THE PARACAST NEWSLETTER
May 28, 2011
Explore the Magic and Mystery of Crystal Skulls 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: Help Us 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 on your behalf. We can't do this alone, and if you succeed in convincing your local station to carry the show, we'll reward you with one of our special T-shirts, and other goodies. 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, May 29, 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: Gene and Chris explore the magic and mystery of crystal skulls with one of the pioneers in the field, researcher Joshua Shapiro. Are these quartz artifacts simple artistic constructions, or do they harbor mystical or advanced scientific properties?
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Joshua Shapiro's Site: The Mysterious Crystal Skulls with Joshua Shapiro, a Crystal Skull Explorer
Coming June 5: Gene and Chris reintroduce noted parapolitics author Kenneth F. Thomas, publisher of Steamshovel Press, who will discuss the new revision of his famous book about the curious events surrounding the Maury Island UFO incident. He’ll also cover the classic conspiracies, such as the Kennedy assassination.
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Steamshovel Press Steamshovel Press. All Conspiracy. No Theory.
Reminder: Reminder: Don't forget to visit our famous Paracast Community Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal: The Paracast Community Forums.
So Who is Still Investigating UFOs?
By Gene Steinberg
In the classic sci-fi movie “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” directed by Stephen Spielberg, there’s a memorable scene in a control tower, where a pilot is heard describing his spectacular UFO sighting by radio. When asked if he wants to report a UFO, he says, of course, no.
I can well understand that pilot’s dilemma. It doesn’t auger well for one’s reputation to be responsible for the lives of hundreds of passengers, and yet report strange objects in the sky. At best, the authorities will possibly annoy the witness in order to determine what’s really going on, and, absent that, the pilot’s employer might think twice before granting a pay raise, or providing the best flying routes.
I mean, what airline would ever dare admit that any of its pilots have seen UFOs? I suspect the situation nowadays is far more treacherous, what with airlines downsizing, and pilots receiving slimmer paychecks than before, you can certainly understand they are far less likely to take risks. This doesn’t mean pilots never report UFO sightings. Of course they do, but other than the airline itself, to whom do they send that report?
Well, officially anyway, the Air Force’s UFO investigative arm, Project Blue Book, went out of business years ago. At the same time, the general perception in the UFO field is that Blue Book was little more than a convenient public relations scheme, with a handful of officers mollifying the public – and, of course, UFO investigators – when they came calling about sightings.
I got to thinking about all this as I began to read a reissued book from author Colin Bennett, “Flying Saucers Over the White House,” which is mainly focused on the man credited with inventing the term UFO, the late Captain Edward J. Ruppelt, who headed Project Blue Book for several years in the early 1950s.
Now Ruppelt gained fame in the UFO field courtesy of his own book, “The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects,” which was also offered for years as a premium selection by the Science Fiction Book Club.
Along with the reissuing of Bennett’s book is the reprinting of the original 1956 edition of Ruppelt’s title, which has this telltale conclusion:
“Maybe the is being visited by interplanetary spaceships.
“Only time will tell.”
Just three years after the first edition was published, Ruppelt produced a second edition, with several chapters tacked on. In response to the question of whether UFO exist, Ruppelt concluded that “I’m positive the don’t.” He went on to state that, despite the opposite conclusion conveyed in the first edition, he was highly skeptical when he left Blue Book, and more skeptical when he wrote those conclusions.
At the same time, the late pioneer UFO writer, Major Donald E. Keyhoe – who claimed to be a close friend of Ruppelt’s – suggested that government pressure was the cause of that almost schizophrenic turn. Ruppelt evidently also feared for the safety of his military pension. Regardless, Ruppelt didn’t survive long to address the controversy. He died in 1960 of a heart attack, at the tender age of 37.
I won’t presume to suggest that the pressure he underwent caused his early demise. Medical science wasn’t near as adept as they are today in diagnosing and treating heart conditions. Consider that, in the 1970s, the famous singer/actor, Bobby Darin, also died of a heart ailment at 37, and I don’t think anyone will suggest that he was subject to any undue pressures, other than that of being a show business legend in the making.
As for Bennett, he’ll appear on The Paracast in June to discuss his book.
Now if you see a UFO today, at least in the U.S., there is no official agency to whom you’d submit that report, although those who believe in ongoing government secrecy on the subject will suggest research continues under deep cover. Yes, there are private organizations, such as the MUFON, and NUFORC, but they are largely run by volunteers. So investigators will only perform onsite investigations when they have the time and spare cash to travel, assuming it’s not a local incident.
That said, UFO sightings appear to continue at a steady rate. At the same time, you wonder if much progress has been made since the early days of the UFO field, when the U.S. government supposedly was really investigating the phenomenon. To me, it appears that not a whole lot has changed. And that’s the most unfortunate fact of all.
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!
May 28, 2011
Explore the Magic and Mystery of Crystal Skulls 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: Help Us 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 on your behalf. We can't do this alone, and if you succeed in convincing your local station to carry the show, we'll reward you with one of our special T-shirts, and other goodies. 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, May 29, 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: Gene and Chris explore the magic and mystery of crystal skulls with one of the pioneers in the field, researcher Joshua Shapiro. Are these quartz artifacts simple artistic constructions, or do they harbor mystical or advanced scientific properties?
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Joshua Shapiro's Site: The Mysterious Crystal Skulls with Joshua Shapiro, a Crystal Skull Explorer
Coming June 5: Gene and Chris reintroduce noted parapolitics author Kenneth F. Thomas, publisher of Steamshovel Press, who will discuss the new revision of his famous book about the curious events surrounding the Maury Island UFO incident. He’ll also cover the classic conspiracies, such as the Kennedy assassination.
Christopher O'Brien's Site: Home - Our Strange Planet
Steamshovel Press Steamshovel Press. All Conspiracy. No Theory.
Reminder: Reminder: Don't forget to visit our famous Paracast Community Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal: The Paracast Community Forums.
So Who is Still Investigating UFOs?
By Gene Steinberg
In the classic sci-fi movie “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” directed by Stephen Spielberg, there’s a memorable scene in a control tower, where a pilot is heard describing his spectacular UFO sighting by radio. When asked if he wants to report a UFO, he says, of course, no.
I can well understand that pilot’s dilemma. It doesn’t auger well for one’s reputation to be responsible for the lives of hundreds of passengers, and yet report strange objects in the sky. At best, the authorities will possibly annoy the witness in order to determine what’s really going on, and, absent that, the pilot’s employer might think twice before granting a pay raise, or providing the best flying routes.
I mean, what airline would ever dare admit that any of its pilots have seen UFOs? I suspect the situation nowadays is far more treacherous, what with airlines downsizing, and pilots receiving slimmer paychecks than before, you can certainly understand they are far less likely to take risks. This doesn’t mean pilots never report UFO sightings. Of course they do, but other than the airline itself, to whom do they send that report?
Well, officially anyway, the Air Force’s UFO investigative arm, Project Blue Book, went out of business years ago. At the same time, the general perception in the UFO field is that Blue Book was little more than a convenient public relations scheme, with a handful of officers mollifying the public – and, of course, UFO investigators – when they came calling about sightings.
I got to thinking about all this as I began to read a reissued book from author Colin Bennett, “Flying Saucers Over the White House,” which is mainly focused on the man credited with inventing the term UFO, the late Captain Edward J. Ruppelt, who headed Project Blue Book for several years in the early 1950s.
Now Ruppelt gained fame in the UFO field courtesy of his own book, “The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects,” which was also offered for years as a premium selection by the Science Fiction Book Club.
Along with the reissuing of Bennett’s book is the reprinting of the original 1956 edition of Ruppelt’s title, which has this telltale conclusion:
“Maybe the is being visited by interplanetary spaceships.
“Only time will tell.”
Just three years after the first edition was published, Ruppelt produced a second edition, with several chapters tacked on. In response to the question of whether UFO exist, Ruppelt concluded that “I’m positive the don’t.” He went on to state that, despite the opposite conclusion conveyed in the first edition, he was highly skeptical when he left Blue Book, and more skeptical when he wrote those conclusions.
At the same time, the late pioneer UFO writer, Major Donald E. Keyhoe – who claimed to be a close friend of Ruppelt’s – suggested that government pressure was the cause of that almost schizophrenic turn. Ruppelt evidently also feared for the safety of his military pension. Regardless, Ruppelt didn’t survive long to address the controversy. He died in 1960 of a heart attack, at the tender age of 37.
I won’t presume to suggest that the pressure he underwent caused his early demise. Medical science wasn’t near as adept as they are today in diagnosing and treating heart conditions. Consider that, in the 1970s, the famous singer/actor, Bobby Darin, also died of a heart ailment at 37, and I don’t think anyone will suggest that he was subject to any undue pressures, other than that of being a show business legend in the making.
As for Bennett, he’ll appear on The Paracast in June to discuss his book.
Now if you see a UFO today, at least in the U.S., there is no official agency to whom you’d submit that report, although those who believe in ongoing government secrecy on the subject will suggest research continues under deep cover. Yes, there are private organizations, such as the MUFON, and NUFORC, but they are largely run by volunteers. So investigators will only perform onsite investigations when they have the time and spare cash to travel, assuming it’s not a local incident.
That said, UFO sightings appear to continue at a steady rate. At the same time, you wonder if much progress has been made since the early days of the UFO field, when the U.S. government supposedly was really investigating the phenomenon. To me, it appears that not a whole lot has changed. And that’s the most unfortunate fact of all.
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!
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