What's with Bill Birnes and the Glasses?

I enjoyed UFO Hunters. It was obvious that the producers were trying to give it a "reality show" feel. At the beginning, the gang shows up at the secret hide-out and Birnes briefs them like Charlie with The Angels. But what the heck, I liked Survivor, too.

This is just a subjective feeling based on watching Birnes on TV and listening to him on The Paracast, but I think that though he is a businessman and can come off a little "slick" sometimes, I don't think he has ever intentionally tried to mislead or hurt anyone. He spins, but who doesn't?

I read as much of The Day After Roswell as I could stomach, and it's true that Birnes is the co-writer of the book (which makes him come off as rather credulous), but what about Corso? I think it was Joseph Farrell who noted that Corso had been a true believer in the right-wing, commie-hating, CIA and spook world since the end of WWII, and that he had been involved in disinformation programs. Maybe Corso played one last role as the loyal spook before he died. I believe that Farrell wrote this before there was any publicity about the other Corso book, Day After Dallas, which is supposed to shed new light on the Kennedy assassination. With involvement in all these major conspiracies, Corso is beginning to look a little like The Cancer Man from X-Files.

I still like Bill Birnes, though.

Update: I reread the section The Brotherhood of the Bell by Farrell about Corso. Corso was involved in the Warren Commision as an investigator, and as a member of military intelligence service was probably anti-CIA on account of their Soviet infiltration. Farrell knew that The Day After Dallas was forthcoming. And Farrell is actually quoting Greg Bishop on the matter of Corso being brought out of retirement for a final disinformation hurrah. Bishop's book Wake Up Down There! is definitely on my to-read list.

He told a freaked-out young man that he was an alien-human hybrid, and even Pat Uskert took him outside and gave him shit for it. If this isn't misleading or hurtful, I don't know what is, quite frankly. I regret that The Paracast ever had any kind of relationship with UFO Magazine, which has since been corrected. Birnes has done far more damage than good to the field of legitimate UFO study, IMO.

dB

I applaud you and Gene for severing ties with that huckster Birnes, kudos.

Oh, goody. If only your applause meant squat to me...

dB