Inside ufology - may, '88

==============Inside UfologyMay 1988==============GULF BREEZE
FEUD HEATS UPParaNet Alpha 05/06 -- As predicted, the Gulf Breeze
case has incited the strongest of emotions on both sides, and even
the same side, of the ufological fence. The Hynek Center for UFO
Studies recently released a Special Bulletin condemning the case
as a "probable hoax" and taking rival MUFON to task for "shoddy
investigative techniques." But MUFON's Walt Andrus was quick to call
ParaNet and warn us, "Don't you believe it!"    In a brief interview
with Dr. Bruce Maccabee, who spent a week in the Florida Panhandle
looking over the photos and chatting with "Mr. Ed," it was learned
that the CUFOS article was based at least partly on the work of Ray
Stanford of Project Starlight International, who objected to the
apparent motion of the clouds in one sequence of photos. Stanford's
data told him the clouds should be moving in a different direction
if the photos were taken sequentially. Stanford has since retracted
that claim, however, since finding that his weather data was faulty.
But the divisiveness continues.     Robert Boyd, of both CUFOS and
MUFON, wrote a lengthy letter outlining some of his other objections
to the case. They include:    o  The "chumminess" factor -- the major
corroborating witnesses are the mother and father-in-law of Duane
Cook, the editor of the local paper.    o  The "Hokiness" factor --
The object just looks too much like a cartoon representation of a
flying saucer - and a bad one at that.    o  The "Practical Jokiness"
factor -- Mr. Ed, who involves himself with the local youth, was said
by one teenager to be plotting "The Ultimate Prank." Dr. Maccabee
counters that the prank was to be played on the high school
bandleader, and not the world at large.    o  The "Flaw" factor --
there seems to be a prominent chink in the bottom rim of the object.
The CUFOS article suggests several ways in which the photos might
have been faked, including the rather interesting possibility that
a household object was suspended in front of a window, in order
to reflect and be superimposed onto an outdoor scene. But this
fails to explain the videotaped image, says Maccabee, as well as
the enigmatic "road" picture, where the object is seen hovering a
few inches over the highway, its bright bottom light reflecting off
the blacktop.    Most speculation centers around whether or not the
photos are double-exposures. When the possibility of Mr. Ed having
fashioned an actual backyard "flying saucer" was broached, Maccabee
dismissed it out of hand. "Nothing we've seen would indicate that
he had that level of skill."    A major factor in Mr. Ed's defense
is his character, according to his supporters. Both Maccabee and
Budd Hopkins, who also spent a week in the Panhandle, say that, if
he's lying, he deserves an Oscar -- and so do many of his friends
and family members. "The `Hoax Hypothesis' is unfalsifiable," says
Maccabee. "Any evidence we bring out in his favor is countered with,
`Well, that just shows that he's all the more clever a practical
joker.' Conceivably we could go around and around with it, and hence
it could never be shown that its NOT a hoax."    One interesting
tid-bit brought out in our conversation with Maccabee was the fact
that Mr. Ed does have a history of photographic playfulness. At a
Halloween party a few years back, he handily double-exposed some
Polaroids to convince the partiers that ghosts were sitting next
to them, a la Disneyland's Haunted House. But Maccabee eschews
the anecdote, insisting that the UFO photos would require greater
skill by far.     Don Schmitt, a CUFOS investigator in Wisconsin,
agreed the Special Bulletin may have been premature. He admitted
that the Center was "concerned about the amount of positive hype
the case is getting in advance of definitive analysis," citing as
an example Walt Andrus' statement that Gulf Breeze "may turn out
to be the most significant case" in UFO history. When pressed,
Schmitt also agreed that the Center was afraid of CSICOP jumping
out of the bushes to yell "Gotcha!" Indeed, the air has been
rife with rumors of The Amazing Randi pulling off another "sting"
similar to his exposures of faith-healers and ESP laboratories. But
Schmitt's, and the Center's, main concern was the apparent all-out
endorsement of the case by abduction researcher Budd Hopkins, whose
very involvement Schmitt questioned. "What's he doing there? Why
is he endorsing photographs? This isn't even his territory," said
Schmitt. CUFOS wanted to cool the fires a bit by getting Hopkins
and other investigators to back off and wait for the analysis.
There's no doubt CUFOS is right about the seeming lack of scientific
objectivity displayed by the Gulf Breeze protagonists. But its a
bit ironic to hear such outright, premature criticism from a group
that is still calling for a full hearing on the MJ-12 evidence, in
light of the work already done by Barry Greenwood and Phil Klass,
which shows it to be an almost certain hoax.    And in one respect,
Walt Andrus' prediction that Gulf Breeze may prove to be "the most
significant case in UFO history" is well on its way to coming true.
--Jim Speiserlain the videotaped image, says Maccabee, as well as
the enigmatic "road" picture, where the object is seen hovering a
few inch


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