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Terra Obscura - Culture | Theory | High Strangeness
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Terra Obscura - Culture | Theory | High Strangeness

Why 'Bipartisan Ufology' is a Waste of Time.

4/25/2019

Reporting UFOs to the Navy and Where To Go From Here?

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Join the Navy they said, see a UFO they said.
 
With the recent story broken by Politco’s defense editor, Bryan Bender, the UFO community has clearly become very excited. With news that the American Navy is now “drafting new guidelines for pilots and other personnel to report encounters with ‘unidentified aircraft,’ many within the Ufological community view this as a big step towards the long-cherished goal of “Disclosure.”
 
As with any major announcement such as this, various other news sources have picked up the story, and there seems to be a flurry of commentary and speculation as to what this all means for the future of UFO discourse. Moreover, many within the community have also been quick to point out that the Navy “isn’t endorsing the idea that its sailors have encountered alien spacecraft.”
 
Red Pill Junkie, a regular contributor to The Daily Grail, pointed out in his article that this is really nothing incredibly new. The Air Force has been down this road before with various defunct projects, such as Blue Book. Moreover, he points out that the military does already have a method to collect information regarding unknown aerial vehicles via the JANAP 146 protocol. Red Pill Junkie’s conclusion is that this new project, which is still in its infancy, is just more of the “same old” stuff. On the flip side, Alejandro Rojas of Open Minds expressed that this is an important day for UFO discourse. In his article on Open Minds, he praised the recent work done by Tom DeLonge and Luis Elizondo of To The Stars fame by saying,
 
“Elizondo has said that if it where not for TTSA, he may not have made his involvement in the Pentagon UFO program public. It was Elizondo’s revelations that created the media fervor and subsequently brought attention to this topic. That means the efforts of rock star DeLonge, played a large part in today’s story.”
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Alejandro Rojas
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Red Pill Junkie
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This new announcement by the Navy has raised a lot of questions, but more importantly, drawn a lot of lines in the subcultural sand. Moreover, it raises a key concern that I raised in October of 2017,
 
“Due to the very democratic, if not anarchic, nature of the UFO community (in that no one person or organization is UFOlogy), DeLonge’s ability to shift the discourse is threatening. Similar to how Donald Keyhoe and others in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s galvanized the extraterrestrial hypothesis into UFO discourse and popular culture, so too may DeLonge’s particular hypothesis regarding UFOs become how the mainstream interprets the whole of UFOlogy.”
 
I don’t want to take sides here. That is pointless. Rather, I wish to express that nearly two years later, the ideological frameworks established by To the Stars, Luis Elizondo and the rest of the crew, has clearly been responsible for the cultural shifts we now see in contemporary UFO discourse, especially in the popular and mainstream interpretation of modern UFOs. To use a film and television term, the very interested public outside of the UFO community, and many within the community, are taking ideological “beats” from the TTSA and the small collective of people who form the moving parts inside it.
 
The UFO discourse, regardless of what “side” you have chosen, is being greatly influenced by this band of “insiders.” Trying to argue as to whether this is good or bad is pointless. Proclaiming that one is on “Team TTSA” or “Anti-TTSA” is pretty much meaningless at this point. When it comes to cultural paradigms, especially within subcultural movements, patterns and ideas form whether people like it or not. Spitting bile at Elizondo or TTSA really serves no purpose, nor does massaging their egos. 
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Luis Elizondo
What we really need to understand is that the Navy will now hold significantly more authority over UFO data from its personnel (it undoubtedly already does). While this move by the Navy is being heralded by some as another step towards “Disclosure,” the obvious problem is that UFO reports made to the military in no way equate to transparency. To think that the Navy will release its new UFO reports to the public is, in a word, idiotic. UFO reports, especially those made by military personnel, will disappear into the ether. This whole new system is in direct opposition to transparency and “Disclosure.” Moreover, the storm of speculation and media attention given to the 2004 Nimitz incident has, especially for those who manage information within military channels, showed a big open hole in how managed information can become loosed upon the public and cause headaches for individuals in government and the military. In other words, an unknown UFO incident with good witness testimony and video footage remained in the shadows for nearly two decades only to become incredibly famous because ex-military and government personnel began work to bring this information out. If it is your job to manage that information, perhaps this new reporting system is a great way to plug that information hole. Nothing keeps people quiet like a ‘non-disclosure agreement’ and the threat of litigation or jail time.
 
“Want to report a UFO to the Navy? Sure sailor, just sign these legal forms for us real quick.”
 
There is a lot of nuance within UFO discourse. There is a long history of facts, misinformation and disinformation. There are real objective truths and there are myths. For those of us inside this community who have done our homework, we know that nothing ought to be taken at face value. Mainstream media outlets are incredibly valuable, but they also are there to generate views and “clicks.” The Navy wants its personnel to be safe, and is responsible for the security of a nation, but it also knows that information, no matter what it is, is the most valuable commodity. Ufological history has shown us repeatedly that trust is not earned easily, as it is all too commonly broken in this community. The various agents who work for or represent To the Stars know this all too well.
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Tom DeLonge
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To the mainstream public who are usually oblivious to the very nuanced history and culture of this community are not armed to defend themselves against this reality. The messaging presented regarding UFOs will be interpreted in a whole host of ways by the general public, however, there is little doubt in my mind that this recent announcement by the Navy was influenced by our friends at To the Stars. The inner-dealings of various groups within the UFO community are affecting the ideological understanding and meanings of what the UFO is as a social and cultural construct. In other words, UFOs are what we mean them to be. The media plays a vital role in developing that meaning, and To the Stars holds a lot of cultural and political cache in those media outlets. I am not crying conspiracy, as that is just plain silly. Rather, TTSA, most likely unknowingly (maybe), is holding the reigns when it comes to our future ideological understanding of how we, and future members of this community, will interpret the UFO phenomenon in the days to come. They hold and wield significant power, and drawing Ufological ‘bi-partisan’ lines, and trying to sort out and shame who is “for” or “against” TTSA is a waste of time. Instead of being vigilant of who plays for what team, we ought to turn that vigilance to those who currently control the message.
 
I am reminded of an old curse, allegedly from Ancient China, that goes, “May you live in interesting times.” For some, those times are here. For others, this is a road they have seen before. For me, personally, I’m just excited to see what is going to happen next. 

- MJ Banias
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1 Comment

Is the Military 'Stove Piping' UFO Programs?

2/21/2019
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In a recent blog post, UFO historian and archivist Paul Dean presented his findings regarding a military organization called the National Air and Space Intelligence Center, or NASIC. Operating out of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, NASIC is responsible for intelligence collection regarding airborne and space-based threats. Dean points out that NASIC’s mission mirrors that of the now (in)famous Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Application Program (AAWSAP) and Advanced Aerospace Threat and Identification Program (AATIP), which has been the subject of significant ufological discourse in recent years.
 
I spoke with Dr. Hal Puthoff to provide some further context. It became abundantly clear from our conversation, and Dean’s research, that the military is incredibly interested in exotic aerospace technology.
 
Dean states on his blog,
 
“I wanted…to demonstrate that NASIC may have been doing what AAWSAP/AATIP did, albeit on a much larger scale. Further, when I began reviewing official documentation and other reasonable sources of information, it became evident that AAWSAP/AATIP and Elizondo frequently use identical language to that of NASIC and its recent predecessors.”

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In simple terms, NASIC’s role is to know what is going on in the skies and collect information on current and future threats and exotic aeronautics. Dean explains that there are multiple departments within NASIC, and each has a specific role in assessment and intelligence collection. He explains,

 
“The first mission of note is that of ‘Air and Counterair’, which aims to ‘…assess the capabilities of foreign aircraft, air-launched weapons, unmanned aerial vehicles and the likelihood of their employment against US forces...’. The second mission worth highlighting is ‘Space and Counterspace’ which, amongst other things, develops ‘…integrated, all-source space and counterspace threat assessment and provide detailed understanding of foreign threats...’. The third mission of note is ‘Disruptive Technologies’ which assesses ‘…emerging technologies that could potentially be used in an air, space and/or cyberspace warfighting capacity…’ against America. A fourth mission is that of ‘Ballistic Missiles’. Here, NASIC assesses ‘…land-based foreign ballistic missile systems with a range of 1000 km and greater, their subsystems, operational capabilities, effectiveness, proliferation, and technology transfer…’
 
Dean elaborates that the Pentagon run programs made public by the New York Times in 2017 seem to have a similar mission. Dean writes,
 
“…it should be apparent that some of what AATIP/AAWSAP did was similar to what modern day NASIC does. Despite not having detailed mission overviews, or a breakdown of specific programs, NASIC is clearly involved in the study of ‘advanced aerospace’ regimes which originate from outside the American theatre. Isn’t this at least close to, if not identical, as what some of AATIP/AAWSAP studied?”
 
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​Moreover, NASIC has been around much longer than AAWSAP/AATIP, and has significantly larger funding and capabilities. This creates a few obvious questions:
 
First, why was AATIP/AAWSAP created if a very capable and well-resourced intelligence organization was already handling the advanced and exotic aerospace question?
 
Second, how many other NASIC style programs exist that we do not know about? AAWSAP/AATIP stayed under the radar for several years. Are there any more programs like it?
 
I reached out to Dr. Hal Puthoff who has served as an advisor on some advanced propulsion programs for the military. He explained to me that the AAWSAP/AATIP programs were not the only players in the game. He stated that,
 
“Without a doubt, the AAWSAP/AATIP program was just one among others.” 
 
Senator Harry Reid told George Knapp something similar in a January 2019 interview,
 
“Other programs that have been done and information they have, including different pieces of evidence.”
 
I expressed to Puthoff that there was a curious dichotomy between “official” culture, such as academic institutions and the mainstream media, and the military. If Puthoff and Dean are correct, then the military has significant resources sunk into investigating unknown aerospace “threats.” While academia and mainstream media may think UAP/UFOs are a junk endeavour, the military seems to disagree, at least unofficially. He stated,
 
“The military has access to unequivocal data, academia doesn’t.” 
 
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Dr. Hal Puthoff

I pressed for more, but Puthoff is notorious for playing his cards close to his chest. Perhaps some of this information is classified. Perhaps it is being sat on for reasons related to To the Stars Academy or his own personal research. Perhaps it is something else entirely. Regardless, he didn’t let me in on any secrets, but I’ve learned to trust my gut. As a result, I’m leaning towards the real possibility that while there may exist some more interesting data concerning strange aerial phenomena, there isn’t a smoking gun hiding in an underground bunker. I have a hunch that data may exist which suggests weird things happen, but it is probably non-sensical and absurd (much like the phenomenon itself). In other words, no one, the military included, has any idea what is going on.
 
He explained that the reason for multiple programs has to do with the fact that different groups and organizations within the military have different objectives and goals. They function along “horizontal integration” or “vertical stove piping.” To me, it sounds a bit like the left hand not knowing what the right hand is up to. To Puthoff, “let’s just say ‘chosen perspectives’ of what needs doing.”
 
Dean’s research and Puthoff’s comments seem to corroborate the idea that AAWSAP/AATIP is merely one voice in a larger chorus. While the public has learned of one contemporary “UFO hunting program,” there are undoubtedly countless more projects with similar interests.
 
I have little doubt that this phenomenon, and whatever force is behind it, finds this all quite humourous (assuming it has a sense of humour). Whether we are dealing with a trickster, a cultural spectre, or some complex non-human intelligence, or something else entirely, it views the various attempts to understand it, both by us and by our various military programs such as NASIC and AAWSAP/AATIP, as quaint and charming. The UFO discourse and narrative portray a phenomenon that not only plays with us but adapts to our attempts at understanding. It is always just slightly out of reach, always just outside of what we deem rational, logical and reasonable. The very survival of the UFO as an objective phenomenon and socio-cultural construct hinges upon it remaining unidentified. It, for a lack of a better term, needs to be unknown. Otherwise, it loses its magic and potency. It loses its power. It becomes mundane and profane instead of “sacred.”
 
With all that being said, the military’s interest is clear. Moreover, they cannot be blamed. We all have our duties and functions. The purpose of the military is to protect, defend and, when it comes to it, attack. Being able to master the unknown is its job. While we can only speculate as to what the actual “unequivocal data” is, since none of it is public as yet, we know through the hard work of Paul Dean that the military has a vested interested in seeking out that data. These government programs exist and there may be many of them. We don’t need silly conspiracies of secret underground bases and handshake agreements with the Reptillians. Wasting time on the conspiracy is pointless. Rather, beginning to chip away at the very real programs and cultural ideologies of the military and broader UFO community will undoubtedly shed more answers than any Zetan channeller on Gaia TV ever can.
 
Trying to piece together the various groups and projects aimed at advanced propulsion and UAP is incredibly complex and nuanced. Furthermore, those who possess the data are clearly not interested in sharing it openly with the general public. I would argue that even the “insiders” who have access to information may be “outsiders” to other “insider” groups. As Puthoff told me, it seems that “stove piping” is pretty common in this environment. This web is tangled, and while researchers like Dean are valiantly pulling at the threads, the spider seems to be innumerable steps ahead yet seemingly unaware of where it is going.
 
 
- MJ Banias ​
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1 Comment

Is The Caudate-Putamen An Antenna For Anomalous Information?

1/8/2019
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What if there was physical evidence of a center in the brain whose configuration tracks with an individual’s intuitive capabilities?
 
In early 2018, researchers caught wind of a scientific study being done by Dr. Garry Nolan, Rachford & Carlota Professor in the Dept. of Microbiology & Immunology at Stanford School of Medicine, and Dr. Christopher ‘Kit’ Green, a physician in private forensic medical practice, and affiliated with the Departments of Diagnostic Radiology and Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences at the Wayne State School of Medicine and Detroit Medical Center.
 
This was partly unearthed in a book entitled Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis written by author, journalist, and national security reporter Annie Jacobsen. In her book, she interviewed both Dr. Garry Nolan and Dr. Christopher Kit Green, initially due to Dr. Green's earlier work on remote viewing, but during the book preparation process apparently found Dr. Kit Green was still involved in some fascinating studies. Dr. Green says in the book,
 
"I'm interested in the notion of people injured physically by anomalous events.” Dr. Green goes on, "Often these events are perceived as [involving] unidentified aerial phenomena, or UAPs, drones, high energy radio frequencies that confront people face-to-face and cannot be explained." 
 
The study involved, among others, a group of individuals termed these days as “Experiencers:” individuals experiencing Anomalous Mental Phenomena perceived through the senses including hallucinations, seeing beings and orbs, or hearing messages. One potential goal of the study involved identifying personality commonalities and, maybe, if “experiences” followed families—implying there might be a component that genetics plays in the experience process itself. Nolan and Green insisted that the study was not about determining the factual nature of the experience, just to determine if there were medical or familial relationships. There was also a Phenomenon Radio program hosted by Linda Milton Howe and John Burroughs which featured an interview with Annie Jacobsen discussing this very topic.
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​In late November of 2018 Dr. Nolan gave a presentation at Harvard Medical School's Consortium for Space Genetics entitled “Can Genetic Differences in Intuition and Cognition Drive Success in Space?” I caught up with Dr. Nolan to discuss the details of his presentation at Harvard for the contents and implications of this data. What I was told was both exciting and intriguing:
 
“We had groups of patients who objectively had a higher density of neuronal connection between the head of the caudate and the putamen.”
 
The caudate-putamen is a defined area in the brain based in the basal ganglia. Originally thought up until a decade ago to be mostly involved in motor control, more recently the caudate-putamen has been shown to also be involved with decision making, higher cognitive function, and intuition: non-conscious processing of sparse information. It is not too far a reach to assume that if humans did in fact have ESP capabilities, this area of the brain would make for a suitable candidate involved in processing information derived through anomalous means.
 
 
The group of 105 patients were made up of 60% male and 40% female individuals whom were among a group of individuals evaluated through high-field MRI brain scans. These patients selected were psychologically evaluated by Dr. Green and some met with Dr. Nolan. The major observation was that, apparently, the area of caudate-putamen in many of the individuals in the study was greatly enhanced over that of a reference “control” group of ~100 randomly chosen individuals. The connectivity, or density, of increased connections between the caudate and putamen ranged from slightly above normal to up to 8 times the control range. Interestingly, when family members were included as controls, it turned out that the feature of increased caudate-putamen connectivity was also found in some of the included family members. The MRI's of the patients (study participants and control MRIs) were read “blind” by professionals trained in brain physiology and reading of MRIs. In biological terms, the individuals with enhanced connectivity might be classed as hypermorphs, rather than the normal baseline caudate-putamen connectivity. 

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Caudate-putamen. Artist rendering, not to scale.
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Artist rendering, not to scale.
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Artist rendering, not to scale.
This signature of high connectivity in the caudate-putamen consists of high functioning individuals—some of whom reported visual and auditory phenomena which include seeing orbs, voices, and entities.  These were classed as hallucinations for the purposes of the study. The high connectivity in the caudate-putamen area was correlated, at least in this highly biased cohort, to high IQ, enhanced intuition, high performers, and seems to occur clustered in a few of the families they were able to access.
 
Dr. Garry Nolan reports that a peer reviewed paper will be coming at some point in the future, but stresses that the data should be at this point considered as extremely preliminary.  He felt comfortable enough, he said, to release the information publicly so others can begin to think about the implications. Dr. Nolan also commented that,
 
"Objectively, the connections [in the caudate-putamen] are real (note that Dr. Green is a trained forensic neurologist).  What these connectivity patterns mean in relation to intuition and cognitive function will need to involve neurological studies that involve disciplines of neurophysiology such as functional MRI and more".
 
When pressed about the concept of how anomalous information might enter human consciousness, earlier in 2018 during a conversation with Dr. Nolan he speculated,
 
"Antenna are HYPOTHETICAL nervous system components that READ/SENSE and TRANSMIT. I don't think they would be nerves per se. I think they are COMPONENTS of nerves in some people. The idea is that different people are connected to their antenna in different ways. Some more attuned to sight, some to sounds, feelings, etc."
                                                                                           
Dr. Nolan remarked in his slides that what he and Dr. Green found in terms of neural connectivity might have been discovered (or intuited) previously by at least two others.

One of these individuals was the distinguished Oleg Sergeivich Adrianov who happened to be a world renowned neuroscientist from the former Soviet Union, and who had over 70 English publications during the span of his career. He was founder of many FSU Academies and Institutes and headed the commission on the anatomy of Lenin’s brain. Oleg noted “Our interest (in Caudate-Putamen over-expression) is based on the literary data (sic)… it participates in higher integrative activity…”. Oleg also made the following comments regarding this specific region of the brain; “of the frontal (neo)cortex for synthesis of single signals for programming future activity” and “and comparing its results with behavioural reactions of ‘foreseeing the future’ phenomena…” Perhaps one of his most telling assertions was “… Numerous clinical data suggests direct relation of the human brain to a higher psychic function.”

​Perhaps even more of a startling revelation and coincidence would be is that as early as the 1960’s intuitive and PhD. Viola Pettit-Neal, as stated in a 1971 interview, made such comments as “The caudate nucleus deals with the head antennae-millions of antennae which in the future will deal with the ability of all the extrasensory perception abilities, such as the ability to see events at a distance and the ability for telepathic contact.” Viola also claimed in her book, “The sending and receiving station for telepathic contact is located in the caudate nucleus.” As well as “There were very fine lines, thousands of them, and the caudate nucleus is like a miniature brain for higher stages of development.” Similar references about these regions of the brain and intuited information were made in her book “Through the Curtain” with Shafica Karagulla, MD.
What might these findings mean for Experiencers, people interested in Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, academia, cutting-edge science, or scientists willing to challenge their curiosity? Is there truly a center in the brain responsible for what we consider extrasensory perception? Is information in part distilled and processed in the caudate-putamen, and those with higher connectivity might have access to forms of intuition that others do not? In any regard, these findings are astounding and at the least we should continue to pay attention to this direction of research. Perhaps the world of science, and the paranormal, might begin to find a meeting point through work like this. 
 
(Most grateful and personal thanks to Dr. Garry Nolan for  taking the time to discuss this fascinating information and data with me—and his willingness to share his current speculations. And of course, we are indebted to Dr. Christopher Kit Green and his colleagues for all their decades of effort investigating cutting-edge areas of the science of consciousness and cognition.)

- James Iandoli
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9 Comments

Does This Tic-Tac Smell Funny to You?

11/2/2018

Chain of Custody, and Why Doggedly Pursuing the Facts is Essential.

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In 2017, the (in)famous “2004 Nimitz Flir1 Video” was released by To the Stars Academy (TTSA). Commonly known as the “Tic Tac Video,” it was taken during an encounter in November of 2004 with an object resembling a white Tic Tac off the coast of California. The story has been repeated ad nauseum, but if you need to catch up, I’ve linked to the TTSA website for your convenience.

1) The Nimitz Report

2) An interview with the pilot who took the footage

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I admit that this event, all the attached witness reports, anonymous whistleblowers, and documentation is a massive tangled web. I, like so many others, are unsure where it begins and ends. However, right smack dab in the middle of this web (of mythological proportions) is not TTSA or AATIP or AAWSAP or any other acronym under the sun, but some unknown individual who, in 2007, brought this incident too light for the first time.
 
I want to state that I have no evidence beyond what is already online. Moreover, I wish to thank the illustrious Isaac Koi for acting as my sounding board and allowing me to bounce ideas off of his brain, and providing some great insight.
 
I will begin at the end. In 2017, TTSA brought the video back out of the murky depths of the ether. Providing details, reports and some insight, the TicTac Video began making the Ufological discursive circuit. On their website, they claim,
 
“this footage comes with crucial chain-of-custody (CoC) documentation because it is a product of US military sensors, which confirms it is original, unaltered, and not computer generated or artificially fabricated.”
 
Ok, so “chain-of-custody” according to TTSA’s definition, is simply that the footage is authentic because it came from military FLIR hardware. What is missing, however, is the CoC documentation which explains HOW To the Stars got its hands on this video. So, we can argue the video is authentic. What we do not know is where the video came from.
 
Who pulled the video from the F-18’s FLIR camera? Who uploaded it to the Nimitz’s computer system? Who pulled that file and made a physical copy? Who authorized its potential declassification and release? Who gave it to TTSA? While these questions may seem immaterial to the believers, these questions are essential to sorting out the story. Moreover, what seems to continuously be swept under the rug in this narrative is the fact that TTSA was not the first to release this video. 
Let’s rewind to 2007. On February 3rd, an Above Top Secret Forum user, ‘thefinaltheory,’ posted a story in which he describes his time on the Nimitz in 2005 (note the year). Describing an alleged UFO encounter, thefinaltheory explains that he accessed the Nimitz computer system and made a copy of several files including FLIR footage from the gun camera of an F-18.
 
Quote (Raw, no edits):

“I logged on to the top secret computer network *NOTE! I edited the name of the network out due to a suggestion/safety* and did a search of our File Server drive for the most recent modified files. This scanned all users, regardless of rank. Nothing was hidden from me. I especially looked for new files and those that were modified around the time of the "sighting". 

I found many videos and powerpoint breifs (navy standard) and written reports and even message traffic that was being passed through our radio division. It was all there. I couldnt believe it at first, but then our ship called in the Air Force because even the captain didnt know what the hell was going on. 

I burnt all these files to a disk and stashed it somewhere, unfortunently I dont have it anymore....I've forgotten where i put it... though i think it might be out of state at a close relatives house...ugh... 

well here is what the video was: 

It was taken directly from the cockpit camera of one of our ships fighter pilot jets F-18 I believe but cant be sure. It was in black and white and showed the altitude, the pilots "nickname" and the tempurature and all those little critical stats. 

The UFO was floating extremely still in mid air, this was 30,000 ft above ground level. It looked literally and i mean LITERALLY just like a disk, no stupid traingles or any gimicky things like Independence Day or whatever. It looks exactly how the goverment wants you to NOT think it looks like. It's simply put, a disk. 

So it was floating, the figher pilot tried to get numerous locks on the UFO but everytime the cross hairs tried to hone in the crosshairs scaled back and forth. I dont know how to put it into words well, but I know what i saw. Crosshairs move in and move back out, it couldnt get a lock whatsoever. 

After about I say 10 seconds or so the UFO started to move. It moves in ways that we have never seen before, it spontaniously moved in a half circle upward and paused once again. Then it suddenly teleported about five times all over the pilots screen. The movement is instant and cannot be followed. It simply put, is amazing and so fast the eyes cant see it. 

There was a bright light and suddenly it dissapeared, out of sight.”

 
Being that it was 2007, no one really paid any attention. It was just another UFO story on the UFO forum. 
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The next day, on February 4th, thefinaltheory posted a second thread including a link to the video (known as “F4” due to its download name) as well as a “cut and paste copy” of a corresponding report. While not official, the report was dated November 14th, 2004 (note the date, which now correlates to the Nimitz event). There is no way to confirm the report, and to most at the time, it was deemed a hoax. Furthermore, it doesn’t jive totally with the current testimony made by the pilots. I don’t want to wade into those waters. I leave it for other researchers to make heads or tails of.
 
Here is the link for the video as provided by thefinaltheory in 2007. 

https://www.vision-unlimited.de/extern/f4.mpg

As was pointed out by Isaac Koi, in 2007, the website was hosted by a German film company. Again, at the time, most took this to be an elaborate hoax. User thefinaltheory never provided any documentation regarding the video. If you wish to see the video now, you can access it via the Wayback Machine. I have also downloaded a copy from that link and uploaded it here.
f4.mpg
File Size: 13127 kb
File Type: mpg
Download File

​To convolute this story even further, a second forum user, cometa, came forward, and according to the dozen pages of forum content, aided thefinaltheory in uploading the video file to the German Vision Unlimited server. In other words, according to cometa, the German film company basically allowed the video to reside on their server, so people could view it. Cometa’s profile was disabled by ATS admin. He created a second profile, cometa2.
 
To add to the mystery, thefinaltheory’s account was created the day of his initial post, and she/he only created two threads, the two cited in this blog post. The last login was in May of 2009. Cometa was a well-established user when he aided thefinaltheory. Again, we can speculate that thefinaltheory and cometa are the same person. Or they aren’t. It doesn’t matter. Much of the content from thefinaltheory and cometa, such as the event logs and reports, have come out in the last year via TTSA and other individuals. I leave the researchers with more time to cut through it and sort out what is what. 

Moving on. Some examination was done comparing the original video from 2007 (referred to as F4) and the TTSA TicTac video on Metabunk. According to the video’s metadata, there are some differences. Most importantly, the metadata on the two videos, according to the poster elevenaugust, suggests that the videos were edited and cut differently with different software. This would make sense. Whoever edited the 2007 F4 footage would have different software than TTSA in 2017. Furthermore, the video was edited using North American NTSC formatting, and not using the European PAL format. This proves nothing, but it suggests that the German film company was merely a hosting service, and not responsible for creating/editing/cutting the film. Begs a big question though; who edited the original F4 and why is it identical to TTSA’s 2017 TicTac video?
 
My last point regarding the content of the footage is a quote from the Metabunk user elevenaugust.

“1- In comparison with the TTS video, it [F4] lasts longer, 1’16.717 vs 1’16.209.
2- There are two missing frames in the beginning of the f4 video.
3- There are three missing frames at the end of the TTS video.”

 
So, the 2007 F4 video and the 2017 TicTac video are basically the same. We can account for the changes in the metadata because the TTSA version has text explaining the video’s content. TTSA clearly edited the video to provide context. This could account for the differences in metadata, higher resolution, frame rate changes, etc.
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Moving forward in time to 2017 and TTSA’s re-release of the F4/TicTac video; we are left in an interesting situation. According to the TTSA,
 
“While there have been leaked versions on the internet, the CoC establishes the authenticity and credibility that this (TTSA’s TicTac, emphasis mine) version is the original footage taken from one of the most advanced sensor tracking devices in use.”
 
Ok, according to what? The 2017 TicTac video is the same as the 2007 F4. Herein lies the essential problem; while the video may be authentic, in that it is from a military F-18, how do we know that TTSA’s released video is not simply a copy of the video released in 2007? We have no chain-of-custody documentation proving that the DoD or any government agency gave the video to TTSA or its contractors. All we can do is speculate. Everyone, from the ardent die-hard fans to the staunch overzealous debunkers, is speculating. No one, apart from the contractors and employees of TTSA, are holding any cards. This is why “chain-of-custody” is important. I’m all for taking TTSA at its word, but, as the Lannisters remind us, “words are wind.”
 
Since no chain-of-custody documentation has been provided, as I stated above, no one knows who pulled the video from the F-18, from the Nimitz, or the DoD archives, or anything. Why is the TTSA version “credible” and “original” when it came out a decade after the 2007 F4?  Furthermore, the content of the footage is identical. Why is F4 not “credible” and “original?” 

via GIPHY


​​Without any of the chain-of-custody documentation, this all smells a bit off. I’m not saying that the video is a fake; rather, I’m questioning why and how it was released, and to what end. At this point, you should have some questions running through your head.
 
Does this mean that TTSA’s version of the video is different (that is, from a different source, and not the alleged stolen copy), yet for some reason, edited and cut identically to the 2007 F4? If TTSA does have an “original” and “authentic” copy, why edit it to be the same as the footage released a decade earlier? Moreover, if this is the case, then records will exist for its declassification and release to TTSA or one of its contractors. We could also speculate that the DoD does have the original uncut footage, but only released aspects of the video already in the public domain to TTSA. It is also possible that a DoD staffer saw the post on ATS back in 2007 and downloaded a copy of F4 for DoD records. If the video was declassified/released to TTSA, or one of its contractors, years later, then all they were potentially given by the DoD was a copy of F4.
 
It may be the case that TTSA’s 2017 TicTac version IS the 2007 F4 video. This would obviously account for why it is identical beyond some cosmetic editing. If that is the case, why does TTSA insinuate that their version is “authentic” in relation to the “leaked versions” on the internet? Perhaps an unknown source provided the video to thefinaltheory in 2007 and to TTSA in 2017?  
 
With all this being said, let’s assume that TTSA has all the proper CoC documentation, and are simply choosing not to release it. Capitalism is king after all. Perhaps they are saving it for a future release? Perhaps they will include it in some future documentary film? I get it. It’s a for-profit company. The only people who know what TTSA has and does not have is TTSA. If all that CoC paperwork does exist however, we are still left with our original leaker, thefinaltheory.
 
We need to appreciate that whoever thefinaltheory is, he or she got to the finish line first. A decade before the vast majority of the world got the 2017 TicTac, a single post on ATS in 2007 brought the Nimitz event into the light. While it was a whisper, and not a bang, the implications are massive. Beyond the basics of thefinaltheory’s identity, which I would love to know, is how they got the footage.
 
According to the ATS post, thefinaltheory burned a copy to a disc while serving on the Nimitz and simply snuck off with it. Apart from the legal implications, wouldn’t the computer system on the Nimitz track who accessed what, when and if they made copies? As pointed out by CPO Kevin Day in an interview on Phenomenon radio, every time someone uses radio communication, a log is made, and an audio copy is recorded and saved for future reference. Would not logging in and accessing top secret files on the internal computer system, and yanking those files for copy, also be tracked? 

via GIPHY


Perhaps thefinaltheory was court marshalled for espionage, or, maybe got away with stealing Top Secret Naval data (which would be damn impressive). Perhaps, as the story goes, it was illegally stolen from a computer onboard the Nimitz. Perhaps thefinaltheory fabricated the story. When you read the account, it does sound a little absurd. Therefore, if the only known source of the original 2007 F4 video was dishonest, then what does that say about the video itself?
 
Again, this is why the actual chain-of-custody documentation is essential. Without it, all TTSA can do is ask to be trusted and taken at their word. Luis Elizondo concludes his latest blog post by stating,
 
“Humans have only been able to accomplish all that we have because we are able to receive and process new information, and adapt to new realities. As for the topic of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, we have a choice. We can allow our beliefs to fill in the gaps or we can continue to doggedly pursue data in hopes that what we know informs what we believe.”
 
Ironically, the UFO community is being asked by Mr. Elizondo’s current employer to believe. The F4/TicTac video is authentic not because we know, but because we believe. We are being asked to have faith in TTSA and its various contractors. As Mr. Elizondo proclaims, we ought to “doggedly pursue” the data. I agree with Mr. Elizondo, and that is why the chain-of-custody documents for the TicTac video need to be made public. That paperwork is the “data” which will give us the knowledge to “inform” our beliefs.
 
There are very few people who actually have an answer, and this web is continuing to be spun. With every Twitter post, internet radio interview, and news article, the Nimitz event is being lionized as one of the most important UFO events in history. It very well may be. Half a dozen contractors and Tom DeLonge know how to unravel this tangled and curious web. As for the rest of us, all we know is that at the center of this web sits a little forum post, a man named cometa, and his buddy, thefinaltheory.

​-MJ Banias
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Have Aliens Infiltrated the US Government?

7/28/2017
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Terra Obscura is proud to welcome its first guest contributor. While this blog has traditionally been more focused on the philosophical aspects of UFO discourse, this article takes on a political and cultural tone which fits into the general mandate of Terra Obscura. The views of this post are not necessarily the views of the Terra Obscura blog nor its owner. 
-MJ Banias, Curator 


Human behavior sometimes takes us on unexpected journeys. While we like to consider ourselves rational beings, our actions often indicate otherwise. A perfect example of this has been the populist wave that has swept across America over the past decade, culminating (or at least burgeoning) with the election of Donald J. Trump as the 45th president of the United States.

However, no matter which end of the political spectrum you are on, it is clear something is amiss. If you come from the Left, you are likely wondering why so many people would vote for someone whose policies are very much out of touch with what we know to be true about modern day governments, science and economics, and who also supports bigotry and prejudice as part and parcel of American rhetoric. Supporters of the administration from the Right, though, are equally flummoxed, for Trump seems virtually incapable of putting through his agenda despite a majority in the House and the Senate, and any attempt at forming policy is being blocked by investigations into collusion with Russia, or, as these individuals would put it, by unfair media treatment and “fake news.”
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It doesn’t really matter who’s correct in this situation, though. Both sides can agree something isn’t right. While many would like to simply chalk this phenomenon up to tense times brought on by decades of income inequality, labor commodification and pro-corporate/pro-wealthy policies further entrenching these unfavorable conditions, this might be denying a more profound truth. The government has been engaged in covert actions almost directly against the will of the people for decades (supporting coups throughout Latin America, fighting needless wars, negotiating free trade agreements that offer little benefit to the average American businessman, etc.), so it is not a total leap to think someone else is calling the shots. If we entertain for a moment the idea of a co-creation hypothesis, it is well within the realm of possibility that some extraterrestrial body is working behind the scenes to manipulate reality without us even knowing it. Let’s travel down the path this curious thought presents and see if we can’t detect evidence of alien manipulation of the U.S. government.

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Many conspiracy theorists believe that Eisenhower had several meetings with extraterrestrials. Sneaky bastard...

If extraterrestrials were in fact working within the United States government, this would mean they have made their way to Earth with the intention of colonization and conquest. Since the formation of the U.S. in 1776, expansion has been at the center of government policy. Manifest Destiny dominated much of the 19th century, and this exacerbated slavery-driven sectionalism, resulting in the Civil War, which consolidated power in the hands of the federal government. From here, the reinstatement of the Central Bank and the establishment of the federal income tax in 1913 gave the government, and the aliens, the means to manipulate large groups of people, accumulate resources and entrench themselves as the world super power. This is a position that after WWII would only intensify. What has happened since has been a systematic takeover by U.S.-based ideologies, largely free-market capitalism and liberal democracy, which are both incredibly effective ways to
implement large-scale control. This is because they provide acceptable levels of micro-level freedoms while providing governing bodies with tools to carry out macro-level manipulation.
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This strategy would make sense. Any outright declaration of war from an alien entity would have instigated a more unified response from humanity. Instead, by assuming control of a young country, securing its hold of vast resources and using these resources to establish a world order relatively easy to manipulate through the control of capital flows and communication is a much more subtle and effective way of gaining control over the entire planet. Additionally, this type of “slow-play” conquest seems more likely since a species with the foresight to seek out new planets to inhabit would be willing to play this century-long waiting game for total control.

We live in a world where wars no longer make much sense, yet they wage on, and this somewhat inexplicable continuation of fighting could be the result of a foreign entity using the world’s most powerful country as a tool for global domination.
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This historical-trajectory approach to uncovering alien control of the U.S. government helps set the framework, but looking at some of the more day-to-day activities of those in Washington could help provide further proof. For example, the Snowden leaks proved to both U.S. and global citizens that government surveillance is very real. While government agencies justify this as part of the fight against terrorism, no one really buys this argument. What could possibly be the purpose of spying on individuals and tracking their activity when the vast majority of people do absolutely nothing to threaten state power? There are only two genuine explanations (which complement each other): to learn about human behavior patterns, and to generate fear. ​
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Edward Snowden
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By keeping tabs on people, the government, and those really running it, can gain detailed insight into human desires, fears, interests and habits. This proves to be very valuable at the hour of manipulation, as the government can use this information to direct people’s actions or to advance certain ideologies which serve to help advance their agenda (think Capitalism). While tools exist to help protect against this type of spying, very few people actually use them and mainstream culture considers these individuals, much like those in the UFO/extraterrestrial community, crackpots or paranoid, only furthering the extent and effectiveness of surveillance.

Additionally, the fact the government continues to monitor its citizens after the Snowden leaks made it widely known what is going on shows how it values this tool for creating and inciting fear. By both supporting the terrorist storyline and also by giving people the feeling they are being watched (which has been shown to change how people behave), the government is able to subdue the population and prevent unmanageable dissent. Again, these tools for domination are subtle and play out over time, which is the strategy most likely to be employed by extraterrestrials (as mentioned earlier).

The obvious counterargument to all this is that this slow conquest driven by inexplicable wars, information manipulation and surveillance is simply the result of human vice and folly. Greed, power and xenophobia drive us to do terrible things to each other, but this explanation seems too simple. Plus, the countless sightings of UFOs and other evidence of extraterrestrial life provides too much proof there is some other entity among us, interacting with us or watching us.

However, the co-creation hypothesis, as well as other theories as to why humans choose to reject the reality in which they live, means that even if this was the case, we may never really know for sure. The only thing we can do is speculate and do our best to improve communication and cooperation amongst people so that in the event these foreign entities do indeed reveal themselves, we can be prepared to protect the only home we’ve ever known.
​

Do you think extraterrestrials are behind the actions of the U.S. government? Why or why not? Join the discussion by leaving a comment below.

-Sandra O'Hare
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About the Author: Sandra O'Hare is a blogger who focuses largely on government surveillance. She used to consider the idea of extraterrestrial interference in human affairs nothing more than a thing of science fiction, but her investigations into the inner workings of the government have led her to believe something else is at play. She now spends most of her time raising awareness and trying to stimulate discussion about this oft-neglected topic.

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The Hubris of Disclosure

1/26/2017

A Ufological Manifest Destiny

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Disclosure, Aliens and The Catholic Church; Or, how the "Disclosurists" are opening their mouths without thinking (yet again). 

8/8/2016
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Over the last month or so, I’ve seen several articles and social media posts concerning the Disclosure movement and the Roman Catholic Church. Due to a few comments made by Pope Francis and the former Director of the Vatican Observatory, Father Jose Funes, several years ago, there seems to have been a recent resurgence of the idea that the Vatican’s inner circle is aware of an extraterrestrial presence on Earth.

As with most things uttered in the name of Disclosure, this claim is ridiculous and has no evidence to support it. To be clear, I support the disclosure of information to the public, not just about the UFO phenomenon, but about all things. The democratisation of knowledge, which in turn becomes power (to borrow from Foucault), is essential to fair governance. 

However, many “Disclosurists” are not interested in furthering equality of power. They use the guise of open governance to line their own pockets. Here's a nice a gem for your reading enjoyment that supports my claim. 

Being born and raised a Catholic, I feel that I have to clear the air here. Is the Vatican, or any authoritative body for that matter, participating in a conspiratorial Disclosure campaign? I highly doubt it. Does the Vatican believe in extraterrestrial life? Well...for an institution that has been around for nearly two millennia and has a perceived image of being conservative, the Roman Catholic Church is very forward thinking on the matter.

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An Analysis: The Day After Disclosure, Richard Dolan, and Systems of Control

7/8/2016
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The above thirteen minute interview with Richard Dolan has been circling the Ufological world. Published by Earth Mystery News on July 6th, Dolan presents his interpretation of the day after Disclosure, its effects, as well as some interesting political rhetoric concerning American foreign policy. One very interesting point in the interview occurs when Mr. Dolan posits that any disclosure would have to be forced out by, or at least, fully controlled by the public. His concern is that the current political powers will package the disclosed information, and feed it to the public however they saw fit.

Dolan refers to a shadowy elite group who desire and work to keep the public in check. The people are controlled by, to quote Adam Smith, the “masters of mankind,” the elite who maintain all for themselves and none for the rest. If there does exist a cabal of controllers, how then can we have “honest disclosure?”

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Canadian UFO Crashes, The Public Hearing on ET Disclosure, and Why We Need To Be “Canadian” About This.

6/1/2016
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The Alien Cosmic Expo, Canada’s largest UFO convention, is fast approaching. At the end of June, we have an “expert” panel prepared to discuss the reality of ET visitation to Earth citing Canadian government documents and cases which allegedly “prove” UFO activity. It is being touted as Canada’s first public hearing on UFOs. 

Not to generalize, but Canadians are a little more reasonable in their perceptions regarding the UFO phenomenon. To paraphrase and adapt what Dr. David Clarke said about British Ufology in his recent book, How UFOs Conquered the World, Canadians are very similar to their English cousins- we are generally a little more level headed about this sort of thing. I am excited to see that Canada is finally getting some modern and much deserved attention in the UFO field. We don’t shy away from this sort of thing, but we don’t necessarily draw attention to it either. 

The Expo’s Public Hearing on ET Disclosure will be interesting. As I discussed in my last post, I did have a few concerns and questions for the panel and the organizers. Unfortunetly, no one from that group responded to my call for clarity. 

That being said, I am still hoping that this expert panel provides some compelling evidence, and that the panel of skeptics are able to “hold their own” in a harsh slanted climate. I hope the discourse is intelligent and the debate is fair.​

Chris Rutkowski, Canada’s foremost expert on the UFO phenomena, recently released an excellent article on his blog, Ufology Research. Interestingly, to the more advanced reader, it includes some of the government documents and cases cited on one of the hearing’s organizers website as evidence to be heard during the hearing. It also presents a lot of additional information that potentially explains what these events may have been, as well as a few “Unknowns” which, after solid research, still baffle him, other Ufologists, and yours truly.  The article’s focus is on the best documented cases of UFO crashes in Canada, and can be found by clicking here. It is a solid well researched read, and I would implore you to check it out, especially if you plan on heading to this Hearing on ET Disclosure. It may provide a solid base of data and background knowledge before you enter the inner sanctum of the Disclosure movement. 


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2016, The Year of Disclosure!

5/25/2016
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An article in the Mirror today announced that American president Barack Obama will disclose to the public the truth behind UFOs. Stephen Bassett, who was quoted in the article, stated that he believes 2016 will be the year of Disclosure, adding that he also thinks that President Obama will be the “disclosure president.”

I agree with Mr. Bassett that if the American government did release actual evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence, the collective mind of planet Earth would be blown. It would single- handedly be the most important discovery and finding made by our species on this piece of rock we call Earth.​

I appreciate the UFO community’s zeal for official Disclosure. I truly do. That being said, I would also ask Mr. Bassett to take pause, and inform his community of “Disclosurists” to gird their loins for the very real possibility that there is no evidence, bodies, space ships, or artifacts to disclose. 

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The Alien Cosmic Expo, an International Panel of "Experts", and Why I'm Getting All Riled Up.

5/10/2016
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On June 25th, The Alien Cosmic Expo in Brantford Ontario will play host to the first ever international panel on the existence of UFOs and Extraterrestrials using primarily Canadian government documents; suggesting that Canada, along with many other nations, have and are studying the UFO phenomenon. This massive collection of government files, according to the Research and Development team behind this panel, allegedly claims Canada is well aware of the UFO issue and that some of the evidence suggests that these UFOs rely upon intelligent operation.


Ok, I may have a few concerns here...


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Disclosure or: How I Learned to Stop Thinking and Give Them My Mind

3/13/2016
The Disclosure Movement is large, and like a yard sale, it is a big mess of various leaders, organizations and groups, all believing in different things but touting one end goal: that the governments, or “shadow governments”, of the world disclose to the public all of their information and knowledge concerning extraterrestrials. The general consensus for the followers of Disclosure, is that all information and knowledge is tantamount to solid evidence of ETI, whether it be downed flying saucers, alien bodies, technology, and/or open and direct communication with alien beings. Disclosure is not about seeking the truth or the facts, rather, it is about belief, fervent dogmatic belief, that authorities are hiding something big and anything less is disinformation, a cover up, or a conspiracy to hide the truth from the public.
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They're heeere...well, maybe. We can't back that up...

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"Soft Disclosure" and My Baby Girl

2/21/2016
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As many fathers do around this planet, I read bed time books to my baby daughter. Being that she is a new addition to our family, she enjoys tactile reads over solid plot development and rich characters...infants, what can you do?

​One of her favorites is the book pictured above. It's a new addition to her library and little did I know that the secret government project to slowly and quietly disclose the truth about aliens has violated her peaceful and blissfully ignorant existence. 

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