THE PARACAST NEWSLETTER
January 29, 2011
Amazing UFO Encounters Featured on The Paracast
Special Announcement: The Paracast is heard Sundays from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM (Central Time) on the GCN radio network.
The Paracast Humbly Requests Your Donations: Although ads help cover a small part of our expenses, the income they produce is never enough. Also, we do not receive any revenue from the ads placed on the show by our network. So we hope you'll be willing to help fill the gap if you can to help us cover increasing server costs and other expenses -- or perhaps provide a little extra cash for lunch. No contribution is too small (or too large
. We have a Donate link on our home page, below the logo and audio player. There's also a Donate link on our forums, right below our logo. Or just send your PayPal donation direct to sales (at) theparacast (dot) com.
Attention U.S. Listeners: Let's Bring The Paracast to Your City! Last summer, The Paracast joined the GCN radio network. This represented a huge step in bringing our show to a larger, mainstream audience. Now we want your help to add more affiliates to our growing network. Please ask one of your local talk stations if they are interested in carrying The Paracast. Feel free to contact us directly with the names of programming people we might be able to contact directly. With your help, The Paracast can grow into one of the most popular paranormal shows on the planet!
You Can Now Order The Official Paracast T-Shirt: You asked, and we answered. We are now taking orders for The Official Paracast T-Shirt and a collection of other specially customized merchandise. To get your T-Shirt, just pay a visit to our new online store at Welcome to The Official Paracast Store to select your size and place your order. We now also offer a lineup of other premium merchandise featuring The Paracast logo.
Sunday, January 30, 2011: The Paracast covers a world beyond science, where UFOs, poltergeists and strange phenomena of all kinds have been reported by millions across the planet.
Set Up: The Paracast hosts interview long-time researchers in the field, to shed light on the mysteries and complexities of our Universe and the secrets that surround us in our everyday lives.
Join us as we explore the realms of the known and unknown, and hear great stories of the history of the paranormal field in the 20th and 21st centuries.
This Week's Episode: Co-host Christopher O’Brien joins Gene to introduce MUFON Eastern Director George Filer, a long-time UFO researcher who publishes an online newsletter, Filer’s Files, which contains up-to-date information on recent sightings and other developments. During this exclusive interview, Filer will detail some of his own UFO encounters when he was an Air Force pilot.
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Filer's Files: Social & Email Marketing Solutions from ListRocket
Coming February 6: Co-host Christopher O’Brien joins Gene to introduce long-time UFO researcher David Halperin, who began his UFO studies as a teenager, explored UFOs in connection with ancient religious traditions of heavenly ascension and the visions of Ezekiel, and other events. He is author of a novel based on his life as a teen UFO researcher, “Journal of a UFO Investigator: A Novel.”
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Dave Halperin's Site: Official Website of David Halperin, author of Journal Of A UFO Investigator
Reminder: Don't forget to visit our always-active Discussion Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal (and note our new Internet address): The Paracast Community Forums.
Slogging Through Quicksand
By Gene Steinberg
In the early days of The Paracast, your long-suffering hosts would often talk about the difficulties in having adult discussions in the UFO field. That explains why so many people have decided that they have better things to do, and gone elsewhere.
Now getting drawn into extended debates about trivial matters is not unusual. Back in my teens, long, long ago, I got embroiled in several complex arguments via snail mail. In the late 1990s, when my son and I first wrote a series of science fiction novels, one of his school chums posted some messages promoting the books in some Internet discussion groups. His goals were laudable, but one of those messages landed in the wrong newsgroup, one populated by a tight clique of would-be sci-fi writers that didn’t take well to the presence of outsiders.
Their approach was similar to other vigorous discussions I’ve observed over the years. They’d take a statement, mine or someone else’s, distort it beyond reason, and then complain at great length about the false version. If they were corrected, they’d either change the subject, or renew their complaints. More often than not, they’d do their level best to generate as much heat as possible, which is why such behavior is regarded as a flame war.
They tried as hard as they could to force me to engage in the same sort of personal attack that was part and parcel of their approach. I refused, and simply, calmly, expressed my point of view. That, of course, made them angrier.
In that long-ago instance, my agent went ahead and posted a pointed letter admonishing them for their juvenile behavior. At the same time, I stopped responding to their hateful messages, since there was no value in attempting to speak to those who would not listen.
Now since The Paracast began in 2006, a few hosts of other paranormal radio shows have tried to engage us in extended debate. One even accused us of constantly attacking them, even though we never mentioned that particular show on the air. In fact, we rarely discuss other shows, except, of course, for our occasional cracks about “Coast To Coast AM.”
More recently, the co-hosts of yet another paranormal podcast have decided to instigate a flame war, apparently because I refused to support their efforts to attack two prominent UFO abduction investigators with whom they disagree.
As most of you know, I have largely taken a middle-of-the-road approach to the matter. The complaints may have merit, but far too many people aren’t looking at both sides of the equation. As for me, I have found fault on both sides, and tried to move beyond this controversy.
However, some people have decided to take the “if you’re not with me, your against me” approach, and gone on to falsify my actual points of view, as expressed here, in the forums, on in some of our weekly episodes of The Paracast. As with those Internet flame wars of old, they refuse to correct their misstatements. I have posted statements in a few discussion forums to correct the record, but it makes no difference. They don’t want to be bothered with facts.
When it comes to the abduction scenario, it’s clear to me that a large number of people have had some extremely frightening experiences that seem very real to them. I do not pretend to know the cause behind this phenomenon. Is it ET? Some sort of unrelated paranormal episode? Or maybe abductions are largely due to some psychological issues that we do not as yet fully understand.
Regardless of the cause, abductions cry out for serious investigations by trained therapists. Unfortunately, few professionals are willing to get involved, which leaves far too much of the research to laymen who, one hopes, will at least seek advice from people in the mental health field in the course of their research.
There can and should be healthy debates about whether hypnotic regression is a useful tool to unearth suppressed memories of supposed alien encounters. Claims that abductees have had their remembrances distorted, because of the inadvertent or deliberate actions of untrained investigators, is also a ripe topic for evaluation.
Indeed, these are serious issues, and they demand serious discussions by serious people. Unfortunately, the actions of those would-be carnival barkers to generate heat rather than light are only hurting the UFO field, and, as far as I’m concerned, their 15 minutes are up.
The Paracast Copyright 1999-2011 Making The Impossible, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy: Your personal information is safe with us. We will positively never give out your name and/or e-mail address to anybody else, and that's a promise!
January 29, 2011
Amazing UFO Encounters Featured on The Paracast
Special Announcement: The Paracast is heard Sundays from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM (Central Time) on the GCN radio network.
The Paracast Humbly Requests Your Donations: Although ads help cover a small part of our expenses, the income they produce is never enough. Also, we do not receive any revenue from the ads placed on the show by our network. So we hope you'll be willing to help fill the gap if you can to help us cover increasing server costs and other expenses -- or perhaps provide a little extra cash for lunch. No contribution is too small (or too large
. We have a Donate link on our home page, below the logo and audio player. There's also a Donate link on our forums, right below our logo. Or just send your PayPal donation direct to sales (at) theparacast (dot) com.Attention U.S. Listeners: Let's Bring The Paracast to Your City! Last summer, The Paracast joined the GCN radio network. This represented a huge step in bringing our show to a larger, mainstream audience. Now we want your help to add more affiliates to our growing network. Please ask one of your local talk stations if they are interested in carrying The Paracast. Feel free to contact us directly with the names of programming people we might be able to contact directly. With your help, The Paracast can grow into one of the most popular paranormal shows on the planet!
You Can Now Order The Official Paracast T-Shirt: You asked, and we answered. We are now taking orders for The Official Paracast T-Shirt and a collection of other specially customized merchandise. To get your T-Shirt, just pay a visit to our new online store at Welcome to The Official Paracast Store to select your size and place your order. We now also offer a lineup of other premium merchandise featuring The Paracast logo.
Sunday, January 30, 2011: The Paracast covers a world beyond science, where UFOs, poltergeists and strange phenomena of all kinds have been reported by millions across the planet.
Set Up: The Paracast hosts interview long-time researchers in the field, to shed light on the mysteries and complexities of our Universe and the secrets that surround us in our everyday lives.
Join us as we explore the realms of the known and unknown, and hear great stories of the history of the paranormal field in the 20th and 21st centuries.
This Week's Episode: Co-host Christopher O’Brien joins Gene to introduce MUFON Eastern Director George Filer, a long-time UFO researcher who publishes an online newsletter, Filer’s Files, which contains up-to-date information on recent sightings and other developments. During this exclusive interview, Filer will detail some of his own UFO encounters when he was an Air Force pilot.
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Filer's Files: Social & Email Marketing Solutions from ListRocket
Coming February 6: Co-host Christopher O’Brien joins Gene to introduce long-time UFO researcher David Halperin, who began his UFO studies as a teenager, explored UFOs in connection with ancient religious traditions of heavenly ascension and the visions of Ezekiel, and other events. He is author of a novel based on his life as a teen UFO researcher, “Journal of a UFO Investigator: A Novel.”
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Dave Halperin's Site: Official Website of David Halperin, author of Journal Of A UFO Investigator
Reminder: Don't forget to visit our always-active Discussion Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal (and note our new Internet address): The Paracast Community Forums.
Slogging Through Quicksand
By Gene Steinberg
In the early days of The Paracast, your long-suffering hosts would often talk about the difficulties in having adult discussions in the UFO field. That explains why so many people have decided that they have better things to do, and gone elsewhere.
Now getting drawn into extended debates about trivial matters is not unusual. Back in my teens, long, long ago, I got embroiled in several complex arguments via snail mail. In the late 1990s, when my son and I first wrote a series of science fiction novels, one of his school chums posted some messages promoting the books in some Internet discussion groups. His goals were laudable, but one of those messages landed in the wrong newsgroup, one populated by a tight clique of would-be sci-fi writers that didn’t take well to the presence of outsiders.
Their approach was similar to other vigorous discussions I’ve observed over the years. They’d take a statement, mine or someone else’s, distort it beyond reason, and then complain at great length about the false version. If they were corrected, they’d either change the subject, or renew their complaints. More often than not, they’d do their level best to generate as much heat as possible, which is why such behavior is regarded as a flame war.
They tried as hard as they could to force me to engage in the same sort of personal attack that was part and parcel of their approach. I refused, and simply, calmly, expressed my point of view. That, of course, made them angrier.
In that long-ago instance, my agent went ahead and posted a pointed letter admonishing them for their juvenile behavior. At the same time, I stopped responding to their hateful messages, since there was no value in attempting to speak to those who would not listen.
Now since The Paracast began in 2006, a few hosts of other paranormal radio shows have tried to engage us in extended debate. One even accused us of constantly attacking them, even though we never mentioned that particular show on the air. In fact, we rarely discuss other shows, except, of course, for our occasional cracks about “Coast To Coast AM.”
More recently, the co-hosts of yet another paranormal podcast have decided to instigate a flame war, apparently because I refused to support their efforts to attack two prominent UFO abduction investigators with whom they disagree.
As most of you know, I have largely taken a middle-of-the-road approach to the matter. The complaints may have merit, but far too many people aren’t looking at both sides of the equation. As for me, I have found fault on both sides, and tried to move beyond this controversy.
However, some people have decided to take the “if you’re not with me, your against me” approach, and gone on to falsify my actual points of view, as expressed here, in the forums, on in some of our weekly episodes of The Paracast. As with those Internet flame wars of old, they refuse to correct their misstatements. I have posted statements in a few discussion forums to correct the record, but it makes no difference. They don’t want to be bothered with facts.
When it comes to the abduction scenario, it’s clear to me that a large number of people have had some extremely frightening experiences that seem very real to them. I do not pretend to know the cause behind this phenomenon. Is it ET? Some sort of unrelated paranormal episode? Or maybe abductions are largely due to some psychological issues that we do not as yet fully understand.
Regardless of the cause, abductions cry out for serious investigations by trained therapists. Unfortunately, few professionals are willing to get involved, which leaves far too much of the research to laymen who, one hopes, will at least seek advice from people in the mental health field in the course of their research.
There can and should be healthy debates about whether hypnotic regression is a useful tool to unearth suppressed memories of supposed alien encounters. Claims that abductees have had their remembrances distorted, because of the inadvertent or deliberate actions of untrained investigators, is also a ripe topic for evaluation.
Indeed, these are serious issues, and they demand serious discussions by serious people. Unfortunately, the actions of those would-be carnival barkers to generate heat rather than light are only hurting the UFO field, and, as far as I’m concerned, their 15 minutes are up.
The Paracast Copyright 1999-2011 Making The Impossible, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy: Your personal information is safe with us. We will positively never give out your name and/or e-mail address to anybody else, and that's a promise!