Gary Tuchman (CNN) on UFO debate at National Press Club

This is probably old news for some of you, but worth reposting, due to the “Unusual Reporting Quality by CNN”.

Gary Tuchman from CNN reports about the UFO debate which took place at the National Press Club on November 12th, 2007.

Coalition for freedom of information – Transcript of the latest NPC with Fife Symington

BREAKING NEWS!

Nov. 12: Former Arizona Governor Fife Symington moderated a distinguished panel of former high-ranking government, aviation,
and military officials from seven countries who discussed encounters with UFOs and official investigations. The event was organized by filmmaker James Fox and journalist Leslie Kean of CFi.

Read transcripts of the press conference
and view additional information

International Declaration to the U.S. Government
Requesting the re-opening of the U.S. Government’s investigation
into UFOs

Read the declaration here

(Source: http://www.freedomofinfo.org/)

Disclosure Project – Open Letter to Governor Symington and James Fox

http://www.disclosureproject.org/PressReleaseNov142007.htm

THE DISCLOSURE PROJECT
STEVEN M. GREER MD, DIRECTOR
14 November 2007

Dear Governor Symington and Mr. Fox,

Congratulations on an excellent press conference on Monday. We are heartened to see the process of Disclosure continuing and that some of the witnesses and materials brought forward by The Disclosure Project (www.DisclosureProject.org) are continuing to reach the public.

Regarding the request for a government/civilian panel to investigate the UFO matter, while we appreciate your laudable purpose in making this request, we are concerned about the unintended strategic consequences of such a process. To wit:

> It is important to realize that powerful and well-funded unacknowledged special access projects (USAPs) within sectors of the US and other governments, and working largely through ‘work for others’ contracts with private institutes and corporations, have already been investigating the UFO/ET matter for decades.

> These projects are rogue, unconstitutional and transnational in nature. In briefings that I conducted personally for CIA Director R. James Woolsey, Defense Intelligence Agency Director General Patrick Hughes, the Director of Intelligence, Joint Staff (J2) and senior members of key Congressional committees (Senate Intelligence Committee, House Government Oversight committee, etc.) among others, it was made clear that the chain of command has been subverted. Even after providing current project code names and numbers to J2, and after he subsequently located one of these USAPs within the Pentagon and demanded to be ‘read into’ (or briefed) on the operation, this Admiral informed us that he was denied access to these projects.

> The science and technology behind these ET vehicles have been studied since at least the 1940’s and have been largely understood and reproduced. Their energy and propulsion systems, once disclosed, would eliminate the need for oil, gas, coal, nuclear power, public utilities and so forth. Many UFO sightings are, in fact, of these advanced aircraft which have been developed by Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, SAIC and other military contractors and were operational by the late 1950s.

> Importantly, in 1969 the Condon Committee at the University of Colorado, a panel much like what you are recommending, became a fraud perpetrated on the public, and its chairman, Dr. Condon, was a secret, unacknowledged CIA asset (after briefing CIA Director Woolsey and making a FOIA request, we obtained a CIA document that establishes this fact). Dr. Robert Wood, then of McDonnel Douglas Aerospace, was involved with the Condon Committee and discovered that Dr. Condon was sanitizing any credible evidence from the report and even withheld such evidence from other panel members (see www.DisclosureProject.org witness testimony by Dr. Wood). When Dr. Wood challenged Dr. Condon on this behavior, Dr. Condon contacted Mr. McDonnel directly and attempted to get Dr. Wood fired. Any such committee today would most likely be a similar corrupt hoax and would seriously set-back Disclosure and only deepen the cover-up.

> In light of the above, we recommend a strategy to have open, secrecy-free hearings before a relevant Congressional committee, such as the House Government Oversight Subcommittee for domestic affairs, chaired by UFO-observer Rep. Dennis Kucinich, or some other committee headed by a similarly honest and trustworthy chairperson. Alternatively, a hearing by the UN or the World Court would be an acceptable venue.

> Importantly, since The Disclosure Project now has over 400 military, government, corporate and intelligence witnesses from around the world, as well as corroborating official documents and project code numbers and names, such a pool of witnesses testifying before an open, televised hearing would assure honest, real-time Disclosure. This process, so long as open and conducted by an honest chairperson, would be much less likely to be corrupted than a government panel investigation.

I wish you great success in your important work towards disclosing the truth about UFOs and wish to assure you that all of us at The Disclosure Project stand ready to assist you and this process in every way we can. Please feel free to contact me at any time to discuss this matter further.

Best always,

Steven M. Greer MD
Director
The Disclosure Project

High Level UFO Meetings Reported by CNN.

This report made by CNN is of poor quality. The journalist is doing a poor job, but still worth watching. Embedding was disabled so you will have to follow the link to YouTube.
Enjoy.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KYpQjvBXnqg

Out of the Blue – National Press Club in Washington D.C November 12, 2007

We have organized an unprecedented event at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.

15 military and government officials from 7 countries will present evidence of close encounters with UFO’s and the results of government investigations. This event will be documented for an upcoming film, Beyond The Blue, for possible theatrical release.

CHECK OUT THE PRESS RELEASE (PDF)

(Source: http://www.outofthebluethemovie.com/news/news.html)

James Fox, producer of the documentary "Out of the blue", visits the paracast

THE PARACAST NEWSLETTER
August 18, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JAMES FOX, PRODUCER OF THE UFO DOCUMENTARY, “OUT OF THE BLUE,” VISITS THE PARACAST WITH GENE STEINBERG and DAVID BIEDNY!

UFO FLASH NOTICE: Sunday, August 19, 2007: The Paracast, with Gene Steinberg and David Biedny, covers a world beyond science, where UFOs, poltergeists and strange phenomena of all kinds have been reported by millions across the planet.

SET UP: The Paracast hosts interview long-time researchers in the field, to shed light on the mysteries and complexities of our Universe and the secrets that surround us in our everyday lives.

Join Gene and David as they explore the realms of the known and unknown, and hear great stories of the history of the paranormal field in the 20th and 21st centuries.

THIS WEEK’S EPISODE: In this week’s extended session, James Fox, one of the producers of the UFO documentary, “Out of the Blue.” will give you the background of this terrific film that convincingly demonstrates UFO reality, and also provide his personal views on the subject.

You’ll also hear inside details on the making of the film, along with his own UFO sighting.

“Out of the Blue” film site: http://outofthebluethemovie.com/

SHOW BACKGROUND: The Paracast is aired every Sunday night from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Pacific and 9:00 until 11:00 p.m. Eastern.

ACCESS VIA: The Paracast is broadcast every Sunday from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Pacific, 9:00 to 11:00 Eastern from:

http://theparacast.com/

NOTE: Archives of previous episodes are available for free download direct from the site or via a Podcast directory, such as Apple iTunes.

REMINDER: Don’t forget to visit our exciting Discussion Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal.

http://www.theparacast.com/forums

SPECIAL NOTE FOR OUR LISTENERS: I have long been on the fence about the case of the late Philip J. Corso,” lead author of the controversial book, “The Day After Roswell.” If Corso is to be believed, he was one of the key people responsible for delivering parcels of alien technology to private industry several decades ago. Further, that the technology used in such devices as today’s personal computers were, in part, based on techniques reversed engineered from the wreckage of a space ship that purportedly crashed in the New Mexico desert 60 years ago.

Thanks in large part to the efforts of co-author William Birnes, Corso’s book is eminently readable and seems quite credible. But some key elements of the UFO community don’t take it seriously, saying that there are factual lapses that give one reason to dismiss Corso’s claims as fanciful.

I’ve been reluctant to reach that conclusion, in part because Corso was a highly-decorated military figure who never had a history of writing science fiction or making suspicious claims. Why, towards the end of his days, would he fabricate a tale of this sort, in light of his stellar military record? Just to earn some cash for his family to inherit after his death? That doesn’t seem enough cause to lie, particularly when you consider his history and achievements.

Could it be that the faults in Corso’s book were more the result of the manuscript having a few too many cooks before William Birnes got involved in the project? I honestly don’t know, and I began to wonder even further when I watched James Fox’ excellent UFO documentary, “Out of the Blue,” recently. Corso appears in just a few short segments, but it’s enough to come away with the impression that he was a straight shooter, a totally honest reporter of genuine experiences.

Alas, Corso is not here to explain the disparity, and so I remain on the fence about the whole thing.

Peace,
Gene Steinberg
Co-Host
“The Paracast”

(Source: Email newsletter)

I believe M. Corso’s book was rushed and not fully approved. Was he pressured to do so? I think M. Corso was genuine too, but some of the material in the book gave the debunkers enough to discredit the entire work, which is not how we should proceed.

ABC News Morphs into CNN While Doing Piece

“Out of The Blue”

By Frank Warren

Not surprisingly, and following the “mainstream press pattern, ABC News, specifically “Nightline” delivered a disappointing segment on UFOs, and in particular, the “updated version” (5th anniversary) of the documentary, “Out of The Blue” last night (Friday July 6th).

Not unlike its rival, CNN, the reporting done primarily by Brian Rooney was poor, and misleading; however, they did omit the “Sci-Fi theme music” (e.g., The Outer Limits) which I suppose is a plus given how the networks (and CNN) “handle” the subject.

Much like the Peter Jennings show, “Seeing is Believing” done a couple of years back, the news segment started out well; it began with Dr. Frank Drake (in a classroom setting, in front of a chalkboard) explaining the “Drake Equation” which calculates the number of worlds that may harbor intelligent life; this was followed by witnesses of the Phoenix Lights sighting of ’97, beginning with good friend and colleague Mike Fortson.

It was all down hill from there in my view; although there were moments of clarity, as the producers continued to show snippets of the documentary. The questions posed by Brian Rooney intimated that the subject of UFOs was either “faith based,” fodder for the “mentally challenged” or possibly some “grand conspiratorial hoax!”

Professional skeptic Michael Shermer was enlisted to offer the “contrasting view” (apparently) and for me “broke the monotony,” as it evoked laughter; piteously he actually believes what he says. Shermer took eye witness accounts of astronauts, police officers or politicians like Jimmy Carter bundled them up and discarded them, saying, “it’s irrelevant . . . because they’re human and they’re brains and nervous systems and sensory apparatus are structured just like the average Joes.”

Can you imagine an attorney in a murder case standing up in court using that defense? Apparently, Shermer would have the viewer believer that the credibility of witnesses is dependent upon “just what they saw.” If they saw a plane then “their respective neurons are firing properly”; however, inject a UFO into the mix, and perhaps their “sensory apparatus” is flawed somehow! Ad Nauseum!

Although Shermer talked about “science” stating, “The, uh, the story is well told and well produced. But that’s not how science works. In science we have to have some way of testing to get an answer. It’s this or this. And we have to have some way of weighing the evidence.” He continues by saying, “UFO sightings, even the most interesting ones, tend to share similar characteristics. There are no pictures, or the pictures are blurry. Or maybe there are pictures, but they disappeared into government archives never to be seen again.”

Shermer fails to point out (and Rooney doesn’t question) the fact that the UFO phenomenon is “transitory”; because the task of acquiring scientific evidence is difficult under these circumstances, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible, or that it doesn’t exist as Shermer might have the viewer believe!

The dialogue left the viewer thinking that Ufology is supported by nothing more then “questionable witnesses and or blurry pictures.” Nothing was said about the 20 years of investigation done by the U.S. Air Force” or the fact that some of the greatest minds of the last century were tasked “secretly” to investigate the phenomenon; many who would become “Nobel Laureates!” “Physical trace cases” weren’t mentioned, nor “radar/visual sightings.” The fact that every intelligence agency as well as every branch of the military has files on UFOs was also precluded.

That truth that Congress has addressed the subject matter on more then one occasion, as well as it echoing through the halls of the U.N. was conveniently omitted!

The statistical study by the “Battelle Memorial Institute” (regarding UFO sightings) done for the Air Force was not mentioned; nor Project Blue Book’s Special Report No. 14. The formation of “The Robertson Panel” by the CIA, and the beginning of “governmental debunking” (based on the recommendation of the panel) was not discussed.

Suffice it to say, what was left out of the piece in regards to “validating Ufology” for the layperson was substantial! The questions asked, as well as the way they were asked, in addition to omission of much of the facts certainly influences the “collective mind-set of the viewers.”

This “pitiable reporting” by “the mainstream media” in regards to the “UFO Phenomenon” is very reminiscent of the reporting of erroneous data in the months following 911, which lead over 70% of the American public to “falsely believe” that Iraq had something to do with the attack.

The one encouraging (and ironic) aspect of the segment is that, given Nightline’s large audience, those that end up purchasing the documentary, “Out of The Blue” will get a more accurate, and illuminating report of the “UFO Phenomenon. “

Good work James Fox!

Out of the Blue

Visit Frank Warren’s website.