preeminent Center for American Progress in Washington. Our FOIA initiative resulted in the settlement of a federal lawsuit against NASA in our favor, requiring the agency to release hundreds of pages of previously withheld documents.
The coalition is asking for responsible action on the part of the United States concerning UFOs. We make this request
The first step in approaching a member of Congress or the Obama administration to facilitate this endeavor is to make it clear, as we have continuously done in these pages, that a UFO is, by definition, simply something unidentified. The agnostic position, the scientifically sound one, acknowledges the accumulated evidence of some kind of physical, extraordinary phenomenon but recognizes that we do not yet know what it is. The proper understanding of the acronym “UFO” must lie at the heart of any approach to the American government if it is to be successful, and the necessity of that simple adjustment in understanding—ending the automatic equating of UFO with extraterrestrial spacecraft—cannot be overestimated. This would lay a foundation that would allow politicians to be able to publicly consider moving forward with this issue. This may be obvious to most readers, but some activists working for change do not make this important distinction. Instead, they make sometimes outlandish claims about UFOs and related government conspiracies that cannot be substantiated—and they still expect to be taken seriously. No matter what anyone’s personal beliefs are about the nature of UFOs, those in high positions— the only ones capable of effecting real change—are obviously not going to accept any explanation before a new, legitimate scientific investigation makes a definitive determination.
The need for a new way of thinking about UFOs was painfully illustrated when NBC’s Tim Russert popped a surprise question to Ohio congressman Dennis Kucinich during the nationally televised presidential debate in 2007. Russert asked Kucinich whether he had actually seen a UFO, as was reported in a book by Shirley MacLaine. Snickers from the studio audience became audible as soon as the dreaded U-word was uttered. The poor man replied, accurately, that yes, he had simply seen something unidentified, reiterating that it was “an unidentified flying object.” Despite the straightforward honesty and clarity of his reply, Kucinich could not escape the laughter that had begun even before he had a chance to speak. He followed his comment with a joke of his own, as a way of saving face.[181]
A U.S. government office, like the British UFO desk or the French GEIPAN, would quickly dispense with the notion that this subject is silly. We need a different language, a whole new frame of reference without the baggage of the past. Some scientists and military officials have attempted to begin this process by switching to the broadly defined term “unidentified aerial phenomena,” or “UAP.” This obviously is not enough to change the deeply embedded association of UFOs with science fiction or mental aberrations, but for them it is a step in that direction, and also helps to lessen the power of the taboo.
A small, simple change in policy is all it would take to make a very big difference. A body within the government to address the UFO issue can be set up easily, quietly, and inexpensively. To get started, all it requires is funding for a small office, staffed by one to three people, equipped with a few computers and file cabinets and tucked away in one of many possible locations. The staff would create links to scientists, law enforcement officials, civilian researchers, and specialists from a range of disciplines, who would step in as needed if a major UFO event were to occur. Few additional resources would be necessary, because investigation of the occasional worthwhile cases would involve drawing on established facilities, equipment, and personnel, such as cross-referring to satellite imagery and existing records of aviation, meteorological, astronomical, and radar data. Reputable labs could be used for the analysis of photographic images and physical evidence. A qualified volunteer board of advisors, to include academics, scientists, and retired military officers, would meet regularly with the staff to offer input and help coordinate the public release of information. Ideally, information about UFOs that may currently be withheld by U.S. intelligence agencies would be released to the office and the public.
Details of the mission and structure of the agency would obviously have to be carefully worked out, but experienced people are ready and available to assist in that process and make sure the mistakes of Project Blue Book are not repeated. This new plan would initiate a fundamentally different organization from that of Blue Book, because it would be committed, with public oversight, to properly investigate cases and to work with other countries. It would be the opposite of our previous Air Force agency—a controlled public-relations mechanism covering up the unsolved cases—that existed in the 1950s and ’60s.
In November 2007, twenty-two distinguished individuals, including six retired generals, from eleven countries signed a formal request for such an agency to be established. The “International Declaration to the United States Government,” which I drafted in cooperation with members of my group, the Coalition for Freedom of Information (CFi), includes most of the writers for this book along with five others, and is posted on the CFi website. The document is signed by current and former military and government officials and pilots, each of whom, while on active duty, “has either been a witness to an incident involving an unidentified flying object or has conducted an official investigation into UFO cases relevant to aviation safety, national security, or for the benefit of science.”[182]
The declaration states that the current level of disengagement by the American government with important UFO sightings, such as the Phoenix Lights and the O’Hare sighting, “represents both a missed opportunity and a potential risk.” The call to action asks the U.S. government to “join in cooperation with those governments which, recognizing the reality of unidentified flying objects and related aviation safety concerns, have already set up their own investigative agencies.” It suggests that the U.S. Air Force or NASA serve as the location for such a research effort and ends with a final request: “We call on the United States of America to engage with us and with currently active officials around the world to address this problem in an ongoing dialogue.”
The credentials of the names making this request are impressive. As a result, the document received wide coverage in the press when it was endorsed by former governor Fife Symington and released at the November 2007 press conference in Washington, D.C. But nothing has changed as a result. Our group sidelined this initiative during the build-up to the 2008 presidential election, which fully occupied the country, and in the time following when the new Obama administration first took office and was faced with numerous engrossing and urgent challenges. Yet we remain as convinced as ever that this is not too much to ask. It is something the American public has wanted for a long time, and now that we have an administration committed to openness and a global vision, with a commander in chief who is also a Nobel Peace Laureate, our chances of success are better than ever.
CHAPTER 27
Militant Agnosticism and the UFO Taboo
by Dr. Alexander Wendt and Dr. Raymond Duvall
