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Citizen Hearing On Disclosure: UFO Believers To Testify At Congressional-Style Hearings (LIVE UPDATES)
Posted: 04/29/2013 6:58 am EDT | Updated: 04/29/2013 6:13 pm EDT
Is the federal government honest about what it knows about UFOs? Are officials suppressing the truth about extraterrestrial visitations?
The federal hearings UFO researchers have been demanding have not yet materialized. But some of the testimony that would be posed at those proceedings will be posed this week to former members of Congress.
At the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., a Citizen Hearing On Disclosure(CHD) will unfold between April 29 to May 3. For 30 hours, 40 internationalresearchers and military/agency witnesses will testify in front of these committee members:
- Former Senator Mike Gravel (Dem/Lib, AK)
- Former Congresswoman Carolyn Kilpatrick (Dem, MI)
- Former Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (Dem, CA)
- Former Congresswoman Darlene Hooley (Dem, OR)
- Former Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (Rep, MD)
- Former Congressman Merrill Cook (Rep, UT)
Watch some of the CHD witnesses here.
"I don’t think ET is the best word for it. I think it’s more unidentifiable foreign substances or vehicles in the air -- it’s unidentified," Gravel told HuffPost. "I don’t know if it’s little green men or purple men or if it’s any men. All I know is that, worldwide, there’s thousands and thousands of sightings. Some of them may be hallucinatory, but under close examination, there are real sightings. There’s something that we don’t know of."
Gravel, a former Special Agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps, who once insisted from the floor of the Senate that his constituents had a right to know the truth behind the Vietnam War, feels the same way about the public knowing the facts about UFOs.
"Having been opposed and fighting, all of my public career, the military industrial complex and the fact that we have excessive secrecy, just does a disservice to the people when you have the military that feels this stuff has got to be secret and they won't open their files."
One of Gravel's CHD committee colleagues, Kilpatrick, told HuffPost she doesn't like the fact that "this country makes jokes about (UFOs), but in other countries, it's a spiritual kind of thing, so I'm really looking forward to seeing exactly what it is.
"As a member of the Appropriations Committee and Armed Service Committee and serving on the Air Force Academy Board, I always had an interest [in UFOs]. I think if there's something there that we need to discuss, then we ought to be part of that discussion.
"I want to hear the factual information and I'm taking it very seriously. I don't want to be ambivalent. I don't want it to be a joke. It's too serious. If we bury our heads in the sand and say there's nothing there, we lose, our country loses. I want to hear the expert testimony and be convinced that something's there. I'm willing to take it where it leads, and if it'll help our country and the people of America be better world citizens, and if my appropriations experience can help, I'm willing to do that."
Both Gravel and Kilpatrick say they think it's time for a real congressional investigation into UFOs and the possibility that Earth is being visited by someone from very far away. They'd also like to see this issue brought up again at the United Nations.
"I can say that we don’t have to wait for the hearings to do that," said Gravel. "Whether or not Congress wants to do it, I think that it’s global in nature and I would like to divorce it from the Congress of the U.S. I think that there should be a part of the U.N. devoted to this. I would sign a document like that right now."
The international spokesperson for the weeklong CHD is Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, who believes that Earth has been and may still be visited by extraterrestrials.
"I can't say where they're from, but the evidence of their presence here is pretty overwhelming -- IF you care to look for it. My only guess as to why there's this embargo is because there are money people involved, doing their (hardest) to keep it quiet because of the profit potential that goes with having the capability and the technology that could go outside of our solar system," Mitchell told HuffPost.
Mitchell, the sixth man to walk on the moon, is hoping this week's CHD will help close the door on the alleged truth embargo that surrounds the UFO-ET issue.
"[We need to] spread a little bit more truth about the type of universe we live in and the fact that we're not alone in the universe. We've got many, many mysteries on our hands, and mysteries to solve. We really don't know the scope of our existence and our picture of the universe is still pretty primitive."
CHD organizer and political activist Stephen Bassett wants this event to primarily reach the mainstream media and Congress.
"The message to Congress is it’s time to investigate this issue again and it’s time for the media to realize this is the greatest news story of all time. I believe we have a definite, measurable chance of achieving, sometime this year, the president of the United States going before the American people and finally acknowledging that the phenomena we have been experiencing for at least the last 65 years is, in fact, being generated by an extraterrestrial non-human intelligence engaging the planet Earth."
ALSO ON HUFFPOST:
LIVE BLOG:
4:51 PM – Today
End Of The First Day
Many points of view from committee members and witnesses were offered on this first day of the Citizen Hearing On Disclosure.
With four days of testimony still to come, it would be interesting to see if any type of skepticism will rear its head and to see how the folks involved handle or approach a skeptical point of view about UFOs and a possible ET presence on Earth.
Check back on Tuesday to see...
4:14 PM – Today
A Tale Of Two Steve's
Dr. Steven Greer: “Everything about what extraterrestrials show of themselves would look like magic to us…if you’re dealing with civilizations that have actually arrived here from somewhere else, they’re probably doing it faster than the speed of light…possibly at the speed of thought…consciousness and mind are the real final frontier – not space. We are not alone in the universe and we need to have a peaceful interplanetary, interstellar initiative. We need to figure out how we’re going to advance.”
Political Activist Stephen Bassett talked about how the media hasn’t properly reported important UFO news. “If some very tough reporters can get out there and ask the right questions, it’s going to get really interesting.”
The following image shows Greer (L) and Bassett (R)
3:40 PM – Today
Clinton Administration UFO Interest
Grant Cameron’s testimony on Clinton administration unsuccessful attempt to find out UFO information…
Linda Moulton Howe on reported UFO abductions and the possible manipulation of the human mind. She tells a story about a military person who told her he was on a team that, in 1978, was assigned to investigate a town that was allegedly flooded by extraterrestrials.
2:24 PM – Today
Documents About Philanthropist Laurance Rockefeller And UFOs
Researcher Grant Cameron discusses 1,000 documents he received via the Freedom of Information Act about how Rockefeller tried to get the Clinton administration to look into UFOs, especially the 1947 UFO crash in Roswell, N.M., and how President Clinton issued a challenge, saying if there was a UFO at Roswell, he was never told about it.
Cameron talks about how Bill and Hillary Clinton met with Rockefeller at his ranch to discuss UFOs.
“There are key documents from 1995 that point out how Hillary and her staff helped draft a UFO disclosure letter that would be sent to the president.”
Dr. Steven Greer began the afternoon session describing how he went from being an emergency room doctor to a leading advocate for UFO-ET disclosure. Greer is also executive producer of a new documentary, “Sirius,” which focuses on his claims of alleged existing technologies that might change the world.
“Sirius” is also about the unveiling of DNA analysis of a 6-inch-tall humanoiddiscovered 10 years ago in the Atacama Desert of Chile. Dubbed Ata, there is ongoing controversy as to its origin and what, exactly the DNA reveals, according to a new report by Greer.
12:57 PM – Today
Bartlett Says Congress Owed American Public A Hearing On UFOs
Cong. Bartlett: “Whether there are UFOs or extraterrestrials is not the issue -- it’s a constitutional issue more than anything else. In his final public speech as he left office, Eisenhower warned the public against the military industrial complex, but his original speech called it the military industrial congressional complex, but he took out the world congressional. I think Congress owes the American people a hearing on this subject. There may be nothing to UFOs, but you have the right to petition the government about it.”
12:45 PM – Today
Committee Members Look For Answers To Take Hearing Beyond This Week
Cong. Kilpatrick: ”I don’t know if the answer is to have another congressional hearing. I agree that coming together to acknowledge this problem is urgent. Will the Air Force ever come to this point, and what can this issue do to help all of us.”
French: “Something’s got to be done.”
Sheehan: “The altering of consciousness about UFOs will have to come through religious institutions.”
Dolan: “If there’s an energy paradigm solution to UFOs, that’s worth everything we can do to get it all out in the open.”
Sen. Gravel: “Could all of you draft a new U.N.-type proposal by the end of this week that can help us become globalists vs. nationalists?”
12:07 PM – Today
Back & Forth Between UFO Committee & Panel
Cong. Roscoe Bartlett: ”It’s arrogant and presumptuous of us to believe we’re the only really intelligent species in the universe.”
French: “My primary job early on for Project Blue Book was to debunk UFOs as far as the public was concerned…I was one of those guys who said it was swamp gas! We need an organization to contact these ‘people’ from another place and say hello
to them instead of trying to shoot their tails off.”
Sheehan: “It’s a world view issue…a view that must be addressed by everyone, once we acknowledge an extraterrestrial presence.”
Huneeus: “This is the next frontier, and we’ve already been conditioned by the media, but young people are very accepting of the idea that we’re being visited.”
Dolan: “Our society is going through a technological revolution, and I think something will happen that will force the UFO issue to come out. Maybe there are already controlled leaks today, but it will lead to a geo-political revolution. There needs to be a TRUE United Nations.”
“French: ”The dumbest thing we could do would be to weaponize space.”
11:45 AM – Today
Reflecting Back To 1978 U.N. UFO Presentation
Huneeus tells the committee about the milestone 1978 United Nations presentation on UFOs.
The following image shows a 1978 meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim discussing the upcoming UFO presentation that was produced by NBC Radio’s Lee Speigel, now a writer for The Huffington Post. This image includes, clockwise, left to right: astronaut Gordon Cooper, astronomer Jacques Vallee, astronomer Claude Poher, astronomer J. Allen Hynek, Grenada Prime Minister Eric Gairy, Waldheim, Morton Gleisner of the Special Political Committee, Speigel, researcher Leonard Stringfield and psychologist David Saunders.
11:21 AM – Today
Second Panel Testimony On UFO History
Second panel of historian Richard Dolan, researcher/writer Antonio Huneeus, Constitutional attorney Daniel Sheehan and USAF Ret. Lt. Col. Richard French has just been sworn in and expected to offer testimony on historical UFO records.
10:52 AM – Today
Why Don't We Hear More About Worldwide UFO Cases?
Cong. Darlene Hooley: “Why aren’t we hearing more about sightings around the world?”
Stanton Friedman: “It’s not about how much is going on – it’s more about how much do we hear about the sightings…how many UFO reporters do you know?”
10:47 AM – Today
UFO Pilots: Living Or Not?
Cong. Merrill Cook talks with panel about the possibility that some UFO sightings might involve a form of artificial intelligence vs. living beings piloting them.
10:31 AM – Today
Kilpatrick introduces Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan
“I am honored today to take on this assignment, and to have one of the leaders here on this topic. I’m honored to introduce Minister Louis Farrakhan.” To which, stood up to mild applause.
10:12 AM – Today
Researcher/Producer Linda Moulton Howe
Tells committee about her documentary that focused on the numerous unexplained animal mutilations that have plagued the U.S. for many years...”Ranchers told me they had seen beams of light pick up their cattle, which would explain why there were no tracks found near the animals that had many organs removed, with no blood near the animals.”
She talked about being shown an alleged presidential briefing paper at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico in 1983 that described several real UFO cases that involved small humanoid bodies.
“My greatest challenge as a journalist is to get on the record things I’m told by military personnel.”
10:01 AM – Today
Nuclear Physicist Stanton Friedman
“I was the youngest contributor to the original 1968 congressional UFO hearings…an example of bias and ignorance about UFOs appears in this month’s issue of Astronomy…Progress comes from doing things differently…Another false myth is that the government can’t keep secrets.”
“Government cover-up isn’t just an idle concept…it’s past time for the press and scientific community to do their homework.”
9:46 AM – Today
Canadian researcher Grant Cameron
Cameron, creator of The Presidents UFO website, is giving specific examples of past presidents or presidential candidates who have talked positively about UFOs and the ET situation.
9:36 AM – Today
UFO Historian Richard Dolan speaking to the committee
UFO Historian Richard Dolan offers details of recent UFO cases.
“There are well over 10,000 reports every year. But not all are unexplained. The combination of astonishing performance and a lack of official acknowledgement of the phenomenon require more action.”
9:18 AM – Today
NASA Retiree Capt. Edgar Mitchell: We Are Not Alone
"We're not alone in the universe. They have been coming here a long, long time it seems. The evidence suggests it ... Let's go forward with understanding this phenomenon."
9:12 AM – Today
Former Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey's Opening Remarks
"The very idea of listening to the participants who will speak this week has caused quite a stir in my district … because there's a newspaper that has covered me for 20 years that hardly ever paid attention. Well I made front page … just last week. Finally, I'm retired and they're gonna put me at the top of the fold.
We're gonna be sitting like we're in committee ... It's our commitment to listen through objective ears and to ask the kinds of questions that we think the American people would like us to ask so that they can be better informed ... We'd like to make the public more aware. We're hoping that this will possibly lead to legislation ... I think we're going to have a very interesting week."
