was by now dark, so the three men decided to go in the morning.

 

Next day the three men drove back to the site of the encounter, but the disc-shaped craft had gone. All that was left was a small pile of ashes. One of Botta’s friends stooped to touch it, but found it was hot and his hand turned purple, so he dropped the ash. Botta, meanwhile, had spotted a UFO circling high overhead. It was shaped like a cigar and pulsed with a red glow. After a few minutes it flew off and the men were left alone.

 

The encounter was not yet over. Later that day Botta collapsed with a fever and was rushed to hospital. His skin came up in a rash and began to blister. A test showed no sign of radiation and the doctors thought that a very severe case of sunburn was the most likely explanation, although Botta had not been out in the sun much due to his work. Botta recovered after a few days and returned to work. He decided not to talk about the incident, but later as news of UFO sightings became more common in South America decided to speak out.

  

   

Rupert Matthews is the author of the book Roswell which is available on Amazon and from all good bookshops. You can find Rupert’s website at www.rupertmatthews.com. He also maintains a blog about the unexplained at www.ghosthunteratlarge.blogspot.com.
 

A Room 101 Interview with Keith Chester: Author of Strange Company - Military Encounters with UFOs in WWII

Almost every book I've ever read dealing with UFOs seems to start with either Kenneth Arnold's June 24, 1947 sighting, or the early July 1947 Roswell Incident. Sometimes there's a brief mention of the foo fighters from WWII too, and better-researched histories might mention the ghost aircraft of WWI or even the phantom airships that made headlines across the United States in the late 19th century. But Keith Chester's Strange Company- Military Encounters with UFOs in WWII is the first book I've come across that exclusively deals with pre-1947 sightings. What follows is an interview with Keith Chester about his unique book and research.

Richard Thomas: Just wanted to start by saying thanks for doing the interview, I remember your appearance on BoA: Audio back in 2007 and you've been on my list of people I'd like to interview for a while now. I know your book Strange Company mainly focuses on "military encounters with UFOs in WWII" and it's slightly off topic, but with the recent passing of Zecharia Sitchin what's your take on the ancient astronaut hypotheses, that is that aliens have been visiting the earth for thousands perhaps even millions of years and might have even played some kind of major role in mankind's genetic and/or technological evolution?

Keith Chester: Richard, glad we're communicating with one another. I have entertained the ancient astronaut hypothesis since the late 1960s, when I was first introduced to the topic by Erich von Däniken's work, especially after seeing the 1973 documentary, In Search of Ancient Astronauts. That film really got me thinking and I remember being fascinated by the possibility that Earth had been visited by extraterrestrials. I didn't start reading any of Sitchin's works until the late 1980s. It was his scholarly approach that attracted my attention. It seemed he had taken the subject matter to the next level. Whether Sitchin interpreted his research findings accurately, I don't know. But, for me, that really does not matter. The ancient astronaut hypothesis was one of the first subjects I discovered as a kid that excited me about the unknown. It was one of the first times I remember learning of such an idea. It inspired me to think outside the box. More importantly, it was responsible for my interest in the UFO phenomenon, of which I'm still passionately interested in studying. I have a very open mind regarding such concepts. That said, I must point out, however, it is important to keep myself grounded by a dose of healthy scepticism, and not fall prey to unfounded faith and belief systems. So, the ancient astronaut hypothesis can't be ignored.

Richard Thomas: Probably the most famous UFOs reported during WWII were the "foo fighters," what do you think these odd balls of light represented?

Keith Chester: When the foo fighters were reported, it was thought by most all they were some kind of secret German technology. Many reports seem to indicate the objects could be explained by a multitude of conventional explanations, such as rockets, flares, balloons and jets. Though the intelligence memoranda indicated the foo fighters were conventional objects, as the war progressed, and the sighting reports kept coming in, allied intelligence could not confirm what these objects were. Aircraft, some absolutely huge in size, that could hover, travel at phenomenal speeds, and conduct seemingly impossible manoeuvres, are mystifying. In fact, after the war ended in Europe and the sighting continued in the Pacific theater of operations, there were still no answers.

The objects seemed to have come right from the pages of science fiction.

The problem is that these incredible sightings are not available in the official documentation. That means we have to take the word of the veterans. And I am in no position to tell them that they are fools, were drunk, poor observers, or were suffering from war nerves. Some of the veterans I spoke with felt the objects were unconventional, meaning they defied known conventional technology of the day.

At this time, I don't see conventional explanations for some of the more remarkable sightings and am willing to entertain an extraterrestrial hypothesis.

Richard Thomas: Perhaps the most famous UFO sighting during WWII has to be the 1941 Los Angeles Air Raid, what do the official files say about the incident also known as the Battle of Los Angeles?

Keith Chester: The official documentation indicates something real was observed. Whatever these objects were, and aside from the civilian accounts, the military witness accounts varied dramatically; some observers witnessed one object, while others witnessed multiple objects. Descriptions of size, shape, speed, and color also varied. We know the anti-aircraft batteries opened fire. We have a dramatic photograph that appears to reveal an object caught in the crosshairs of several searchlights.

And we know a report was made and passed to President Roosevelt concerning the event. In 1942, due to Pearl Harbor, the United States, especially the east and west coasts, were on edge. Official thoughts about what occurred in those early hours on February 25, 1942, ranged from war nerves to a psychological warfare exercise. But, to my knowledge, there has been no official documents released that reveal what happened.

Richard Thomas: In Timothy Good's latest book, Need To Know, the best-selling UFO author writes about an alleged 1933 UFO crash recovery in Milan, Italy, and the subsequent creation of a top-secret UFO group - Gabinetto RS/33 - to study "unknown aircraft." In my 2008 interview with Good he also mentioned that "Other governments – that of Sweden in particular – also became concerned about intrusions of strange flying machines that year," have you come across any other stories of pre-Roswell crashes and how significant do you think the RS/33 documents are for UFO studies?

Keith Chester: Starting in 1933, Sweden, Finland, and Norway were being over-flown by unknown objects. This was the first time known official military investigations were initiated relating to aerial phenomena. It was a time in UFO history known as the "Scandinavian Sightings." Known in the press as "ghost aviators" and "phantom fliers," the reports ranged from lights in the sky to craft with propellers. Though the objects seemed conventional, there were several issues that puzzled Military authorities. They were unable to establish how such flights could occur over rough mountainous regions in harsh weather, including blinding snow storms, especially since most all aircraft flying in the early 1930s were bi-planes. The authorities were further puzzled over the skill needed to operate in such conditions, since it exceeded that of Europe's best-known pilots. Unless Russia or Germany, or both countries, were operating very secret and advanced aircraft, then some of the sightings defied conventional wisdom. And that is the primary reason these objects remained a mystery.

Regarding the Italian documents, if real, they are definitely significant. I have not seen any documentation during my research that indicates any crash and retrieval operations took place during the war. I am, however, open-minded about such a possibility.

Richard Thomas: The newspaper headlines from the late 1940s speak of "flying disks" and "ghost rockets" but the idea that UFOs might be from outer space didn't really gain popularity until Major Donald Keyhoe's 1949 article in Fate magazine, "The Flying Saucers Are Real," which in 1950 Keyhoe expanded into his best selling book. (Although, I know Mussolini made some odd comments (probably just in jest) about the "warlike inhabitants of the planet Mars" in a speech once.) Do any of the pre-1947 UFO files you've looked at indicate the Allies thought UFOs might represent something other than Axis weapons or experimental aircraft or vice versa even?

Keith Chester: During WWII, the first, and foremost, thoughts by allied air intelligence were the sightings represented enemy technology, after satisfactorily ruling out conventional ordnance and other possibilities. If the sightings were not misidentifications of conventional weaponry, meteorological and celestial phenomena, war nerves, or secret axis weaponry, then there is reason to suggest an extraterrestrial explanation was explored.

I feel the most important document uncovered that strengthens the case that unconventional aircraft were observed comes from a document discovered by British researchers, Dr David Clarke and Andy Roberts, in the National Archives in London. Over Turin, Italy on November 28/29, an "object , 200-300 feet long, travelling up to 500 mph, with "four red lights spaced at equal distance along its body, " was reported by Lancaster bomber crew. What gives this report real strength that something very unusual was observed appears in a follow-up report to Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command by No. 5 Group: "Herewith a copy of a report received from a crew of a Lancaster after raid on Turin. The crew refuses to be shaken in their story in the face of the usual banter." No. 5 Group's statement to Bomber Command is very telling in that it reveals the aircrew reports were not well received by the air intelligence men debriefing them. The reports were too unbelievable. And this is very important.

The intelligence memoranda I uncovered reveals confusion existed at the highest military levels. When reading some of these reports, of which many excerpts are included in my book, one can clearly see the struggle to find conventional answers for the sightings. It's as if the sightings were lifted from the pages of pulp science fiction; truly "Buck Rogers" and "Flash Gordon" material. When these intelligence reports are combined with the witness testimony, not included in the official reports, and are viewed as a collective whole, then the overall picture changes, thus strengthening the extraterrestrial hypothesis. This gives what I've assembled in my book its power. This is what I'm hoping the reader of my book will appreciate.

Richard Thomas: In his book The Hunt for Zero Point, Jane's Defence Weekly journalist Nick Cook speculates that "anti-gravity" aircraft technology captured from the Nazis by the United States during WWII might be responsible for UFO sightings in the post-war era. What are your thoughts on what Cook calls "the legend" in his book, and how strong in your opinion is the evidence for Nazi flying saucers? Also have you looked into the Nazi "bell" device in Joseph P. Farrell's The SS Brotherhood of the Bell at all?

Keith Chester: If I understand "the legend," correctly, it is basically the accumulation of documents and testimony that collectively address a subject, such as the Nazi UFO story, but when each piece of information is scrutinized, one finds out that particular piece of information is either false or can't be verified, thus becoming what is considered, in the industry, "the legend."

When I read Nick Cook's book, The Hunt for Zero Point, I was fascinated. I knew little about the anti-gravity subject. "The Hunt" grabbed my attention and I wanted to learn more about the story. I found Cook's investigation fascinating and I definitely began to question if such a breakthrough in anti-gravity had occurred. Aeronautics and aeronautic applications, such as anti-gravity, is a subject matter related to Cook's field of expertise, so for him to become interested in following the alleged "Bell" story, I felt compelled to follow his journey. Farrell's research adds a new layer of information to the "Bell" investigation. I must say, though, both Cook and Farrell, and others, have helped open awareness to a possibility that is pretty interesting.

Richard Thomas: What do you think were the most impressive UFO sightings documented in your book, and are there any cases you learned of after publishing you wish you could go back and include now? The WWII RAF sighting that supposedly resulted in PM Winston Churchill calling for a cover-up perhaps?

Keith Chester: For me, the most impressive sightings are those provided by the witnesses. Again, this is information that has not been verified. The most spectacular sightings, for me, were: A June 25, 1942 when a large circular object with high manoeuvrability was fired upon by an RAF bomber crew; A May 28/29 1943 sighting of a cylindrical object with portholes, hanging motionless and then speeding away at thousands of miles per hour; August 12, 1944 similar type sighting; November 1944 sighting of a circular object that some of the crew felt its heat and followed their bomber for 50 minutes; 1945 sighting of small several circular objects low above the ground, moving silently at low altitude; and, of course, Leonard Stringfield's daytime sighting of three tear-drop shaped objects flying in formation, possible causing malfunction to his aircraft.

The latest release of documents pertaining to one of Prime Minister Winston Churchill's RAF bodyguards, who claimed he heard a discussion between Churchill and General Eisenhower discuss remarkable UFO encounters is very interesting. Unfortunately, the new documents are only those generated by the RAF bodyguard's grandson, wanting information from the British government.

Since publication of my book, I have not located more documentation, but I'm still actively searching.

Richard Thomas: Thanks for doing the interview Keith, where can readers buy the book, and have you got a website or anything else you would like to plug?

Keith Chester: Richard, thanks for giving me the opportunity to have this interview. I enjoyed it. For those interested in my book, you can get it online from Anomalist Books. It can also be ordered from Amazon.com and at your local books stores, including Barnes and Noble and Borders, along with their on-line sites. You can find my web blog at keith-chester.blogspot.com.

READ RICHARD'S ROOM 101 COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

Readers' UFO sightings

This is where I’ll be posting readers' UFO sightings.

"The only sighting I had was 1 year ago it was night at 10 or 11pm, I was at the top floor of our new house when I saw 2 flashing red lights following a plane, at first I thought they were the plane lights, but then they started moving away from the plane then they moved to the right then left again and kept doing that for a while then suddenly disappeared, I’ve never seen an air craft that moves from right to left for almost a minute then disappear suddenly, I told my brother and my family but they didn’t believe me, I hope I see it again, next time I’ll use my camera like the tons of videos on You Tube uploaded every day."

 Mohammed from Cairo, Egypt

"Briefly, in 2007 I took a sequence of photographs (6 in total) - at the end of July from my lounge window in Lockerbie, Scotland, of UFO's and a Mother Star ship in the sky. It is too long to inform you about all of the facts of that night and the night after, just to say that I submitted my photographs to an American Scientist who deals in UFO's - (Extra terrestrial in nature) - and he has informed me that, in his opinion, my photographs look like a "unique floating city in the sky" and from which there is a large amount of data to be gleaned. Since then I have had other sightings."

Lisa from Northumberland, England

If you’ve had a UFO sighting you’d like to share please contact Richard Thomas at richard@richardthomas.eu.

Silvery-white over Swansea

I saw my first UFO in Swansea Bay, an inlet of the Bristol Channel, in January 2003. I was about 17 years old at the time and my father was driving me and my younger brother home from town along the Mumbles Road, Swansea. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the exact time of the sighting, but it was probably the early afternoon. It was definitely still very light outside.

While we were stopped at a red light, my eyes turned to the relatively cloudless sky and I saw what at first glance I took to be an aeroplane. I quickly realised, by the strange way the object was moving, that it could not have been. As well as being very curious, I remember getting a bit scared at this point because I really did not know what I was looking at.

The object was moving up and down diagonally from right to left over and over again in the sky. It was a shining white line or rod, almost silver in parts, and appeared to have small round lights spaced out equally in a horizontal line along the centre of its body. I got the impression that the lights were moving around the object.

After registering that what I was looking at was very odd, I pointed the strange moving object out to my father and younger brother. For some reason it took them both a little while to find the object in the sky. After watching and discussing this unusual object among ourselves for a couple of minuets, the traffic light turned green again and we began to move off. As we were moving away, I continued to watch the object for another minuet or so until, most strangely of all, the object suddenly disappeared in a silver flash.

A few weeks later, on February 1, 2003 (the same day as the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster), me and my younger brother had a second daylight sighting - very different to the first. This was of a yellow and orange fireball and was probably just a conventional meteor.

Whatever these two sightings were, they definitely had a very real and lasting effect on me and were chiefly responsible for my general interest in UFOs turning supernova. Back then I think I only had two or three books on UFOs but now I have a bookcase full, so these sightings definitely fuelled the flames of my interest in a big way.

A Room 101 Interview with Mark Pilkington

Is it possible that instead of perpetrating a UFO cover-up the US intelligence agencies have really been promoting ideas like alien abductions, UFO crashes and recoveries, and secret bases all along? That’s what Mark Pilkington alleges in his controversial new book, Mirage Men: A Journey in Disinformation, Paranoia and UFOs. Sceptical but putting nothing past the US military-industrial complex I decided to actually read the book a lot of UFOlogists will try and ignore. Impressed, if not convinced, I decided to get in touch with Mark Pilkington to ask the author a few questions.

Richard Thomas: First things first. Thank you for giving us the time to answer these questions, I really appreciate it and I’m sure our readers will too.

Reading the book you're obviously a lot more sceptical about UFOs or to be more precise the ETH than you were when you first got interested in the subject. How did you first become interested in UFOs and how has your view of the phenomenon evolved since that time, and why?

Mark Pilkington: I've been interested in Fortean phenomena all my life – HG Wells' War of the Worlds was my favourite book aged about 7 or 8 and I grew up reading 2000AD (the British SF comic) and as much SF, fantasy and horror as I could get my mitts on. I found my first copy of Fortean Times in the mid-1980s aged about 13 and read Timothy Good's Above Top Secret when I was 14 in 1987. UFOs always appealed to me because they seemed to be the most accessible form of anomalous phenomena – you could look up at the night sky wherever you were and imagine seeing one.

I'm not sceptical about UFOs themselves – people see them every day – nor am I sceptical of the existence of ET life, I believe it's out there, and I can accept that it will come here and perhaps even has done at some point in our past. What I *am* very sceptical of is the popular notion of ET visitation as presented in the UFO lore that has emerged since the late 1940s. This has developed out of a multi-directional feedback loop between UFO experiencers, UFO book authors, mainstream popular culture and those in the military and intelligence worlds who would exploit and shape these beliefs and ideas.

Each era gets the UFOs and ETs that it desires, they are a culturally constructed phenomenon. In the book I demonstrate, for example, that there's nothing alien about flying saucers, which were synonymous with ET visitation from the 1950s through to the 1970s. Whether or not the Germans, British or Americans ever successfully flew disc craft at great speed, they certainly tried, as far back as the 1930s. Perhaps they did fly but were less useful than more conventional types of aircraft.

Richard Thomas: You write early in the book about some UFO sightings of your own you had (or thought you had) when you were younger. What did you see and is there any doubt at all in your mind that these weren’t anonymous like you originally thought?

Mark Pilkington: I open the book with a sighting of three silver spheres seen by myself and two friends in Yosemite national park in 1995. I still have no idea what these were, though I'm still confident that they weren't balloons. I actually tried to track down my companions, who I've since lost touch with, to ask them to send me their memories of what we saw, as I thought it would be a fascinating demonstration of the fallibility of memory if they described something entirely mundane or different. If I hear from them I will certainly publish their stories on the Mirage Men blog. As I point out in the book, silver spheres were seen at least as far back as WWII, and are still reported to this day. I have no idea what the things we saw were.

Richard Thomas: I haven’t looked into it much but after I read the back of your book I automatically thought of Project Blue Beam, a conspiracy theory on the web that the US Government are planning on staging a fake alien invasion to bring about a global police state. Do you think there might just be a seed of truth to such paranoid thinking?

Mark Pilkington: The earliest version of this story I know of is a speech made by British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden to the UN in March 1947, in which he posits that an invasion by Martians would be the only thing that might unite the world's nations. Of course the Roswell incident took place four months later, something that was picked up on by former intelligence agent Bernard Newman in his 1948 novel The Flying Saucer. In which scientists stage a fake invasion to bring about world peace.

Reagan famously alluded to the idea again in 1987, also talking to the UN. It's a common motif in science fiction - I was recently pointed to an Outer Limits episode, “The Architects of Fear,” which follows the same premise. There are rumours that Wernher von Braun believed that a false ET invasion was on the cards, and it's something that UFO researcher and Manhattan Project scientist Leon Davidson also talked about in the 1960s referring to the contactees, who he thought were being deceived in elaborate setups by the intelligence agencies. It's a very appealing idea whether true or not.

I think it's a reflection on our times that the Blue Beam story uses the same premise to warn of an impending global police state, rather than world peace!

Richard Thomas: Briefly as possible who exactly are the “Mirage Men” and how did you first become aware of them?

Mark Pilkington: Ultimately everyone who talks or writes about UFOs become Mirage Men as their stories influence the field. In the book I'm specifically referring to those people from military and intelligence organisations who have used the UFO lore as a cover for their operations and, in extreme cases, have seeded new material within the UFO culture to further muddy the waters.

Richard Thomas: Perhaps the best evidence for UFOs are radar reports, but in the book you explain quite convincingly how such evidence might not be as convincing as researchers originally thought. Could you explain why this is to the readers, and what this might mean?

Mark Pilkington: Yes I talk about the Palladium system for spoofing radar returns, which I stumbled upon by accident while reading James Bamford's NSA biography Body of Secrets. By the mid 1960s this had got very sophisticated and was being used by the NSA and CIA. It was used with drones for example, to create the impression of much larger aircraft. I later found out that Leon Davidson had talked about the technology in the late 1950s, with reference to the famous 1952 Washington DC UFO overflights.

The radar ghosting phenomenon was actually first observed in 1945. By the mid-late 1950s the technology to create them was being used to train radar operators in the civilian domain. So the circumstantial evidence that the 1952 UFO wave was a demonstration of *somebody's* radar spoofing abilities is quite compelling.

Richard Thomas: In Nick Redfern’s book, Body Snatchers in the Desert: The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story. he speculates that horrific Cold War experiments carried out on Japanese prisoners of war might be the truth behind the saucer crash story. Do you think the US Government are using the UFO lore to cover-up this and similar crimes, or, do the “Mirage Men” have other motives?

Mark Pilkington: I don't know what happened at Roswell, and the story has grown far too convoluted now ever to be satisfactorily resolved. Nick Redfern and I certainly think along similar lines at times and aspects of his Body Snatchers theory are quite convincing. We have to remember that the years following World War II were difficult and often desperate. The threat of Soviet infiltration and/or atomic annihilation was extremely serious, and the US government, like those of every nation, was prepared to do awful things to maintain the status quo.

The point about Roswell is that *whatever* came down, whether it was a Mogul balloon or something more exotic, the saucer deception worked – nobody took the blindest bit of interest in the Roswell story for at least 30 years, though someone in the military and or intelligence world appears to have been promoting saucer crash stories as early as 1950.

So in that respect Walter Haut and the others who put out first the flying saucer, then the weather balloon press releases are amongst the first Mirage Men that we can identify. As an aside, William Davidson and Frank Brown, the two Air Force Intelligence agents who died while investigating Kenneth Arnold in Tacoma, Washington, should also be added to that roll of honour.

Richard Thomas: The idea that the US intelligence agencies might have encouraged or perhaps even invented much of the UFO canon, i.e., crashed saucers, recovered ET hardware and bodies, etc, I’m sure will be rejected out of hand by most UFO researchers. Why do you think this is?

Mark Pilkington: Some prominent researchers have invested a huge amount of time, energy and credibility in believing and promoting the ETH and tales of an attendant cover-up. It will probably be harder for some of them to consider the ideas I present in Mirage Men without prejudice, though the positions certainly aren't mutually exclusive.

But, as Leon Festinger showed in his book When Prophecy Fails, there's a strange effect that when someone's deeply-held beliefs are challenged or shown to be delusional, especially when issues of credibility are at stake, rather than accept a new set of beliefs, they will cling more strongly to the old ones, reinforcing them with increasingly warped logic. Festinger studied a 1950s UFO group and his findings are just as relevant today as they ever were.

I'm just putting forward my take on a very complex story. I wrote Mirage Men to be an outward-looking book that would interest people outside of the UFO community, I also wanted to present a reasonable and responsible critique of the mainstream ETH to those who are already well-versed with the UFO lore. Most people who have contacted me seem to agree that I've done a decent job of this, though there's also been some hate mail. Generally I think I've only succeeded if I find myself take flak from both sides of the sceptical divide!

Personally speaking, I have no problem with people believing anything they like, as long as others aren't being exploited, harmed or prejudiced against as a result those beliefs. Taken literally, I think beliefs in ET visitation are actually more logical than those of any of the major religions for example.

Most UFO beliefs are quite harmless, even positive, though I think it's a shame that some people use them as a means to undermine human ability and potential, for example suggesting that advanced technologies or the feats of ancient cultures can only be attributed to aliens rather than human ingenuity.

Richard Thomas: What would your answer be to people who say that too many honest and credible witnesses have reported seeing phenomena that Earthly explanations just can’t explain?

Mark Pilkington: I accept that there are always going to be cases that refuse to give up their mysteries under even the most focused scrutiny, and in those instances it's ultimately going to come down to what people prefer to believe.

I'm fascinated by the 1980 Cash-Landrum incident for example. If even half of that incident was accurately reported by the witnesses then there are either some remarkably advanced toys in the human arsenal, or we really have been borrowing, or stealing them from someone else.

Some of my friends have had some really spectacular and bizarre UFO sightings, but personally I just don't see the need to invoke the extraterrestrial hypothesis. As military analysts have pointed out since the late 1940s, the patterns of behaviour ascribed to UFOs make no sense as part of a surveillance or invasion plan. Meanwhile if some secret cabal has been negotiating with the aliens, then what have they got to show for it? Where are the technological leaps or anomalies?

I've been reading Paul Hill's Unconventional Flying Objects. Although himself an ET believer, Hill, who worked on successful flying platform designs in the 1950s, points out that there's very little about UFO reports that is truly inexplicable – they obey, rather than defy the laws of physics. My own belief, and it's only a belief, is that some highly advanced experimental craft have been flown over the years, perhaps much further back than we realise.

Richard Thomas: Probably the big UFO story of 2006 was Project Serpo. In the book you meet Bill Ryan who runs the website where the most controversial documents since the MJ-12 papers were first posted. How do you think the story first began and if the “Mirage Men” were behind it what might have their intentions have been?

Mark Pilkington: Yes John Lundberg and I got involved with Bill Ryan within a few weeks of Serpo breaking and followed him to Laughlin for his ufological debut. That's a key section of the book. I don't know whether Serpo was a 'Mirage Men' operation, though in the book I do suggest a few purposes it might have had if it was. What we can say for sure is that the Serpo story, ridiculous as it seems, single-handedly reinvigorated, even resurrected, the UFO field at a time when it was almost entirely moribund.

In 2004 when John and I first began mooting the idea of Mirage Men you couldn't get anybody to take the least bit of interest in the UFO subject other than to say that it was a cultural dead zone. Now UFOs and ETs are once again big business with a flood of books, films and TV series headed our way. While interest in UFOs, like anything else, is always cyclical, I really think that Serpo was the seed for this particular wave of interest.

Richard Thomas: Have you found any evidence that Britain or other countries might have their own “Mirage Men,” I don’t believe them myself but there are a lot of conspiracy theories surrounding Nick Pope, for instance?

Mark Pilkington: I don't know about Nick Pope, though he *did* come to my book launch. hmmmmmmmm.

Seriously, my understanding - confirmed by a source who wishes to remain anonymous for now (yes, him again!) - is that the USAF's OSI (Office of Special Investigations) and the RAF's Provost and Security Services often work together, or at least keep each other informed of operations on UK soil. AFOSI have certainly run a few Mirage Men type operations over the last forty years, and I'm aware of at least one UFO-themed disinformation operation conducted on UK soil in the 1990s. I hope to be able to write more about this in the near future.

Richard Thomas: Thanks Mark, where can readers find the book and have you got any other projects or a website you’d like to plug?

Mark Pilkington: Thanks Richard. Mirage Men is currently available in the US and the UK via Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Waterstones and the rest. I've set up a website for the book, which I'm using to explore some of the book's ideas and themes further.

I also run Strange Attractor Press, publishing books including Welcome to Mars by Ken Hollings, which is about America in the heyday of the flying saucer era, and The Field Guide, by Rob Irving and John Lundberg, which is an insider's history of the crop circle phenomenon, including detailed instructions on how to make your own.

READ RICHARD'S ROOM 101 COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

The Truth Behind Roswell

The following guest article is by Rupert Matthews, author of the book Roswell.

-----------------

The Truth Behind Roswell

By Rupert Matthews

When I first started investigating the Roswell UFO Crash in detail there were two aspects that really surprised me. The first was the date on which the Flying Saucer was alleged to have crashed into the desert near Roswell: July 1947. The second was the date on which the investigation into the apparent crash had begun: 1978.

My previous reading on the Roswell Crash had, I must admit, been rather sketchy and had been restricted to secondary sources such as magazine articles or books written by people who had not been there. I had somehow come to form the impression that the crash had taken place in the 1950s and had been investigated at the time. Shows how wrong you can be.

As I started to work my way through the assorted eyewitness accounts given in interviews, written as letters or in books I was in for another surprise. Nobody had claimed to have seen a UFO crash near Roswell at all. One person had seen a UFO. Another had heard a loud bang and seen some scraps of debris. A third had seen the US military cordon off a large area of ground. A fourth had seen a crashed aircraft of some kind. A fifth had seen some dead bodies.

However, when all the various accounts were put together they did form a cohesive story that held together pretty well. Quite clearly something very odd and unusual had fallen from the skies on to the desert near Roswell in early July 1947. The United States Air Force had moved quickly to recover the object and had thrown a veil of secrecy around the whole incident. Those who had seen debris from the crash all agreed that it was composed of very odd materials that they did not recognise and that it had some odd properties.

But I kept getting pulled back to the two initial surprises. The early date bothered me. July 1947 was a long time ago, even further in terms of UFO research. The epochal sighting by Kenneth Arnold that propelled Flying Saucers into the international media had taken place on 24 June 1947 - just over a week before the alleged crash at Roswell. That timing had two important impacts on the Roswell story.

The first is that Flying Saucers (or Flying Disks as they were also termed in 1947) were a major news item across the media at the time. Everyone was talking about them, far more than is the case today. The second was that there was no generally agreed description of what a UFO was like (and even the term UFO had not been coined). These were very early days indeed. It was possible that almost any unusual object in the sky or falling to the ground would be described as being a Flying Saucer. So just because the people who saw the object that fell at Roswell called it a Flying Saucer does not mean that it was what we would today term a UFO.

Reading the very few descriptions of the object given by those who claim to have seen it, does not read like more recent witness statements of a UFO. The object was said to be roughly triangular or conical in shape with stubby little wings or fins. There does not seem to have been anything terribly odd about it all, it sounds very mundane.

The fact that investigations did not begin until more than 30 years after the event also bothered me. Several of the key witnesses had died over the years. Their accounts survived only second hand. A neighbour remembered what one man had told him 30 years earlier. A son recalled what his father had told him. Such accounts are intrinsically vague and lack detail. Crucially the person is not there for the investigator to ask for more detail or to seek out cross references. Other witnesses were still alive, but they were being asked to recall events more than 30 years old. The human memory is a notoriously frail and deceptive thing. Dates can be blurred and details merged. One of the witnesses who was able to give a very good and clear description of dead bodies could not be certain when he had seen them - he did not even know which year never mind the precise day. Even more alarming is the fact that we humans are rational creatures and we seek to rationalise events. We are all capable of misremembering events so that they fit into an accepted pattern better than what we actually saw. After 30 years all sorts of details could easily be forgotten or remembered incorrectly.

By the time I was half way through my research I had almost given up hope of ever finding out what had really happened at Roswell back in 1947. There were so many contradictions in the evidence, so many details that did not match, so many accounts that were vague.

But then I decided to take a step back from all the mass of fine detail and look at the bigger picture. There was one thing that all those people who had been in Roswell in 1947 did agree on. Something had happened and that something had been very odd indeed. True, some witnesses contradicted each other. True, some details that at first seemed linked to the crash turned out to be quite unrelated. True, some apparent facts turned out to be nothing of the sort.

But in the final analysis something fell out of the sky in early July 1947. The United States Air Force did move quickly to collect the wreckage, then quickly launched a determined effort to kill the story and keep the find secret.

Can I tell you what it was that fell from the sky? No. There are several possibilities that would fit the evidence - and an alien spacecraft is but one of those.


Rupert Matthews is the author of the book Roswell which is available on Amazon and from all good bookshops. You can find Rupert’s website at www.rupertmatthews.com. He also maintains a blog about the unexplained at www.ghosthunteratlarge.blogspot.com.

UFO Crashes in Britain

The following guest article is by Rupert Matthews, author of the book Roswell.

-----------------

UFO Crashes in Britain
By Rupert Matthews

The evidence for UFO sightings, and landings, in the UK is widespread, numerous and often compelling. But when it comes to UFO crashes, I find that most people simply shake their heads. “You mean Roswell,” they say. But I don’t mean Roswell. I mean UFO crashes in Britain.

Now, I would be the first to admit that the evidence pointing to the fact that any UFO had ever actually come down in Britain is nowhere near as impressive as that for UFO sightings or voluntarily landings, but that does not mean that it does not exist.

Take, for instance, the events at Conisholme, Lincolnshire, in January 2009. In the winter’s evening several locals reported seeing two orange-red spheres flying over this small village some miles northeast of Louth. The objects were trailing what appeared to be yellowish arms or threads behind them. Suddenly there came the most almighty bang, followed by a vicious whirling noise. Before long police were on the scene, cordoning off access to the nearby wind farm. Something had hit one of the enormous wind turbines, smashing one 65-foot long blade and mangling a second. Whatever had hit the turbine had not only done some impressive damage, it had also left behind a small quantity of lightweight material.

Opinions differ as to what had happened. The company that runs the windfarm, Ecotricity, refused to speculate. They merely confirmed that a turbine had been damaged and was being repaired. Some locals thought that a stealth aircraft from one of the nearby air bases had been to blame. Others said they knew what a stealth aircraft looked like at night - or rather what its jet engines looked like - and that the orange balls had not been that. They blamed a UFO.

Even if the wind turbine at Conisholme had been destroyed by a collision with a UFO, I am not sure that this truly counts as a UFO crash. Nobody reported the object having actually impacted the earth at all.

Other events reported in the press as being a “UFO Crash” turn out to be more or less routine sightings dressed up to make the headline more exciting. On 26 January 2009, for instance, a woman walking her dog along Baytree Road in Clevedon, Somerset, saw a cigar- or rocket- shaped UFO plummet to the ground accompanied by a shrieking or howling noise. The object came down in the playing fields of a school, rested there for a while, then the noise restarted and the object took off at high speed heading west. Dramatic stuff, but quite clearly the object did not crash - as the newspaper headlines next day had it - but had landed and then taken off again.

Rather better known is the Berwyn Mountain Incident of 1974. On the evening of 23 January several people in northern Wales and adjacent areas of England reported seeing green lights in the sky. The lights were reported to be spherical or saucer shaped and to be moving erratically in odd patterns and formations. Then, at 8.38pm, residents around the Berwyn Mountain in Wales heard a deafening rumbling explosion and the ground shook. People came out into the streets. One man said he had seen lights over the mountain just before the crash and speculated that an aircraft had crashed. Phone calls were put through to the emergency services. While waiting for more help to arrive, the local policeman rounded up a nurse and went up on to the mountain to see if they could help.

Not long afterwards a convoy of army trucks arrived, the men cordoned off the mountain and refused admittance to anyone. The policeman and nurse came back down under army escort. They said that they had seen lights and debris as if from a crash, but had been instructed to leave. The nurse would later say that she had got close to the crash and seen bodies that did not seem to be human.

The official explanation for the events at Berwyn are that an unusually large meteor hurtled across the sky at the same time that an earthquake struck Berwyn. Some geologists have speculated that the lights were the rare, and largely unexplained phenomenon, of earthquake lights which are sometimes reported in the air just before earthquakes strike. Others remain convinced that it was a UFO that crashed at Berwyn, though very little of the craft seems to have survived the impact.


Rupert Matthews is the author of the book Roswell which is available on Amazon and from all good bookshops. You can find Rupert’s website at www.rupertmatthews.com. He also maintains a blog about the unexplained at www.ghosthunteratlarge.blogspot.com.

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

Musings on a Secret Space Program‏

The following guest article is by UFO historian Richard Dolan, author of the book UFOs and the National Security State, Volume 2: The Cover-Up Exposed, 1973-1991.

-----------------

Musings on a Secret Space Program‏
By Richard Dolan

Slowly, by degrees, I have come to the opinion that there is a secret space program. I recall, for instance, wondering about the alleged anomalies on Mars early on in my research. Back then, I was in correspondence with an individual who had impressive scientific and intelligence credentials. Attempting to feel him out on the topic, I wrote something a bit flippant about Mars, primarily to see what his reaction would be. Sure enough, he replied soberly that I should not dismiss these anomalies, that there were in fact many people within the classified world who took them seriously.

That’s when I realized, very concretely, that the notion of space anomalies was indeed a serious topic. I began to consider: if there is covert interest in the anomalies on Mars, would there be a covert space program to investigate? To this day, I don’t know the answer with certainty, but over the years I have encountered no shortage of quiet, serious-minded people who tell me of their knowledge that there is such a covert program. One component of this, it appears, has to do with the Moon. Are there bases on the far side of the Moon? Again, I do not know for sure, but I cannot rule it out. More than once, people I consider to be informed insiders have steered me in this direction.

There is another reason to suppose the existence of an advanced, clandestine space program. An enormous amount of video of space missions has been downloaded and is available for anyone to see. These include missions of NASA, the European Space Agency, Russia, and China. Much of this was downloaded and made available by a gentleman named Jeff Challender, who unfortunately died in 2007. Jeff spent an enormous part of his life downloading and reviewing – very carefully – video recordings of those missions. There can be no denying that there has been a great deal of activity in Earth’s orbit. Much of what was recorded undoubtedly has conventional explanations. But, frankly, many events do not offer easy explanations. I firmly believe there is something unusual going on in Earth’s orbit. Fortunately, after Jeff’s death, I was able to upload his entire site and attach it to my own. His site, known as Project Prove, now has a permanent home at http://keyholepublishing.com/.

Look at it this way. If you believe there are anomalies on Mars, and if you acknowledge strange activity in Earth’s orbit, you would have a very good reason to initiate a secret space program, would you not? You would want a way to investigate these things in a way that would not be seen by the prying eyes of the public.

I’ve also come to the opinion over the years that part of the classified world – the part that deals with the ET reality – has essentially “broken away” from our own conventional civilization. That is, utilizing the jumpstart they received by studying exotic, alien technology, they have very likely achieved scientific breakthroughs that they have not shared with the rest of us. I think that these breakthroughs have enabled them to employ technologies substantially beyond what we are using, and that in all likelihood this too has contributed to their secret space program.

It’s important to emphasize that the above is primarily conjecture on my part. I consider it my working hypothesis. Proving it will to take a great deal of effort and dedication. It also means not being sucked in by every new person who has claimed to have traveled to Mars. We need to remain clear headed.

Richard Dolan
Rochester, New York
June 3, 2010

Young People and UFO Research

The following guest article is by Women of Esoterica contributor Karyn Dolan. You can find the Women of Esoterica website at www.womenesoterica.blogspot.com.

-----------------

Young People and UFO Research

By Karyn Dolan

 I’ve been attending UFO conferences around the world since 2001. Wherever I go, I hear the same question discussed: Where’s the next generation of researchers? Everyone’s worried that when the present crop of researchers decides to hang up their Geiger counters and laptops, no one will carry the torch, apathy will set in, and the whole UFO question will fade into the twilight.

Why does this matter? After all, many people consider it a kooky hobby, a little wacky but probably harmless. They certainly wouldn’t see why anyone should care if UFO research fizzled out like pog collecting. (That did fizzle out, right?)

Most of the UFO researchers I know have asked themselves that same question, in one form or another, at some time in their lives. Yes, we know it’s a little "out there." We’re used to seeing people at work roll their eyes when we ask for time off to attend the Roswell UFO Festival, or the International MUFON symposium. Despite all the skeptics who say we’re all in it for the money, this is not a field one enters in order to get rich. Let’s face it, this is not a field one enters in order to get respect, either; at least not outside our own field. We all have moments when we ask ourselves why the heck we keep at it.

The thing is, there’s a larger issue at stake. We’ve all looked at the evidence for the existence of objects that have yet to be identified. It’s there. Sure, there are lots of cases that have been identified as atmospheric phenomena, as misidentified aircraft, as many other unusual things. But enough anomalies remain to convince anyone who honestly considers the evidence that there’s more out there than we know.

There are plenty of official statements explaining away the anomalies. The problem is that many of these excuses are far less plausible even than the idea that an object may in fact be unidentifiable. Consider the case of the Phoenix Lights. In 1997, thousands of people witnessed lights in the sky over Arizona, moving slowly in a V-shaped formation. One of the official explanations of this event was that flares had been dropped from conventional aircraft. Witnesses were dumbfounded at the suggestion that they had somehow mistaken flares, which fall at varying speeds, individually rather than in formation, and give off clouds of smoke, for a row of stationary lights on a slow-moving, V-shaped craft which moved horizontally rather than vertically and gave off no smoke at all. Another suggestion put forward to explain the Phoenix Lights, which were visible over a period of about three hours on this occasion, was that city lights were reflecting off the bellies of migrating geese. While geese are indeed known to fly in a V-shaped formation, and do in fact have light-colored feathers on their undersides, this explanation was just as ridiculous as the first.

Such cases as this prove to many people that not only are UFOs real, but that our authorities don’t want us asking about it. That immediately raises hackles for many people. We don’t like being treated like children who need to be protected from the truth. If something is going on, we want to know about it. I am a parent, and I understand that my kids don’t need to know about every upsetting thing that goes on in the world. But I also understand that they do need to be allowed to face facts, and to learn to live with the world as it is, not as someone else wants to pretend it is. Our government and military leaders need to be held accountable, to be prevented from patronizing us in this way. They need to stop keeping secrets from the people they serve; from us.

With that in mind, and recalling the question many of my friends and colleagues were asking about where to find the next generation of UFO researchers, I decided to ask my kids and some of their friends to join me on my weekly radio program to discuss the question. In the end, one friend was able to join my son and daughter on the show.

Now, I have to mention that all three of these young people, whose ages range between eleven and fifteen, have been homeschooled, and are very critical thinkers. My own two kids have grown up in an unusual household: my husband wrote a history titled UFOs and the National Security State, a projected three-volume work of which two are completed and published. We travel to UFO conferences nearly every month, and even took them with us to one where they met and spoke with astronaut Edgar Mitchell. I host the above-mentioned radio program that deals with UFOs and paranormal topics.

By contrast, their friend comes from a household with a more down-to-earth (literally!) approach to life, where UFOs are not a regular topic of dinner table conversation. He was unfamiliar with much of the UFO literature and evidence, and asked me to explain the cases I asked them about. Admittedly, I accept the existence of UFOs and he knows it, but I still tried to present information fairly, sticking to the facts.

The results of this conversation were heartening. All three asked excellent questions about the cases I mentioned, and all thought over my answers before responding. They didn’t respond with knee-jerk agreement, or with automatic rejection of any piece of evidence. They told me when they thought certain things were unlikely, or when they disagreed with a statement. But all three of them said that logically, they couldn’t see why life wouldn’t exist anywhere but on Earth; and if there is life elsewhere, they could find no reason why it shouldn’t eventually come here. They were fascinated by witness accounts and evidence, and quick to dismiss statements that had no supporting evidence.

I believe we have our next generation of researchers. I think we have a generation of thoughtful, intelligent people growing up and watching what’s happening in the world around them. When the time comes, they won’t hesitate to hold our leaders accountable for their statements and their actions concerning what has been called the truth embargo concerning UFOs. If by the time we are ready to retire, we haven’t yet broken open the vault of secrecy on this subject, they’ll be there, ready and willing to take up the task and continue to press on. And that’s what it’s all about.


Karyn Dolan hosts "Through the Keyhole" each week on the Paranormal Radio Network. For more information on her work, go to www.keyholepublishing.com/karyndolan.htm.

RAF Rudloe Manor and the UFO Files

The following guest article is by Rupert Matthews, author of the book Roswell.

-----------------

RAF Rudloe Manor and the UFO Files
By Rupert Matthews

I think I first heard about the highly secretive military base at Rudloe Manor when I used to go down to visit relatives in Bath. That would have been sometime in the 1970s. We went to visit local sites, including Lacock Abbey, Solsbury Hill and Bath Abbey.

One time we went to see the Box Tunnel - that great engineering marvel of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. As we stood watching the trains thundering up and down the main line from London to Bristol I noticed a high wire fence topped by barbed wire and hung with notices indicating that dire penalties would come to anyone who strayed over the fence.

"What’s over there?" I asked my uncle.

He glanced at the fence. "Oh, some RAF place," he replied. "Very hush hush." And we went back to watching the trains.

That was during the Cold War, of course, and everyone who knew about Rudloe Manor assumed that the highly secretive things that went on there had something to do with tracking Soviet aircraft, intercepting Soviet radio messages or some other top secret defensive purpose. It never crossed our minds back then that Rudloe Manor had anything to do with UFOs.

It was not until some 20 years later that I began to hear rumours that the well guarded base at Rudloe Manor might have some UFO link. One of the boys I had been at school with was by then a Flight Lieutenant in the RAF. One time when he was on leave and we were down the pub I mentioned about RAF Rudloe Manor. He fixed me with a cool stare.

"I don’t know what goes on there," he said. "And I suggest you don’t ask too many questions. Brass hats can get very touchy about places like that."

"Interesting," I thought.

By the later 1990s the rumours had begun to take a more definite form. All the information came from serving or former RAF personnel who had worked at Rudloe Manor. Understandably, these people preferred to remain anonymous as they feared the government might prosecute them for breaching the Official Secrets Act. A perfectly reasonable concern, but it had the effect of making it impossible to check whether these witnesses had ever worked at Rudloe Manor and, if so, in what capacity. Inevitably this led some to suspect that the stories were not as reliable as they might be.

According to these reports, there was a vast underground complex beneath the apparently innocuous barracks and office buildings scattered in the grounds of the old manor house. This much could be checked out and was accurate. The manor had been taken over by the RAF at the start of World War II precisely because these huge underground caverns existed. They were the abandoned workings from which the much prized Bath Stone had been quarried out in the 19th century. Being deep underground the tunnels and caves were, of course, proof against German bombing. From 1940 onward a whole range of government and military units and installations were located in the tunnels of Rudloe Manor where they would be safe from the Luftwaffe. Much of what went on there at the time is now well known and while it was all vital to the war effort is hardly controversial.

When the war ended, however, the government did not return Rudloe Manor and its underground caverns to its prewar owners as happened to most wartime acquisitions. It was kept by the government. And it was kept very secret. It has since been revealed that one function of the caves was to house a government communications centre that would be activated if a nuclear war began. Other uses of the caves remain highly classified and top secret.

One of these top secret purposes is the Central Computer Complex (CCC). Quite what the CCC does is not entirely clear. Some say it controls the Trident nuclear missile firing systems, others that it has a role in 'sigint' or signals intelligence. Nobody really knows. One of the most intriguing of the few facts to come out of CCC is that there is another section of the caverns under Rudloe Manor that is accessed only through CCC (itself heavily guarded and accessed only by those with high security clearance) by way of a door that is guarded 24/7 and that only a few of those cleared to enter CCC are permitted to pass.

Now what can be behind that door? Obviously something highly sensitive.

Back on the surface, Rudloe Manor has long been the HQ of the RAF Provost & Security Services (PSS), which is responsible for all aspects of security affecting the RAF. It includes personnel from MI5 and MI6 who liaise with the PSS and - at least from time to time if not permanently - CIA personnel as well. We know from declassified government documents that the PSS collated and sifted UFO reports for several decades. They binned any reports that they felt could be explained as sightings of aircraft, birds, planets and so forth, then investigated those that remained unexplained. Several of those unexplained reports were swiftly taken off the desks of the lowly staff at PSS and sent for analysis "elsewhere" - to behind that door in CCC apparently.

In the early 1990s UFO investigators in Britain began to notice that there was a cluster of high quality sightings over the Box-Rudloe-Corsham area of Wiltshire. This reminded some of a similar cluster of sightings over Warminster, a few miles to the south, in the 1960s. Intrigued, investigators began paying more attention. The sightings were found to centre over Rudloe and to consist largely of UFOs without wings that pulsated with colours of blue, red or green. Often they were said to be diamond or conical in shape.

So what can we say with confidence about RAF Rudloe Manor. Well, it is top secret, contains vast underground caverns that are off limits to all but a very few people with top level security clearance, has been part of the RAF UFO investigation process and is a centre for UFO sightings. Beyond that we really don’t know. Some claim that the place is a liaison venue for the British government to interract with aliens. Others that objects retrieved from UFOs are stored there.

Perhaps one day we will know the truth.


Rupert Matthews is the author of the book Roswell which is available on Amazon and from all good bookshops. You can find Rupert’s website at www.rupertmatthews.com. He also maintains a blog about the unexplained at www.ghosthunteratlarge.blogspot.com.

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