Lawmakers and Involuntary Human Research Subjects, Part Two of Two

Former Missouri Representative Jim Guest

In 2002, Jim Guest began his first of four terms in the Missouri House of Representatives (4). Guest holds degrees in engineering and was employed at McDonnell Douglas Corporation, a federal sub-contractor that developed aerospace technology and worked on classified projects, prior to its merging with Boeing (5). He served on multiple committees while in office, including the House Committee on Real ID and Personal Privacy, delving into consumer issues related to electronic “nonlethal” weapons, radio frequency identification (RFID) chips and proposing related legislation. It was then that Guest became known as a “go-to guy” for resources related to involuntary human research subjects, electronic harassment and similar such subject matter.

In a letter to fellow legislators and dated October 10, 2007 (6) , Guest wrote:

This letter is to ask for your help for the many constituents in our country who are being affected unjustly by electronic weapons torture and covert harassment groups. Serious privacy rights violations and physical injuries have been caused by the activities of these groups and their use of so-called non-lethal weapons on men, women, and even children.

I am asking you to play a role in helping these victims and also stopping the massive movement in the use of Verichip and RFID technologies in tracking Americans.

Long before Verichip was known we were testing these devices on Americans, many without their knowledge or consent. With the new revelations of the cancer risk besides the privacy and human rights problems with the use of Verichip and RF signals, I am asking for your help in stopping these abuses and aiding those already affected. Your attendance is therefore requested at a conference call regarding these issues on Monday, October 29, at 11 am EST. After a period of brief presentations, we will have a discussion of these issues with the intent of creating a way forward toward solutions...

Sincerely,

Rep. Jim Guest

 

Guest's work went on to become presented as supporting documents in civil court cases and, in select cases, Guest himself assisted plaintiffs. In 2008, Guest personally helped James Walbert convince a Kansas court that he and his family were being electronically harassed via nonlethal weapons by a former business partner (7). Then-Representative Guest wrote on behalf of Walbert (8):

To Whom It May Concern:

I have worked for 3 years with Microwave and Electronic Harassment victims throughout the US and overseas. It is hard for others to understand the technology that is being used to destroy people's lives. I know James because he contacted me for help. James has worked to find proof of what has happened to him.

Many victims try hard to get help from professional doctors to help find devices such as Veri-Chip. I would request that you and those who can make a difference would help James and others to find answers.

Jim Guest

5^th District State Representative

Guest's legacy of championing contemporary human rights issues was solidified. His work continues to be cited among various advocacy groups.

Former Presidential Candidate Dennis Kucinich

Dennis Kucinich is an elected official serving the State of Ohio, as was the case with John Glenn. Kucinich is a career politician, elected to the Senate in 1994 and Congress in 1996. During a Presidential bid, news surfaced in 2007 of Kucinich's involvement in a UFO sighting (9).

During the early 1980's while staying at the Graham, Washington, home of Shirley MacLaine, Kucinich and two companions reported that they heard a high pitched sound throughout the day (10). Later the same day, the trio observed three triangle craft approach and hover in close proximity.

MacLaine went on to write in her book, Sage-ing While Age-ing, that Kucinich “heard directions in his mind” during the incident. The Washington Post reports that Kucinich denies that part. Kucinich does, however, generally agree that the event indeed took place and as researcher/author Alex Constantine quotes Kucinich's companions and MacLaine as describing (see previous source cited).

One way or the other, perhaps what is most interesting about the Dennis Kucinich saga is that he went on to propose the Space Preservation Act of 2001 (11). The bill sought to ban space-based weapons, very interestingly including the “use of land-based, sea-based, or space-based systems using radiation, electromagnetic, psychotronic, sonic, laser, or other energies directed at individual persons or targeted populations for the purpose of information war, mood management, or mind control of such persons or populations.” The bill additionally proposed banning “exotic weapons systems such as high altitude ultra low frequency weapons systems.”

The bill was not approved.

On a related note, a U.S. Navy document titled, Human Research Protection Program (12), established policy and assigned responsibility for research involving human subjects and conducted by or on behalf of the Navy. The document was issued by the Secretary of the Navy, dated November 6, 2006, and stated in part:

(1) The Secretary of the Navy is the research approval authority for all research protocols involving:

a) Waivers of the requirement for informed consent under reference (e).

(b) Exceptions from informed consent requirements for emergency research under 21 CFR 50.24 in reference (i) and in accordance with the requirements of reference (e).

(c) Requests for waiver of requirements of DON policy regarding human research protections.

(2) The Under Secretary of the Navy (UNSECNAV) is the Approval Authority for research involving:

(a) Severe or unusual intrusions, either physical or psychological, on human subjects (such as consciousness-altering drugs or mind-control techniques).

(b) Prisoners.

(c) Potentially or inherently controversial topics (such as those likely to attract significant media coverage or that might invite challenge by interest groups).

(3) The UNSECNAV forwards to the Director, Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E) for final determination:

(a) All proposed research involving exposure of human subjects to the effects of nuclear, biological or chemical warfare agents or weapons, as required by reference (a).

(b) All human research protocols that would require action by an official of the Department of Health and Human Services under reference (f).

(4) UNSECNAV forwards to SECDEF, via DDR&E, for approval all classified human research.

References:

(4) Missouri House of Representatives: Representative Jim Guest

http://house.mo.gov/member.aspx?year=2009&district=005

(5) Boeing: McDonnell Douglas Archive

http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/mdc/archiveall.html

(6) Freedom from Covert Harassment and Surveillance: Representative Jim Guest Letter PDF

http://www.freedomfchs.com/repjimguestltr.pdf

(7) Raven1: Court Recognizes Electronic Harassment: Protection Order for James Walbert

http://www.raven1.net/walbert.htm

(8) Raven1: Walbert Letter

http://www.raven1.net/walbert10.jpg

(9) The Washington Post: The Love Song of Dennis J. Kucinich

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/04/AR2007120402333_5.html

(10) Alex Constantine's Blacklist: Murdoch's WSJ Outs Kucinich UFO Sighting

http://aconstantineblacklist.blogspot.com/2008/01/mind-control-dennis-kucinichs-ufo.html

(11) Federation of American Scientists: Space Preservation Act of 2001

http://www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2001/hr2977.html

(12) Federation of American Scientists: SECNAVINST INSTRUCTION 3900.39D PDF

http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/navy/secnavinst/3900_39d.pdf

Lawmakers and Involuntary Human Research Subjects, Part One of Two

According to the Alliance for Human Research Protection (1), a network of lay people and professionals dedicated to advancing responsible and ethical medical research practices, 15 million Americans per year are recruited into clinical trials. The Alliance seeks to protect populations at high risk of falling victim to exploitation in such trials. High risk populations traditionally include but are not limited to disadvantaged children, disadvantaged elderly, disabled mentally and physically ill, immigrants, residents of underdeveloped nations, prisoners and members of the armed forces.

The subject matter largely eludes the attention of the American public for reasons including the topic typically invokes uncomfortable emotions and is a national embarrassment, resulting in minimal and sugar coated media attention. The vast majority of the American public therefore simply remains unaware of its nation's history of exploiting vulnerable, uninformed human research subjects.

While some readers may indeed be at least somewhat familiar with circumstances related to Project MKULTRA, radiation experiments and similar such atrocities, a reasonable argument can be made that members of the UFO community, as compared to the population at large, should particularly educate themselves about the exploitation of human research subjects, as it carries substantial implications to ufology. Numerous verified covert and exploitative state-sponsored research projects consisted of methodology, objectives and resulting testimonies from research subjects that are easily correlated with prevalent themes and witness testimonies commonly found throughout ufology.

Many relevant questions arise. To what extent does the exploitation of involuntary human research subjects continue and in what ways? Where do we find accurate information, when the UFO community and Internet is so littered with sensationalized exaggerations, hoaxes and disturbingly paranoid conspiracy theories? How do we responsibly delve into such subject matter without instigating more inaccurate rumors and the often accompanying poorly conceived lines of premature assertions and faulty logic?

One strategy to find answers is to take a look at what lawmakers are doing and current policies on state-sponsored research involving the use of human subjects. If we limit our research sources to verified documents and relevant quotes, in compliance with best practices in research and reporting, we can at the least separate what has actually taken place and truly been stated from that which has not. The implications of facts can be debated, but facts themselves are easy to establish and not open to debate.

Former Astronaut John Glenn

While serving 25 years as an Ohio Senator (2), former astronaut John Glenn proposed the Human Research Subject Protection Act (3) in 1997. The bill called for measures such as further accountability among researchers and funding agencies as well as penalties for non-adherence. While arguing on behalf of the bill, then-Senator Glenn stated:

I have been in public life and have served this country for many years. Frankly, I do not think too many things that I see surprise me anymore about our laws and about government. Three years ago, though, I began to learn about a gap in our legal system that does truly concern me. In 1993 the Governmental Affairs Committee began to investigate the cold war radiation experiments. These experiments are one of the unfortunate legacies of the cold war, when our government sponsored experiments involving radiation on our own citizens without their consent. They did not even know the experiments were being run on them. It was without their consent.

One of the most infamous of these experiments took place in my own State of Ohio, when scores of patients at the University of Cincinnati were subjected to large doses of radiation during experimental treatments, without their consent, without their informed consent. During the course of this investigation, I began to ask the question, what protections are in place to prevent such abuses from happening again? What law prohibits experimenting on people without their informed consent?

What I found, when I looked into it, is there is no law on the books requiring that informed consent be obtained...

Everyone listening today probably has heard of the Nuremberg Code. That is the list of 10 ethical research principles which were produced as part of the judgment against Nazi physicians who engaged in truly heinous medical experiments during World War II.

The first principle of the Nuremberg Code states that the voluntary consent of the human subject of research is absolutely essential. Unfortunately, as we look back through our history since the late 1940's, it appears that researchers in America may not have taken all that Nuremberg lesson completely to heart...

But to do research on people when they don't even know what the research or the medicines or the radiation is that is being tried on them, I think is unconscionable.

What it comes down to is there are no criminal fines or penalties for violating the spirit or the letter of that Nuremberg Code that should be the basis of all of our informed consent in this country.

In spite of the efforts of Glenn, there are still no such laws or penalties in place. His bill did not pass. Neither individual researchers nor their funding agencies are held criminally liable for violating the rights of human research subjects when done for purposes that can be defined as matters of national security.

It should be noted that millions of dollars have been paid by the federal government in civil judgments to abused research subjects or their surviving loved ones. However, no criminal cases have ever been tried because, simply put and as John Glenn observed and warned, it is not against the law and it never has been. Perhaps it is additionally worthy of consideration that although members of the UFO community frequently describe medical procedures conducted by alleged aliens as unforgivably intrusive violations of fundamental universal rights, a perspective commonly hoped to be held among all well intentioned higher functioning beings, the U.S. federal government does not share the perspective. A closer review obviously informs us that the United States federal government has a long, detailed and confirmed history of conducting such procedures while defining them as matters of national security, or at least this is the case when said procedures are conducted by federally-funded human beings.

References:

(1) Alliance for Human Research Protection: About the Alliance for Human Research Protection
http://www.ahrp.org/cms/content/view/18/87/ 

(2) National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Astronaut Bio: John Glenn, Jr. 

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/glenn-j.html 

(3) Alliance for Human Research Protection: John Glenn on Informed Consent

http://www.ahrp.org/InformedConsent/glennConsent.php

The Real Deal on Supposed Government Insiders

You have heard of the insiders and read their claims. Bob Lazar, Lieutenant Colonel Philip Corso, Colonel John Alexander - the list goes on. Reviewing some select circumstances offers us some likely insights into the real deal.

Standard Form 312

Standard form 312, or SF-312, is a “classified information nondisclosure agreement” as set forth and required by “Executive Order 12958, or under any other Executive order or statute that requires protection for such information in the interest of national security.” (1) All related materials and a manual are standard issue, as the name of the form implies, to all individuals that apply for employment within the U.S. Federal government that requires a security clearance. This includes all subcontractors, affiliates, and so on that require a security clearance due to their direct or indirect work with the Federal government.

Signing the form therefore binds an individual to committing that they understand and agree with the Executive Orders referenced within SF-312 and its accompanying materials. The form states, in essence, that the individual will keep their mouth shut or risk criminal prosecution for not doing so. History can show us numerous occasions in which the feds are subject to get pretty bent out of shape when this agreement is breached.

Loose Lips Sink Ships

One such occasion includes the circumstances of I. Lewis Libby Jr., a former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney. Libby is additionally and dubiously recognized as having been convicted in 2007 on charges including perjury and obstruction of justice due to his part in talking out of school about state secrets. (2) Valerie Plame Wilson, the wife of former U.S. Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, had her previously secret profession as a CIA operations officer publicly revealed due to events involving Libby and what some described as, at best, extreme errors in judgment on behalf of Libby.

We are largely left to speculate whether Libby's apparent and ill advised conversations with certain individuals were truly a key component in the Plame Wilson chain of events, or whether Libby was just the proverbial fall guy and took one for the team. After all, President Bush indeed commuted the prison sentence.

One way or the other, it is no less apparent that someone indeed outed Plame Wilson, and that the Federal government does not take kindly to having their authority minimized in upholding the intent of SF-312. We can therefore reasonably surmise that if the Oval Office is subject to becoming the focus of a Federal investigation related to talking out of school and subsequently breaching national security, then the offices of the likes of Bob Lazar and John Alexander are most certainly subject to such investigations. As a matter of fact, there is clear and specific protocol in place to ensure this is the case.

The CIA Publication Review Board

The CIA Publication Review Board, or PRB, is “charged with reviewing, coordinating, and formally approving in writing all proposed nonofficial, personal publications,” as stated in the document titled, Agency Prepublication Review of Certain Material Prepared for Public Dissemination. (3) The protocol is intended to ensure that all individuals, past and present, “given access to classified information understand and comply with their contractual obligations not to disclose it.” This essentially means that everybody that has ever had anything to do with a security clearance must subject their statements to the PRB for editing prior to making the statements. If not, they are in noncompliance with Executive Orders as cited in SF-312.

Types of materials covered and subject to editing include “any written, oral, electronic, or other presentation intended for publication or public dissemination, whether personal or official, that mentions CIA or intelligence data or activities or material on any subject about which the author has had access to classified information in the course of his employment or other contact with the Agency.” Such circumstances are further clarified and defined in a CIA handbook titled, Procedures for Review of Nonofficial Publications and Oral Presentations by Employees, Former Employees, and Others. (4)

As suggested in the above referenced CIA literature, the interests of the PRB cover all possible means that current and former holders of security clearances might use to describe their participation in classified activities. (5) Information must even be reviewed and approved for publication that will be presented during public appearances such as speaking engagements and interviews, and no one is exempt from the process. The CIA PRB has reviewed work submitted and requested to be publicly released by the likes of President Reagan and Defense Secretary Weinberger. No purpose is considered too trivial either, as demonstrated when the PRB reviewed an interactive CD-ROM spy video game that was interestingly co-authored by former Director of Central Intelligence William Colby and KGB General Oleg Kalugin.

The Bottom Line

To try to be really clear here, I want to emphasize if a person has been employed in any capacity whatsoever that required a security clearance with the CIA or its affiliates such as other branches of military intelligence or private subcontractors, Federal law dictates that they are required to submit all potentially relevant statements to the Publication Review Board for prepublication approval. If they do not do so, they are in violation of Federal law.

We can therefore reasonably surmise a few likely scenarios in the cases of individuals such as Lazar and Corso. They may have lied about practically everything, or they may have lied about most of their claims and told the truth about a few things. One way or another, there is one thing of which we can be absolutely certain: the Federal government did not mind, or the situations would not have been allowed to continue. In the case of Alexander, we can equally be absolutely certain that his published work, both written and via speaking engagements, conforms with standards for public release.

We can therefore figure some reasonably likely possibilities about many of the confirmed and alleged insiders. One likelihood is that they are lying, they never knew anything about the things they go on to claim they were involved in, and the Federal government simply does not care and/or finds it in its better interests to allow the lying to continue. Another likelihood is that such insiders were indeed once employed in relatively key positions, as we know is the case with Alexander, and that their publicized statements are simply irrelevant and consist of declassified information, thus gaining approval by the PRB.

There is, however, at least one more scenario related to those insiders that were once truly employed in key positions. The insider's statements may simply be part of their job description and continuing employment: they are just doing what they are paid to do, disseminate disinformation.

If such scenarios were not the case, the whistle blowing and insider testimonies would simply not be happening. Ask I. Lewis Libby Jr.

Sources:

(1) U.S. Department of Energy: Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement

http://www.er.doe.gov/sc-80/security/SF312.pdf

(2) The New York Times: I. Lewis Libby Jr.

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/....ibby %20&st=cse

(3) Federation of American Scientists: Agency Prepublication Review of Certain Material Prepared for Public Dissemination

http://www.fas.org/irp/cia/prb2007.pdf

(4) Federation of American Scientists: Procedures for Review of Nonofficial Publications and Oral Presentations by Employees, Former Employees, and Others

http://www.fas.org/irp/cia/prb-handbook.pdf

(5) Central Intelligence Agency: Secrets, Free Speech, and Fig Leaves

https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/docs/v41i3a01p.htm

The Maitreya Project

During the Thanksgiving weekend I received a phone call from a long time friend in Orlando, inviting me to join them to visit a Vietnamese Buddhist center. The Phap Vu Buddhist Cultural Centre is located in Orlando and was hosting collaborators of the Maitreya Project, a Buddhist initiative dedicated to providing cultural and humanitarian services on a wide and long-term scale. The project currently includes the Heart Shrine Relic Tour, a world tour in which sacred Buddhist relics are displayed for public viewing. The viewing of these relics is believed by many to include substantial benefits to the participants, and Phap Vu was honored to be a hosting venue for the tour during the weekend.

The call inspired me to consider circumstances from what has now been many years ago. It was early in my search for answers related to the UFO phenomenon that I first came across some material that referenced the Buddhist world view. It was suggested to refer to the Tibetan Book of the Dead for further reading on topics such as non-human entities and the possible landscapes of human consciousness. I did as suggested, and I went on to develop a deep interest in Buddhist philosophy and meditation techniques. This led to my fascination with various states of consciousness, the extents that personal conditioning profoundly effects our perceptions, and similar such aspects of a Buddhist meditation practice that easily correlate with certain aspects of the current Western mental health paradigm.

I therefore accepted my friend's invitation and accompanied them to the Phap Vu Centre to view the relics. I was looking forward to exploring what would prove to be my current perceptions of the Buddhist community while considering the contrasts that might become apparent between my present and past perspectives.

The Maitreya Project is in itself a rather amazing and ambitious initiative. Inspired and co-founded by Tibetan Lama Thubten Yeshe, the project is funded solely by donations. Project personnel are constructing what will be an absolutely breath taking facility in Northern India. The facility will support extensive education and healthcare services, contribute to much needed economic growth, include a stunning 500-foot tall statue of the Buddha designed to stand no less than 1,000 years, and much more. To learn more about the Maitreya Project visit maitreyaproject.org.

The Heart Shrine Relic Tour, which publicly displays sacred Buddhist relics, is an arm of the Maitreya Project. The relics will eventually come to rest at the facility in Northern India.

Buddhist relics are artifacts that were instrumental to noted Buddhist teachers and even physical remnants of the remains of highly respected Buddhists. On display, for example, are remnants said to be remains of the cremated Buddha himself. Such artifacts are of course treated with the highest of respect and care.

Additional remnants include notable memos and literature, donated personal items from sacred teachers that have been collected and carefully maintained for centuries and even thousands of years, and similar such items of interest. Due to the sacred nature of the items, a great deal of ceremony precedes the public viewing. The ceremony includes combinations of sacred teachings, chanting, select music and rhythmic drumming. The public laypersons are then directed how to properly browse the relics in a collective clockwise motion around the large display.

The day that I attended there were approximately 75 other people in attendance. A large percentage of these were laypersons, yet there are several monks touring with the relics. There are also many laypersons from a diverse variety of nationalities that volunteer to tour, as well as many volunteers at each venue of the tour, all of which provide services to attendees and monks.

One of the interesting aspects surrounding the Heart Shrine Relics Tour is that many people believe the relics hold, or at least somehow manifest, special energies. These energies are said to facilitate healing and well-being. I therefore welcomed the opportunity to speak with fellow attendees, some of whom were touring with the relics, and hear their perspectives on the relics.

Many attendees spoke of profound experiences surrounding the relics. Some were so convinced of the accuracy of their perceptions that they were traveling great distances. Testimonies included profound observations at a prison where the relics had been displayed, a town where the crime rate dramatically decreased during the display of the relics, and many accounts of improved physical health and mental well being.

I spoke at length with two monks, one male and one female, who are touring with the relics. They described some quite interesting circumstances, and I of course have no reasons to doubt their word, or at least their beliefs in their observations. They explained that some of the relics are multiplying; that the amounts of cremated remains may increase periodically. The female monk further explained to me that she has witnessed and participated in the rituals as described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead and associated with a monk dying, or his consciousness moving on from his body, as she put it. She described sometimes profound circumstances, such as the body continuing to sit upright in a meditative posture and maintain certain vital signs, long after the heart had ceased beating. It should be noted that the Buddhist world view does not find such circumstances to be paranormal, but related to consciousness and mental activity.

I eventually worked my way into the line of laypersons circling the relics. I considered meditating on healing my aging body as I viewed the relics, or perhaps attempting to allow the collective healing energies to simply wash over my mind and body. I viewed the apparent remains of the Buddha. I viewed a 700 year-old incense holder apparently owned by a highly respected lama. I viewed a book apparently once held and studied by a great Buddhist teacher. I carefully viewed all the relics, monitoring my mind and body as best I could, attempting to mindfully note any responses of particular interest.

As I neared the end of the circle I was navigating, I encountered a young female monk. I had the option to kneel before her and accept her blessings. I gratefully and respectfully accepted, and with no more communication than a comforting smile she held a vessel containing relics to the top of my head. She held the vessel there for several seconds, eventually removing it, and I could then see in her eyes that I had been blessed and was free to proceed on my way, both literally and metaphorically.

While an intellectual part of my consciousness can indeed attempt to explain the testimonies and belief systems of the attending Buddhists as the results of various phenomena that might easily fall within the parameters of known and natural circumstances, perhaps that is not the most relevant point. Perhaps what is most relevant is that individuals may indeed find their higher powers and/or connect with one another and the universe through Pentecostal revivals, Catholic rites and rituals, authentic Native American ceremonies, or any number of such activities that, from even a short distance, can begin to all look quite similar. Maybe, ultimately, there is little consequence of what people choose to believe as compared to how well their beliefs equip them to interact with one another. Perhaps that is most practical and most important, and perhaps what some might term paranormal and metaphysical phenomena is subject to manifest within any religion or philosophy simply because such phenomena is part of our world, as are the religions and philosophies themselves. Perhaps it only stands to reason that they would cross paths now and then.

Truth and Accuracy 101, Part Three of Three

Increasing our knowledge about some of the more common explanations for reports of alleged alien abduction will assist us in identifying truth and accuracy. Obtaining a working knowledge of the following circumstances serves many productive purposes.


Physiological Circumstances

Some reports of alien abduction are attributable to physiological circumstances such as sleep paralysis and sleep apnea. Sleep paralysis is a natural and normal condition which occurs every time we sleep. It is upon waking while the body remains in paralysis-mode which has become the widely misunderstood topic of discussion within UFO circles. Symptoms include fear, disorientation, and hallucinations. This commonly includes perceptions of lights, intuitions that someone or something is present that should not be, perceptions of floating, and even perceptions of entities or similar such ominous figures.


Sleep apnea is a very common yet serious condition experienced by millions of people. Breathing is obstructed while sleeping, resulting in a loss of oxygen to the brain among other occurrences. The loss of oxygen may result in numerous adverse circumstances including hallucinations and a drastic decline in the ability to think clearly. It is therefore common that a person cannot accurately distinguish between circumstances such as what they are thinking, what they were dreaming, and objective reality.


Additional physiological circumstances which if untreated can result in situations that are no doubt being confused with alleged alien abductions include, but are by no means limited to, diabetes and epilepsy. Testimonies of seizures and disorientation associated with certain diseases are extremely similar to testimonies provided by alleged abductees. These testimonies may include the person experiencing memory loss, finding them self inexplicably in a certain location, and discovering bruises and similar body markings which they cannot explain yet in reality result from their seizures. If such a person happens to be interested in UFO lore to an inordinate extent, they may associate their experiences with alleged aliens rather than seek proper medical treatment. This will particularly be the case if members of the UFO community discourage medical treatment while reinforcing and supporting the belief that the individual is an alien abductee.

It should be noted that the above physiological circumstances by no means account for all reports, yet most certainly account for some. Certain credentialed researchers have attempted to make all reports fit into such explanations, understandably resulting in a backlash of criticism from the UFO community. While such research indeed indicates a lack of knowledge of some of the more interesting reports on behalf of the researchers, I invite consideration that the opposite extreme is no more valid. Certain explanations indeed apply to some reports, and certain explanations do not apply to some other reports.


Psychological Circumstances

Some reports of alien abduction are attributable to behavior and perceptions related to emotional trauma, various personality disorders, schizophrenia, and a host of additional psychiatric conditions, particularly if the conditions go untreated. As is the case with physiological circumstances, it is all the more likely that the suffering individual will continue to not seek treatment while trying to compile evidence of their supposed interactions with aliens if members of the UFO community provide positive reinforcement for the behavior.


A staple of schizophrenia, for instance, is an inaccurate belief that a malicious and covert conspiracy is being perpetrated that involves an implant. This commonly includes paranoia, an inaccurate belief in the existence of stalkers, inaccurate perceptions of telepathic messages, and that implants have been used to control thoughts and actions.

Similarly, mental health professionals are extremely well acquainted with numerous very common psychiatric occurrences that include inaccurate perceptions of a hidden group of stalkers that have some kind of perceived authority. This is a very common theme. Such occurrences are common to an extent that the suffering individuals are often able to reasonably function within society and with their conditions going relatively unnoticed for all practical purposes. However, the possible lack of an obvious psychiatric condition is by no means necessarily indicative of the extent that the individual silently suffers.


More About Extreme Emotional Trauma

It is difficult to overemphasize the relevance of extreme emotional trauma to the abduction phenomenon. Trauma is simply inherent among self-described abductees. This is particularly relevant in light of the established facts about the manners in which our current and future perceptions will be influenced by our previous experiences, particularly traumatic experiences.

Symptoms commonly include a lack of an ability to think critically, a tendency to over personalize various situations that are impersonal, and a tendency to suspect connections between various events of which there are in fact no conclusive connections. Additional symptoms include a lack of ability to recall events clearly, a lack of ability to recall events in an accurate chronological order, and a perceived loss of memories, both short term and long term. The significance of such symptoms should be readily apparent to those that are familiar with the abductee demographic.

This is by no means to imply that the baby should be thrown out with the bathwater. However, a reasonably working knowledge of emotional trauma will enable the objective seeker of truth to surmise certain circumstances that are indeed relevant.

Among such relevant circumstances is that while any given self-described lifelong abductee may have indeed experienced one or more situations of interest, it is extremely probable that they have misinterpreted at least some of the circumstances and subsequent details. All of their experiences are not necessarily due to the same explanation. As a matter of fact, it is virtually impossible due to the nebulous and traumatic nature of the experiences. Multiple explanations as described above will simply logically apply, and the more familiar we become with such information then the more likely it is that we will recognize its relevance when applicable.

As members of the UFO community, each and every one of us have a personal responsibility to support truthful and accurate information, as well as a personal responsibility to minimize the demand for the supply of inaccurate information. Making a proactive decision to interact with qualified professionals, demonstrating a willingness to rationally consider viable information, and making a conscious decision to be part of the solution will only aid the objective truth seeker.

Truth and Accuracy 101, Part Two of Three

My first descent as an adult into what would prove to be the convoluted and dysfunctional UFO community took place during the early 1990s. Fortean subject matter had been near and dear to my heart and mind as a child. I had understandably, however, taken somewhat of a sabbatical from the considerations of the likes of Sasquatch, ghosts, and aliens as I experienced adolescence and eventual adulthood. I revisited such subject matter during my twenties and subsequently began attending UFO-related public events what has now been some 20 years ago.

Doing so resulted in attending the public presentations, exchanging contact information with individuals that I identified as potentially helpful, developing functional relationships with such individuals, and similar such networking activities. I additionally read a great deal. My efforts were designed to assist me in learning the truth about what was actually known about unidentified flying objects and what at least initially appeared to be the related subject matter, such as the abduction phenomenon.

It became apparent very early on that a great deal of suspension of judgment would be required. This would simply be necessary in order to hear people out, consider their testimonies and claims, and to thoroughly consider the possible validity of the alleged research being conducted.

I sat through virtually countless lectures about what is allegedly known about UFOs and aliens, a combined years upon years of interactions with alleged alien abductees and the investigators thereof, and have participated in more private meetings, phone calls, e-mails, and snail mail with such people than I would ever be able to fully recall. I made it my business to meet some relevant players, meet what became dozens of self-described abductees, and to evaluate my personal observations of the circumstances. This included and continues to include consulting with mental health professionals, certified hypnotists, scientists, and similar such qualified experts that explore ufology. It also includes interacting with both high profile as well as relatively unknown abductees via options such as one-on-one interactions and abductee support groups.

What became completely and absolutely apparent to me, above all else and without any question whatsoever, is that the vast majority of people desire to believe in one thing or another and will go to virtually any extent to do so. They simply do not care about truth and accuracy as compared to finding any tidbit of hearsay whatsoever, no matter how irrational and lacking in credibility, that will support their preferred and premature conclusions. This is primarily the case regardless of the demographic being considered: researcher, author, alleged alien abductee, hard line skeptic, education or lack thereof, or any other such circumstance. They don't care about truth, they just want to “win.”

There are exceptions, but such people are indeed exceptions. When one is identified, they should be enthusiastically supported because they are a rare diamond in the rough.

Those obsessed with winning do not care how many innocent witnesses are exploited, how many families are ruined, or how many careers are sacrificed. They do not care how much of a laughing stock they make of themselves, those around them, or the UFO community as a whole. They do not care how biased their practices may be, how negligently they treat innocent bystanders, or how psychologically damaged any given individual may become that is used in support of promoting their agenda. They only care about promoting the agenda, regardless of its specific details, lack of objectivity, or lack of rational validity.

There are many things that motivate such people. Some of them have been employed to professionally muddy the waters, as is the case with the confirmed connections between the Central Intelligence Agency and the publications of such tabloid nonsense as contained within the National Enquirer.

There are many such reasons for the erratic behavior that is so prevalent within the UFO community. Perhaps the most detrimental behavior of all, though, even more so than the intentional liars and the professional saboteurs, is those who promote the work of the liars without ever so much as initially looking into its validity.

Why do people do such things? Because they want to win.

They do not care if what they say is true. They rationalize that the ends justify the means, as if they are lobbying for the passing of a bill or campaigning for the election of a political candidate. They use the Internet to post tabloid article after tabloid article, without ever so much as running a simple search on the author or witnesses contained therein, much less actually dropping such people an e-mail or giving them a quick phone call. They just want to litter the 'net with more propaganda than can be achieved by their perceived adversaries.

Practicing the identification of truth and accuracy does not require special credentials. It simply requires willingness and responsibility. That's all it takes. It just takes a desire to actually know the truth, identify credible sources such as addressed in part one of this post, and to refrain from adding to the problem by spreading lies and disinformation.

We should all be in absolute agreement that promoting disinformation only hurts all legitimate truth seekers. We should all be in complete agreement that we want accurate, truthful information.

In the third and final part of this post I will address some of the factually supported explanations for select reports of alleged alien abduction. My willingness to rationally listen to the qualified experts, in the same open-minded manners that I originally listened to the witnesses, resulted in both increasing my knowledge of such explanations as well as increasing my credibility among such experts. This should be a shared goal of members of the UFO community.

Doing so builds the collective credibility of the UFO community. Equally importantly, increasing our knowledge of factually supported explanations enables us to have a much higher probability of accurately differentiating between the legitimately interesting reports of alleged alien abduction and the tabloid nonsense.

Truth and Accuracy 101, Part One of Three

There are any number of methods that can be used to gather information that will assist a person in forming an accurate evaluation of any given situation or subject matter. The first step of any of these methods is that the person develop a sincere desire to find the truth. They must be willing.

Truth is defined as conformity to fact or actuality. The sincere truth seeker must therefore have a willingness to review and weigh a diverse variety of information if it is credible and presented in a competent manner, even if it may sometimes contradict a preexisting and preferred belief system. If you have not yet come to terms with step one, it is simply impossible to advance any further prior to doing so.

Once a person comes to terms with developing an ability to objectively evaluate competently presented information, regardless of the initial emotional discomfort that it may invoke, they may then confidently move further along the path of discovery. They have then become a sincere seeker of truth.

A key factor on the path is the ability to define standards of admissible evidence and to consistently maintain a commitment to doing so. The choice of making this commitment must be made much more than once. Continuous conscious decisions are a requirement of remaining committed to truth and accuracy.

The definition of admissible evidence should of course include items that the professional research community defines and recognizes as credible. Such items include Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) documents, files from the U.S. Patent Office, official court documents, and similar such material that can be readily authenticated. This would include certain articles published in newspapers and professional journals. Additional items of admissible evidence should include books, research papers, and similar such material that is not wildly speculative, is authored by individuals that hold credentials that qualify them as experts on the subject matter being addressed, and particularly in which they consistently cite verifiable sources for their resulting work.

Admissible evidence recognized by the professional research community also includes books and research papers that may be written by individuals that do not hold impressive credentials but consistently cite credible and verifiable sources, conform to critical thinking, and subsequently abstain from making leaps in logic. Such items are particularly considered admissible if the intent and purpose of such work was to justify further investigation into the lines of reasoning, as opposed to the work having been presented as conclusive if, in fact, it was not conclusive. It just depends on the extent that the author in question has conducted professional research and then composed the findings in a competent and an objective manner, regardless of credentials or a lack thereof.

Additional items that are defined as admissible evidence by the professional research community include information obtained from the official websites of institutions of higher learning. This may include files such as final grant reports, articles written by qualified experts, and the documented and verifiable circumstances that are relevant to the consideration of any given subject.

Items such as mentioned above are not the only forms of admissible evidence as recognized by the professional research community. Such items do, however, happen to rank among the most commonly used due to being universally recognized as indicative of competency and professionalism when utilized in a book, research paper, or public presentation.

Please note that a commonality from one item to the next is that each item is readily available for verification, public review, and peer review by qualified experts. This is a very important point and can virtually not be overemphasized.

For any given point to be established as factual, whether we are discussing anything from automobile performance to alleged alien hybrids, the supporting data must be available for verification and review. This is where the rubber hits the road and we separate established fact from circumstances such as a hypothesis, possible hoax, and subjective and unsubstantiated opinion. These are the ways of the objective seeker of truth.

This is not to suggest that additional items such as witness testimony and circumstantial evidence should be exclusively defined as inadmissible. I repeat: This is not to suggest that additional items such as witness testimony and circumstantial evidence should be exclusively defined as inadmissible.

However, we must be committed to appropriately weighing the credibility of each item of evidence that makes up our body of evidence, and therefore appropriately incorporate each item into forming our evaluation of what is suggested by the evidence. If it is simply not yet possible to form a conclusion as established by the publicly reviewable facts, then attempting to form the conclusion, much less impose it upon others, is nothing less than detrimental to the process of identifying truth and accuracy. This is the case regardless of the circumstances of debate.

I choose to clarify that I am not suggesting that the value of emotional support should be minimized. Actually, many are well aware of my advocacy of the significance of emotional support, the value of obtaining quality emotional support, and the value of the resulting increased emotional intelligence.

However, the objective identification of truth and the pursuit of receiving validation of our emotions can be two entirely different subjects and activities, and should often be approached as such. This editorial just so happened to deal with the former, the identification of truth.

In future entries I will describe some aspects of my journey through the often frustratingly misguided and overly passionate UFO community. I will address some of the factually supported explanations that most certainly apply to some reports of alleged alien abduction that are in actuality misinterpretations. These explanations became apparent to me through my efforts to identify truth and accuracy. I will additionally address how our willingness to acknowledge and accept the fact that such explanations indeed apply to some reports builds each of our credibility and the resulting collective credibility of the UFO community. This should be a shared goal and should be the case regardless of our personal experiences, what some other more fantastic explanations may possibly be for some other reports, and/or our preferred stance on the abduction phenomenon.