UFOs and aliens - new book alert

Dear readers

I've been ploughing my way through books in my "waiting to be read" pile by my bedside and it was the turn for a new UFO book. It seems that a librarian at my local library must have an interest in the UFO phenomenon, as the library gets a lot of the new UFO books. The latest offering from the library is "UFOs & Aliens. Is There Anybody Out There?" edited by Michael Pye and Kirsten Dalley. It is published by New Page Books. 2011. Pompton Plains, NJ. ISBN 978-1-60163-173-2. The book consists of a series of 13 essays. For those who haven't come across this new book and would like to see if any of the essays would make good reading in full, I will post some details.

1. A Cosmic Watergate: UFO Secrecy. Stanton T Friedman. (Click here.)

Friedman argues that governments can keep secrets from the general public, and provides examples such as the Manhattan Engineering District; the U-2 aircraft; and the Corona spy satellite program. "In sum, it is very clear that various agencies of the United States government had and and continue to have the capability of keeping secrets, and have intentionally and consistently withheld facts and information regarding - and even actual wreckage of - alien spacecraft." (p.24.)

2. The Real X-Files. Nick Pope. (Click here.)

Pope recounts the story of the release of the UK government's UFO files, highlights some interesting cases, such as the 1957 Milton Torres interception; the 1991 Al Italia aircraft near-miss; the Bentwaters 1980 incident and the 1993 Cosford event. "These are exciting times. As of this writing, numerous countries are releasing their UFO files." (p.45.)

3. Doubt Beyond reason. Gordon Chism. (Click here.)

Chism details a personal observation of an unusual object, in 1958 in Nevada. he then explores three factors which he believes steer people away from acceptance of the UFO phenomenon. "I believe that all of these things - our fear of losing status, our tendency to follow the group consensus, and our use of faith and denial to override logic - have enabled us to reject the existence of aliens and UFOs." (p.56.)

4. An Alien Intervention. Jim Moroney. (Click here.)

Jim had a personal abduction encounter in 1987 which he describes, along with details of an abduction in the Yukon, and the 1994 Rawa, Zimbabwe event. "It is no longer of question of when extraterrestrials will confront us, but rather the much more difficult question of how they will interact with us." (p.79.)

5. Alien Abduction: Fact or Fiction? Kathleen Marden. (Click here.)

Marden reviews a range of non-terrestrial explanations for the UFO abduction phenomenon. Using the details of a number of well known abduction cases, she argues that these appear to be more than of psychological origin. "Clearly, alien abduction investigation is firmly planted on the frontiers of science. As in any science, the careful, methodical collection and evaluation of credible evidence over an extended period of time, along with political change, might bring about a paradigm shift. But until then, the controversy will rage on. " (p.102.)

6. Cosmic Peeping Toms: UFOs and Invisibility. Micah Hanks. (Click here.)

Using case studies, Hanks suggests that "...extraterrestrial craft might be lingering in our aerospace without our knowledge, thanks to an advanced technology that renders them invisible to the naked eye, and perhaps even to advanced radar equipment as well." (p.108.)

7. The Kingman Affair. Nick Redfern. (Click here.)

Something crashed near a place named Kingman, Nevada in May 1953. Redfern examines and discusses the known facts, and interestingly comes down on the side of a non-extraterrestrial explanation. namely, that the object was a military drone aircraft with monkeys on board.

8. Roswell in Perspective: The Human response to an Extraordinary Event. Donald R Schmitt. (Click here.)

Schmitt, a long time Roswell researcher asks us to "...ignore the minutia and instead to focus on the human aspect of this story." (p.138.) The basic core story is outlined, arguing the words of the witnesses who have come forward should be heard.

9. Star Travel: How Realistic is it? Stanton T Friedman.

Friedman's second essay in this book shows that some experts in the past have been proven wrong in their statements. Discussing the possible role of nuclear fission and nuclear fusion. Fission propulsion systems have been tested in the past. "Given our own technological progress, which shows no signs of slowing or abating, the stars may soon be within our reach..." (p.165.)

10. The UFO Problem: Toward a Theory of Everything? John White. (Click here.)

White argues that "...based on the evidence, it seems clear that no single explanation can cover every experience and event..." (p.168.) White sees that three solutions could contribute to an overall conclusion. These are the extraterrestrial; terrestrial and the metaterrestrial - (outside ordinary space time.)

11. Killing the Roswell Story. Thomas J Carey. (Click here.)

This essay focuses on an aspect of the Roswell story, namely "...the killing of the original flying saucer story by the Air Force." (p.190.) Cary presents his findings, including the testimony of Brigadier General Arthur Exon.

12. Identity Crisis: When is a UFO not a UFO? Marie D Jones and Larry Flaxman. (Click here and here.)

The authors first explore a range of things which generate false UFO reports. then they go on to look at the alternate universe theory; the inter dimensional hypothesis, and visions and altered states of consciousness.

13. Hybrids: Memories of the Future. Erich von Daniken. (Click here.)

Taking a look at what geneticists are doing these days, the author suggest that "What is being attempted today - and will one day succeed - already exists millennium ago," (p.231.)

Comments:

As with any collection of essays on a theme, the quality ranges from the average to the excellent. In general, I enjoyed this collection and the thinking it required me to do.