The Mammoth Book of Cover-Ups
Page 31
Further Reading
www.realinstitutoeliano.org
MAJESTIC–12
Returning home on the evening of 11 December 1984, TV producer and UFO investigator Jaime Shandera found a bulky envelope stuffed into his mailbox. Inside was a roll of 35mm undeveloped black-and-white film. When Shandera and his colleague William Moore developed the film they found photographs of a “TOP SECRET – EYES ONLY” document from 1952 briefing the then president of the US, Dwight Eisenhower.
The document informed the newly installed Eisenhower on the crash of a UFO at Roswell in July 1947, from which the bodies of four aliens had been recovered. Attached was a 1947 memo from President Harry Truman authorizing the setting up of a 12–member panel of military officers, scientists and intelligence officers, under the codename “Majestic–12” (aka “Majic-12”), to study the aliens’ technology.
After three years of research, Shandera and Moore became convinced that the Majestic–12 document was genuine, and released it on 29 May 1987 into the public domain. There were headlines around the world. A former CIA pilot called John Lear (son of the Learjet inventor) came forward to announce that he had discovered a paper trail of contacts between the Majestic–12 committee and alien visitors; the latter had, in order to heal genetic disorders, carried out experiments on cattle (resulting in the phenomenon which became known as “cattle mutilation”) and humans. Sometimes the experiments were carried out aboard flying saucers (see Alien Abductions) but more usually in huge US subterranean cities, peopled by aliens and guarded by the US; afterwards abductees were returned to their lives with trackers installed in their bodies. In exchange for permitting the alien experiments, the White House received alien technological know-how. Alas, after a diplomatic spat the aliens withdrew from Earth and, fearful they might return with less-than-peaceful intentions, the US created the Strategic Defense Initiative (“Star Wars”) to protect itself. According to the arch-UFOlogist William Cooper, the US government kept the lid on its long relationship with the aliens through a Mafia-like vow of silence. Any US subjects who blabbed were harassed into silence by Men in Black. Cooper claimed to have seen sheaves of UFO documents when he served in the navy, and even attempted the impeachment of George Bush Sr and Bill Clinton for complicity in Majestic–12. Cooper’s investigations into Majestic–12 came to an abrupt end in November 2001 when he was shot dead in what the authorities said was an unrelated accident.
The original Majestic–12 document was proved beyond reasonable doubt to be a forgery in 1989, when conspiracy de-bunker Philip Klass showed that President Truman’s signature on the document was an exact copy of his signature on an earlier letter. Nobody signs their name precisely the same way twice. Additionally, the 1947 memo was typed on a Smith Corona typewriter – a model not in production until 1963 – and CIA chief Admiral Hillenkoetter is referred to as “Adm. Roscoe H. Hillenkoetter” even though all known letters from the time refer to him as “Adm. R. H. Hillenkoetter”.
Some suspect Bill Moore forged the original document himself. Moore is said to have written a novel in 1982 called MAJIK-12.That same year he suggested to ex-National Enquirer journalist Bob Pratt that they should publish phoney UFO documents to force the government to come up with the real ones. Moore himself has admitted informing on UFOlogists to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (he says in order to win its trust so he could infiltrate it) and it has been mooted that he was willingly or unwillingly part of an AFOSI disinformation campaign.
Nevertheless, diehards continue to hold that a super-secret body called Majestic–12 exists and that William Cooper was permanently silenced by the Men in Black because he was about to expose the whole White House-UFO cosy relationship. Hundreds of other Majestic–12 documents of disputed authenticity have been discovered and published.
Majestic–12 aside, there are verifiable accounts of a UFO study group set up by the Pentagon in 1954 called NSC 5412/2 about which next to nothing is known. Perhaps the hoaxers who forged the original Majestic–12 documents had the right guys, just the wrong name.
US top-secret committee Majestic–12 treated with aliens: ALERT LEVEL 2
Further Reading
William Cooper, Behold a Pale Horse, 1991
Stanton T. Friedman, Top Secret)Magic: The Story of Operation Majestic–12 and the United States Government’s UFO Cover-Up, 1997
www.majesticdocuments.com
DOCUMENT: PURPORTED 18 NOVEMBER 1952 BRIEFING TO PRESIDENT-ELECT EISENHOWER ON Majestic–12
WARNING: This is a TOP SECRET – EYES ONLY document containing compartmentalized information essential to the national security of the United States. EYES ONLY ACCESS to the material herein is strictly limited to those possessing Majestic–12 clearance level. Reproduction in any form or the taking of written or mechanically transcribed notes is strictly forbidden.
[. . .]
NOTE: This document has been prepared as a preliminary briefing only. It should be regarded as introductory to a full operations briefing intended to follow.
*****
OPERATION Majestic–12 is a TOP SECRET Research and Development/Intelligence operation responsible directly and only to the President of the United States. Operations of the project are carried out under control of the Majestic–12 (Majic-12) Group which was established by special classified executive order of President Truman on 24 September 1947, upon recommendation by Dr Vannevar Bush and Secretary James Forrestal. (See Attachment “A”.) Members of the Majestic–12 Group were designated as follows:
Adm. Roscoe H. Hillenkoetter
Dr Vannevar Bush
Secy James V. Forrestal
Gen. Nathan F. Twining
Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg
Dr Detlev Bronk
Dr Jerome Hunsaker
Mr Sidney W. Souers
Mr Gordon Gray
Dr Donald Menzel
Gen. Robert M. Montague
Dr Lloyd V. Berkner
The death of Secretary Forrestal on 22 May 1949 created a vacancy which remained unfilled until 01 August 1950, upon which date Gen. Walter B. Smith was designated as permanent replacement.
*****
On 24 June, 1947, a civilian pilot, flying over the Cascade Mountains in the State of Washington observed nine flying disc-shaped aircraft travelling in formation at a high rate of speed. Although this was not the first known sighting of such objects, it was the first to gain widespread attention in the public media. Hundreds of reports of sightings of similar objects followed. Many of these came from highly credible military and civilian sources. These reports resulted in independent efforts by several different elements of the military to ascertain the nature and purpose of these objects in the interests of national defense. A number of witnesses were interviewed and there were several unsuccessful attempts to utilize aircraft in efforts to pursue reported discs in flight. Public reaction bordered on near hysteria at times.
In spite of these efforts, little of substance was learned about the objects until a local rancher reported that one had crashed in a remote region of New Mexico located approximately seventy-five miles northwest of Roswell Army Air Base (now Walker Field).
On 07 July, 1947, a secret operation was begun to assure recovery of the wreckage of this object for scientific study. During the course of this operation, aerial reconnaissance discovered that four small human-like beings had apparently ejected from the craft at some point before it exploded. These had fallen to earth about two miles east of the wreckage site. All four were dead and badly decomposed due to action by predators and exposure to the elements during the approximately one week time period which had elapsed before their discovery. A special scientific team took charge of removing these bodies for study. (See Attachment “C”.) The wreckage of the craft was also removed to several different locations. (See Attachment “B”.) Civilian and military witnesses in the area were debriefed, and news reporters were given the effective cover story that the object had been a misguided weather
research balloon.
A covert analytical effort organized by Gen. Twining and Dr Bush acting on the direct orders of the President, resulted in a preliminary consensus (19 September 1947) that the disc was most likely a short range reconnaissance craft. This conclusion was based for the most part on the craft’s size and the apparent lack of any identifiable provisioning. (See Attachment “D”.) A similar analysis of the four dead occupants was arranged by Dr Bronk. It was the tentative conclusion of this group (30 November 1947) that although these creatures are human-like in appearance, the biological and evolutionary processes responsible for their development has [sic] apparently been quite different from those observed or postulated in homo-sapiens. Dr Bronk’s team has suggested the term “Extra-terrestrial Biological Entities”, or “EBEs”, be adopted as the standard term of reference for these creatures until such time as a more definitive designation can be agreed upon.
Since it is virtually certain that these craft do not originate in any country on earth, considerable speculation has centred around what their point of origin may be and how they get here. Mars was and remains a possibility, although some scientists, most notably Dr Menzel, consider it more likely that we are dealing with beings from another solar system entirely.
Numerous examples of what appear to be a form of writing were found in the wreckage. Efforts to decipher these have remained largely unsuccessful. (See Attachment “E”.) Equally unsuccessful have been efforts to determine the methods of propulsion or the nature or method of transmission of the power source involved. Research along these lines has been complicated by the complete absence of identifiable wings, propellers, jets, or other conventional methods of propulsion and guidance, as well as a total lack of metallic wiring, vacuum tubes, or similar recognizable electronic components. (See Attachment “F”.) It is assumed that the propulsion unit was completely destroyed by the explosion which caused the crash.
A need for as much additional information as possible about these craft, their performance characteristics and their purpose led to the undertaking known as US Air Force Project SIGN in December, 1947. In order to preserve security, liaison between SIGN and Majestic–12 was limited to two individuals within the Intelligence Division of Air Material Command whose role was to pass along certain types of information through channels. SIGN evolved into Project GRUDGE in December, 1948. The operation is currently being conducted under the code name BLUE BOOK, with liaison maintained through the Air Force officer who is head of the project.
On 06 December 1950, a second object, probably of similar origin, impacted the earth at high speed in the El Indio-Guerrero area of the Texas-Mexican border after following a long trajectory through the atmosphere. By the time a search team arrived, what remained of the object had been almost totally incinerated. Such material as could be recovered was transported to the A.E.C. facility at Sandia, New Mexico, for study.
Implications for the National Security are of continuing importance in that the motives and ultimate intentions of these visitors remain completely unknown. In addition, a significant upsurge in the surveillance activity of these craft beginning in May and continuing through the autumn of this year has caused considerable concern that new developments may be imminent. It is for these reasons, as well as the obvious international and technological considerations and the ultimate need to avoid a public panic at all costs, that the Majestic–12 Group remains of the unanimous opinion that imposition of the strictest security precautions should continue without interruption into the new administration. At the same time, contingency plan MJ-1949-04P/78 (Top Secret – Eyes Only) should be held in continued readiness should the need to make a public announcement present itself. (See Attachment “G”.)
RENUMERATION OF ATTACHMENTS:
ATTACHMENT “A”
Special Classified Executive
Order #092447. (TS/EO)
ATTACHMENT “B”
Operation Majestic–12 Status
Report #1, Part A. 30 NOV ’47.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “C”
Operation Majestic–12 Status
Report #1, Part B. 30 NOV ’47.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “D”
Operation Majestic–12 Preliminary
Analytical Report. 19 SEP ’47.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “E”
Operation Majestic–12 Blue Team
Report #5. 30 JUN ’52.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “F”
Operation Majestic–12 Status
Report #2. 31 JAN ’48.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “G”
Operation Majestic–12 Contingency
Plan MJ-1949-04P/78: 31 JAN ’49.
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
ATTACHMENT “H”
Operation Majestic–12, Maps and
Photographs Folio (Extractions).
(TS-MAJIC/EO)
September 24, 1947.
MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
Dear Secretary Forrestal:
As per our recent conversation on this matter, you are hereby authorized to proceed with all due speed and caution upon your undertaking. Hereafter this matter shall be referred to only as Operation Majestic Twelve.
It continues to be my feeling that any future considerations relative to the ultimate disposition of this matter should rest solely with the Office of the President following appropriate discussions with yourself, Dr Bush and the Director of Central Intelligence.
(SIGNED) Harry Truman
MARIJUANA
When Betsy Ross made the first “Old Glory” flag she fashioned it from hemp. When Jefferson wrote the draft of the Declaration of Independence he penned it on hemp paper. For more than a century, 90 per cent of US ships had their sails and ropes made from hemp (“canvas” being the Dutch for cannabis). Henry Ford made the bodywork of his first Model Ts from hemp, which he grew extensively. In 18th-century America, hemp was such a staple crop that in Virginia it was illegal not to grow it.
So why in 1937 was hemp production banned in the US? The answer lies in the soil. Billionaire industrialist and newspaper owner William Randolph Hearst (the model for Citizen Kane) owned extensive forests, the lumber from which was used for paper production. Hemp threatened Hearst’s lumber profits, so he began a yellow journalistic campaign against the stuff, rebranding it with the Mexican slang name “marijuana” and portraying it as a dangerous drug which caused violence and immorality.
Hearst’s disinformation campaign was supported by Andrew Mellon, President Hoover’s Secretary of State, who also had a vested interest in halting hemp production: Mellon was a principal shareholder in Dupont, which patented the production of plastic from oil and coal, and also in the chemical used to break down wood pulp into paper. Since it was possible to make both plastic-like materials and paper from hemp, Dupont’s patents were potentially worthless if hemp production continued. Mellon appointed Henry Anslinger, his future son-in-law, as head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs and the propaganda war against lax, immoral “marijuana” stepped up, reaching its climax in the film Reefer Madness. On 14 April 1937, the Marijuana Tax Law, which outlawed hemp, was directly brought to the House Ways and Means Committee. This committee is the only one that can introduce a bill to the House floor without it being debated by other committees. The Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, Robert Doughton, was a Dupont supporter. The bill became law.
The American Medical Association was dumbfounded, not having realized that the “marijuana” of the propaganda campaign was the hemp from which many of their drugs derived. (Hemp derivatives were the second most commonly prescribed drugs in America in the early 20th century.) In 1941 hemp/ marijuana was dropped from the US Pharmacopoeia because the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act made it too difficult for physicians to prescribe.
Save for a short period during the Second World War (when the State Department urged f
armers to plant “Hemp for Victory!”), hemp production has continued to be outlawed in the US. No other major industrialized country has such legislation. Despite hemp’s potential as a bio-fuel – Henry Ford and Rudolph Diesel both intended to run cars on the crop – there is little likelihood of a change of heart by US government over hemp production, since another loud voice has joined the chorus of nay-sayers: the pharmaceutical industry. In an interview with Jana Ray of Nexus magazine, Professor Lester Grin-spoon of Harvard Medical School was asked: “Do you think pharmaceutical drug companies have anything to do with the government’s prohibitive stand against medicinal cannabis use?” He replied:
Absolutely. The Partnership for a Drug Free America has a budget of about a million dollars a day. A lot of that money comes from drug companies and distilleries. You see, these companies and distilleries have something to lose – the distilleries for obvious reasons. The drug companies are not interested in marijuana as a medicine because the plant cannot be patented. If you can’t patent it, you can’t make money on it. Their only interest is a negative one. It will eventually displace some of their pharmaceutical products.
Imagine a patient who requires cancer chemotherapy. Now he can take the best of the anti-nausea drugs, which would be ondansetron. He would pay about US$35 or $40 per 8–milligram pill and would then take three or four of them for a treatment. Normally, he would take it orally, but people with that kind of nausea often can’t, so he would take it intravenously. The cost of one treatment for that begins at US$600 because he will need a hospital bed, etc. Or he can smoke perhaps half of a marijuana cigarette and receive relief from the nausea.