George Knapp welcomed author and paranormal investigator Christopher O'Brien, who discussed the legendary tricksters of mythology and how these entities may be manifesting in a myriad of ways that contemporary society describes as "paranormal." According to tradition, he said, tricksters are amoral entities whose main function is to both break down the status quo and to introduce "novelty and change into a static system." As its name suggests, O'Brien explained, the trickster is more often mischievous rather than evil, drawing confusion from those who encounter it.
Having examined the historical descriptions of tricksters in cultures throughout the world, O'Brien uncovered one prevailing trend: that the entity possessed the ability to shape shift. Based on that observation, he theorized that the trickster may be behind many of the staples of the paranormal world such as cattle mutilations, elementals like fairies and dwarfs, and even UFOs. Rather than an entity, per se, O'Brien speculated that the trickster is a force within the collective unconscious that takes on different characteristics depending on the culture observing it. He noted the bizarre airship wave of the late 1800's as a potential case of the trickster in action.
O'Brien also voiced suspicions that that "certain elements within our culture" have discovered the nature of this trickster energy and are manipulating it for nefarious ends. Suggesting that this agenda has been ongoing for centuries, O'Brien noted that the emergence of monotheistic religions resulted in the trickster being "cast as a demon" so that it could be marginalized by those in power. However, he said, the trickster may actually be beneficial to mankind as its confounding nature could result in observers "thinking outside of the box" and coming up with revolutionary ideas which could change the world.
Art Bell Update
During the first hour, Art Bell phoned in to assure C2C listeners that he and his family are doing well despite the typhoon which struck the Philippines. He said that the nation got "one month's worth of rain in six hours" and that much of the Manila area is underwater. He described the situation as similar to Hurricane Katrina and that "any help is welcome" for the afflicted citizens of the Philippines.
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A number of articles have caught George Knapp's attention in the last week, including a story confirming the discovery of element 114, a new claim regarding the famous Socorro UFO case, and reports of UFO attacks on humans:
In addition to these news stories, George also received this compelling open letter from A. J. Gevaerd, editor of Brazilian UFO Magazine:
Dear Colleagues,
This is to inform that Brazilian Government has just declassified a new set of significant previously secret UFO documents, now covering the 80s. We already had disclosures covering the 50s, 60s and 70s, all with very important documents and information. So far over 4,000 pages have been disclosed.
The recent disclosure is particularly powerful because it contains dozens of reports of UFOs on May 19, 1986, considered the "Official UFO Night in Brazil", when 21 spherical objects, estimated 100 meters in diameter - according to military sources - were detected by radars and spotted by civilian pilots, and literally jammed air traffic over the major Brazilian Airports, such as Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Then, several Mirage and F5 jets were scrambled to pursue them.
As a result of that "invasion", the Air Force minister brigadier Octavio Moreira Lima went public about it the other morning on the national TV network, declaring all facts openly. The pilots who took part in the pursue and their commanders also spoke freely about the pursuits, which occurred over several hours.
We've had several other disclosures since 2007, all as a direct result of the campaign UFOs: Freedom Of Information Now, promoted since 2004 by the Brazilian Committee of UFO Researchers. The latest disclosure comprises over 2,200 new pages of formerly secret UFO documents that were given to the Committee and also sent to the Brazilian National Archives.
In late July, hundreds of papers from the Brazilian Air Force's official System for the Investigation of Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (SIOANI) have demonstrated how the nation's military authorities dealt with the UFO Phenomena in the 60s and 70s.
Considering that SIOANI wasn't a top secret agency and that even civilian researchers took part in its procedures, the structure and functionality of which proves that Brazil is the first country in the world to officially and publicly admit the reality of the UFO Phenomena, and the first to investigate it openly.
For instance, where have you ever seen color drawings of flying saucers reported by witnesses and investigated by military personnel, such as these ones?
These are only a few links to recently discovered colored drawings of UFOs seen in Brazil and investigated in the 60s and 70s by the Brazilian Air Force's official System for the Investigation of Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (SIOANI). Much more is about to be disclosed.
The Brazilian UFO Magazine website - www.ufo.com.br - already has thousands of pages for download, such as over 1,200 pages of documents, 200 photos of SIOANI's activities and Operation Saucer, carried out in the Amazonian region in 1977. Along with documents received by the Committee from other military sources.
Included in the recently revealed documents are the detailed research proceedings carried out in dozens of UFO-related incidents which had not been made public previously. Some of the colored sketches of UFO incidents investigated by SIOANI are here:
www.ufo.com.br/documentos/sioani/Novos_documentos
Other documents can be found here:
www.ufo.com.br/documentos/sioani/
www.ufo.com.br/documentos/prato/
www.ufo.com.br/documentos/extra/
www.ufo.com.br/documentos/geral/
This material is public thanks to the efforts of the Brazilian Committee of UFO Researchers (CBU), as a direct result of the campaign UFOs: Freedom of Information Now.
A. J. Gevaerd,
Editor, Brazilian UFO Magazine