by David P Kuhlman, FFSc
UFOlogy has come a long way? I ask this question tongue and cheek. Here in the latter years, since the modern era of UFOlogy was ushered in more and more people have seemed to take notice of a subject that was once considered to be only pure fantasy, or the brainchild of a seriously disturbed individual. Yes, there are many who strive diligently to find the answers that seem so elusive for so long. We have made leaps and bounds to offer legitimacy and worth to the topics of UFOs and alien encounter cases and it seems the tide is shifting in our favor, although slowly and painstakingly. There are many groups, organizations and publications today that offer us an unbiased account of the facts we all want and need to take notice of. Religious groups, such as the Roman Catholics have now offered their input on the great possibility that intelligent life indeed must exist somewhere in this vast universe besides here on planet earth. I mean, can we honestly place limits on Gods creation? Hardly. Yes times have shifted in more ways than one, it is evident through the news, Internet, and it is also in the voices of millions worldwide.
Still there are hard-nosed skeptics and people riddled with pure ignorance, a fact that will always be with us. I mean this is the world we live in and no one person has the same outlook or goals of insight that we may hold important to ourselves. Nothing will change this fact of life. As a rule however, people that are passionate about certain things usually will stick to the core of the belief no matter the costs. They will, in all honesty, defend something that they hold as highly important and credible, especially if others are also depending on the outcome of research that inhabits such a topic or concern. But is this always the truth? Can people lose their focus of the true subject at hand? Do people give in to secular pressures, which can change the outlook and product for everyone? Can a person relate the intended set goals through channels that lead only to ignorance and a mind-set of just being heard? It is sad that many want answers to legitimate questions, yet they loose their source of credibility and respect by allowing outside sources to disrupt the basis of the goals that were set previously.
The UFO subject has always been hit or miss with people all over the world. The reason for most of this is because we have had no credible information to go on. If credible information is thought to be found it usually ends up becoming bomb shelled by being uncovered as an elaborate hoax made by someone wanting a laugh and to also bring attention to themselves, thus the credibility of UFOlogy takes another punch right in the nose. We as researchers have become accustomed to such news of UFO sightings becoming nothing more than ordinary pranks some of which are very crude in nature and others that have been neatly constructed. Whether its an elaborate hoax or not, UFOlogy and the sincere people within its circle suffer at the hands of people who denounce and make light of the efforts everyone has tried so hard to prove genuine. Credibility in UFOlogy has never been an oak and we have misinformation and out right lies to thank for that.
UFOlogy has taken its share of flak from the physical side of the phenomenon being reported, and I am sure as I am writing this right now that it will continue on some level. It is unavoidable to a certain extent, mainly because we have no control over who does what on their own time. If a person wants to fling a pie pan in the air and snap a photo of it and call it genuine, then I guess it will be up to us to decide of its origin. Strictly speaking I think now with all of the elaborate photo equipment we have now it has been much easier to label these as ‘fakes’ and we have done well. We are able to decipher much more accurately the objects that show up on photos than we have in the past… lucky for us.
As I have said earlier, there are many good and respectable supporters of the real UFO phenomenon. They help educate, distribute, and research many of the reports around the world to everyone who lends an ear or eye to the subject. Basically, if you want to learn about UFOs, then you can go to your local bookstore and find a slew of publications on the topic, books written by UFO researchers and investigators, magazines that share insight on past and present encounters, as well as personal opinions on the phenomenon itself. These publications offer just about everything a person wanting genuine education about UFOs can want. I myself enjoy reading books as well as magazines in print and on the Internet. You can learn a lot if you choose to. Being ignorant is a choice.
This brings you, the reader, to my next concern, and if you are as passionate and serious about truly finding the facts about the UFO phenomenon as I am, then it should concern and out-rage you as well. Like I said, I am an avid reader on the UFO phenomenon. I have read in excess of one hundred and fifty books regarding the UFO dilemma. Some for UFOs being alien in origin, some against it, and all of them with documented facts to their opinions why or why not. One cannot surmise the context of any subject rationally without first hearing both sides of any story or belief. That’s just good business on the research end of any topic. However, there is a difference in believing or disbelieving in a subject than making a mockery out of it completely. Mocking something or making light of something that many have spent hours, days, weeks and years chasing is never good practice and is surely not good for anyone interested. So this brings me to the heart of the matter. A matter that has changed my point of view on the over-all credibility of the informer itself and one I am sure you have contributed to over the years as well, enter “UFO Magazine”.
Just like usual, I made it to the local “Barnes and Noble” book store here in my town on a sunny Saturday afternoon. The same trip I make about every couple of months to pick up a new published copy of “UFO Magazine”. I was very anxious to see what new information and exciting news that would fill its printed pages. I usually read at night when it is much quieter than the hectic days can bring, so I placed it on my nightstand for later enjoyment. To say the least, after another day of “life” I decided to turn in a little early as I always do when I am going to spend any amount of time reading, so that is just what I did. I settled down and thumbed through “UFO Magazine” Vol. 24 No.1 Issue # 154 as I usually do to see if anything “jumps” out at me so that I can read it first. Paging through to the seventh one I noticed an unfamiliar face, a columnist. It initially caught my glance simply because I am familiar with the magazines layout since I read it often, and I knew this was a new addition immediately. I was curious and thumbed back to the index page and sure enough, the magazine had added a new columnist to its list, Ms. Deirdre O’ Lavery, Hmmm… never heard of her. Instantly I knew this was the place to start my reading journey through this months issue and quickly paged back to the column titled “Saucers, Slips, and Cigarettes”. That is where my blood began to boil!
Now, “UFO Magazine” to me and I am sure to many other loyal fans, has been a staple to the serious as well as the weekend UFO buff. I know I have enjoyed reading within its pages countless times and it “was” a publication I counted on for legitimate and professional insight into the world of UFO research. This time I was to be sadly and utterly disappointed. The title of the column was strange I thought after reading it, it really didn’t seem to “fit” a serious publication on UFO research, but sometimes the title is to get the attention of the reader and it certainly did its job there and at least one word did correlate with the cigarette hanging out of the side of Ms. O’ Lavery’s clown painted, rose red lips. Confused, I began to read the title of the work, “All Right, Who the Hell Is the New Girl?” “Yeah, who is she…really?” I thought to myself. I began to read. I want to be straight up with every reader out there, I thought this was one big joke! I read the article and with each and every line finished I grew more and more upset.
To start, Ms. O’ Lavery began talking about herself, introducing her column to the reader. As I read I was disgusted and nauseated at her attempt to break the ice with the reader. Foul language and an utter sense of ignorance and disrespect to serious readers was her route. She goes on to write her column like a heathen speaks. She speaks of “not knowing what she is suppose to be doing” in the article. “Flirting”? She asks. What is going on here? This is a UFO researcher? She uses so many foul words in her column, I would be afraid to show it to a life long sailor, really. She attempts to make light of UFOlogy as she continues her misguided work and I quote, “ Well just glance over the periods in which I turned a blind eye to UFOlogy due to the over-abundance of crazy-assed bullshit”. She should be taken as a serious UFO enthusiast folks? She should be a columnist for a publication that is supposed to help support the facts? This is crazy! She also likens UFO reports and materials to “garbage” that she has taken over the years.
She continues with her pursuit at writing and introducing herself to the UFO world by saying “Star Trek” and UFO books influenced her as a child. I hope no kids get a hold of her writings, they certainly won’t learn about UFOs, but their vocabulary will surely become unruly and more of a serious topic to their parents I’m sure. Ms. O’ Lavery continues to curse and make jokes about her qualifications as a UFO enthusiast (this I understand), to the point of referring that all researchers into the UFO phenomenon must be like her, as she states “ Most of my nights are spent sitting in the living room, smoking and drinking while scouring through hundreds of UFO-related Google Alerts”. Can people really take the UFO phenomenon seriously when it is painted that only sorry drunk people with no life dabble into this subject? Folks, this article is a disgrace to everyone that considers UFOlogy worth of investigation! There are no “ifs or “buts” about it. Why would any magazine or publication have her as a columnist either part time or other? Is it because UFOlogy has lost its luster and we need ignorance and buffoons to take over the reins?
I have never been more agitated at any other piece of writing on UFOs than I am on this one. It is simply trash. It has no place in seriousness or in the UFO circle. Why did this columnist get chosen, out of all of the many great writers out there that would take a serious approach to the subject? The answers I guess lie with the publishers of the work, and it is their duty to explain this to all of us. There are other crude and ignorant remarks made by Ms. O’Lavery in her column, and I think you will be as sickened as me after you read it. It is time to stand up for what we believe people. We do not need writers such as O’Lavery to make a mockery of what many hold dear. She is certifiable for this piece of worthless paper with all of her slang and ignorant insight. I wouldn’t trust that she knows anything about the real UFO phenomenon and I urge her to take her insulting and poorly written stories elsewhere. If we are to keep UFOlogy pure as possible for the better of research, why give this jokester a second in a serious publication? What is the reasoning?
As for me, I have come to the end of my tangent. I have also come to the end of my support of “UFO Magazine” and anything related to it unless we the people who work hard and seriously on this topic are given a formal apology for such a ludicrous and worthless piece of journalism. I mean, if it weren’t for the readers, this publication wouldn’t be in existence anyway. Shouldn’t all publishers take this into consideration? We do not want our time and efforts to be made fun of or made to look like we are ignorant for what we strive to hold as a seriousness everyone needs to look at. The publication and writing of this column in “UFO Magazine” was a slap in the face to everyone of you who spend any serious time looking at UFOs. If it is not stopped, it will continue to stain everyone’s reputation in the field. Yes, UFOlogy has come a long way thanks to the great researchers and investigators that have spent the better part of their lives on these issues; we simply do not need and cannot afford the support of people or publications that tear down what we have already managed to build.