YUFOLOGY: RICHARD DOLAN ON BINNALL OF AMERICA

Tina Sena reviews one of UFOlogy's top researchers (intelligent, diligent, truthful…) Richard Dolan: YUFOLOGY: RICHARD DOLAN ON BINNALL OF AMERICA. I haven't had a chance to listen to the interview yet, but will soon. Can't wait. Tina shares her thoughts on those within UFOlogy who might, no matter how unintended, contribute to the tin foil hat perception that mainstream culture has of UFO folks:

 "You can't show up to a UFO conference looking like the crazy uncle who lives in the shed in the back yard.

Even if you ARE the crazy uncle who lives in the shed in the back yard." ~ Tina Sena

While I don't think it's necessary to dress like middle class bores -- suits and ties all the time, matching pant suits with pearls -- there is something to be said for good grooming and such.



While you're at Binnall of America, check out the columns by various contributors, including Tina Sena, and, why yes! myself.

Local UFOs

Recently I posted my thoughts about UFO sightings on the 4th -- would I see any? Unfortunately, I did not. (Unlike on New Year's Eve/day.)

A visitor to the Orb did leave this comment about something he saw on the 4th:

I SAW AN ORANGE ELONGATED OBJECT GOING ABOUT 250 MPH ABOUT 3 MILES N OF MY LOCATION AT 11 TH AND GREENHILL AND VERY LOW [ PERHAPS 1000" HIGH ] AT ABOUT 1/2 MILE
AWAY IT TURNED EAST AND STARTED TO CLIMB UNTIL IT DISAPPEARED ABOUT ONE MIN. LATER. I ESTIMATE THE LIGHTED PART OF IT WAS AT LEAST 30' ROUND AND 50' LONG. I WAS IN THE NAVAL AIR DURING NAM AND NEVER SAW ANYTHING REMOTELY
LIKE THIS. (comment left by James Hellman)

I replied that his sighting of an "orange elongated object" that climbed did sound similar to what we saw on New Year's. 

"Avowal of Prior Skepticism"

From skeptic Sharon Hill, of Doubtful News, who interprets a device used in paranormal/supernatural narratives within a skeptic construct: I used to be a skeptic, but then… . She also writes about this topic here.  In citing a paper that appeared in the Journal of Language and Social Psychology, Hill discusses the use of qualifiers within supernatural narratives by the speaker, specifically referring to one's previous skeptical take on life. ("avowal of prior skepticism." It's all about perspective, world view, mind set. Hill sees the following devices used in personal narratives of encounters with the anomalous as devious, up-to-no-good, even dangerous manifestations of delusions. No, she doesn't say that, in fact, does concede that the "sheep-goat" aspect of disclaimers within narratives is "inflammatory." However...

In these kinds of narratives, the speaker (informant) usually begins the story with "I used to be skeptical of these things…" and this phrase is often used throughout the telling.

The skeptic views this device as shady. Parsed and analyzed to an amazing degree of typical dog-with-a-bone skepticism, this narrative disclaimer has been broken down into parts, including the "sheep-goat:"

Sheep-goat – the divide between “believers” (sheep, suggesting followers) and “skeptics”(goats, suggesting stubborn rejection). I prefer to use advocates versus counter-advocates. It’s less inflammatory. Also, I didn’t know that was a real thing people understood but I must have heard it a dozen times the past few months with regards to psychical research.

Nice that Hill thinks the sheep-goat label is "inflammatory" but "advocates versus counter-advocates" is equally condescending, implying that the narrator has an agenda or trying to recruit members for some nefarious club.

From another perspective, say folklore investigations into supernatural narratives, it is interesting to note that qualifiers exist in narratives. "I'm not crazy," "I wasn't on drugs," "I hadn't been drinking, I was stone cold sober," and of course, the "I was a skeptic about these things until…" are sprinkled throughout the tale. Naturally the narrator wants to be believed, -- for the most part. Of course, none of us can speak for others, and that includes myself. I cannot speak for other UFO, Bigfoot, ghost or other paranormal witnesses. It's a fair assumption to think that those witnesses who are open about their stories want to be believed, and so, understanding all too well, painfully in some cases, that such stories will not be believed by most, the individual has to use such qualifiers.

There are also those witnesses who don't give a damn if others believe them or not. I put myself in that category. I've seen UFOs, had missing time, encountered ghosts, and have had a life time of paranormal experiences. I'm telling the truth, and that's that. If you believe me that's nice, but I don't care if you don't. That's your issue if you disbelieve me, not mine. So I don't use those expressions as a rule, although it is such an ingrained idea in our culture that such things are not to be believed, it's hard to avoid using them.

As the saying goes: "A skeptic doesn't believe in ghosts  -- until they've seen one."

Post 4th: Not Much There There

All was very quiet, relatively, in our neighborhood on the 4th. No big displays seen from the porch. Thankfully, few illegal booming bombs of fireworks. (I mean, why? All it does is scare pets and people and rattle windows.) Certainly no UFOs seen in our skies -- we didn't, and if there were local reports I'm unaware.

Last night we were on our porch, having heard "booms" and seeing a few weakly colorful fireworks someone was setting off a few blocks away. I noticed what I assumed was a plane very high up in the sky. I said to Jim "That plane seems awfully high!" I did see a bright white light but couldn't tell if it had other lights. It was moving like a plane. Sort of. I had turned to Jim for maybe all of two seconds, when I looked back to the sky, the light was gone. I mean, gone. It could have gone through some clouds, if clouds there were -- but it was strange it was just gone like that. I scanned the sky, after all it had to be somewhere and it couldn't have traveled that fast. But oh well.  Another no account semi-mysterious light-in-the-sky event.

Eugene, OR UFO sightings

Two friends have posted on Facebook about their UFO sightings in recent days. Both sightings very different, and both, I missed! Alas, Facebook is acting oddly right now; not loading correctly, not loading all messages,etc. so I can't get details. Stay posted.

On New Year's Eve/Day Jim and I both had a sighting. Holiday -- lots of fireworks going off. I wondered at the time if the thing seen wasn't a drone (though it seemed pretty damn big) taking advantage of the celebratory vibe to do its thing. I wonder if things strange and unexplained will be seen on the 4th.

As soon as FB is behaving itself, I will post the two Eugene sightings.

Twilight Language: Ufologist Stanton Friedman Suffers Heart Attack

Our prayers and healing energy are being beamed at Stan Friedman, who had a heart attack. Fortunately he is in stable condition, according to reports. More here:Twilight Language: Ufologist Stanton Friedman Suffers Heart Attack. We are all wishing you well Mr. Friedman!

Close encounters: Everything you need to know about UFOs | The Economist

Thanks to The Daily Grail for the this link:Close encounters: Everything you need to know about UFOs | The Economist. Typical debunkery, including the snarky tone required for such skeptiod fluff pieces.  Example, the following, which tells us that the aliens are "considerate" in the timing of their appearances:

". . . they [aliens] tend to arrive in the evening, especially on Fridays, when folks are sitting on the front porch nursing their fourth beer, the better to appreciate flashing lights in the heavens. . . "

If it's not the beer and all those drunken porch sitting sky watchers, it's the stoners in Washington state, which has the highest number of UFO sightings, according to the article:

"The state aliens like best is Washington—a finding that pre-dates the legalisation of pot there."

What is interesting about the map shown is the number of UFO sightings along the west coast  -- underwater bases?

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Terry Hansen, Noted Journalist & Author of 'The Missing Times' Has Died

Terry Hansen, Noted Journalist & Author of 'The Missing Times' Has Died: It’s with great sadness that we report the passing of Terry Hansen, journalist, researcher and author of one of the most influential books re Ufology, "The Missing Times / News Media Complicity in the UFO Cover-up." ~ Frank Warren, UFO Chronicles

Very sad news. Terry Hansen's book The Missing Times is an excellent work and if you haven't read it, please do. Condolences to his family and loved ones . . . thank you Mr. Hansen for your contributions, rest in peace.

More Trent Circus Theater

The blog that I won't link to but everyone knows what I mean -- you know, those verbose guys who love to perform UFO street theater (albeit on-line, and in their blogs) -- have another post on the world famous 1950 Trent UFO sighting. (Yamhill County, McMinnville, Oregon.) This time the theory is the Trent UFO photographed was not a UFO, but a side mirror from a Ford. I can't stand it. (Comments are definitely worth reading.)

Related link:
Trent Trickster Three

White Wolf Tarot: A Journey, Not a Punishment: A Small Bit of Advice...

New post at my White Wolf Tarot blog:

White Wolf Tarot: A Journey, Not a Punishment: A Small Bit of Advice...:          Often, people new to reading tarot become overwhelmed, confused and frustrated very quickly. There's an expectation that yo...

TV show seeking UFO activists | Openminds.tv

Item from Open Minds on a new reality show about UFO "activists." One thing: must be under thirty-five. Ah, ageism! TV show seeking UFO activists | Openminds.tv

UFO Nerd

Yep, I'm a nerd. A glimpse into my Fortean study.

Science Fiction Legend H.G. Wells REALLY Didn't Like Forteans | The Daily Grail

From Greg Taylor at The Daily Grail, an item on H.G. Wells and his intense dislike of Charles Fort's perspectives on things and Forteana in general. TDG reprints the following letter from Wells to author Theodore Dreiser, friend and supporter of Fort:

Dear Dreiser,

I'm having Fort's Book of the Damned sent back to you. Fort seems to be one of the most damnable bores who ever cut scraps from out of the way newspapers. I thought they were facts. And he writes like a drunkard.

Lo! has been sent to me but has gone into my wastepaper basket. And what do you mean by forcing "orthodox science" to do this or that? Science is a continuing exploration and how in the devil can it have an orthodoxy? The next you'll be writing is the "dogmas of science" like some blasted Roman Catholic priest on the defensive. When you tell a Christian you don't believe some yarn he can't prove, he always call you "dogmatic". Scientific workers are first rate stuff and very ill paid and it isn't for the likes of you and me to heave Forts at them.

God dissolve (and forgive) your Fortean Society.

Yours,

H.G. Wells

For more read the rest here: Science Fiction Legend H.G. Wells REALLY Didn't Like Forteans | The Daily Grail

Stalled Emails, Evil Empire

(See previous two posts below)

   

     My friend "Carol" with the life time of UFO/alien/general strangeness events, has mentioned to me several times that something -- some force or forces, energies or entities, vibrations -- like to keep us apart. Stop us from getting together to share high strangeness notes as it were.
For example, we, decades ago (decades ago!) would get together, along with others in her family as well as friends, to talk about these things. Then, suddenly, nothing. It was like we both had amnesia and forgot about each other. And yet, in typical Trickster ways, her husband and I (often along with my husband Jim)  would run into each other constantly, often two or three times in the same day.
     Not long ago however we did Carol and I did connect, and talked about this installed amnesia, this barrier seemingly placed by "them" and we decided to not let this happen again.

     Little things seem to happen to trip us up, but we're not letting them win. For example, as I wrote in my previous post, it took me almost half an hour to realize I was on the wrong street when visiting Carol. Since then, Carol has sent me at least two emails; they have not gone through. The address is correct, her email, my email works fine, etc. Yet emails sent from Carol to me are not coming through. Today Carol referred to "The Evil Empire of the short and gray." Indeed. Screw the little spindly bastards.

     If, of course, short gray spindly things they be. Carol has seen them, I have not. I have sensed them, I have "seen" them during a trance like state, others have sensed them in proximity to me, but I can't say I have seen seen them, if you know what I mean. I also think that the experiences we've all had -- Carol, myself, my husband, other friends of mine -- where we've felt without a doubt the presence of a very high intelligence, is not the grays, but something to do with what we call "the grays." But that's another path to follow another day.
   

What Are We Doing in Maryland?!: Childhood Friends and Synchronicities

(Please read related post below: McMinnville and Floating Cows)

     Every now and then, I have a dream about "Prudence O'Dell." That's not her real name of course, but "Prudence" is a real person. She is someone I was friends with all through elementary school (St. Mary Magdalene) and high school. We stayed in touch a bit until I was about twenty. Forty years later,  have no idea where she is, what her married name might be, etc.
     I just realized, the other night, every dream I have where Prudence is present, involves UFOs. Sometimes it's just a hint, a bare memory, sometimes it's a lively discussion about them, but always, these dreams have to do with UFOs in some way. As kids, we knew little if anything of UFOs, and to my conscious memory, had no experiences of that kind.
     So, the night before last, I dreamt my husband Jim and I are in Maryland, visiting Prudence:

     Jim and I are traveling across the country, and we're here with my childhood friend Prudence O'Dell. She seems fine, and it's good to see her, we're having a nice time. Her house seems to be one giant glass room; the walls are windows. We're sitting inside a giant fishbowl. Outside, it's meadows -- she lives out in the country in the middle of Baltimore, Maryland. I look outside, admiring the view, and say to Prudence "It's so nice! So wonderful you get to live in the country like this."
     Prudence looks around and says "Yes, but . . .  it's not what it seems. There's something not quite right out there. It isn't good to go out there. . . "
     I have a lucid moment in the dream; I wonder out loud "What the hell are we doing in Maryland?!"  Maryland, including Baltimore, is simply not a place I have ever wanted to visit. I find the fact that we're here in Maryland to be disturbing.

     

The day after this dream, I go to visit my friend "Carol" that I wrote about in the post below. (McMinnville and Floating Cows.) Carol has had UFO experiences -- as well as generally paranormal and anomalous experiences in general -- her whole life. As we were talking, Carol was sharing some of her experiences when she lived in Maryland.
     Now, as she was talking, I realized that I knew she had lived back east -- Maryland, New York, and other places, but I had forgotten. Obviously my subconscious remembered this fact about Carol and that's probably why my dream took place in Maryland; I knew I was going to visit her the next day. But why my childhood friend Prudence? Hmmm… maybe my own experiences were being nudged awake as well.
     There were other synchronicities as well. The day I went to visit with Carol, I was checking my Facebook page, as usual. For some odd reason I had dozens -- not one or two, or a few, but dozens, of posts from several different people I did not know about Buddhism, including Tibetan Buddhism. I wondered who the heck are these people?! Why am I getting so many posts from people I don't know about this? Not that I minded, but it was very odd.
     Later, on my way to Carol's, I parked on her street. And couldn't find her house. Walked up and down, drove up and down, parked, drove and parked again, walked again. Where the hell is her house? I have been there plenty of times. I walked past a house with a car parked in front with a Free Tibet bumper sticker, and the house: a Buddha in the front yard.
     Then I realized, in a scary moment of senior menopausal fog, I was on the wrong street! Carol lives the block over. Oy.
     As we were talking about so many things, Carol mentioned a friend of hers that practices Tibetan Buddhism. This woman is very deep into this realm; knows the language, has worked with the Dali Lama, etc. Carol's daughter has recently become a Buddhist, something I did not know.

     And, as is usual when in Carol's home, that "they're here" feeling was present. This time it was slight; not overt and powerful as it has been in the past, but there nonetheless. This is a slightly electrical feeling but more than that, a knowing of intelligent entities present. They're invisible but they are as real and here as any one of us. "They" listen, they're aware of us, they're highly intelligent. They are not human but human like in many ways. They are more aware of us than we of them. I've had this experience in other places (my two homes being among them) and verified by others. They appear when we discuss on a serious "real" level all this UFO stuff but more than that, paranormal/supernatural/spiritual ideas and experiences as well.
     Something that I remembered about Prudence: her father was a big wig scientist working for either the government or a corporation. I don't remember details, just that it was a big deal the way the family behaved around such news, but I wonder if that has anything at all to do with any of this? Or, not.