Black Vault compilation, pp. 91-93

(;IC oe extr e<';'lety valuaote tor the enttre
rnan ra:e. It could be hnanCJally reward-
g tor tne owners cl tha t croot. And rl
u iCI spell ftr.anctat ru•n lor one promtnent
FO skepuc-unfess. of course. he was
-: dehve!tng the proof.
Vattonal EnaUirer . a weekly tabloid
. ..laper w1th a Ctrculauon m the mil-
ens. has a stanotng offer of $1 million for
os 1t1ve proof. · The London-based whtS•
y bonier Cutty Sark. Ltd .. recently un-
tted an even bigger prize of one million
ounas Sterling. or about S 1.800.000 at
e present e~tcl'lange rate.
Lesser awards atso are available in the
bsence of postt1ve proof. The Enquiter
nnually g·rants up to S 10.000 to witnesses
t a UFO inctdent judged ·most scientifi..
ally valuable" by an independent panel of
FO spec1alists (the "Blue-RibbOn Panel.·
ee oox). Ano Cuny Sark has announced
lans to award£ 1000 to the best-wnnen
ssay on the UFO problem.
Moreover. a number of London betting
ouses have accepted varioos wagers on
e imminent visitations of extraterrestrials.
ut the world's most famous ·anti-UFO
er has b~n set forth m the book UFOs
xplained.
Author Philip J. Klass. a senior editor of
v1ation Week magazme and the nation·s
eao.ng UFO skeptic. claims he has chal·
engeo UFO believers "to put their money
here the1r moull'ls are.· Klass has offered
o "~V S10.000 to anyone who agrees to
. if and when cer.ain criteria are met
Shtng that a true UFO viSitatton has
occurred. Every year untrl the;: n a::;~pe n s .
the wagerer must pay Klass t~e s:.Jm of
$ 100 (up to a maXImum of S 1~ . after
wt\icl'l payments cease but t t:~ bet re-
mains in fO<ce}.
Less than a dozen UFO en::"lusiasts
have signed up to date. usua!)' on tnsrde
informalton tnat "l.l'lis year the government
is goino to announce UFO contacts .... •
Such predictions have appe.i!ed in print
nearly every year for a Quarter of a century.
but people still seem to believe them.
Klass has become a little richer because
of them.
Onty one UFO buH has maintained his
bet in force, apparently more lor publicity
than persuasion. Stanton Friedman makes
a tivi"'J ott his lecture tours proclaimino the
reality of UFOs. and he responded to
Klass's needling by lormatly agreeing to
me bet a lew years ago.
Additionally, Klass has offered to buy
bacK au copies o1 his book UFOs ciC·
plained if events prove his assertions in-
eorrect. But pro-UFO scientist Robert Me·
Campbell has done Klass one better. He
has offered to buy back copies of his book
UFOiogy from anyone not satiSfied wtth it,
proof or no proof.
• • •
Actually. Philip J . Klass already had
been sening off muttimegaton detonations
among the ranks of UFO believers. Miffed
when UFO experts in 1968 ridiculed a seri-
ous (and still tenable} suggestion that
many UFOs were actually ban lightning.
the by nature combative aviation reporter
threw h1msell into serious tnvesugauons of
what were regaroed as the "best" c:ass1c
UFO cases. He otten dug up startling (ano
embarrassmg} new evidence out has be·
come a panah 10 UFO circles (Hynek
refuses to appear together with rum. and
Hynek's "UFO bibliography" handout
potntedly 'IJnores Klass·s two bOOks).
With the death ol astronomer Donald
Menzel in 1976. Klass has emerged as the
nation's teadJng UFO skeptic . He spurns
the word ·debunker.· with its connotations
of knee-jerk dismissals and unorthodox
p'oints of view. Instead. Klass anempts to
investigate UFO cases more deeply than
might other researchers who have sub-
conscioUs desire$ .tO actually find proof of
extraterrestrial visit01s. Concentrating only
on the generally acclaimed "best cases.·
Klass of\en has exposed the superficiality
of wtn done by pro-UFO experts.
In 19n. he joined with other scientists
and educators in forming the •Comrn~ttee
for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of
the Paranormal,· a group that has de-
nounced easy acceptance by the public
of allegedly baseless beliefs in astrology,
the Bermuda Trianole. ESP. ·ancient astro-
nauts.• and other .so-called modern mythS.
Klass heads a small but potent band of
skeptical investigators called the UFO
Subcommittee. At the very least. this
group demands the tiohtenino of stan-
dards in so-called scientific UFO!ogy. Th"
level of carelessness of many pro-UFO ex·
pens has manc.edly declined. so progress
is being made. CO
THESE PEOPLE ARE WATCHING AND WAITING
Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS). 1909 Sherman Suite 207.
Evanston. IL 60201. Self-styled pmnacte of UFO activities. this
small group generally depends on other groups tor data. Or.
Allen Hynek does the public appearances and fund ra1sing,
whtie researcher Allan Hendry carries out actual coordination
ano tn-oeom,nvesugat•on. Two publications: CUFOS
Ouarrerly Bulletm. S 15i yr.: and International UFO Reporter.
31 2/yr.
~enal Phenomenon Research Organization (APRO). 3910 E.
<!emdale. Tucson. AZ 85712. Among the longest surviving
JFO groups (represented m 50 countries). APRO is held to-
·ether by the deoication of tiS cofounders Jim and Coral
:lrenzen. Wl"'O nave recenlly led the group to specialize
:ntrcs say monopohze) in "UFO abOuctton cases.· APRO
;lleun . S1Otyr. for 12 issues.
ational Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NI-
.:.P}. Su1te 2.3.. 3535 University Blvd .• Kensington MD 20795.
··other o10 group. unfortunately in a downhill shde following a
cade of orgamzational in-fighting. NICAP Bulletin . $1 0/yr.
:tual UFO Netw()t)( (MUFON). 103 Oldtowne Road. Seguin.
78155. A vtgorous. expanding group acting in concert w1th
FOS. MUFON UFO Journal. SBJyr.
•und Saucer Walch (GSW). 13238 North 7th Drive. Phoenix.
55029 Hrgnty professronal organtzation (membership b y
atton onty). wn1ch applies vrgorous scientrfic standards to
rnvest•gattons. Quarterly tournai free with memberstup.
ect Starltgtn International (PSI). ?0 Sox 5310. Ausun TX
::3. Somewnat mystenous organ1zation with the best array
II
of gadgets yet assembled to measure UFOs-ff only they
could rmd one. Irregular bulletin sent tn exchange for cash
donation$.
CommftH Against UFO Seaecy (CAUS). 191 E. 161st St.,
Bronx NY 10451 . New offshoot of GSW. this small group is us·
ing Free~om of lnformatton swts to extract allegedly secret
hypothetical government "UFO files: Newsletter $10/yr.
20th Century UFO Bureau. 756 Hadaon A11enue. Col-
lingswood. NJ oewa. This group. associated with Or. Cart
Mcintyre's "20th Century Reformation Hour.· believes that
some UFOs are angel$ and signs of trte imminent Second
Coming. However. other UFOs are sent by Satan to confuse
people ~!tst rhey recognize the angels.
UFO Subcommittee of the -Committee for the Scientific Inves-
tigation of Claims of the Paranormal: 923 Kensington Avenue.
Buffalo. NY 14215. The first formal organization of UFO skep-
tics. who tackle the "best UFO cases· on record. often with
spectacular success. much to the dismay of most UFO buffs.
Reports o1 activities are ioctvded in the Committee publication
The S#(eptical Inquirer {formerly Zetetic). $12/yr.
The National Enquirer's Slue Ribbon Panel of UFO expertS
(who review "best cases· lor cash rewards). Two regular
membe~ (James Harder and Leo Sprinkle) are joined by a
changing cadre of obscure ·uFO experts.· includtng this
year's v.:nard Armstrong and John L. Warren. More respected
UFOiog:sts have declined offers of membership . Send contest
entries tc UFO REWARD. National Enqwer. Lantana FL.
33464. ,;n entries will be evaluated.
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