image by Markusram  

In the past few months there has been quite a bit of controversy surrounding MUFON and a potential conflict of interest and/or interference from one of its largest benefactors. While all of the finger pointing hasn’t resulted in any tangible evidence of impropriety, the situation has brought forward some important questions about how and to whom UFO sightings should be reported. A little over two years ago, in a post about what to do after a UFO sighting, I wrote that reporting UFO sightings to an organization like MUFON or NUFORC was probably the best option. Now, in light of the MUFON controversy, I am not so sure that is the case.

The biggest problem with reporting a sighting to an organization like MUFON is that there is no way to know what agenda is driving the organization. Any group could easily be beholden to a corporate master intent on securing UFO technology for it’s own profit, or could even be a front for a disinformation campaign. Even well meaning groups are sometimes guilty of shutting out others in an attempt to be the first to a discovery. Ultimately, under close enough inspection, faults can be found with almost anyone or any group. With this unfortunate reality, how then can you ensure that your story finds its way to the right people?

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photo by cowbite

With sales of paper Chinese lanterns (or sky lanterns) soaring over the last two years in the UK, the National Farmers Union have expressed grave concern over the risk the lanterns pose to livestock. The simple lanterns, constructed of paper, wire and a candle, are often launched to mark special occasions and can fly many miles from where they are launched. This poses a risk to grazing animals that inadvertently ingest pieces of wire from lanterns that land in their fields. The House of Lords have taken up the cause and are moving to join several other nations, including Malta, Germany and Australia, that have already banned sky lanterns.

Since Chinese lanterns can fly very high, can move around erratically, and are silent, they are often confused for UFOs. The potential ban would eliminate these false sightings, a major boon for ufologists working in the UK. With the sheer number of UFO sightings reported every year (well over 4,000 sightings were reported to the National UFO Reporting Center in the US last year), any reduction in the possible number of sightings is a welcome relief to any serious researcher investigating the UFO phenomenon.

Call To Ban Chinese Lanterns To Protect Cows [via Real UFOs]

Reports are coming in of a strange incident along a highway outside Barstow, California this weekend. According to witnesses, a strange craft that was flying very low over the highway landed or crashed Saturday (12/12/2009). Following the landing/crash police, black government vehicles and a large military transport were reported racing to the scene. Upon arriving at the scene, the police and other agencies parked their vehicles facing outward, with their headlights on, so as to obstruct any view of the scene. While a photo of the scene was apparently take, as of now it has still not been posted online. Additional reports found by Phantoms & Monsters indicate that a craft was seen by truckers in the area flying low over the highway.

Adding to the mystery are the following videos from YouTube, supposedly shot in Tracy and Ridgecrest, California this weekend. Both videos are posted to established accounts with no other UFO related videos, which leads me to believe that they are genuine footage of some sort of unknown craft.

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