Roswell & Wright-Patterson AFB

Hosted byGeorge Knapp

Roswell & Wright-Patterson AFB

About the show

George Knapp was joined by UFO investigators, Don Schmitt and Thomas Carey, who discussed their research into Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and how it played a critical role in the aftermath of the Roswell crash. "Whatever was recovered at Roswell," Schmitt said, "it's initial destination was, indeed, Wright field." As such, the duo explained that their investigation into the base stemmed from the fact that previous studies into the Roswell case often simply end with the debris being sent to Wright-Patterson and, thus, "we thought we'd continue the story." They detailed how Wright-Patterson received the debris because it housed the Air Force's foreign technology division and, thus, had the staff and facilities to study "something that was really foreign." Carey also noted the base's high degree of secrecy as well as an advanced medical facility, which would allow for the handling of any ET crash victims.

On what became of the debris once it arrived at Wright-Patterson, Schmitt recounted the testimony of General Arthur Exon, who served as part of the early Foreign Technology Division at the base in 1947 and was ordered to prepare the lab because "the materials from Roswell were coming in for testing." According to Schmitt, Exon claimed that the consensus from the "top engineers in the military at that time" were that "the materials had to be from space." Additionally, Carey shared the tantalizing story of actor Gordon MacRae, who contended that he was at Wright-Patterson following the Roswell crash and was tasked with guarding the palettes which contained the alien bodies upon their arrival. Despite being ordered not to look under the protective tarp, MacRae allegedly peeked at the cargo and saw small entities with large heads.

The duo also reflected on the recent passing of Jesse Marcel Jr., a critical witness to the aftermath of the Roswell crash, having handled the wreckage of the downed craft. Schmitt credited Marcel with being "the one person who championed all of such witnesses who had the good fortune of handling something that could very well have been manufactured off this planet." Regarding the critics of Marcel's story, Carey suggested that "they never met" the man, because he was the type of person who "could never tell a lie." Ultimately, he mused that Marcel's death is a "stark reminder" that "we're reaching the end of the line as far as firsthand witnesses to various aspects of the story."

Conspiracy Theorists

In the first hour, Dr. Mike Wood, former faculty member at the School of Psychology at the University of Kent, Canterbury, UK talked about his study of conspiracy theorists. Rather than judge the veracity of these theories, Wood said that his work was aimed at understanding the psychology of conspiracy theorists as well as how they construct their arguments. He lamented that some media coverage of the study has misinterpreted it in favor of conspiracy theorists. In particular, Wood cited the findings which showed skeptics to be more hostile in their arguments than their conspiracy-minded counterparts. Wood attributed that result to the fact that those in the minority, such as conspiracy theorists, have to be more civil in order to argue their case.

Illustration from Getty Images

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Last Night

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