Gatekeepers: On Whose Authority?

UFO Gatekeepers. They come from all sides; uber-skeptics, debunkers, as well as those who believe, but insist on scientific approaches to exploring all that is UFO. The Gatekeepers wrangle one tentacle of the UFO Kraken, ignoring the rest -- even while it strangles them -- rejecting the elements that annoy them.

They decide who gets to, what methods, which cases.

On what authority?!

There is none.

James Mcgaha, uber-debunker, asks UFO witness if "she's qualified to look at the sky"

There is no UFO Authority, no matter how desperately some want there to be. There is no Official Method, case, researcher, witness, spokesperson.

No one is more, or less, qualified than anyone one else in this realm.

As soon as someone starts spouting off a need for standards: academic, scientific, "legitimate" cases, etc. I do not take them seriously.

Honesty is expected, at all times. That's about all we should expect. Sincere desire to explore, to share, to research, while holding the ball of integrity.

Other than that, the rest is a form of bullying. Self-righteous and arrogant demands to join, if you don't, then you're not honest, sincere and legitimate.

I Feel a Rant Coming On . . .

(cross posted at my blog The Orange Orb)

I Feel a Rant Coming On...

Which is one aspect of this blog -- all about ranting on some days. Migraine fueled rant at that.

What I posted on UFO Updates:

"Only $90.00?" That's a lot of money for some of us. MUFON, once upon a time, a long time ago, they did good things, good intent. Now they're in bed with Bigelow, and, oh dear. Individuals remain who do good work but as an entity, MUFON, no thanks. As to UFO events; the skies are busy busy busy these past decades with our own lights and it's hard to distinguish between the truly strange and "just" one of ours. Of course, "one of ours" often has its own sinister implications, but that's another track. Meanwhile, there are witnesses to really weird events -- myself included -- that have to do with UFOs. Aliens, or what, who knows, but the experiences are real, and I, for one, am not lying when I report on them. So I will continue to ponder and ask and wonder and delve. Sometimes it means looking at the light in the sky, if only to realize it's nothing. Other times it means asking -- demanding! -- hey, just what the hell was that whole missing time thing about?! Witnesses need to keep exploring and investigating, and researchers need to stop putting limits on what is acceptable and what isn't. True, Roswell slides mysteriously present showing real aliens is a huge and silly distraction, but knowing the players promoting such stunts helps and then we can move on.

The $90 reference was to the supposed cost of MUFON's official UFO investigation kit.

Things in UFO Land have been busy lately, what with the Roswell alien slides and TV programs about aliens and UFOs in general. On one hand, we have such a lot of popular culture stuff out there about UFOs. Within UFO Land, lots of the usual debating and in-fighting and arguments.

Distractions.

Meanwhile, the real questions and experiences seem to be ignored. Relegated to the fringe of the fringe. Unasked, not pursued. In fact, demands are shouted. Demands for science to step up. Demands for everyone else involved to be more scientific in the pursuit of UFO knowledge. As if that approach will answer, once and for all, The UFO Question.

Feh. And meh.

I'm not bored. I'm not giving up. I'm not shutting up. I encourage every witness, from the Bigfoot-UFO witness to the reptilian alien witness to the spinning lighted disco ball mother ship witness to report, write about, talk about, discuss, argue, defend, explore, investigate. Just be honest and clear. Hold your intent and focus. Compare and contrast.

Check yourselves. Check your religions, your belief systems. You do the work; don't let others dictate to you what that is. Now that's a hard one, because it's very difficult to be honest in that context.

But don't shut up. Don't stop. Don't let others tell you your story is unacceptable because it's too weird or that you're not a scientist.

alienviews: ...Finding's Looking...

Alfred has a beautiful item at his alienviews blog:alienviews: ...Finding's Looking...

Outside, I couldn't see them, so then went inside again... occluded by my thoughts on hidden stars. I reflected on the masking of these things so large or vast ... exceeding any measure of a section or a class, and the suffocation's woeful like I'm underneath some heel; the atmosphere is cloistered, and I cannot breath or feel.
.
I feel imposition that the sky somehow projects. The sky becomes a metaphor for: "that which disrespects." So, cut off by some malevolence to the fullness of my life (!), I feel withered, drawn, emulsified, or whittled by a knife.
.
"Craft" leap and dance behind their clouds, each one a different color, but it's color in a spectrograph, so then wider, Brighter—FULLER!! ...And these boil ultra-violet! Then, they simmer infrared! They churn in colors you shan't see passed livid bluish REDS!

After thought: you know, Alfred Lehmberg gets bashed by some, which I find odd. I think it's because, in part, he doesn't take any bit of crap -- quick to fling it back. He's also quick quick quick to say what he thinks. Those two responses pisses a lot of people off. But, here's something that a lot of people miss. Alfred's pieces are, no matter what the topic, about hope, our greater potential. He also points out, cleverly, sharply, our awful deeds, but it's all so unnecessary, if we only looked. Looked up, looked out and within, stopped denying. So simple a message and positive.

Now I have no idea if Alfred would agree with me on my insight or not. He might think I'm full of it. It's just my take on things. But I find it weird a lot of people spend a lot of time griping and arguing and flinging poo, rather than...well, being real and taking chances. At being wrong, at being surprised, at ...being.

In a Snarky Mood: Books

A UFO blog that shall not be named nor linked to recently posted "Three Books You Haven't Read" with cover images of the three books, and the comment that most readers of their blog had not read any of the books. Well, smart asses, I read one out of the three, it's on my bookshelf right now, I can see it from here: In Search of Schrodinger's Cat.

Feh. Pompous snark-masters.

Reminds me of the smug full of himself puritan professor I had who taught a James Joyce seminar each year. Me, in my enthusiastic naivety (older "returning student" as anyone over 40 was euphemistically called) and pure joy at being in college, said to him something like "I was happy to hear you teach a Joyce course; he's among my favorite writers." "Yes?" sniffed (literally, he sniffed!) Professor Important. "I love Joyce, I've read all of his work, ..." "You? You've read all of James Joyce?" he said. He seemed downright offended as well as shocked. And a bit suspicious. "Well, yes..." I said. "How interesting..." and he walked away.

The Orange Orb: Leah Haley on the Abduction Mythology

if she's telling her truth, she is not to blame for anything.

I comment on Leah Haley's recent opinions on abductions, thanks to Jack Brewer's post at his blog The UFO Trial: The Orange Orb: Leah Haley on the Abduction Mythology

Bug Eyed Monsters? ...Not So Bad!

On Alfred Lehmberg's Alien View (also cross posted at UFO Magazine): : Bug Eyed Monsters? ...Not So Bad! As it usually is with Alfred's writing, it's difficult to choose what to quote, since it's all fantastic, and I worry about taking things out of context -- or not giving his words all the attention they deserve. So here's just a snippet; enjoy!

Put your faith in Bug Eyed Monsters, dripping slime from every pore, before you trust a mean humanity malfeasant and abhorred! No, don't worry over-much, my friend, your B.E.M.'s intentions. They're the least of all concerns; fear Humans—my contention!

UFO Magazine - UFO Magazine Blog

Much going on at UFO Magazine's blog. I wrote a response to those in this field who are, well, sleazebags. UFO Magazine - UFO Magazine Blog:

"Self elected UFO Police, whether it's someone who runs a podcast or forums, or researchers who get up organizations with manifestos and rules about what speculations will and will not be entertained, are annoying, sure. They're liars. They're manipulators. All that is certainly a drag, but, while on the surface it may seem like petty bullshit, it's actually very dangerous. 

Read the two or three blog entries by Alfred Lehmberg, as well as the comments left by many savvy readers (and a few not so) ---

It's a thin line sometimes, dealing with these fools. Ignoring is the best tactic, almost always. Because no matter how correct you are, -- no, I mean, no matter how right the facts are -- "they" will always continue to engage. That cliche about "(not) feeding the trolls" is, while a bit worn, very true. Still, sometimes you have to say something, when others are being accused of doing or saying things they never did, as well as making truly astounding libelous statements. Even that might be okay if it weren't for the fact so many in what we glibly call "UFOlogy" consider these people credible contributors to UFO studies.

Imbrogno: Just a Baby Kraken

Uber skeptoid feels very proud of himself for revealing that Imbrogno lied about his degrees:UFO Magazine - UFO Magazine Blog - A Phil-a-buster He who released the Kraken is gloating, comments right and left.. including two by me.

I really hope this is the last I'll say on this, but I'll watch where this goes. While it's naturally disappointing to find that Imbrogno lied about his background, I also find it intriguing to watch how news of his exaggerations and lies unfolded. Waiting for any chance to pounce and devour, said uber-toid did so, almost channeling the spirit of Imbrogno while staring, once again, at Imbrogno's MIT shirt in photo after photo. Said channeled spirit told the debunker to go forth and reveal the truth, which he's done on many a forum. This wasn't done for any idealistic or altruistic reason or wrapped snugly in the vibe of truth; simply one more item brought to the Skepti World for the show and tell segment. It's all kooksville to them, all of it (as the skeptic who outed Imbrogno proves at his blog, opening with a rant against the contactees, as if that has anything to do with Imbrogno.) Look! The contactees were lairs, frauds! Look! Imbrogno's ideas about the phenomenon are wacky! Look, Imbrogno lied about his education! That proves it's all bunk!

Really, show's over.

Meanwhile UFO sightings and UFO witnesses and UFO stuff of a thousand different manifestations -- good, bad, ugly, beautiful, honest, dishonest, scary, benign, and oh so much more -- continue. But you know, who cares about any of that stuff? I mean, seriously? Not the debunkers. They're rational after all.

(If you weren't sure, that last was sarcasm.)

No prizes awarded here for any great truth telling. Truth had nothing to do with this latest whirlpool in UFO Land. Or Skepti World. No one's won anything. No one's lost much either. The fact of things Imbrogno brought to us exist. Details may have been fudged; but diligent research is a part of the UFO journey; whatever grime may cover some of what Imbrogno has contributed can be washed off. His ideas on things still stand as highly interesting and, by the way, they are not unique. Call them Djinns, demons, "the Devil," ultra terrestrials, or any number of labels, the esoteric theories of energies manifesting as "other" and manipulating the human experience has been around for a very long time.

On Speculative Realms: The Girl Who Saved Her Own Life

Gary Haden at Speculative Realms is one of the few out there who are diligently exposing David Jacobs. (Others include Jeremy Vaeni and Jeff Ritzman, who have received a lot of bewildering flack for bringing this story to the UFO "community" in the first place.) It continues to astound me that UFO culture remains, at turns, either silent on Jacob's methods and character, or, continue to vilify Emma Woods as [paraphrasing various pundits] a "crazy, troubled, mentally ill bitch."

Haden is an excellent writer, on top of being an excellent researcher -- his painstaking articles contain reams of analysis -- and I certainly don't want to want to take anything he's written in his current article out of context, or "high jack" his words and intent. But here's just one little something: Jacobs' outrageous, crazy, fucking straight out wrong action, in suggesting to Woods that she has Multiple Personality Disorder. This alone should be enough for others to roundly call Jacobs out, but, there's been very little of that, and a whole lot of cricket chirping.

Here's just one excerpt from Haden's article, relating to Jacobs planting the suggestion in Emma Wood's subconscious under hypnosis without permission. Again: without permission:

At no point in the four-hour tract I listened to did David Jacobs ask Emma Woods's permission to administer to her a posthypnotic suggestion she had multiple personality disorder. [bolding mine]

“I'm going to count from five to one, and just remember now, my diagnosis is that this is Multiple Personality Disorder and you should take medication for it. (nervous chuckle from Emma Woods) I have seen lots of cases of MPD, and this absolutely fits the MPD profile. And, my professional diagnosis therefore is Multiple Personality Disorder.”

“I am studying it. I am writing a book about it,” Jacobs continues. “That is my next book. I feel that the whole sort of alien business is all a matter of multiple personality disorder. It’s a much more widespread phenomenon than people think. Lots of people are walking around with it. It’s a public health problem. And that, you are unfortunately suffering from it. And, my opinion is that yours is a classic case, and that – that the only thing that will help you will be medication. And um, I am not interested in--in--your stories, I am only interested in the fact that you tell those stories, because multiple personalities are all different.”

Speculative Realms: The Girl Who Saved Her Own Life

There are so many side shoots of this nasty, weird, episode in UFOlogy, so many, and one of the many tangled, twisted, darkly gnarled and poisonous roots of Jacobs' actions is the question of the aliens themselves. Why is Jacobs now suggesting aliens are nothing other than manifestations of MPD? A big, bellowing HELLO on that one. (And do I have to note that David Jacobs is not a psychologist, a therapist, or a psychiatrist, and that his doctorate is in history?)

But, I do not want to deflect from the main issue, which is Jacobs' actions, his words, his behavior, his denials, his excuses, his justifications, his treatment of Emma Woods and others like her. Theories are one thing, as to what the aliens are, -- not one of us knows that. Well, some of us do, there are those in power we never see or hear that know damn well, but that's another issue and I digress.  What I, or you, "believe" about aliens, UFOs, ET, and the myriad of theories addressing those things doesn't change, nor negate, a damn thing just because David Jacobs has turned a very ugly corner.  No, the only issue here is Jacobs' approach to the witnesses he's interviewed. And, I'd add, the continued silence from others about that.

Brazen Hussies Invade Earth! Serious UFO Research Attacked!

Posted on The Orange Orb, and re posted at Orange Orb Review.  Interesting comments at Orange Orb; take a look. I want to add here that I, along with others who've commented, including Deirdre of course, find it odd that he takes such deep offense at Deirdre -- to the point of saying he will never read UFO Magazine again -- over all the other hundreds of articles that have appeared in that magazine over the years.  He doesn't see fit to mention David Jacob's behavior in the Emma Woods case, apparently finding a male in authority and his command that Woods send him her unwashed underwear heinous, but does find Ms. O'Lavery's humor and slip wearing, red lipsticked, cigarette dangling persona positively horrifying. 
 

Cigarette Smoking Woman Single-handedly brings down UFO research! In her slip, no less!

Disclosure:  I write for both the on-line 'zine, UFO Digest, as well as the print publication UFO Magazine. 


When Deirdre O'Lavery of Interstellar Housewife and JAR announced she was UFO Magazine's newest columnist, I was thrilled. She shared some of her ideas for her column's title with myself and a few others, including fellow UFO Magazine columnists Lesley Gunter at The Debris Field  and Alfred Lehmberg of Alien View.  The one column title that really said "Deirdre" to me was Saucers, Slips and Cigarettes, which is the one she chose.

A member of the Stuffed Shirt faction of the UFO Police doesn't appreciate Deirdre's cheeky 'tude, the brazen hussy, she.  David P. Kuhlman, FFSc, in his article for UFO Digest (UFO Mag Columnist is an Insult To Readers,) tells us why O'Lavery's column is offensive. Clues to Kuhlman's personal philosophy can be found in comments like the following: 

Do people give in to secular pressures, which can change the outlook and product for everyone? [bold and italics mine]

Indeed, in another article he wrote for UFO Digest; An Alien Reasoning, Kuhlman wrote:

I am a Christian. I was brought up through the years in church and I have strong roots with all Christian beliefs. I believe in God.

The use of the word "secular" in this context is clear: Deirdre O'Lavery has been seduced by the devil and away from the light, and is bringing the rest of us down with her into the roiling pits of hell.

John Collier, Lilith, 1892

Kuhlman goes on for quite awhile discussing what we all know far too well: UFOlogy has a difficult time being taken seriously, hoaxes hurt us all, there are good researchers who are "respectable," but some are not, and they're talking the rest of us down.  One of those who are not respectable, writes Kuhlman, is Deirdre O'Lavery, who should cause us all not only "concern" but "out-rage." Something about slips and cigarettes causes Kuhlman great distress:

Paging through to the seventh one [column] I noticed an unfamiliar face, a columnist. It initially caught my glance simply because I am familiar with the magazines layout since I read it often, and I knew this was a new addition immediately. I was curious and thumbed back to the index page and sure enough, the magazine had added a new columnist to its list, Ms. Deirdre O’ Lavery, Hmmm… never heard of her. Instantly I knew this was the place to start my reading journey through this months issue and quickly paged back to the column titled “Saucers, Slips, and Cigarettes”. That is where my blood began to boil!

I understand not liking a column, but really, his "blood began to boil?"  Sex, -- especially the "wrong" kind of sex, as in, anything you don't approve of between consenting adults -- is clearly the issue here, not UFO research. Women should be demure; we should speak softly and refrain from being sassy. Especially if we're wearing underwear. (Note to Kulhlman: some people prefer that kind of thing.)

The title of the column was strange I thought after reading it, it really didn’t seem to “fit” a serious publication on UFO research, but sometimes the title is to get the attention of the reader and it certainly did its job there and at least one word did correlate with the cigarette hanging out of the side of Ms. O’ Lavery’s clown painted, rose red lips. [italics mine]

Deirdre O'Lavery, get thee to a nunnery! And lest you think I am being overly flip here, Kuhlman himself is serious; of all the things in UFO land to get upset about, he finds O'Lavery's "rose red lips," cigarette smoking, and use of the word "slips" to be the targets of his repressed and misogynistic outrage:

"I have never been more agitated at any other piece of writing on UFOs than I am on this one . . . As I read I was disgusted and nauseated at her attempt to break the ice with the reader. Foul language and an utter sense of ignorance and disrespect to serious readers was her route. She goes on to write her column like a heathen speaks. [italics mine]   

He was nauseated? And "heathen?" "Heathen?" Did he really write that? Yes, yes he did. 

All that mishegas aside, he completely misunderstands O'Lavery's column, focusing instead not only on her lips but her "drunkenness":

Can people really take the UFO phenomenon seriously when it is painted that only sorry drunk people with no life dabble into this subject? Folks, this article is a disgrace to everyone that considers UFOlogy worth of investigation!

Kuhlman borders on the libelous; if it weren't so damn funny, it might be of concern. He not only finds Ms. O'Lavery "drunken," and what not but also believes she should be shunted off to the nut house:

She is certifiable for this piece of worthless paper with all of her slang and ignorant insight.

Her "slang?" Hey Daddyo, you sound like a real square!

Of all the columnists that write for UFO Magazine, this is the one that has caused Kuhlman --- after just one column! -- to stop reading the magazine altogether. If O'Lavery's one column can upset a supposed UFO researcher so much that he writes a rant about it and demands a "formal apology" from the publishers, then Ms. O'Lavery is one hell of a writer!

Painting by James Rich

One last point about Kuhlman's apoplectic response to Deirdre O'Lavery: he includes all of "us" (well, except for O'lavery) in his rant, beginning with his title: UFO Mag Columnist is an Insult to Readers. No, Kuhlman, it's not an insult to all readers; not to me, obviously. Speak for yourself. Clearly it's an insult to you, and possibly, to some others, so be it. But don't include me in your campaign to rid UFO land of Ms. O'Lavery. This is the problem with the UFO Police; they expect everyone to join them in their outrages and edicts about what they perceive to be right.

Congratulations, Ms. Deirdre O'Lavery, for bringing UFOlogy down to such a shameless level with just one column!

James Carion's New UFO/NOT UFO Organization

Ex-director MUFON director James Carion announces a brand new UFO organization: CUT. CUT stands for Center for UFO Truth.

Here’s what I wrote on Facebook:

Oh dear. Not "affiliated in any way with UFology" yet "CUT" (there's an interesting Fortean twilight language kind of word to use)  studies "early days of UFOs ... answering the question long ignored by historians -- was the UFO subject purposely created by the United States. .. part of a cold war operation?" That's been asked before. But anyway, how is this NOT to do with UFology?! It'll be interesting for sure but how far is one willing to go in trusting government sources? Der.  And this gem: "CUT will work outside of the three ring circus that is Ufology and will not accept the contributions of anonymous individuals or alleged whistleblowers nor will it examine alleged leaked documents." So he's distancing himself yet once again from the unwashed masses and "...circus" of UFology, going so far as to call what he's doing - studying an aspect of UFOs --- not UFology.  Newsflash Mr. Carion, you ARE part of the "circus," -- we all are. How an ex-director of MUFON, who is currently involved in a new organization exploring an aspect of UFOs, say with a straight face he is not part of the "circus" is a deliciously ironic, er, circus like, stance to take.

I’ll add that the word UFO is in the name of the group! UFO is part of the acronym, yet, Carion insists, this new enterprise (heh, talk about twilight language) contains the word UFO in its very title. The title is also fun, in its ironic pot/kettle black way, for its word "truth." What a display of arrogance and self important stuff shirted puffery!

Carion never did like saucer heads. He reiterates his distaste for the distasteful and bothersome UFO witnesses and UFO explorers of various kinds:

CUT will work outside of the three ring circus that is Ufology and will not accept the contributions of anonymous individuals or alleged whistleblowers nor will it examine alleged leaked documents.

Yes, why bother with interviewing witnesses to see if they are credible or do the work involved to determine authenticity of documents? 

This is the problem with would be UFO Police; they set up their own little paradigm, decide to reject a good portion of what’s out there, and all the time, they’re congratulating each other on finally getting to the “truth.”

When you combine a systems like that with a dismissive attitude that reeks of classism and an obvious distaste for 90% of the thing you’re studying, you cannot possibly get to any “truth.” 

The Big Lie
Recently, the cyclic meme that “UFOlogy is dead” has been making the rounds, and I wonder: is this thing we loosely call UFOlogy really dead? Or is it just something people say out of frustration? I think the latter. UFOlogy is constantly shifting, and in fact, some big shakeups have been happening recently (David Jacobs, Cherry, and, um,  Carion. . . ) but that doesn't make it dead.

Do some think UFOlogy is “dead” because of the oft bemoaned statement that, “after such and such many years, we don’t have any answers?”

Carion remarks:

Ufology has nothing to show for more than 60 years of amateur investigation and research. By not establishing professional evidentiary standards, Ufology will neither join the halls of academic "ologies" nor will it discover the truth of what lies behind the subject of UFOs.

The us of the qualifier “amateur” is unfair. It’s snide. We’re all amateurs. Does he mean amateur in the popular sense: meaning, less than? Or in the true sense, meaning not paid for one’s work? Amateur has come to mean the former, more often than not, but being “amateur” does not always mean inferior. You cannot take away the study of UFOs from “the people” no matter how much you want to. And if you do, why do you want to? What's the intent?

We don’t have the Big Final Answer That Fits All to the UFO phenomenon. Carion’s mistake, as with many others: thinking there is one.

I don’t know what halls of “ologies” he means, probably the institutions of science, academia, and ironically, the very governmental agencies he plans on getting all this information from, but the reality is: CUT, too, is just another UFO group in the eyes of those “ologies.”

But back to the meme that “after sixty years we haven’t found the answer” -- I wonder if that’s true. No, we don’t have full disclosure, or the Beyond a Doubt UFO From Outer Space craft or an alien body. Well, not one revealed to the world on CNN anyway.

The UFO phenomenon has layers upon shadowy layers upon deeper darker layers. It’s a given UFOs and aliens are “real” and here,  We’ve moved way beyond that. We know they are; we don't’ know what they are.

Parsing the UFO experience down to a small segment --   U.S. government agencies intentionally creating false UFO scenarios to distract  -- is not a new idea, nor a surprise. And finding further proof that was the case at times won’t definitively provide an answer to what UFOs are.

UFOlogy Is Not Dead

I responded to something on Facebook, just thought I’d share. Sums it up, maybe I’ll put it on my business card!

UFOlogy is not “dead,” no one should be the Great UFO Decider, it ain’t all that serious, and it is all VERY serious, science will never embrace us saucer heads, but that’s okay because like Groucho said: (paraphrasing) “I don’t want to be a member of any club that’d have me”, one person’s embarrassing fruitcake is another person’s tasty brownie, some of us are stuck with weird experiences and we’re trying to figure it out, no, we won’t shut up, far too many smug stuffed shirts pontificating their way through UFO Land, judgments, classism, self-importance, and not listening to the witnesses. I’d hate to go off on a rant though!

Lehmberg: "Mal-Inculations"

Mal-Inculcations by Alfred Lehmberg.

Woo T.V.
Are you doing your part to keep Woo Television on the air?

Of Gatekeepers and Decoder Rings . . .

Lesley at Debris Field has a few comments on Michael Salla's article, which is about the UFO Police. (Salla's article:
Hysteria drives UFO gatekeepers debunking exopolitics pioneers.) Of UFO Gatekeeprs or the UFO Police in general, Lesley comments:

They even attack people that have had experiences that don't fit into their box. They try to cloak it as some noble mission to save Ufology, but anyone that listens to them for more than 5 minutes realizes it is really a mission to try to make themselves look far superior to anyone else. They are the only ones that "get it" and the rest of us (except those that totally agree with them) are a stupid mass of people in need of a leader -- them.

And Bruce Duensing of Intangible Materiality writes, as always, so eloquently about UFO Gatekeepers in Secret Decoder Rings:

Outside of truth in the imaginal realm posed as a franchise, a exclusionary divisor that is not prone to uncertainty, the adapted postures of those who claim to possess the secret decoder ring,there is a certain instinctual desire of ourselves as fish within this atmospheric ocean to be lured, compelled and strike a pose in the reflected glory of exclusivity, designed in earnest by a franchised cabal, an inner circle of humanity as opposed to dim candle flickering by the lowest common denominator carried by an unwashed rabble of sheep. A carrier of secrets which in of themselves are perhaps default settings, a backstop in a competitive game, a consensus set against ambiguity, a self executing warning concerning pawns, boosters and the appetites that stir for satiation. ~ Bruce Duensing

Alfred Lehmberg has a piece up right now at UFO Magazine that relates to this theme of the would be overseers of UFOlogy: Traces and "Stuff" Alfred is mainly addressing the pathological skeptic but a lot of what he writes can be applied to those that deny someone else's perspective on things:

Whose call? The call of my muse, you biliously sneering skeptibunker of small imagination, smaller intelligence and sub-microscopic, even concave, courage! Something could be said regarding meager scrotum size. The reader knows who's addressed...

Whose voice? Why, the inner one of course — the only one of which I'm sure! I can't hear it in the clutter of your media's exhortations to burn and consume. I can't hear it in the frothing of your Pat Robertson, or Jerry Falwell... ...that UFO's are agents of Satan…

"Smirks and Sneers"

Another great piece by Alfred on the UFO Magazine blog: "Those Smirks and Sneers"

This is for anyone who wrongly detests the working stiff holding them in his or her providing arms, and manufacturing their complete convenience out of thin air — you lofty, sneering, clueless, and non-appreciative Elite!

And an equally entertaining perceptive response by Mike Good.

This elite classist sneering and such goes on within UFOlogy and Bigfoot research . . . obvious point but felt like making it anyway.

Lesley on "Powerless Policing"

Lesley has a good piece on "the wannabe Ufology Police" for her Grey Matters column at Binnall of America.

"Battles, UFOs, and the Folk"

On the UFO Magazine blog, my latest: Battles, UFOs, and the Folk.

"A Movement Afoot" : Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid

According to a few bloggers with a disturbing dependence on thesauruses (thesauri?) there is an underground UFO group afoot. Why underground? Ah, to seriously study UFOs. I mean, seriously. Deeply. Studiously. Without the taint of the rest of us. Allusions to this all mysterious, top secret, underground UFO study group have been made before. I have visions of them toiling away in dank rooms, kind of like mushrooms grown in basements as a side business...when will they emerge to give us the truth? We can only wait, and hope.

Seriously, Don't Be So Damn Serious. Seriously.

Lesley has a great Grey Matters column this week at Binnall of America. “Seriously” addresses the stuffed shirts of UFOlogy; those who think having fun are doing a disservice to UFOlogy. (Just what is "UFOlogy" anyway?)

There are some who just won’t ever get it; that the exploration of the UFO phenomena is for everyone, no one gets to decide who can, and who cannot, join in the UFO mystery chase.

The UFO phenomena is certainly a grassroots, folklore (of the folk type entity) phenomena: while it’s necessary to have all sorts involved, including scientists and nuts and bolts field researchers, etc. to believe that this is the only valid approach is nonsense.

What inspired Lesley to write her column were the recent comments on UFO Updates about the use of the word “Festival” in context of UFO conferences:

Recently on UFO Updates there was a little discussion about the term "UFO Festival." Certain people don't like the word "festival" to be associated with UFOs, the feeling being that this would somehow keep people from taking the subject seriously. They may have been kidding, but there are people who feel that way

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The UFO phenomena has always been, at least in modern times, subversive to mainstream society. Its very nature is a huge “bleeeeeeeeech!” in the face of institutions, religions, academia, politics, the media. Dressing up in suits, chiding others for not behaving properly or insisting there be some Official UFO Police are ways to cause divisions, not achieve answers. (at least some of the answers anyway.) Of course, many who advocate for suits and ties, somber tones, UFO Guilds and a UFO etiquette would like this very much. Get rid of the embarrassing riff raff and they can carry on, being coddled and taken seriously (uh huh) by the very institutions that ignore -- and worse -- their UFO quest.

Lesley points out something that I don’t think is pointed out enough; that a lot of people (“the folk”) take UFOs pretty seriously:

I would say that 9 out of 10 people I meet have some belief in ETs or some other intelligence that is not what we would term as a human or Earthling and that may be flying around in the skies. You might not find them posting about it on the Internet or attending a festival or conference, but that doesn't mean that they don't take it seriously or don't believe something strange is going on. Most of them just don't have much extra time to devote to the subject.

The mainstream media may still have a ways to go, certainly academia, politics and science do, but the people are interested. They’re the ones with the experiences (I should say, we’re the ones with experiences; I include myself in that category.)

The purpose of a festival is to have fun of course, but it always serves a cultural need, including one that subverts the mundane. Lesley writes:

By the way, "festival" is a proper term for something like Roswell's annual event. You can call it whatever you want, but it is still a festival. It brings together all kinds of people and all ages and they hopefully have some fun as well as learn a few things. I see nothing at all wrong with that. Frankly, stuffy conferences mostly only attract those that already believe and the people there might take it all very seriously, but I don't see it convincing anyone else that Ufology should be taken seriously.

I hope UFO researcher and author Richard Dolan doesn’t mind my saying this, but both he and Karyn Dolan agreed that the Oregon, McMinnville UFO Festival last May was great. (Richard was the main speaker.) They enjoyed themselves very much, found it relaxing, and yes, fun. This from one of the most serious of UFO researchers when it comes to the work he does.

Speaking for myself, I am very serious about UFOs. This is something I’ve been experiencing my entire life. I have lots of questions about things I’ve experienced. Don’t you think that makes me extremely “serious” -- damn serious -- about this stuff? One way to be “serious” is to maintain personal integrity, and be yourself. If you have a sense of humor, can’t abide suits or pantyhose, or think, like Lesley does, that The Weekly World News is sometimes funny, because that’s who you are, you’d be a liar if you pretended otherwise. Which means you no longer have integrity, and in that case you would’ t be “serious.”