John Greenewald isn't happy, and he has a right not to be. The FOIA-master and minder of the Black Vault has a revealing video and discussion of how his recent efforts to pry information out of the Navy have elicited only pushback and internal "light-headed" comment. John has had rather more success with former AATIP (Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program) head (or "minder," or "first-ranking person") Luis Elizondo. The result, at Breaking The Silence, is interesting, and Greenewald expresses some appreciation for Mr. Elizondo answering every question asked that could realistically expect an answer. It's just that the answers are not as definitive as one would wish. Of course, Jason Colavito is completely unhappy with the Greenewald/Elizondo dialogue, as he says Luis Elizondo Gives "The Black Vault" an Unsatisfying, Obfuscating Interview. Jason is his usual caustic self, and while most of his in-text points are valid, avoiding the comments section is recommended. Anthony Bragalia returns to his blog after a sizable hiatus with Religious Fanatics in Government, Believing ET Are Demons, Hinder Official UFO Studies and Oust Manager. Bragalia is inspired partly by the major work done in Nick Redfern's 2010 Final Events and the Secret Government Group on Demonic UFOs and the Afterlife, published by Anomalist Books. Bragalia vows to find out and expose those Fundamentalists in the military and government who destroyed the career of Lue Elizondo's predecessor and may still be working against the best interests of the country in hindering UFO studies. (WM)

A gorge along the side of Mount St. Helens in Washington is home to a strange tale involving five miners and a pack of hairy hominids with a grudge. How much of it is true and how much is the result of imagination is still anyone's guess, but worth checking out is one possible solution put forward in this Interview With Robert Damon Schneck. This next report may also one day be the stuff of both tall tales and legends. Hundreds of Marauding Monkeys Force Villagers to Flee Their Homes in India, entering homes and stealing food right off tables. The whole thing is the stuff of movies, but let’s just hope this time around the humans remain the dominant species. (CM)

Brent Swancer offers a raft of stories about iconic or really weird UFO and other cases. First up: the December 9, 1965 coming-to-earth of an object whose identity is still a mystery. The Mysterious Case of the Kinross UFO Incident compares with another treatment of that 1953 tragedy that we've recently read elsewhere. Note: John E.L. Tenney, whom Brent invokes, has much about this particular case, for instance at Avenger Red Files. Five years prior to the Kinross aerial rendezvous, there were Some Eerily Similar Cases of Dogfights with UFOs. Brent's 1948 Fargo North Dakota Gorman case treatment is certainly more factual than that of a certain recent tv series premiere. The Harrowing UFO Encounter of Robert Taylor is a good retelling of what is becoming a better known, yet still just as unexplained, Scottish event. And Brent steps off the precipice into "a deeply odd tale" involving The Nazis, a Mysterious Briefcase, and Demonic Alien Skulls. Wacko hoax or not, the account certainly is entertaining. (WM)

Indefatigable Nick Redfern always seems to bring something new to the ufological party, whether it's a novel wrinkle to a hoary old conundrum, or something we'd not even heard of before. Here it's definitely the latter, and it's rather "for the birds." Follow Nick through to Radar Angels for David Clarke's explanation "why the vast majority of reports of UFOs on radar were made during the 1940s and 1950s." In The UFO Phenomenon: A Close Encounter and a Very Credible Witness Nick gives us an unsolved "classic from decades long gone." And Nick offers a plausible, if nonspecific, identification for another strange aerial event in UFOs & Russia: "He Should Not Ask Questions." (WM)

A fellow Down Under may have had an encounter with the country's version of Bigfoot, or he may be a brilliant actor. Either way, the accompanying video does a great job of conveying the mood of someone who has found out they are not alone in the woods. But if you find yourself on the fence regarding the whole Sasquatch/Yeti subject, you’re not alone. Sister of Dyatlov Pass Victim Speaks, and she isn’t even considering the possibility that a murderous Yeti killed her brother and his hiking group. The accompanying link to the BBC documentary on the tragic event will have you wondering who, not what, was responsible for ending those nine lives 60 years ago. (CM)

Two articles that forcefully illustrate how wide is the net that draws ufological interests in with popular philosophies. Most of us are familiar with US government interest in Super-Contactee George Adamski for the latter's purported Communist sympathies. Farah Yurdozu, author of Love in an Alien Purgatory: The Life and Fantastic Art of David Huggins (Anomalist Books) attempts to turn the Adamski narrative just about upside down in this offering. With Getting Serious About Sirius she may go even one better, starting with her initial sentence "Confession: I buy things from aliens." What follows is another wide-ranging and mind-blowing individualized amalgam of interpreted mythological, historical, and symbolic concepts. There are surely things here that people with grounding in archaeology, history, The Tarot and the Old Religion will challenge and, perhaps, find thought-provoking. (WM)

Rich Reynolds has been turning out a lot of posts lately; here's some with a strong historical element. Rich notes the re-evaluation of Immanuel Velikovsky, whose work most likely is basically flawed. But the treatment it received from Establishment Science was perhaps not as savage as was accorded its author. Rich also discriminates between Science Channel and History UFO offerings. Old Incidents....New Interest? is a flat-out interesting bit of UFO research and lore--we'd not heard some of it previously. We'd vote for Rich publishing his stuff on the Nedelcovic "information." Similarly, Abject Researchability deserves serious thought. Rich distinguishes between "real" UFO research such as he did in the previous Nedelcovic post and Keith Basterfield has been doing over at Unidentified Aerial Phenomena--Scientific Research, and what we mostly get in this internet-dominated world. Rich makes an important offer at the end of this piece. In Self-Defending Machines and the Sonny Desvergers, Stefan Michalak, Robert Taylor UFO Attacks Rich is making a point recently raised by Travis Walton with respect to his 1975 CE-IV experience: “attacks” by UFOs often seem more defensive than aggressive. Whatever one thinks of individual cases, it's a possibility. (WM)

Billy Cox posts an article he says is groundbreaking on two major counts. One he explains at the beginning of the piece; the second in his Comments. That one has to do with "getting the Navy's top man to state for the record that we've made no progress in solving the 'AUV' mystery," and makes it very much worth reading. George Knapp's Retired Navy Leader Weighs in on UFO Reports, Need for Defense links to Billy's article and offers some extra information about retired Admiral Gary Roughead. Knapp further notes how Roughead's remarks seemingly contrast with former DoD official Luis Elizondo's claims of "many" UFO/US military events. But a careful reading of Roughead's comments might leave room for the apparent discrepancy. "The truth is out there...but you're still not allowed to see it." So Brandon Spektor subtitles his LiveScience piece Top-Secret UFO Files Could 'Gravely Damage' US National Security if Released, Navy Says. Specktor's summary shows some mainstream news media are continuing to take the subject seriously. Keith Basterfield further updates us on his efforts regarding The DIA, FOIA, and the AATIP/AAWSAP with a look at the Freedom of Information Act request log for the Defense Intelligence Agency. And if nothing else, the current Big UFO Story has now meaningfully spawned a new term from Eric Wargo: see the Tic Tac Gap and follow through for clarification! (WM)

Every so often we hear of a religious icon exhibiting qualities considered exclusive to living beings. Such an occurrence recently took place in Mexico where a statue of the Blessed Virgin appeared to weep real tears in front of a congregation of mass attendees. No word yet on whether it’s a miracle or a hoax, but it certainly has everyone’s attention. Next is A Mallee Mystery, where we read of a an unexplained, stone throwing "something.” Poltergeist? Or a Yowie perhaps? Whatever or whoever the culprit, they seemed to have decent enough aim. The ghost of a pitcher, perhaps? (CM)

David Halperin writes an effective "promo" for his upcoming book, Intimate Alien: The Hidden Story of the UFO. As is typical, David here has a unique slant. In this case it's upon one of the stranger collaborations of ufological bookmanship, whose unusual qualities we hadn't suspected. The article forcefully reminds that ufology is not just about UFOs--or MIBs in this instance. Curt Collins offers more on "The Murky and Quirky History of UFOs" in The First UFO Documentary: The Flying Saucer Mystery. This first of a two-part series focuses on the 1950 Telenews film, which it presents, as well as a transcript, in their entireties. Credits (especially to Isaac Koi for the transcript) are included at the end of this fascinating piece. The Flying Saucer Mystery and the 1952 UFO Flap shows how the 1952 remake addressed changes in the two intervening years. August C. Roberts, a character in David Halperin's post, figures here as provider of a UFO picture. Again, the film and transcript are reproduced, as well as a link to General Samford's famous July 29, 1952, press conference in the wake of the Washington, D.C., UFO flap. (WM)

Well, not very much, it seems. Nick Redfern has been tracing the paw prints of these critters through UK records and find that "a skeptical approach" is taken by the government, so no surprises there. Nick also takes a look back at Scottish Water Monsters Before Nessie and finds that tales of a water-beastie predate the famous 1930s sightings by a few decades. And finally, prepare to roll your eyes at this video claiming to show the moment a ’Ghost’ Trips Worker at Supermarket in Scotland. The store owners, perhaps in an attempt to fend off an injury claim, are laying the blame on a spook called Stacy. Sigh. (LP)

Sometimes worthy articles are tough to pair thematically, so here's an early 2020 potpourri. Nearly 30 years ago Dr. Helen Sharman became the first Briton to go into space, and she is still incompletely known as the first British woman to do so. In certain ways that's much more surprising than her beliefs that ET life is abundant in the universe and could even be here now. In something reminiscent of an old Bob Newhart tv episode, there's someone running for office in California who claims to have been abducted by aliens. But this is no ordinary citizen: it's Bob Salas, inextricably linked with one of the most dramatic--and troubling--UFO encounters ever. Billy Cox has the story on the co-author of Faded Giant who is Gunning for Second Place strategy for competing in a Congressional District northwest of Los Angeles. Elsewhere, 'Alien Abduction' Filmed by Doorbell Cam wasn't presented as a real ET abduction, thankfully, but it certainly is head-scratching. Maybe the same can be said for Jim Keith's Theory on Roswell: An Atomic Bomb. Nick Redfern has the tale and its possible connection to a conspiracy theory about Keith's untimely death. Speaking of Nick, Roswell, and conspiracies, try Conspiracy, Deception and Revelation: False UFO Memories. This is an excellent cautionary tale about a problem common in ufology--and not helped by supposed "docudramas." (WM)

You’ve heard the old adage "A fool and his money are soon parted.” Maybe it’s time to revamp it a little, change it up to read "Desperation makes for poor judgement" or "For every frightened person there’s someone to empty their wallet". This report on a Djinn hunter in Malaysia makes us roll our eyes a little- -everyone knows it takes a Witcher to catch a djinn. But this trickster is mild compared to our next one: Palm Reader Allegedly Tricks Woman into Paying $70,000 for ’Demonic Exorcism’. Bad enough for some charlatan to threaten a gullible person with bad luck, but then to draw that person’s child into the mix? Shameful. We’ll see how well that sort of activity goes down in prison. (CM)

Two Paracast podcast chats with three long-time researchers on rather differing topics. Jerome Clark literally "wrote the book" on ufology, with his The UFO Encyclopedia now in its third edition, and science educator Chris Rutkowski minds the yearly Canadian UFO Survey. Both have numerous other publications on UFOs, cryptids, and paranormal stuff in general to their credit. Highlights of their discussion with hosts Gene Steinberg and J. Randall Murphy include Jerry explaining "experience anomalies" and the early media antipathy towards UFOs, and discussion of the problems posed by present-day "Contacteeism." Previously the Paracasters welcomed back old friend Bryan Bonner of Colorado's Rocky Mountain Paranormal Research Society. While Bryan is mostly a "ghost-hunter" or "ghost explainer," he says the right things an open-minded skeptic should, and Randall in particular seeks to apply lessons learned in "spirited" research to ufological topics. Important points are made time and again about witness treatment. (WM)

Here’s some good news in the midst of a month where the world seems to have gone sideways. A lonely bog in the Appalachians has been purchased and saved as a conservation area. It also purportedly is home to some Bigfoot activity. So when one day a tourist partaking of the interpretive trail spies something big, hairy, and bipedal, we look forward to their cry of “That Wild Man is no Figment of the Imagination”. In an oddly charming twist, the early 20th century saw a brief period of time when Bigfoot and Bigfoot-like creatures were referred to as Mowglis, like the main character of the story "Jungle Book.” But even with an intriguing name, these creatures all fit under the umbrella of Cryptozoology: Paranormal Things and the People Who Pursue Them. Nick Redfern has a unique perspective on these studies, and some colorful suggestions on more apt terms. Who knows, maybe this is the start of a movement. (CM)

Kevin Randle seems a bit more peeved at the "ahistoricity" of History's Project Blue Book series as its second season impends. There is a Roswell component in the premiering episode, which bothers Kevin a lot. "I fear this will inject more nonsense into the Roswell case and the last thing that serious research needs is more nonsense." Interesting though understandable that Kevin fears this for Roswell, but there are other UFO cases and important characterizations whose facts have been muddled by the series. History is trying to put out some, well, actual history on its website, and Darryn King's This Air Force Jet Was Scrambled to Intercept a UFO--Then Disappeared is one such effort. It's a bit sparse coverage, and Kinross wasn't an Air Force Base per se when the event occurred in 1953 (see SAC Bases: Oscodo / Kincheloe AFB), but it's something. Also writing for History, Becky Little offers How the CIA Tried to Quell UFO Panic During the Cold War. Again, some of the lineaments of the full story are here, but this piece in particular needs a more comprehensive treatment, such as available in UFOs and Government: A Historical Inquiry, edited by Dr. Michael Swords and Robert Powell, and published by Anomalist Books. (WM)

Save for a "drone" explosion, it seems an uneven start to a year many hope will be a big one for UFO sightings. The short and rather dismissive treatment Dean Balsamini gives the lead headline seems more like what mainstream media outlets were doing several months ago, but it does appear from the article that UFO reports were "up" in NYC last year. Paul Seaburn has fun with Arizona UFOs: Mysterious Light Returns to Mesa and a Cigar UFO Hovers Over Phoenix. One would hope someone comes up with an explanation for the Mesa events before they happen again, and condolences to Paul on the outcome of the football game. Tim Binnall's Triangular UFO Filmed in Texas footage is interesting but too short to satisfy, and the time of year is also suspicious. Sequoyah Kennedy notices that date in his Triangle UFOs Filmed Over Texas and New York, and seems a little bemused by it all. (WM)

The developing conundrum of drone swarms over Western US states has added a new and more worrisome twist. A drone--whether one of "our" drones of interest or not--has soared to the top of the concerns list after reportedly "coming in dangerous proximity to a medical helicopter the evening of Wednesday, Jan. 8" according to the Colorado Department of Public Safety's Updates on Investigations into Suspicious Drone Activity in NE Colorado. The CO DPS article gives a whiff of the security that has supposedly clamped down upon some official media outlets in the wake of the affair. George Knapp's Mystery Wire includes a useful video with Dr. Simeon Hein, providing background and some speculation about The Ultimate Meaning behind the phenomenon/a. Hey, a guy who films in front of a local history museum can't be all bad. Not to worry, as Fox 1310 KLIX News/Talk Radio's Bill Colley says Colorado Drone Swarms May Have Been Mass Delusion. Colley actually backs off his article's title in his article's very first sentence, and one plane put "into the sky to track drone movements in the area" finding nothing is not exactly conclusive evidence. Forget all the other agencies that either have reported or had such activity reported to them, complete with "whirring noises" and some arguably genuine videos. The UK tabloid Daily Star's Colorado Drones 'Could be USAF Protecting Nuclear Silos' as New Footage Emerges may be more believable. Air Force Global Strike Command counter-drone testing makes sense, whether the almost 400 Minuteman III ICBMs reportedly still stored into the 2020s in northern tier states are germane to Daily Star writer Simon Green's speculation. (WM)

Out of Africa was a good theory, and an okay film, but as science progresses, data mounts, and evidence builds it appears to be slowly falsified by mainstream science. Peek inside Ed Whelan's microscope at your mitochondrial DNA for a glimpse of our increasingly complicated origins. As for those outside the hallowed halls of academia, Nick Redfern examines the issues surrounding Ancient Mysteries And "Heavily Redacted CIA Documents" stemming from a visit by a mysterious visitor to Miles Copeland hoping to have some musty, dusty scrolls deciphered by America's finest spooks. From there, things get weird. Looking forward regarding our legacy, Ashley Cowie reckons Future Archaeologists Will Mainly Discover Rows Of Humans, in addition to a fossil record which will not reflect the state of affairs during humanity's ascendancy. God forbid some huckster in the 31st century decides to peddle the "information age diet" as "healthy", but history does have a tendency to repeat itself. One of the hottest health fads of the last twenty years has been called out as Poppy Noor finds Paleolithic Diet May Not Have Been That 'Paleo', scientists say after finding evidence of sinful, delicious carb-rich foods in ancient South Africa. Fortunately health vloggers and enthusiasts tend to be illiterate, and these findings will scarcely be a blip upon their radar. (CS)

Something built in the 16th century is bound to have its own collection of ghosts, and Donald Turvill tries to connect the dots between this queer snap and the spooky situation on the grounds. Of course such claims will pique the interest of skeptic and fortean, Hayley Stevens. Without setting foot within this landmark, Hayley Stevens casts doubt upon illusionist Drew McAdam's claims while expressing her desire to visit one day. Much closer to Hayley, yet further from Brent Swancer, is Carmarthenshire which sets the scene for The Creepy Case Of The Wailing House Of Wales. Wonder exactly what Ms. Stevens would make of a home where supernatural madness began with the sound of a flushing toilet, only to grow into a paranormal cacophany. (CS)

Back into UFO history for some iconic cases and this opening question. Steve Hammons uses the word "allegedly" too many times in this headline article for our comfort, so we question this attempt to tie in known UFO incursions into a threat scenario about nuclear war. But it's a moment of reflection on how UFO history can be used to comment upon the parlous current state of world affairs. Brent Swancer next offers three truly "Mysterious " cases, so be ready for more overuse of that word. In The Mysterious Case of the RB-47H UFO Encounter Brent targets what some serious thinkers consider the all-time best UFO case. This article shows why. The Mysterious Case of the UFO Attack at Falcon Lake is one of the most bizarre CE2-Physiological Effects encounters ever, enhanced by the quality of the suffering witness and various kinds of documentation. The word "Attack" in Brent's title may be a stretch, but the results of Stefan Michalak's UFO experience were the same as from a conscious assault. And with The Mysterious UFO Crash of Aztec, New Mexico Brent steps into what many serious researchers view as the territory of hoaxes. It's nevertheless still a part of UFO lore. Readers will judge whether data adduced promoting the case as the real deal is really probative. (WM)

The act of creation requires imagination, and dreams are merely the purest form of imagination this side of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Avid anomalists will know, and take to heart, that dreams engender stranger things from following the treatises of Eric Wargo. Do ideas and creation appear ex nihilo, or is there a fourth dimensional muse teasing them from a temporal tangle of ideas beyond our ken? While Dr. Wargo's ideas ferment, turn up the heat with George Knapp's latest contribution, Science Shows Your Mind Can Move Things… But How? George gets Dean Radin to drop a few choice clues for studying and validating the phenomenon of psychokinesis. Another maverick experiment which haunted the Leinster Leader's readers certainly put The Athy In Telepathy back in 1947. It's quite a mystery and Fortean Ireland hopes someone can spare a detail or two. All of this, and more, wouldn't be possible without the c-word. Y'know, consciousness. Except Nigel Warburton's busy Deconstructing The Idea That Consciousness Is A "Spooky" Illusion with a brief, but potent argument for his thesis. (CS)

Facing a dearth of genuine cognitive diversity, Great Britain has put out a call for genuine weirdos. Except normiecore Uri Geller thinks he's a prime candidate because, "no other candidate would possess his powers". C'mon, Uri. Lots of people are paper-thin bullshit artists like Tracy Milanovich. Who? Tracy's practically Tim Binnall's neighbor and the Palm Reader Who Allegedly Tricked A Woman Into Paying $70,000 For "Demonic Exorcism". Tim outlines the scam, and the sting which brought her scheming keister to justice. (CS)

Be kind, most likely Laura Geggel's editor banged out the headline. Not her. Hacking away from the clickbait and other online media disparagements, it appears science has solved the mystery behind one hum which has haunted humans and the story begins somewhere around... Madagascar? Bolstering our meager science section for Saturday's edition of The Anomalist, we summon Nick Redfern from the darkest depths to elaborate upon Experiments Of The Very Controversial Kind back when the U.S. of A thought it was a good idea to hire former Nazi scientists to make America greater. Boy howdy, the Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments found out there was a lot of bad surrounding the good they gave these united states. (CS)

This contributor has no qualms with Clara Humpston's declaration. Long before the Bronze Age Collapse, plenty of healthy people heard and honored the voices in their heads whispering secrets in Sumerian and other forgotten tongues. The phenomenon endures in the modern day, and Clara elaborates upon the science and statistics supporting her statement. Keeping with the theme of Jaynes's bicameral mind, voices, and schizophrenia, Stanley Coren breaks down a new study addressing the question, "Do Pet Dogs Affect The Risk Of Schizophrenia In Humans? The answer is unsurprising, along with the additional benefits of canine companionship including an interesting proposal regarding our microbiomes(!). (CS)