Gene Steinberg Personal 'Emergency' Cash Solicitations Span Years, Hundreds of Emails

Gene Steinberg solicited cash donations from an e-list hundreds of times since 2014 and earlier, including 139 emails during 2017, for circumstances framed as financial emergencies. Screenshots of subject lines of many of the emails are posted below. A list of the 2017 emails by subject line and date is provided at the end of this post.

The dozens of 2017 messages continued what has become an ongoing story of financial destitution narrated for years by the host of The Paracast. The money, according to Steinberg's emails, was needed for such personal expenses as rent, utilities, and groceries, often described as crises and nightmares. The emails contained a PayPal link and instructions for sending funds, as has been the case in years past. 

Steinberg messages to the e-list from 2016, with December through July followed by June to January:

Steinberg 2015 personal cash solicitations, followed by dozens more from 2014:

According to several of the 139 Steinberg emails sent in 2017, he was unable to find a way to regularly pay rent throughout the year, reporting impending evictions on multiple occasions. He would then undertake fundraising drives for what was described to the e-list as either getting caught up on rent or relocating to another residence. The recurring scenarios included Steinberg's criticism of landlords and property managers, seemingly for expecting payments, which by his own accounts were owed yet delivered sporadically if at all. 

"I've pretty much run out of excuses to persuade the property manager to let us stay in this home," Steinberg wrote in an Aug. 15 message to the e-list, a typically provided description of the housing situations. 

Such narratives were recurring for years. It was not clear why Steinberg repeatedly enters into rental agreements he cannot afford, but emails from multiple years clarify the scenario is frequently reported.

Additional urgencies reported to the e-list during 2017 included a fall at a grocery store, automobile troubles, and his wife's health, among others. Steinberg's pleas for cash were in several instances accompanied by claims his bank account balance was so low he would have difficulty affording food if recipients did not act. 

Such assertions were common, as were claims of working more than ever and putting in extra hours. Exactly what was meant by such terms as "extra hours" was not clarified for email recipients. An accounting of how much income Steinberg earned per month - and how reportedly working more than ever chronically left him impoverished - were also not included in the ongoing emails.

The themes have been consistently repeated since years predating 2014. A sample of quotes from Steinberg cash solicitations since 2010 and sent to his e-list as provided by a contact:

    

Steinberg's perpetual personal fundraising has long drawn criticism. Some feel his credibility is strained. Others suggest even if his claims are to be accepted, his money-managing competency is drawn into question due to what has now become years of rationalizing his failure to take care of himself. Community members have questioned the practicality of contributing cash when years of cash solicitations to help him "get past this nightmare" only lead to more cash solicitations. Similarly, others question Steinberg's judgment about conducting such email activities within a genre with a history of being targeted for exploitation and a reputation for harboring charlatans. 

"Why must this be an issue?" Steinberg replied Dec. 27 when offered an opportunity to provide comment on his ongoing emails for inclusion in this blog post. A short time later in a second email he vaguely suggested "fake news" is circulating about him but did not directly address his perpetual cash solicitation campaign.

Christopher O'Brien, a writer, researcher, and longtime Steinberg co-host at Paracast, was offered an opportunity to comment on Steinberg's email cash solicitation activities. He did not immediately respond to a Dec. 27 email. 

The 2017 solicitations peaked in August, when 19 of the year's total 139 cash requests were sent to the e-list. The August total was followed by June with 17, while May and December had 14 email cash solicitations each. The messages contained descriptions of living conditions framed as dire and urgent, along with the PayPal link. The least active month was March, when Steinberg sent four emails, consisting of the subject lines Back to Zero!, The Agony Continues!, Monday Update!, and Please Help!.

In an undated post at Paracast Steinberg stated he first began requesting donations for reasons surrounding a relative's misfortune in 2003. According to Steinberg, the circumstances left his personal finances devastated.

"The 2007 recession made it difficult to find outside work for a while, but conditions are getting better," the podcaster attempted to further explain in the Paracast post.  

Whether one interprets such statements to help or hinder his efforts to defend his financial competency and integrity, in 2010 - now over seven years ago - Steinberg posted at the Binnall of America forum that his "financial shortfall is strictly temporary":

Such projections of improving finances were dramatically miscalculated if Steinberg's continuing claims of empty pockets are accurate. The reported expectations of future prosperity are nonetheless common within the ongoing narrative. 

"First of all, my long-term money situation is getting better. I'm not there yet, but I've made real progress," Steinberg wrote in an Apr. 26 email while requesting funds from recipients, his 30th such email of the year at that point. In spite of projecting a better money situation and claiming to be making progress, he proceeded to send the list well over 100 more solicitations for cash gifts before the end of the year.

In July I received an email from an individual suggesting Steinberg conducts additional email solicitations specifically tailored for past donors. The person explained they regretfully sent Steinberg money when they didn't know the claims of hardships had been going on for years. Now they receive requests for cash in addition to his financial pleas sent to the regular e-list, they wrote. The person added they had recently received the following and assume others who gave him money in the past get similar messages:

The use of such terms as "miracle" and "nightmare" were common throughout the years of emails.

In a Sep. 1 email titled, Paying it forward!, the podcaster and forum host described his life situation in the context of victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas who were "also suffering." In what appeared to be an effort to persuade the e-list to redirect donations to him that would otherwise be sent to support clean up and humanitarian relief efforts, Steinberg suggested to the email recipients he would "give back" to participating charities in the future if readers would send their money to him instead. 

"So I realize most of you would rather donate to the Red Cross and other charities trying to make a difference," Steinberg wrote.

"But I will do this: If you are able to set aside some money to help me with my situation, I'll make sure to give back on an ongoing basis to those in Texas who are also suffering."

No updates were offered to the e-list on the commitment. Neither were explanations forthcoming of how such ongoing giving would be possible in light of Steinberg's chronically claimed lack of money.


Subject lines and dates of Gene Steinberg's 139 email personal cash solicitations sent in 2017:


December (14)

New Year's Wishes!                                               Dec 31

Pins and Needles!                                                  Dec 27

Christmas Eve Update!t [sic]                                  Dec 24

A few more days!                                                  Dec 20

Waiting for the faceless corporation to act!              Dec 15

It's still possible to save me!                                  Dec 12

I fear it may be too late!                                        Dec 10

The last days...!                                                    Dec 8

Number of homeless people in U.S. increases           Dec 6

Help! (Update 3!)                                                   Dec 5

Help! (Update 2!)                                                   Dec 3

Help! (Update!)                                                      Dec 3

Help!                                                                     Dec 2

Is this my last weekend?                                         Dec 1


November (10)

Here we go again!                                                  Nov 28

Another frustrating weekend!                                  Nov 27

Nothing is working!                                                Nov 24

Expecting a grim Thanksgiving!                               Nov 21

Mid-November update!                                           Nov 17

Hoping for a new start!                                           Nov 15

Another weekend emergency!                                 Nov 11

A tiny bit of luck!                                                    Nov 10

Fighting for the Future!                                           Nov 7

Stuck on empty!                                                     Nov 2


October (12)

Monday update!                                                      Oct 30

About the stalkers!                                                  Oct 27

Playing the waiting game!                                        Oct 26

Up against another deadline!                                    Oct 23

Stuck in a holding pattern!                                       Oct 20

In dangerous waters!                                               Oct 18

The Impossible Mission!                                           Oct 15

Never a moment's peace!                                         Oct 13

Mid-October update!                                                Oct 11

Coping with a nightmare!                                         Oct 9

Maybe a problem?                                                   Oct 4

Running and running to catch up!                             Oct 2


September (11)

A Friday crisis!                                                        Sep 29

I'm making slow progress!                                       Sep 28

Is there a road back?                                               Sep 26

Mortal Thoughts!                                                     Sep 22

Health Update!                                                        Sep 20

Taking a fall!                                                           Sep 18

A progress report!                                                   Sep 14

Coping with the rest of my life!                                 Sep 11

Early September update!                                          Sep 7

Paying it forward!                                                     Sep 1

Looking for a future!                                                 Sep 1


August (19)

I'm still here - barely!                                               Aug 29 

Here are the stakes!                                                 Aug 27

There's still a little time!                                            Aug 26

It's down to the wire!                                                Aug 26

Crunch Time - Update!                                              Aug 25 

Please help me survive moving day!                           Aug 25

It's crunch time!                                                       Aug 25

Closer to the end!                                                     Aug 24

The end of the road!                                                  Aug 22

Believing in Miracles!                                                 Aug 22

Keeping a roof over my head: Another two days!         Aug 21  

A Quick Friday Update!                                              Aug 18

Urgent!                                                                    Aug 17

I fear the worst!                                                        Aug 15

I haven't made much progress!                                  Aug 13

I need some help - fast!                                             Aug 9

It's hard to stay optimistic!                                         Aug 7

I'm struggling to get my life back!                               Aug 3

I wonder how much time I have left!                           Aug 1


July (10)

Another terrible weekend!                                          July 31

So I'm broke again this weekend!                               July 22

Thursday's Update!                                                   July 20

I'm just out of ideas!                                                 July 19

The clock is ticking!                                                   July 18

A morning nightmare!                                                July 10

I'm at a stopping point!                                              July 6

I wonder how much time I have left!                           July 5

A stressful holiday weekend!                                       July 4

So the landlord cancelled my lease!                             July 2


June (17)

I hope I'm not done for!                                            June 27

What am I supposed to do?                                       June 26

Urgent update!                                                         June 25

I fear this is a losing cause!                                       June 25

Is this the last weekend with a roof over my head?      June 24

I'm losing hope!                                                        June 22

Accident Update!                                                       June 20

Now I'm an accident survivor!                                    June 19

I'm still coping with a possible emergency!                  June 18

I bought a little more time, but not a lot!                    June 15

There's still time for you to help!                                June 14

Facing life in the street!                                             June 13

I'm losing hope!                                                        June 11

I'm trying to remain optimistic,                                  June 9
but it's getting harder!

Its [sic] still hopeless!                                               June 8

I'm about to lose everything!                                     June 7

From Bad to Worse!                                                  June 5


May (14)

Emergency Rent Update!                                           May 31

My Last Day?                                                            May 31

Only a Few Days Left!                                                May 29

Forced Out!                                                              May 26

The Fastest Way to Help!                                           May 24

Down to the Wire Again!                                            May 23

My Golden Years                                                       May 18

Drowning                                                                 May 17

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back                             May 15

Very Slow Progress!                                                   May 10

Just to Clarify My Situation                                         May 8

A Really Bad Weekend!                                              May 7

Back to Zero!                                                            May 5

My Impossible Situation!                                            May 1


April (5)

The May 1st Deadline                                                Apr 30

My Wife is About to Lose Her Health Insurance            Apr 28

My End-of-Month Deadlines                                       Apr 26

Friday Update!                                                          Apr 7

An Update on Barbara@ [sic]                                     Apr 4


March (4)

Back to Zero!                                                           Mar 21

The Agony Continues!                                               Mar 7

Monday Update!                                                       Mar 6

Please Help!                                                             Mar 2


February (13)

A Huge March Emergency!                                        Feb 28

Old and Broke!                                                         Feb 27

By a Slender Thread!                                                Feb 21

$1,200 in 24 Hours!                                                  Feb 19

Another Critical Update!                                            Feb 18

There is Still Time!                                                    Feb 16

Landlord Update!                                                      Feb 15

Only a Few Days Left!                                               Feb 13

Preparing for Another Impossible Weekend!                Feb 10

Emergency Update!                                                   Feb 8

I'm Close to Failure!                                                  Feb 7

Still on the Brink!                                                      Feb 6

Living on the Brink!                                                   Feb 2


January (10)

Please Don't Let Me Lose This Battle!                          Jan 31

Another Bad Weekend!                                              Jan 29

Still struggling                                                          Jan 25

Another Barren Weekend!                                          Jan 23

A Few Dollars Less!                                                   Jan 16

Saturday...                                                               Jan 14

A Bad Start for the New Year!                                    Jan 12

Overwhelmed!                                                          Jan 9

Making Do in 2017                                                    Jan 6

My Goals for 2017                                                     Jan 2

UFO-Pentagon Story Reflects Fundamental Problems

Mainstream news outlets jumped into the deep end of Billy Cox's Great Taboo. The New York Times, Politico and The Washington Post are among those reporting to have confirmed that Luis Elizondo, a career intelligence officer formerly with the Defense Department and currently of Team DeLonge, headed a UFO investigation project as claimed. The Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program, reportedly operational from no less than 2007 to 2012, was financed through black funding which included money funneled to Bigelow Aerospace, owned by longtime UFO enthusiast and controversial philanthropist Robert Bigelow. The remarkable circumstances published included the claim, "Under Mr. Bigelow’s direction, the company modified buildings in Las Vegas for the storage of metal alloys and other materials that Mr. Elizondo and program contractors said had been recovered from unidentified aerial phenomena."

If you're interested in UFOs, you are justified in sitting up and taking note. If you've been pulling for DeLonge, congratulations. A little chest beating is in order. The current revelations don't excuse his wild and unsupported claims about an alien presence, but he apparently has, in fact, been in contact with an intelligence community member who actually had something to say, or at least more to say than the average self-proclaimed insider. 

That stated, questions involve how and why it was orchestrated. It is imperative to proceed cautiously and critically. I encourage trying to refrain from premature conclusions and confirmation bias.

While some long frustrated ufology activists have indeed succeeded in making some noise, it is important to remember a well executed public relations campaign does not an established fact make. It is imperative the reporters and key players produce materials fully supporting their claims else risk driving yet another stake of cynicism squarely through the heart of open mindedness. In this post let's cautiously explore where these stories lead us, both past and present. 

Taxpayer Funds

For starters, let's consider the reported UFO hunting initiative was a taxpayer-supported program. I asked Sharon Weinberger via email if she cared to provide comment for this blog post. She is Executive Editor at Foreign Policy and author of the nonfiction book, Imaginary Weapons: A Journey Through the Pentagon's Scientific Underworld, as well as the recent bestseller, The Imagineers of War: The Untold Story of DARPA, the Pentagon Agency That Changed the World.

"As a long-time advocate of government transparency, I think the only thing I have to say at the moment is that such programs, if pursued, must be able to stand up to public scrutiny," Weinberger explained. "The fact that we didn't know about this program until long after it was over, even though it was unclassified, reflects a more fundamental problem at work here. Taxpayers deserve to know their money is being spent."

The reported distribution of funds under the direction of the Department of Defense potentially opens the circumstances up to FOIA inquiries. The news stories alone offer a substantial number of FOIA opportunities, including requesting for public verification and review the documents and communications provided to the reporters. Obviously, circumstances surrounding the alleged physical evidence stored in modified buildings per Bigelow's oversight should be scrutinized at length, among other items referenced.

Robert Bigelow

It was further reported via the Times, "Researchers also studied people who said they had experienced physical effects from encounters with the objects and examined them for any physiological changes." I encourage submitting FOIA requests on such research, who specifically did it, the exact funding trail involved, the resulting dissemination of data, and similar details. 

For instance, who were the "program contractors" collecting material recovered from unidentified aerial phenomena? With what organization(s), exactly? What were the specific circumstances?

Dr. Tyler Kokjohn holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and is a Professor of Microbiology at Midwestern University Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine. He has shown a willingness to address UFO-related topics in reasoned manners, applying his expertise to issues often debated within the community. In response to request for comment on the UFO-Pentagon news, the doctor provided the following:

Helene Cooper et al. have reported a remarkable story about an obscure Defense Department ‘black money’ project, the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (1).  This 5 year, multi-million dollar effort to investigate UFO reports was funded at the request of Senator Harry Reid supported by two (now deceased) Senate colleagues.  Financial support for the earmark program was terminated in 2012 when officials determined these funds should be directed to ‘higher priority issues’ (2).  Whether the work still continues somewhere within the Department of Defense is unclear (2).

This news story has exposed a secret treasure trove of information for follow-up investigations.  It appears most of the money was channeled to an aerospace research company owned by Robert Bigelow.  Researchers interviewed military personnel who reported UFO sightings and conducted medical examinations of subjects experiencing physical manifestations linked to UFO incidents.  In addition, Bigelow Aerospace customized buildings in Las Vegas to store metal and other materials recovered from UFO encounters.

The story by Cooper et al. (1) was solid journalism in that it provided information acquired from several persons with direct involvement in the events.  However, one facet of the reporting inadvertently reveals something odd; the scientist and engineer contacted for responses, although highly expert, did not appear to have direct knowledge of the work or to have been given access to any results/data.  Accordingly, their responses were generic doubts about the UFO subject, not specific critiques of the actual work itself.  This seems strange because Bigelow Aerospace solicited research proposals for the effort and hired people to conduct the work.  Somehow the people best able to comment regarding the scientific quality of the investigations and the significance of the results obtained were mostly overlooked.

For somewhere between 5-10 years, data and physical evidence gathered under the auspices of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program has been hidden from the public.  Perhaps the unclassified portions of the scientific work performed by Bigelow Aerospace will now be forthcoming to enable evaluations by independent experts.  This was a taxpayer-supported program and some extraordinary claims are being made about the findings in public.  It will be unfortunate if investigators are forced to resort to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to discover what was done in this program.  However, because it appears requests for research proposals/assistance were issued by Bigelow Aerospace, investigators may be able to pry loose some of the information if it becomes necessary.

The information provided in the New York Times story suggests that opinions as to what was discovered and its significance varied sharply.  Senator Reid felt that the findings were so momentous the program needed a higher level of security to restrict access.  A director’s summary alleged science fiction had become science fact and the U.S. could not defend itself against some of the technologies discovered.  It will be fascinating to see how Defense Department officials receiving such statements weighed them against the hard data to reach a decision that other priorities were more pressing.                          

Because some of the principals involved in overseeing the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program have been speaking about it openly and exploiting their experiences in a commercial venture, it seems unlikely any entity could now withhold all scientific results by claiming the information is classified.  Does Bigelow Aerospace hold physical evidence proving UFOs are real?  Do the data prove claims the phenomena did not originate from any country?  From a scientific perspective the most fascinating question is this - why would any organization with convincing, apparently unclassified, proof of UFO technologies and their origins keep it secret?  Maybe an independent scientific inspection of the evidence will confirm why secret earmark programs are not always good ideas.  Evaluating the scientific evidence in hand and comparing it to some remarkable claims promises to be a fascinating exercise.                   

(1)   Helene Cooper et al.  2017.  Glowing Auras and ‘Black Money’: The Pentagon’s Mysterious U.F.O. Program, The New York Times, 16 December 2017. https://nyti.ms/2kAOuLK

(2)   David Morgan.  2017.  Does Pentagon Still Have a UFO Program?  The Answer Is a Bit Mysterious.  The New York Times via Reuters, 16 December 2017.  https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2017/12/16/technology/16reuters-usa-pentagon-ufos.html 

MUFON

In 2009 the Mutual UFO Network entered into an ill fated collaboration initiated by the then-newly launched Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies. The MUFON-BAASS venture was almost certainly a part of the now revealed Pentagon-funded Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program, if not the primary arm of the operation. At the time, MUFON attempted to coordinate widespread training for field investigators described as a rapid response team. The organization soon found itself marred in turmoil which included a large scale exodus of personnel. Public relations were extremely strained as revolving door leadership saw a run of four executive directors in as many years. A lack of organizational transparency was a common complaint, which included the public nonprofit corporation's failure to provide details of funding sources, so before we join the capital-D disclosure celebration, let's consider how the players conducted their affairs up to this point. 

James Carrion served as Executive Director of MUFON from 2006 to 2009. He is a former intelligence analyst and UFO writer/researcher who pursues forensic historic analysis. An excerpt from his 2011 blog post titled, Strange Bedfellows:

In response to request for comment for this post, Carrion provided the following contribution:

In the fall of 2008, Robert Bigelow approached MUFON with an extraordinary business proposal – a subcontract from a Bigelow subsidiary called Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies, LLC (BAASS) for MUFON UFO investigative services. The MUFON Board signed non-disclosure agreements and the negotiations began.

BAASS essentially wanted MUFON’s field investigators to conduct quality investigations of significant UFO cases, no expense spared, and then to feed those investigations to BAASS scientists. BAASS’ alleged goal for this endeavor was to acquire UFO super technology and then to file patents on this technology. The contract was signed in the spring of 2009 and ran for only a few months before the partnership withered and fell apart towards the end of the year.

Before, during and after this partnership, only one MUFON Board member, former MUFON International Director, John Schuessler, was ever made privy to the money source for the Bigelow subcontract. Now it is public knowledge, courtesy of investigative journalists, that this money came from a Pentagon black budget project.

What are we to make of this public disclosure of the Pentagon’s renewed forage into UFO investigation? If we look back in history when UFOs first hit the mass consciousness in 1947, the nascent U.S. Air Force investigated UFOs through a number of projects culminating in the last official investigation, Project Bluebook, which was killed off in 1969. That is, count it, 22 years of taxpayer dollars spent in the pursuit of “something” that was declared a non-threat to national security.

Fast forward to 2007 and the Pentagon’s Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) – funded allegedly at the behest of a politician and a billionaire who had a common interest in the phenomenon. Are we expected to believe that the Pentagon let almost 40 years pass in-between its investigations before deciding that UFOs were a potential threat? Did the billions of dollars spent prior on air defense against a Soviet, Chinese or rogue nation nuclear attack, or tracking the most minute space junk, simply not detect these UFO threats beforehand?

And is black budget money given out freely at the whim of any politician who wants to study their eccentric interests? Is there a black project currently looking into uncovering Barack Obama’s “real” birth certificate, or whether Ted Cruz’s father was really involved in the JFK assassination or one that is trying to determine how hundreds of thousands of Americans donned an invisibility cloak at the 2017 Presidential inauguration?

And will the disclosure of AATIP just spawn countless other conspiracy theories, like perhaps AATIP is just a shade of gray and that other competing and unacknowledged UFO projects are hidden even deeper in the murky world of black projects?

Today when science is sadly under attack, previously accepted facts take second place to rumor, innuendo and fantasy, and where the alleged leader of the free world spins daily conspiracies and has a severe allergy to the truth, what are we really to make of the Pentagon investigating what it has consistently called a nothing burger? Even after the AATIP was disclosed, some of the data it collected or is still collecting remains classified. Does that mean the American public will AGAIN only get half of the truth?

The question that every American should be asking their elected officials is what did the 22 million taxpayer dollars, earmarked for this black budget UFO investigation project, really buy them and how soon can we the people examine the ENTIRE merchandise? Even more importantly for Congress to investigate is the decision making rationale that led up to this project and why almost 40 years lapsed before UFOs were declared objects non grata in American airspace.

What an in-depth Congressional investigation may reveal is a deeper truth – one that as Sir Winston Churchill once described the former Soviet Union – is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. In reality, we are all tired of enigmas, mysteries and riddles – what Americans really want, indeed what the whole world wants, is just the ultimate truth, whatever that may be.

The MUFON-BAASS train wreck was not the first time activities involving the nonprofit, Bigelow, and cash accountability came under fire. At the turn of the century news leaked of what would become known as the Carpenter Affair. It was soon confirmed that John Carpenter, while serving as MUFON Director of Abduction Research, secretly provided Robert Bigelow data from case files of some 140 "alien abductees" for a reported $14,000. 

John Carpenter is among those who confirmed what he termed the discreet sharing of data, which reportedly included copies of recordings of hypnosis sessions conducted with the individuals. Carpenter explained during a 2012 email exchange that he confidentially provided the data to Bigelow for review by Bigelow and colleagues at the now dissolved Bigelow-founded National Institute for Discovery Science. Personnel of the Institute included Col. John Alexander, who, according to John Velez via UFO UpDates List in 2000, confirmed what Velez termed the "file sale," as did MUFON then-Executive Director Walt Andrus and Bigelow himself.

An excerpt from my 2013 blog post, The Carpenter Affair: For the Record:

The 140 people in question, who had sought support from Carpenter and MUFON, were not informed of the arrangement between Carpenter and Bigelow. The specific details of the primary motives and agendas behind the circumstances remain unclear.

"We may never know," Elizabeth Chavez Carpenter, former wife of John Carpenter and one of the 140, reflected during a December, 2013, telephone conversation. 

A lack of accountability is disappointingly common within the UFO community. Its members, often eager for new and intriguing information, frequently fail to question the bookkeeping of the messenger if they support the message.

A 1996 AP article which explored Bigelow's interests in the Skinwalker Ranch reported that Bigelow declined to be interviewed, while NIDS employee John Alexander stated details would not be provided of how or why research was being conducted. The article further indicated former ranch owner Terry Sherman, employed by Bigelow to maintain the property, chose not to comment because Bigelow had him sign a nondisclosure agreement.

Public trust of MUFON and its collaborators was substantially diminished due to a lack of accountability for the Ambient Monitoring Project. In 2008, long time MUFON and ufology staple Tom Deuley wrote in the MUFON UFO Journal how the approximately ten year-long effort was coming to fruition. Deuley explained funding was in hand to complete analysis already begun on data obtained from instruments placed in the homes of reported alien abductees. The idea was to monitor the environment and discern what, if anything, was physically taking place during alleged abductions. 

Much to the disappointment of a community eager to hear what happened, no conclusions were ever produced. Explanations were offered by a variety of involved parties as to why no final project report or even summary was published, all of which were inadequate, often contradictory to one another, and sorely lacking in professionalism.

The failed project involved a collaboration between some UFO organizations, including the Fund for UFO Research, which Deuley suggested in his 2008 article was a substantial influence. A review of the circumstances revealed, per the FUFOR website circa 1993, "the Fund joined with the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) and the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS) to form the UFO Research Coalition to conduct major projects, at the suggestion of Las Vegas builder Robert Bigelow, who promised major funding." By 1994, it was further reported via the website, "disagreement over control of the UFO Research Coalition lead to a complete break with Robert Bigelow. Laurance Rockefeller appeared on the scene, ready to fund major projects through his intermediary, Mrs. Marie 'Bootsie' Gailbreath."

Further research and communications with men listed as members of boards of directors of the involved nonprofit corporations often produced the same inconsistent statements as made publicly, if not implying worse. A 2008 email inquiry to astrophysicist Dr. Richard Henry, listed at the time as a FUFOR board member on the org's website, resulted in the doctor responding he had not heard from FUFOR "in ages."

"Let me know if you find out anything!" he added.

Bottom Line

There is no substitute for an established fact, and facts cannot be established absent evidence available for public review. Some of the material supplied to those reporting on the UFO-Pentagon story, i.e., the DeLonge project, is relevant and offers some value as contributions to the UFO genre. The videos, for example, embody what, by definition, are UFOs. They deserve ample examination by qualified experts.

That stated, the public indeed has a valid complaint when taxpayer funds are used to obtain alleged materials that, as of this writing, are not readily available for review. The public also has a valid complaint when public nonprofit corporations, which enjoy tax benefits and offer tax deductions for donors, fail to adequately report their financial activities and agendas. 

What's more, some of the parties involved in the Pentagon saga have not only shown a willingness to avert from disclosing details of their activities, but an outright effort to conceal them. In doing so, the identities of funding entities have been concealed, financial reporting has been inadequate, and notification of the circumstances to involved parties has, at times, been nonexistent. 

Just because someone is an intelligence community asset doesn't make them inherently dishonest or nefarious. There are any number of people who assist the U.S. intelligence services in honorable manners. A primary point, as I see it, is that with all the half-truths, lack of accountability, and direct lies within the UFO community, it is impossible to discern the value of someone's claim if they don't produce the beef. Demand it or recognize the situation for what it often is: sizzle and no steak. It might also be unethical at times. The only way to know for sure is to actually find out, and you know what they say about fool me once...

Intelligence Community Influence Is a Ufology Staple

Historian Aaron J. Gulyas is doing a podcast, The Saucer Life, and I recommend checking it out. Gulyas is a longtime researcher, writer, and presenter in the UFO community. He does good work and his podcast is entertaining, as well as full of intriguing, well sourced tidbits. The Nov. 26 episode, Encounter 206: And then the feds showed up..., addressed the type of circumstances often explored here at The UFO Trail.

The show focused on a chain of events involving the 1954 Detroit Flying Saucer Club. Gulyas cited declassified FBI documents he located at The Black Vault which indicate members of the Saucer Club became concerned about the potentially anti-American and subversive activities of other attendees. A concerned citizen contacted the FBI, touching off an investigation, a series of covert interactions surrounding FBI agents and club members, and, as Gulyas put it, an example of why government interest in flying saucers was really never about the saucers in some cases.

Points I find interesting about the saga include similarities between mid 20^th century fear of communist aggression and current day Islamophobia. For instance, activities at least one Detroit Flying Saucer Club member felt warranted reporting to the FBI included the expression of anti-nuclear war sentiments and the promotion of peace. Not exactly treason, but apparently disturbing enough for a self-described patriotic American to call the feds.

Also of interest was a central figure, Laura Mundo, who conducted a campaign to promote the film The Day the Earth Stood Still. We might reasonably assume her support of predominant themes in the movie - namely, aliens, universal peace and disarmament - primarily fueled her interest in the film, pending substantial reasons to suspect otherwise.

It's an intriguing side plot that the CIA in all likelihood substantially influenced the production of The Day the Earth Stood Still. As writer/researcher Robbie Graham pointed out, verified propaganda specialists were employed on the set as a production chief and a script writer, among other significant circumstances (see Graham's book Silver Screen Saucers and paper The CIA, the Movie Mogul, and 'The Day the Earth Stood Still'). 

This presents any number of interesting scenarios, including Mundo becoming indirectly influenced by intelligence agencies conducting projects using the UFO topic as a tool. She was neither the first nor the last to be ensnared in the cloak and dagger activities of such agencies, seemingly at least sometimes unaware of the actions and objectives of one another. The Saucer Life might lead us to revisit some related circumstances.

Intelligence and UFO Communities

As we have previously explored, investigation of espionage has been much more relevant to the UFO community than its disproportionately low amount of attention suggests. Espionage and counterespionage operations have significantly shaped UFO-related beliefs, inadvertently or otherwise, of any number of community members, some of them more directly and noticeably than others. This is often without so much as a smattering of discussion. What's more, the involvement of intelligence personnel in ufology is not only nothing new, but a staple. If we were to make a Venn diagram of the intelligence and UFO communities - particularly ufology's high profile members - the much larger circle of the former would significantly overlap the latter.

Richard Doty is getting calls for interviews, Ron Pandolfi's posts are being analyzed by "disclosure activists," & John Alexander has a new pro-paranormal book out. WTF is this, the 1980's? I guess next Bill Moore will be a keynote speaker.

— Jack Brewer (@TheUFOTrail) December 3, 2017

The birth of the modern era of UFOs was fathered by the intelligence community. The ghost rockets, Kenneth Arnold story, Roswell saga and more are saturated with IC involvement and verifiable instances of under the table activities. 

The contactee movement, which, as Gulyas reports, included Laura Mundo's support of George Adamski, was itself saturated with intel implications as well. To omit the involvement of the IC in an exploration of the contactee era would render an incomplete assessment. As a matter of fact, many ufology circumstances from the times involved intelligence agencies, as Gulyas is exploring at The Saucer Life. The cases are many and frequent. 

The USAF Office of Special Investigations became a regular player in the UFO genre, and the FBI always was. Career CIA and NSA personnel substantially contributed to the evolving fantastic story lines and subplots, ranging from sitting on boards of directors of UFO organizations to making sensational yet unsubstantiated claims themselves. The list goes on.

The covertly CIA-sponsored Robertson Panel suggested to the Agency in 1953 that UFO "organizations should be watched because of their potentially great influence on mass thinking if widespread sightings should occur. The apparent irresponsibility and the possible use of such groups for subversive purposes should be kept in mind."

View the full transcript of the Jan. 30, 1954 CIA cable
via the State Department

Far from above such subversive actions itself, the CIA recommended in 1954 to operatives in Guatemala to consider fabricating a story about flying saucers. The objective was to distract public attention from Agency sponsorship of a coup in the Central American nation.

It began that way in ufology in the mid 20th century, and it really hasn't changed a whole lot since. "Disclosure activists" are indeed continuing to hang their hopes on the cryptic statements of intelligence personnel, arguably reading between the lines exactly what they desire to find. What's more, the much discussed Tom DeLonge identifies himself as willing and able to sort IC fact from fiction and inform us of what he "knows" about the alien presence. Actual substance is disappointingly - and quite noticeably - absent from his disclosures.

I can understand when UFO enthusiasts aren't interested in the intelligence community. I really can. I realize many people want to hear about unexplained phenomena. It's interesting, and very few of us ever picked up our first UFO book or attended our first conference to learn about the significance of espionage in the UFO community. There are indeed any number of intriguing UFO cases with well presented research surrounding them. It's reasonable to find them of interest.

It is nonetheless equally true that the mid 20th century to present era of UFOs includes substantial activity of the intelligence community. The reasons are many, and the objectives, whatever they all may be, are different from one situation to the next. The fallout is relevant. Whether we choose to find it more interesting to stock our bookshelves with reports of unusual phenomena, or the social circumstances surrounding them, may at times be considered comparable to viewing an optical illusion, the kind in which we see either a vase or two faces opposite one another, depending on perspective. It might sometimes be worth remembering that the entire disorienting illusion was created by an artist in the first place. 

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Further reading:  

NSA Releases 1978 Memo on MUFON Conference

Paper UFOs

Crashed Saucer Misinformation

Boyd Bushman, the FBI and Counterespionage

FOIA Appeal Update

I recently received an email about the status of an FOIA appeal after I asked for an update. The original FOIA request was submitted to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in 2016. It was about circumstances surrounding Joint Security Control (JSC) and its activities in 1946 and 1947. 

"We have identified and gathered all the responsive documents for your case," Deputy FOIA Officer/Archivist Jodi L. Foor of NARA wrote in a Nov. 13, 2017 email. 

It's not entirely clear if Foor is suggesting that documents previously not provided by NARA were indeed located, making the appeal valid, or if the FOIA officer is referring to some other kinds of material. I guess we'll have to wait and see, and we're unfortunately going to be waiting a while. 

"We are estimating that we will be able to start working your case within 10 to 12 months," Foor added. "We do apologize for the delay but assure you that we will complete your case as soon as possible."

Update on NARA FOIA appeal received Nov. 13, 2017

The work of James Carrion peaked my interest in JSC and its potential significance to UFO history. He documented how JSC was initially founded during WWII as a high level deception planning unit. It subsequently received a revised charter in May of 1947 to classify and protect important information, and to plan and implement deception operations during times of peace (as well as war), among other responsibilities. 

In related news, Carrion recently published two more posts on the topic at his blog, Anachronism. He explores direct links between members of JSC and mid 20th century UFO reports.

It was such circumstances that first motivated my Sep. 6, 2016, FOIA request to NARA. See images below, in which I asked for copies of files on JSC deception operations and related items. 

The request was initially met with a less than helpful response. NARA Archivist Mr. R.E. Cookson suggested I order an already declassified JSC file. He added, "The remainder of your request consists of topics rather than describing specific documents, and therefore is not reasonably specific enough for us to be in a position to easily locate documents responsive to your request. A preliminary search of the finding aids that are available to us reveals that your request could contain information in any one of 4 record groups."

I appealed in Oct., 2016, seeking further review of the FOIA request. I pointed out that some specific items were indeed requested. I also asked consideration be given to the fact the very declassified documents Archivist Cookson referenced, as well as others readily available for presentation (as cited by Carrion, for example), established that the creation and responsibilities of JSC included the execution of deception operations. I subsequently requested deeper consideration be given to how a researcher might otherwise learn about such established operations than request their files and the documentation contained therein. 

Main body of FOIA request originally filed to NARA Sep. 6, 2016

For those less aware than others of some of the plot lines, potential significance involves JSC directly interacting with the FBI pertaining to UFO investigations during that now fateful summer of 1947. Specifically, Col. Carl E. Goldbranson of JSC and FBI Special Agent S.W. Reynolds. I recommend giving the links a read. For further background, I quote the following several paragraphs from James Carrion's 2004 paper, New Avenues for UFO Research:

[Begin quote]

...Report on Flying Disks, dated July 25, 1947 from HQ, Air Defense Command, Mitchel Field to the Commanding General, Army Air Forces concluded that: 

(a) This "flying saucer" situation is not all imaginary or seeing too much in some natural phenomenon. Something is really flying around. 

(b) Lack of topside inquiries, when compared to the prompt and demanding inquiries that have originated topside upon former events, give more than ordinary weight to the possibility that this is a domestic project, about which the President, etc. know. 

This same point of view was echoed by a FBI Memo dated August 19, 1947 from E.G. Fitch to D.M. Ladd, Subject: Flying Disks where: 

Special Agent (S.W. Reynolds) of the Liaison Section, while discussing the above captioned phenomena with Lieutenant Colonel (K.C. Garrett) of the Air Forces Intelligence, expressed the possibility that flying disks were in fact, a very highly classified experiment of the Army or Navy. Mr. (Reynolds) was very much surprised when Colonel (Garrett) stated it was his personal opinion that such was a probability, but confidentially stated that a Mr. (X) who is a scientist attached to the Air Forces Intelligence, was of the same opinion. 

Colonel (Garrett) stated that he based his assumption on the following: He pointed out that when flying objects were seen over Sweden, the "high brass" of the War Department exerted tremendous pressure on the Air Forces Intelligence to conduct research and collect information in an effort to identify these sightings. Colonel (Garrett) stated that, in contrast to this, we have reported sightings of unknown objects over the United States, and the "high brass" appeared to be totally unconcerned. He indicated this led him to believe that they knew enough about these objects to express no concern. Colonel (Garrett) pointed out further that the objects in question have been seen by many individuals who are what he terms "trained observers," such as airplane pilots. He indicated also that several of the individuals are reliable members of the community. He stated that it his conclusion that these individuals saw something. He stated the above has led him to the conclusion that there were objects seen which somebody in the Government knows all about. 

It is intriguing that both Air Force Intelligence and Air Defense Command personnel were puzzled by the obvious lack of concern from upper echelons and were convinced that someone at a higher level was in the "know". Neither questioned the reality of the sightings. If UFOs were indeed being used for counter-espionage purposes, it makes sense that higher authorities would not be alarmed over these UFOs violating U.S. airspace. 

This brings up another interesting question - could some of the objects witnessed in late June and early July 1947 have been staged in support of a deception/counter-intelligence operation? A FBI memo dated July 30, 1947 alludes to this possibility: 

FLYING DISCS – The Bureau, at the request of the Army Air Forces Intelligence, has agreed to cooperate in the investigations of flying discs. The Air Force have confidentially advised that it is possible to release three or more discs in odd numbers, attached together by a wire, from an airplane in high altitudes and that these discs would obtain tremendous speed in their descent and would descend to the earth in an arc. The Army Air Forces Intelligence has also indicated some concern that the reported sightings might have been made by subversive individuals for the purpose of creating a mass hysteria.

[End quote]

*      *      *      *

I find these specific lines of research interesting, regardless of what varieties of circumstances might possibly be found in any number of other UFO reports from different eras. Furthermore, I want to know more about JSC, its interactions with intelligence agencies, and its deception operations whatever it all proves to involve. It's historically significant from any number of perspectives. Let's hope NARA will help with that.

NSA Releases 1978 Memo on MUFON Conference

The National Security Agency recently released the majority of a 1978 memo prepared by an assignee about his attendance at a UFO conference. The document was obtained following a Jan. 24, 2017, request for a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR). The five-page memo contains the subject line, "Information request solicitation," and advises the NSA on such matters as likely fraudulent CIA letters showcased at the conference, activities of some specific researchers in attendance, relationships with the researchers, and potential problems that might arise through such relationships. The NSA Sep. 12, 2017, response to the MDR request and the partially redacted document may be viewed and downloaded at the link above. 

The Memo

The NSA continues to withhold the name of the assignee who composed the memo, as well as identities of additional NSA personnel referenced, but the late writer and researcher Philip Klass confidently speculated the author to be Tom Deuley. Klass was probably correct, as we will explore later in this post.

The Aug. 29, 1978, message begins by providing its recipient with some context. The author explained how he informed proper NSA personnel of his interest in UFOs and his intention to attend the 1978 MUFON Symposium. He then described events which occurred at the conference and involved researchers Leonard Stringfield, Robert Barry and Todd Zechel. 

Stringfield did a presentation, during which he introduced Barry, who shared two letters he allegedly received from the CIA (Further research revealed Stringfield's presentation was on crashed flying saucers, so we might reasonably assume Barry's letters were related to the topic). The memo author/NSA assignee indicated he suspected the letters to be fraudulent, and proceeded to interact with the researchers in order to investigate the authenticity of the docs. He went on to explain he contacted CIA personnel who verified the letters to be frauds, and that the CIA wrote Barry and informed him that was the case. 

The memo author described his suspicions of the origin of the purported CIA letters, as well as his concerns about the activities of researchers involved, including Todd Zechel (who founded Citizens Against UFO Secrecy, or CAUS):

This leads us to the bulk of the body of the memo, and the purpose of its subject line, "Information request solicitation." The memo author describes a nearly hour long telephone conversation with Zechel in which the NSA man clearly developed a sense of responsibility to inform the Agency of its contents. The author explained Zechel was requesting he "watch out for UFO related information within NSA" and "that I pass on what I could." The NSA assignee added he had "to some degree" checked on Zechel's character "with some people who have worked with him more closely." 

"There is some thought," he continued, "that he would be capable of being behind the CIA letter fraud and that he is apt to go to most any length to collect information or to bend facts to fit his needs."

The author further wrote, "I personally have some fear that now that he has made contact with me, he may, either privately, or worse, publicly attempt to make it look as if I am an inside NSA contact for him. Or, on the other hand, he may elude to having such a contact for years, then when he feels it appropriate or when cornered, hope to produce me as that contact."

The memo concludes with mentioning "a chance of building a productive working relationship" with Zechel, whatever that's supposed to mean, and committing, "Any further contact or requests for information will be reported.":

History

The trail of the 1978 memo can be followed back to the Yeates affidavit. The sworn statements of NSA man Eugene F. Yeates were recorded in the early 1980's when CAUS sued the NSA for its UFO files. 

Yeates stated some 239 documents responsive to the FOIA request submitted by CAUS were located in NSA files. One of the docs, he noted however, should not be considered relevant to UFOs: the 1978 memo. As Yeates explained in the affidavit, "It is an account by a person assigned to NSA of his attendance at a UFO symposium and it cannot fairly be said to be a record of the kind sought by the plaintiff."

In other words, it didn't really have anything to do with UFOs. Yeates' statements further suggested the NSA was reluctant to fully release the rest of its files for similar reasons: the info therein had less to do with the plaintiff's UFO-related interests than matters of national security, particularly communications intelligence (COMINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT).  

Philip Klass explored the topic in his Jan., 1997 newsletter. Klass obtained some 156 formerly Top Secret COMINT "UFO documents" spanning the years 1958 to 1979 and previously withheld from CAUS by the NSA. While the docs were "heavily censored," Klass concurred they primarily revealed matters of national security, such as NSA eavesdropping on Russian military sites and similar circumstances.

Klass further wrote that he strongly suspected the author of the then-withheld memo by the assignee at the UFO conference (referenced in the Yeates affidavit) to be Tom Deuley, a former NSA man and longtime MUFON board member. Klass continued that Deuley explained in a 1987 paper he was assigned to the Agency in mid-1978, just prior to attending the MUFON annual conference held that year in Dayton, Ohio. Deuley reportedly also wrote, "Before making that trip I felt it was necessary to let NSA know that I had an interest in UFOs. I took the matter up with my immediate supervisor, suggesting that the fact be put on the record."

It can be reasonably surmised that Klass was likely correct about the identity of the memo author, as both the date, 1978, and location, Dayton, of the conference are corroborated in the now largely released document. The sponsor of the event, the Mutual UFO Network, is also corroborated, as is the description by the memo author that he was then-recently assigned to the NSA and desired to keep his employer properly informed of his activities. 

Context

In my opinion, the declassified memo represents important yet largely under reported aspects of the UFO community: the significance of espionage and counterespionage operations, investigations (unrelated to UFOs but overlapping with the UFO community) conducted by the intelligence community, and the effects the circumstances have on the genre as a whole. This appears to have particularly been the case in the 20th century, when standard methods of operation seem to have included fabricating tales of crashed flying saucers and circulating unsubstantiated reports of aliens via fraudulent documents. The dynamics are reflected in the 1978 memo, whatever may have been the actual agendas of the parties involved.

Paul Bennewitz

The time of the memo, 1978, was just a few short years before Richard Doty gaslighted Paul Bennewitz and shared unverified extraordinary documents with Linda Moulton Howe. The Bennewitz Affair contained entirely unsubstantiated rumors that nonetheless continue to be recycled and continuously accepted throughout UFO circles. 

At that same point in time, the early 1980's, a young airman stationed in Nevada and holding a Top Secret clearance was slipped none other than a likely forged smoking gun doc. She had a preexisting relationship with MUFON and interest in UFOs. As explored in my book, The Greys Have Been Framed: Exploitation in the UFO Community, Simone Mendez was subjected to grueling interrogations before being cleared of potential espionage charges and any wrongdoing. It is reasonable to suspect she and others may have been provided such docs for the purpose of following their trails through the UFO community, somewhat like throwing a dye pack in a sinkhole and seeing where the dye emerges.  

Barry Greenwood of CAUS would later assist Mendez in obtaining documentation of her circumstances from the FBI and USAF Office of Special Investigations via the Freedom of Information Act. He also provided me with documents and information requested for inclusion in the chapter on the Mendez case contained in my book. 

Also noteworthy was the 1980's case of the late Vincente DePaula. He apparently held security clearance in his employment in the defense industry, working on satellite systems. DePaula, who had an interest in UFOs and traveled ufology social circles, was reportedly interrogated at length by the Defense Investigative Service about his ufology associates.

The activities of the intelligence community within ufology stand to substantially alter and subsequently form popularly held perspectives, and the activities often have nothing to do with unusual phenomena. The interests of intelligence agencies at least some of the time include circumstances as reported by Klass, protecting the sensitive details of such circumstances, and keeping a sharp eye on those who express unusually deep interests in them.

The UFO topic has in at least some instances been used as a vehicle to gain the trust of individuals holding security clearances in employment capacities. It is then used in attempts to extract information. It should be understood and taken into consideration that the accuracy of stories passed among such people is extremely suspect, even as they gain wider attention throughout the UFO community at large. What's more, the intent of such architects of deception, at least some of the time, is not to mislead the public, but such manipulation is simply a byproduct of other objectives. They just don't care what the public thinks about UFOs.

Bushman showing a highly questionable photo of an
alleged alien reportedly obtained from his network of contacts

As recently as 2014 a video surfaced of the late Boyd Bushman, a man claiming to have held Top Secret and Special Access clearance while employed at Lockheed Martin. He additionally expressed he was convinced of the existence of an alien presence. He also expressed his disdain for security regulations he interpreted to restrict the sharing of research. As explored in a May, 2017 blog post, Bushman indeed held such clearance - and a declassified 1999 FBI memo revealed his employer suspected shady individuals of trying to elicit classified information from him. It is reasonably clear his interest in UFOs served as an opportunity for developing such relationships, and the resulting unsubstantiated alien-related stories were repeated without question by a segment of the community.

In the end, a valid point can be made that it is not only the IC games that contribute to the deterioration of the genre and the topic, but the very presence of individuals who partake in such games. This goes much further than a simple warning of 'buyer beware'. The fact is the Mutual UFO Network has long been inundated with byproducts of the intelligence community, and many will recall it was Tom Deuley who served as front man for the ill fated Ambient Monitoring Project, an initiative which involved placing various data-gathering sensors and equipment in the homes of self-described alien abductees. The project was ultimately strongly criticized due to its lack of completion, lack of transparency, and general incompetence. Maybe the IC had nothing to do with the lack of adequate explanations for its failure, or the lack of resolution surrounding Skinwalker, or any number of similar circumstances, but if its members weren't so deeply involved in such cases while simultaneously harboring classified agendas, we wouldn't have to wonder.

Whatever the objectives may have been that were furthered by such events spanning from a 1947 press release in Roswell to the cultivation of the MJ-12 meme and all the way to the adventures of Tom Delonge - and virtually countless more cases potentially involving the IC along the way - their significance in shaping public perception should be recognized. The reasons may be as diverse as the dates and cases, but their relevance should be understood and incorporated into assessments.

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Related posts:

NSA Fully Releases 'UFOs and the IC Blind Spot' Doc Following FOIA Request

Paper UFOs

Boyd Bushman, the FBI and Counterespionage

NSA UFO Docs

What Happened to the Ambient Monitoring Project?