In a sense, the tactics used by government and intelligence agencies, to stave off demands to end the UFO cover-up, rely on this disinterest.  Ufologists can be easily brushed to one side in the knowledge that they lack any general, coherent clout.  If necessary, well-aimed comments ridiculing the subject in general will bring about the predictable titter of amusement in most people, effectively taking the sting out of any UFO researcher’s argument.  This is a well-established tactic which has culminated in the cultural attitude towards UFOs that we have today.

UFO Magazine don’t tend to jump on too many bandwagons.  They have a history of proceeding with the utmost caution with new material.  So their total vindication in publicising this particular footage is evidence of their excitement.  One can anticipate a major event here.  As the footage was relayed around the world from 11th March onwards, many people who have a neutral stance towards a UFO reality may come off the fence.  This could have political repercussions as the media, sensing blood, move in on the authorities.  So one would expect a pre-emptive strike to kill this material by the government and NASA.

Cosmic Conspiracies wonders if it has already encountered just such a strike.  Dave, our IT guru and dedicated UFO buff, has belonged to a certain e-group dedicated to the discussion of anomalous craft.  This last week has seen the emergence of an individual called John Locker,claiming to be a freelance satellite communications consultant.  He has issued a flagrant broad-side aimed at debunking the latest footage, which hasn’t even been released yet.  Arguing the toss about ice particles and orbiting paint flakes, he attempted to show that there was nothing to it at all.  He has watched many hours of footage, knows people in NASA and the media, and claimed to be an authority on these matters.  From this viewpoint he proceeded to attack Ufology with the usual sarcastic jibes.  Dave entered the fray and supplied a great deal of data in support of the theory that NASA’s footage showed anomalous craft, and so the argument continued.  Dave included a few jokes of his own, and then found himself falling foul of those who were overseeing proceedings.

Right, so here is a clear example of a bit of pre-emptive debunking.  We suggest for any non believers to get hold of a copy of 'The Smoking Gun Evidence' from UFO Magazine. Having watched the film, we cannot explain what is on this footage. These anomalies are definately NOT ice crystal!!.  Even so, it can be subject to a litany of abuse from the so-called experts.  There is also evidence here of the lack of a level playing field.  It’s okay to laugh at UFOs and their advocates, quite another to humorously dig at the short-comings in the arguments of the ‘experts’.  What can UFO enthusiasts do about this kind of situation?

We anticipate that things are about to hot up, and advocate standing one’s ground when faced with ridicule.  If the authorities find themselves on the back-foot, then surely that is the time to make the most of their embarrassment.  After all, they have kicked Ufology when it is down many a time.  Now is the time to stand by the evidence and be counted.

Andy
12/2/00

Below are a few comments from the 'sceptics' which we encountered when discussing the latest 'Smoking Gun' footage.

Excellent scientific data was being gathered when tether snapped on flightday three as satellite was just short of full deployment of about 12.8 miles (20.6 kilometers). Satellite immediately began speeding away fromorbiter as a result of orbital forces and the crew was never in any danger.Reason for tether break not immediately clear and investigative board convened on ground to determine cause. Crew retracted deployer and remaining tether following day. Meanwhile, scientists did gather useful data from curtailed deployment. Currents measured during deployment phase were at least three times greater than predicted by analytical modeling, and amount of power generated wasdirectly proportional to the current. Tether voltages of as high as 3,500volts were developed across the tether, and current levels of about 480 milliamps were achieved. Researchers also able to study how gas from satellite's thrusters interacts with ionosphere. Also collected first-time measurements of ionized shock wave around the TSS satellite, a phenomenon that cannot be studied in the laboratory and is difficult to mathematically
model. Another first was collection of data on the plasma wakes created bymoving body through electrically-charged ionosphere. Some experiments conducted using free- flying satellite and attached tether before it re-entered Earth's atmosphere and broke up.

After a very lengthy debate about the footage, Dave challenged Mr Locker to prove his theory that the discs on the STS footage are nothing more than space debris or ice particles. He sent us this letter as proof!

from Tim Matthews. Date: 19 September 1999 11:21

Dear All,

At Day 1 of yesterday's UFO Magazine (UK) Conference (referring to the Leeds UFO Conference) Graham Birdsall showed some NASA TV footage that he'd obtained after sending his colleague Russ Callaghan on a mission to meet 'a source' in Canada. Later, Birdsall claimed that he had 'smoking gun'  evidence that would embarass NASA and prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that we are not alone and that 'craft' are regularly captured on Shuttle cameras.

Perhaps one of the reasons Graham and co. needed to look to Canada is that Britain's #1 researcher of NASA footage, and satellite communicationsexpert, has been working with me for over two years in our own investigation into claims surrounding NASA footage and the supposed 'cover-up'.

From the 10-15 minute sample of footage shown yesterday several things are clear;

 1 - The objects seen by the cameras are a variety of space debris anddust particles. (We're not convinced that they are ice crystals.)

 2 - When the booster rockets on board the Shuttle fire, particles aroundit are obviously dislodged. This fact has not, to my knowledge, beenmentioned by the supporters of the NASA conspiracy theory...

3 - The proponents of the conspiracy theory appear to be unaware that the Shuttle cameras are often out of focus, that objects much nearer to thecameras can seem further away AND that because low-light filters are sometimes used debris and dust passing by looks brighter than it usually would. Not to mention the sunlight that glints and reflects off the debris.....

 4 - Graham Birdsall claims that his 'Canadian' source has 'hundreds ofhours' of footage. This is not particularly unusual; John Locker, a topUK Satellite Communications Expert - has similar hours of material includingall the relevant STS-82 footage. (the smoking gun footage is taken from STS -75 - Dave)

5 - In fact, John was contacted some months ago by a man called Don whowe suspect might be Graham Birdsall's 'secret' source of information - or associated with him in some way. We have in our possession a message from Don in which he requests a deal whereby John would give him the STS-82
footage with audio (that he presented at my 1997 Conference - months before anyone else!) and would get "UFOs, The Best Evidence Ever on Tape"...in return. Some swap!
(Funny seeming that I was offered this very same footage for £2000 from John... and if you read the attached letter below, Don actually mentions that he would send a money order? so who's ripping off who? - Dave)

 6 - Graham Birdsall reportedly claimed on Friday night that NASA TV was'off-line'. Yesterday he tried to bolster this claim and, in front of the 500 attenders to his 18th International UFO Conference, made a variety ofsimilarly misleading claims about the footage. For a start NASA TV has not been 'taken off-line'. John gets the feed, as do others. This is coveredin detail by John in issue 1 of our magazine, BEYOND, in an article on NASATV where we challenge the claims of the NASA conspiracy theorists andespecially Dr. Jack Kasher, who, by virtue of his position within MUFON, can hardly be seen as an independent source in terms of STS footage research.

7 - Graham Birdsall is going, apparently, to go to the world's press withthis 'smoking gun' footage. He's going to hold a major press conference!

I suggest that he thinks again in light of these conclusions and the underwhelming nature of the footage available. I also suggest that Ufologists find out more about the cameras used on the missions...(A very sweeping statement seeming that Russel Callahan of UFO Magazine actually worked as a Kodak Film Technician)

I noted with great interest yesterday that Tim Good also found the footage to be unimpressive....Those who believe that this footage is 'evidencethat we are not alone' can only do so on the basis that they believe what theyare told and do not have the information to come to a sensible conclusion about it

 8 - Don, the North American contact, wrote thus

John,
I put in an order for a one hour worth of NASA video tape concerningthe STS-82 event. I ordered it from Gale Frehre of NASA's video department. The time and date that I asked for was February 18, 1997, 0615 GMT to 0715 GMT. When I received the tape in the mail I noticed that they only sent me 20 minutes of footage and it was labeled as orbit 104. When I viewed it on my VCR they were indeed doing a EVA and then returned to the airlock but I did not hear any conversation out of the ordinary. I don't believe they included enough footage or the EVA I was watching was not the one we are all interested in. I am sure they engaged in more than one EVA. They may have purposely sent me the wrong EVA? Gale Frehre told me that NASA did not downlink that part I am lookingfor.  But I know that is a lie because you have seen and heard it and so haveothers. Also she says that what everybody is all excited about is a fewbuttons on the wall (she had a defiant attitude).

THERE IS A MAN OVER HERE LIVING IN NEBRASKA WHO RECORDED IT. HIS SON WHO IS IN COLLEGE TOOK THE TAPE TO COLLEGE TO LET THE PROFESSOR VIEW IT. THE PROFESSOR, HARRY JORDAN, WHO IS A FRIEND OF DR. JACK KASHER WHO ANALYZED THE STS-48 [?] FOOTAGE FOR ME. JORDAN VIEWED IT WITH MUCH INTEREST AND THEN RETURNED IT TO THE STUDENT, WHEN HARRY LATER DOWN THE ROAD TRIED TO RE-BORROW IT IN ORDER TO MAKE A TAPE, THE FATHER BALKED BECAUSE HE WAS GETTING SPOOKED ON HOW SERIOUS IT ALL WAS GETTING AND REFUSED TO LET HARRY JORDAN REBORROW IT.

 I would be more than happy and willing to be that person to handle andreceive that tape from you to get the word out over here. I would make sure that you would get full credit of being the source of the tape. I couldcheck the prices for transatlantic shipment and pay for the cost of thecopy and perhaps a copy of that enhancement if you wish to include that.On 28th July 1997 on National Fox TV there was a special UFO program called "UFOs, the best evendience Ever on Tape."

80% OF THE NASA FOOTAGE SHOWN WAS MINE AND I SENT THAT TO THE PRODUCERS KIVIAT PRODUCTIONS WITH ONE STIPULATION AND THAT WAS THAT I WOULD GET SCROLL-UP CREDIT AT THE END OF THE SHOW FOR THE FOOTAGE THAT I SENT THEM. THEY AGREED. BUT VIEWING THE CREDIT SHOWED THEY LIED AND DID NOT GIVE ME CREDIT.

Oh well. But anyway if you want this footage to be seen in the US I cando it. My NASA UFO FOOTAGES have been seen on many National UFO shows in the US. Also when I send you a money order for the cost of the STS-82 tape I can include for you a copy of the recent program "UFOs, The Best Ever Evidence On Tape" and will include at the beginning THE NEVER BEFORE SEEN APOLLO 16 SAUCER 16MM FOOTAGE FROM NEAR THE MOON.

The Best,

 Don.

WE WOULD ALSO LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT THE SCEPTIC IN THIS DEBATE WAS WILLING TO LET US HAVE HIS COPY OF THE STS-82 FOOTAGE FOR  £2000 AND MADE A POINT IN THE ABOVE RESPONSE ABOUT DON NOT GIVING HIM MONEY, WHICH AS YOU CAN SEE BY DON'S LETTER JUST ISN'T TRUE! (ALL NASA FOOTAGE IS COPYRIGHT FREE) SO WHO'S KIDDING WHO HERE? ALSO AS WE NOW KNOW, 'DON' WASN'T THE PERSON WHO HAD 'THE SMOKING GUN FOOTAGE', IT WAS MARTYN STUBBS.