The Ufology Hate Meme

Recently, David Biedny referred to the Paranormal as no different than, "...any other form of Entertainment." I was already accepting the idea that many people were and still are turning their collective backs on the Paranormal until the comment, "Ufologists eat their own," (not verbatim) was directed at Paul Kimball. That comment coupled with Biedny's thoughts ---all too readily solidifying the contempt for the field---makes me feel like it's time I put my two cents in.

All of a sudden, it has become popular to denigrate the field. Now everyone from every corner of the field is turning their back and turning up their nose. When did this start exactly? Who was the first person to knock down a domino? And why is it that the Ghost Hunting Field isn't following suit?

In fact, even the Cryptozoologists are separating themselves from the negativity, which has me considering a new field in which to focus my time and energy. But everytime I entertain the thought of leaving Ufology, I think about all the other people walking away and I start to see Ufology as this once full house that is now almost empty and on the verge of collapse.

The researchers who were the foundation aren't doing their job. The researchers who furnished this great house of Ufology have left dust in their place. You would think younger researchers would rally together and proclaim this a small blemish on the field that can be easily fixed. But no, instead half of them are growing weary with the backstabbing, the lack of viable information and worse, the fallen (once) heroes of the field.

It is now acceptable for Ufologists/Paranormal researchers and investigators to talk shit about the field with no consequence. And why should there be? It's not a 'real' field of study. It's just a hobby for rejects. It's one of those fields you 'fall' into when you're a kid, dabbling with the occult and getting your ass kicked in the school yard for being a little too smart.

It's the red-headed stepchild of Science. The Paranormal is where all the freaks go when they want to feel special. I get it now. It's reject central. So if you make it out of freakdom---if you write a book, or two---if you start a successful blog---if you get a TV Show/Radio Show---you become too cool to be in the Paranormal field. You just have to get out and spread your wings.

Right?

I so totally get it now!

The problem is, I don't think many of you should be allowed to walk away so easily. In fact, I think some of you should be held accountable for what you have done. This is the Paranormal Fields version of Arthur Andersen. There is plenty of fraud in the field, committed by the people who 'supposedly' helped to build it in the passed few decades.

Some cases that were absolute bunk were given too much attention. Other cases weren't explored enough. Some researchers backed fraudulent claims and hoaxers and even created hoaxes. I am not going to waste time naming names, because frankly, right now I just don't give a shit. But I am trying to make a point, and the point is the people who started this shit need to clean it up.

It has become acceptable to just walk away from the field and turn a blind eye at what previous generations have done to a field that could have gained more respect, if not for certain people's inclination to share the spotlight and make shit up as they went along. Ufology/The Paranormal could have been something more. And it's not like I didn't see it gaining ground.

Heck, the Vatican said, 'Yes, there might be ALiens!' And then their are various projects enacted for Disclosure, like the Freedom of Information Act. And no, we didn't exactly figure out what happened at Roswell, but everyone and their mother has heard about it. Alien Invasion films are usually blockbusters. Little kids follow the adventures of Invader Zim and every other animated Alien.

And why? Because Ufology/The Paranormal broke ground somehow. The field slowly but surely seeped into the Global subconscious so that many more people believe in other life in the Universe. More people report UFO sightings. More people talk about their Haunted houses. More people want to know about Life after death, and that curiosity is why shows like 'Medium' and 'The Ghost Whisperer' have ratings.

The fact that some researchers have been on Larry King and that NOVA and the History Channel cover UFOLOGY (no matter how biased, warped or critical it may all be) is enough to confirm we have come a long way baby and we are making great strides. But somehow, somewhere, people started getting weary and greedy and dispassionate. Fine. I am not saying no one has the 'right' to walk away.

That was never point to begin with. My point is, clean up your shit on the way out. And once you are gone, stop talking about it. We don't need your bad vibes, and we certainly don't need any more ill repute because the only thing you can find to talk about is how much Ufology/The Paranormal sucks. Because it doesn't. It is just another outlet for solving the mysteries of this world we live in. Until someone can definitively give us all the answers, I suggest we stop acting like one method or one particular field is more important and respectable than the other.

Because at the end of the day, whether you leave UFOLOGY/The Paranormal behind or not, it's still a part of your legacy. The shit storm you left behind will haunt you.

*Disclaimer: This is not a personal attack on Biedny or Kimball. I just wanted to cite how the two of you got the ball rolling on my decision to write this. Thanks.

MAN.BEAR.PIG.(NOT).

Loren Coleman was on the case. No, it was not a baby Sasquatch. Nor was
it a member of the Hilton Family.

It was, in fact...ba-dum-bump...a mink. Anyone wanna coat?

Search Amazon.com for Cryptozoology

The (NO) God Delusion

I should be in bed. In fact, I am in so much pain it's all I can think about. Bed. But if I go to bed without getting any of this out, It'll all fade into the world where dreams and reality collide. Trust me it happens. All too often.

You see, a few days ago I had surgery. I seem to be Fates 'soon-to-meet-the-maker' list. I have a problem that just won't go away and yeah, it angers me. When I was a kid I imagined I'd live to be a hundred and ten. But I watched my grandfather die all too young, when he should still be here, and so I don't put much faith into fate. I didn't put much faith into anything I couldn't see, touch, taste or smell. 

But you gotta grow up sooner or later.

It's one thing to walk through life never having had that brush with your own mortality. To wake up and go to bed every day knowing that everything's eventual. To never have to look the end in the face over and over. Nope. Some of you are just too damn lucky. And that's your problem. Because you started getting a little too proud. Too ahead of yourselves.

I'm not saying there aren't people who haven't looked death in the face and decided once and for all there is NOTHING to look forward to beyond this, but notice, those people are the ones with the NEGATIVE experiences. They see all they've put into the universe, coming back at them and they realized it's not good. They expected someone/something to step up and put in a good word for them. Well, apparently that ain't how it works. So some get bitter. Some go atheist.

And then some become like me.

The first time I had surgery was pretty much the same as the surgery I had the other day. Pink Tunnels. Yes, I saw pink, spiraling tunnels, warping passed me, faster than the speed of light. I was traveling to where, I still don't know. And to tell you the truth, most of the trip is a blur and completely lost to me. Maybe for ever. But what I do remember is knowing that someone was looking out for me. Traveling alongside me and making sure I made it to the end of the trip. It was an entity that was neither male nor female, but could have been a mix of both. It never left me even as I traveled so fast I thought we would part.

As my unseen/unknown companion traveled with me, I became aware of others in the tunnel. It was a bright pink tunnel with no trace of darkness or evil or fear. It was like being in a spaceship, traveling through a nebula. The voices in the tunnel told me I would be okay and the entity beside me revealed itself as the 'thing' I thought was God. But it did not brag or impress its greatness on me. Instead it stayed with me, asked me if I was okay and while we traveled together through this tunnel, I remember asking, over and over for Superpowers. Yes, even in a tunnel in between life and death, I still wanted to be a superhero.

I'm not sure what answer I got, but I made it out of the tunnel. The entity/God told me I was done and that I could open my eyes now. I did. When I looked up I saw the doctors in the corner conferring with one another. None of them notices I was awake. But I was happy to be there.

A lot of smart men have been telling us for a long time there is no god. God is a delusion. Yet they can't seem to explain why we are biologically programmed to believe in a delusion. What good has it done us? I say, what if we are not 'programmed' to believe in a god, but instead, what if we were given a special 'way' of communicating with a god? What if that's what separates us from the rest? The fact that we have the ability to see the man/woman who wasn't there?

(to be continued...)

Rest in Peace: Frank Frazetta

Not many people know that I am an artist. I grew up creating my own cartoons and comic books. I emulated a lot of artists in my life. I remember tracing George Perez, da Vinci, Kirby, Michael Turner and Jim Lee's work. I poured over hours and hours of Alex Ross. But what got me started on the path to wanting to create epic Graphic Novels was the work of Frank Frazetta. I spent many long nights staring at the mans work and wondering how he could come up with such images without looking at a photograph for reference. That's when I embarked on a long journey to drawing from my head and not my eyes. The man inspired me to draw what I wanted and NOT what I thought other people wanted to see. He was brilliant and epic and inspiring and he was one of my heroes. He will be missed.

For those of you who are all about the Esoteric and don't care for commercial art. You oughta know your ideas of the Mothman and many other crypids came from the mind of Frazetta.

Maria Pena's thoughts on Scientists with Twitter Ego's

(excerpted)

Some scientists think they are promoting "critical-thinking" and, therefore, everything out of their belief system bubble is highly criticized by them in a very rude way. The people I've seen following this practice some are sort of famous and have their own TV show, which makes it (in my opinion) even worse.

Out of the blue, these so-called "critical thinkers" start criticizing, in a very rude manner, to other people that believe in anything they don't believe in like God, or start making fun of people who claim to have had a UFO sighting.

They are so sure that God does not exist ... wow! Hey, I am not a religious person and, personally, YES, I believe in the existence of God and creator. But here is the thing; if you claim that God does not exist, for me that sound like you have answers to all the mysteries in the world.

American Ironicle

So there's this article over at American Chronicle and it's about ALIENS. Creepy, scary aliens that may or may not resemble 'V's. According to this same article, an extraterrestrial entity abducted an 'Earth' Woman and showed her stuff. He didn't harm her in any way. He just showed her stuff.

He lived in Maryland, even though he was said to have come from Delta Pavonis (his homeworld being the 4th rock from the sun). And to make things even dumber, he was called a Septeloid. Sept means seven, and I honestly don't want to know what he had seven of.

Yeah, I know. It sounds like I'm being all skeptical about this tale. This yarn. This story of one lone STARMAN, coming to earth to abduct a woman, so he can show her stuff. Gosh. C'mon people. Do I really have to point out the obvious? Not saying that it didn't happen. Just sayin' that right now there's a remake of 'V' and Stephen Hawking is telling people Aliens are bad, and NASA holds a conference to smooth out their whole 'Aliens-don't-exist-but-they're-cool-to-talk-about-if-you-have-a-phd-and-look-like-you-never-get-laid' ideology.

So Jimmy Carter knew about a dude from 20-light years away who came here to show some 23-year old Government worker stuff. And they let him go. They let him leave. Hell, he could come back with a freakin' cavalry! Oh, wait... I'm starting to sound like Stephen Hawking.

Paratopia ep# 65: Jeff, Paranormal Science and Unicorns

While Paratopia moves into its next phase in podcast evolution, Jeff Ritzman signs off and somewhere in Madagascar a Unicorn dies.

First, special guests Dr. Stephen Rorke & David Rountree grace us with their first interview together ever to explain the tools and the science of the paranormal trade. We will learn about the physics behind hauntings, explore some of the fascinating experiences of David Rountree, hear a cautionary tale regarding EVP fraud, and more. There’s a lot of great information and demonic spookiness in this one!

Then, sadly, we send off Jeff Ritzmann who is sailing for clearer waters. This is Jeff’s very last episode as weekly co-host of Paratopia. His, too, is a cautionary tale for all of ufology.

Linda Godfrey @ BOA

Very, very interesting interview. Especially since I now think Werewolves exist.

Acclaimed cryptozoologist Linda Godfrey joins us for a discussion about the phenomenon of Bipedal Canine Cryptids (aka "Dogman"). We'll cover the recent "Gable Film" hoax which was revealed on a recent edition of MonsterQuest and Linda will detail the entire Gable saga as it unfolded. We'll then cover the "Dogman" enigma from a variety of angles, including how Linda first began investigating the phenomenon, the response of the cryptozoology community to her research, the typical descriptions of the Bipedal Canine Cryptids and how they differ from bears as well as "classic" werewolf descriptions, the connections between the Dogman and water as well as Native American burial mounds, problems with proving the BCC's existence, and tons more material related to the mysterious Bipedal Canine Cryptids.

It's a revealing look at a truly unique cryptid with the researcher who helped to put it on the map: Linda Godfrey