Looking for the point of seemingly pointless research.
The MoD document compiles UFO sightings reported to the ministry over previous decades. But the top-secret nature of the project meant that none of the UFO witnesses were questioned further about their experience. "That's the weakness of the report," says Ian Ridpath, an astronomy writer and UFO-debunker from Brentford, UK, who was a guest speaker at Clarke's press conference on 8 May. No scientists were directly consulted, and the author relied instead on literature searches, says Clarke. It even appears to rely on some pretty "dodgy" theories put about in UFO folklore, he adds.
Clarke suggests that whereas the MoD had claimed for years that UFOs posed no threat, internal memos reveal that in the late 1990s they realized that the department wouldn't actually be able to back up that assertion if pressed on the issue, and needed a report to fall back on. The identity of the author is still unknown, although Clarke believes it was a retired RAF pilot.
Well in hindsight, I should have said how far they did not go, since the report was so secret they did not interview anyone.
Where are Sculler and Mulder when you need them?
[edit on 5/9/2006 by shots]





