DELUSION: US. UFO sociology and the UFO mythological zone—the widespread effects of UFOs on we, the people, and our culture, and, in the absence of facts or scientific proof, the mythology we’ve created around them.
DISINFORMATION: GOVERNMENTAL. The Mirage Men—The stage management and cover-up of UFOs (either of the genuine phenomenon or as cover for secret projects, psy-ops, etc.), and the many aspects of governmental/military-industrial/intelligence operations and the mythology the Mirage Men have created around them.
Whichever way we choose to look at it, it’s a damning statement on how we deal with things when faced with the prospect of the unknown, both collectively/culturally and often individually.
We tend to:
Ignore data that doesn’t fit with our preconceived ideas and expectations
Mythologize and fantasize about the things we don’t know about—to the point of cultism
Look to authority for answers and leave ourselves wide open to manipulation
I propose, therefore, that 99% of everything written and said about UFOs is total bullshit, and that almost everything you think you know about flying saucers is wrong.
A Pause for Reason
Let’s take a deep breath for a moment and pause.
Imagine a meadow with beautiful flowers. It’s a late summer’s evening; butterflies float around on the breeze and the tranquil calm of the wind caresses your sun-kissed face. Ahead of you is a beautiful mountain. The remainder of last winter’s snow has almost melted to reveal a striking volcanic mound. If you shut your eyes, all you can hear is the soft wind and the vague excitement of the children picking their huckleberries in the distance.
I’m about two miles as the crow flies from the ECETI Ranch. The sun will be going down soon. I am not only in prime position to see all events on the mountain, I am in a place where I am free to think clearly and to see for myself. Without someone telling me that these are Pleiadean spaceships, what exactly do I see? Can I interact with the intelligence behind this spectacle? Is it different from being around the thoughts and beliefs of others and the potential contagion that these thoughts and beliefs may bring?
Much like during many previous visits, what I observe appear to be intelligently controlled, anomalous bright lights coming out of the mountain or appearing in the sky above. But, if absolutely anyone can study this, why don’t they? Why are we still re-hashing and trawling over decades-old cases when we could be investigating this and the people that experience it in real time? Do we really want answers? Or do we want to keep the questions alive? Maybe the answer lies in the fact that the phenomenon here in Yakima appears to work on a subtle level. In a culture that screams for a landing on the White House lawn or that leads people to feel the need to embellish and make this even more cosmic and mysterious than it already is—we are probably at odds with whatever this is.
In Yakima, as in many other hotspots around the world, there is much work to do. A modern, scientific study utilizing cutting-edge technology, super-high resolution cameras and full access to the Yakima tribal reservation would be of potentially huge benefit. The problem with trying to study this purely with science is that it’s been pretty elusive to track down. In my seven years of experience at Yakima, I don’t think that’s necessarily the issue here. I think more of an issue might be: how do we measure the human experience in all of this? If the UFO subject is to move forward in any meaningful way, the human experience (with particular emphasis on the interaction with the subconscious mind), as well as the parapsychological and other more esoteric aspects of the UFO experience, can no longer continue to be ignored. Yakima is a veritable trove of all kinds of high strangeness, not just UFOs. We should start to study all aspects of non-standard human experience together. We can no longer continue to treat the UFO phenomenon as separate from other paranormal, spiritual, religious, esoteric, highly synchronistic or other currently uncategorized phenomena. Whether we utilize science or also include other methodologies and philosophies, one thing is certain: we need to stop trying to fit the UFO subject into what we want or expect it to be. This has gotten us virtually nowhere in over seventy years and would be the least “scientific” thing of all to do.
UFO Truth in The Post-Truth Age
“When enough of us peddle fantasy as fact, society loses its grounding in reality. Society would crumble altogether if we assumed others were as likely to dissemble as tell the truth. We are perilously close to that point.”23
—RALPH KEYES
Although I’ve considered only the cultural and sociological implications of UFOs thus far, I would now suggest the possibility that we are facing a far greater issue: a widespread cultural informational crisis. The mythological zone is not only confined to UFOs or paranormal beliefs. The Internet revolution, for all the benefits it has brought, has also bombarded us with false information, hoaxes, nonsense, junk science, spin, and outright lies. This has affected mainstream media as it attempts to keep viewers from drifting towards alternative media. All of this is now challenging our beliefs and changing us like never before. Far from social engineering, could this situation lead to social chaos or a time when truth is simply lost in the noise—a total informational breakdown? We now appear to be living in a post-truth age where flat-earthers 2.0 can become a cultural movement in a matter of months; where lies can be celebrated as truths, dumb can be celebrated as genius, and even Donald Trump can be President. Ralph Keyes wrote his book, The Post-Truth Era, about our eroding cultural values in relation to the telling of truth and lies. But, just like the mythological zone, the post-truth concept relates to the wider informational crisis with frightening relevance too.
It is, perhaps, more than a little ironic that now, of all times, given the arrival of the post-truth age, some would be campaigning for UFO Disclosure. There are many reasons why I think UFO Disclosure can’t and won’t happen, but they can best be distilled into one simple sentence: Disclosure is like attempting a prison break by asking the prison guards for the keys. Far more likely is a solution that delivers everybody what they want and need, and one that provides a convenient get-out-of-jail card for those in the corridors of power—an announcement that we have found extraterrestrial life and that we are finally not alone. This would not, however, amount to anything close to full UFO Disclosure,24 nor would it come close to solving the UFO problem. On the contrary, our problems regarding UFO truth in the post-truth age would only just be beginning. And if you think things are a mess now—unless we can come to grips with the informational crisis and our cultural issues in dealing with the unknown—just wait.
What would such an announcement mean for the Mirage Men? Would the Men-in-Black quietly cash-in their pensions early, park up their Buicks and hang up their black hats and suits for good? Or would their superiors be rubbing their hands together at the prospect of putting into mass circulation those methods they’d so stealthily perfected over the years? Those responsible for the illegal, criminal and unconstitutional activities surrounding UFOs and the national security state over the decades would certainly never be called to justice. They would gradually move with relative ease from the subterranea of the black world into the blinding sun of the white. Those bulk-purchased, iconic, Men-in-Black shades might never be more useful.
Escaping the Mythological Zone
So, do we, as a civilization, choose science or do we choose belief? Can science and belief ever coexist healthily alongside one another and make compatible bedfellows? Do we stand on the cusp of unison between science and spirituality or—in a desperate attempt at unifying these two opposing constructs—does the mythological zone bind us forever?
Have we not always been wrestling with these two opposing forces? Have we not always had an uncomfortable and contradictory relationship—part curiosity, part fear—with the unknown? Have we not always felt a sense of wonder, loneliness and insignificance when looking up at the seemingly incalculable number of stars above? How could we not? These human traits have d
riven some of our greatest scientific discoveries and achievements.
But these traits have also been used against us and allowed us to be deceived.
Current scientific understanding will never be the truth of the entire universe. Science, while the foundation of societal development, will always be something of a paper god. Belief is the fixer with which we attempt to fill the void behind that ever-fluid line of current scientific knowledge and beyond into the great unknown. Meanwhile, from within this void come magical, high strangeness, and human experiences that continue to mystify and confuse. But rather than becoming lightning rods for our own delusions, fantasies and fears, the things that “don’t fit” should make us strive to better understand ourselves, our universe, and our place within.
The cultural, sociological and mythological implications of UFOs are vast. By identifying the social engineering components to the UFO issue, perhaps we can at least recognize and begin to come to terms with our many vulnerabilities. The real challenge facing us regarding UFOs and the unknown is this: can we then forge a new pathway forward? One thing is certain. We must let go of the idea that we can simply sit back and ask the prison guards for the keys. If we are to ever escape the mythological zone, we must make the escape ourselves.
WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?
Curt Collins
The fiasco was indistinguishable from a hoax and couldn’t have been more damaging to ufology if it had been sabotage. Photographs of the body of an extraterrestrial being from the Roswell UFO crash were revealed at the National Auditorium in Mexico City on May 5, 2015. Three days later, the story imploded when international news accounts reported it was a fake, just another in a long series of embarrassments to the UFO field. The whole saga is complex and full of branching controversies, but the focus here is on the real investigation that exposed the “Roswell Slides,” and why it matters to the serious study of UFOs.
The slides were said to be found in Arizona in 1998. While on a job cleaning out a house scheduled for demolition, Catherine Beason saved a box of slides from being thrown away. It wasn’t until 2008 that she noticed two unusual pictures inside that were separated from all the others, two slides of a small alien-looking body laid in a glass case. She didn’t know what to do with them, and later gave the collection of slides to her brother, Joseph Beason, an Internet application developer in Chicago. He recognized the potential value in the slides, but needed specialized help. Beason wasn’t knowledgeable about UFOs, but the body looked extraterrestrial, and it made him think of the famous 1947 New Mexico flying saucer incident. In early 2012, Beason approached Roswell experts Don Schmitt and Tom Carey.
Schmitt and Carey had been writing and lecturing exclusively together as Roswell UFO investigators since 1998 in a decades-long quest for the “smoking gun,” proof that it was the crash of an alien spaceship. In 2011, Carey put together a “Dream Team” to produce the ultimate Roswell book, and recruited Anthony Bragalia and Dr. David Rudiak, both of whom had provided research help on their Witness to Roswell book, as well as UFO researchers Kevin Randle and Chris Rutkowski. The book collaboration was side-tracked due to Schmitt and Carey’s preoccupation with projects of their own, and it was at around this time that Joseph Beason and the Roswell Slides entered the picture. Beason sent Carey an email with two high-resolution pictures of the slides. Carey said that upon seeing them, “a chill ran down my spine.” He thought the body perfectly matched the description of dead aliens from the Roswell UFO crash stories, and instantly he “knew” it was genuine. He and Don Schmitt signed a non-disclosure agreement with Beason and became partners, promoters in the business of bringing the Slides to a public audience.
Adam Dew was recruited by Beason a few months later, in mid-2012. Dew is a Chicago-based filmmaker in the sports video business. Beason showed him the slide collection, and they became partners in control of the slides. Dew took on the role of project manager after Beason moved to the West Coast, and he also had the idea to make a film on the Slides story, one which would also document the investigation into their authenticity. In the following months, Schmitt and Carey brought two of their other Dream Team partners into the group in subordinate roles: Dr. David Rudiak, in July 2012, for his experience in working on the text of the Roswell “Ramey Memo;” and, in 2013, Anthony Bragalia, for his Internet research skills. During 2013, the team obtained an expert opinion that the slide materials themselves were genuine, encouraging the team to move forward towards a public exhibition.
BeWitness was conceived in November 2013, when Schmitt and Carey recruited Mexican ufologist Jaime Maussan to promote and host a spectacular show to exhibit the Slides. Maussan put together a proposal and, later that same month, he, Schmitt and Carey flew to Chicago to meet with Joe Beason and Adam Dew. There the deal was signed, and Maussan said, “I think this is going to change the world… this is going to be the biggest event ever in the history of the UFO.” In December, Beason and Dew formed Slidebox Media, LLC to execute their leadership of the enterprise. Dew was the frontman for Slidebox Media while Beason remained offstage, in a confidential role. The group’s best-kept secret, however, was the Chicago meeting with Maussan, while most of the other details about the Slides leaked and circulated as gossip and rumors.
The Announcement
On November 12, 2014, the rumors were confirmed at a lecture on UFOs at the American University in Washington, D.C., part of an event titled Alien Contact: Science and Science Fiction. The speaker was Tom Carey, who had an important announcement. “I’m going to break news about a smoking gun… we’ve been doing due diligence on for two years… We have come into possession of a couple of Kodachrome color slides of an alien being.” At the time, he mentioned only the highlights but, in the following months, the key points of the story emerged:
The two slides showed a small, partially-dissected humanoid.
The body was distinctly non-human, and couldn’t be a deformed child, mummy or a dummy.
The body lay on a green Army blanket, in a makeshift, hastily-constructed glass case, i.e., could not be a museum.
On the body was a small sign or placard, but the handwriting could not be read.
Kodak experts authenticated the slides as genuine and unaltered, from 1947, the year of the Roswell UFO crash.
The body matched the aliens described by Roswell witnesses, not the popular culture image of aliens from the 1940s (therefore, not a vintage hoax).
The slides had belonged to a deceased couple, the Rays of Midland, Texas.
The Rays were VIPs, knew Mamie and General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and were well-connected, and may have had access to top-secret facilities.
Hilda Blair Ray was a high-powered lawyer with a pilot’s license, and possibly involved in military intelligence in World War II.
Bernerd Ray, was a field geologist who conducted oil exploration expeditions in the Permian Basin, a region that included Roswell.
The investigators had an endorsement of the Slides from the last living witness to seeing bodies from the Roswell crash.
Tom Carey’s university lecture ended with a teaser: “I have been given permission for the first time to talk about it here, right now, about this event that’s going to take place early next year. So we have a lot more, we’re still working the case, but this is big stuff.”1
The news caught the attention of the UFO community. When I renewed my interest in UFOs in 2011, I joined a few online groups and networked with some UFO researchers through Facebook, starting a private discussion group with a few dissident UFO buffs where we could candidly share our views and blow off steam. The group had been following the Slides rumors for months, but, with Tom Carey’s announcement about a public event, we were hooked. In early 2015, when we found out that Jaime Maussan was hosting the event, it was a colossal red flag. Maussan had a reputation for promoting sensational UFO stories, including some spectacular mistakes, frauds and hoaxes.
Jaime Maussan held a two-hour press conference in Mexi
co City on February 4, 2015 to announce “BeWitness, The Change in History.”2 Maussan said the show would include several experts on the subject and feature former astronaut, Edgar Mitchell. “Edgar will give credibility to this event, he is a hero in American culture, one of the few who walked on the Moon and also he lived in Roswell…” There were short pre-recorded interviews with his experts, Don Schmitt, Tom Carey and Adam Dew. Schmitt said, “It will certainly be the most important event in our lifetimes.” Carey talked about the value of the Slides, saying, “I think it’s physical evidence. I think we have physical evidence… a picture is worth a thousand words.”
Maussan debuted the trailer for Adam Dew’s documentary, Kodachrome, which gave us the first glimpse of the “alien” slides, but their details were digitally blurred to save them for the reveal. It also showed the slides being examined in a laboratory with an expert calling them genuine and a witness viewing them, saying it resembled the alien body he’d seen at Roswell. It ended with a technician making a “3-D reconstruction of the body” that produced alien features.
Tickets went on sale for BeWitness to be held May 5, 2015 at the National Auditorium in Mexico City, with prices ranging from about $20 to $80 USD. Additionally, it was announced the event would be streamed live worldwide in a pay-per-view basis on the internet for about $20.
Independent Investigation is Initiated
The promoters also launched a Slidebox Media website. With all the new information, our group really had something to sink our teeth into. If even 1/10th of what they’d claimed was real, it would be an amazing discovery. The clock was ticking, and we were in a race against the May 5 deadline. We started digging, checking the story, researching vintage Kodak film and investigating the background on Mr. and Mrs. Ray. This was the moment of conception for the anti-sliders, eventually christened the “Roswell Slides Research Group,” or RSRG.
UFOs- Reframing the Debate Page 14