Stephenville UFO incidents explored in detail

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

According to a May 19 Associated Press article by Angela K. Brown, an investigation of the Stephenville and Erath County, Texas, UFO sightings has concluded that "most of the 300 reported sightings ... earlier this year were probably planets, cloud formations or stars."

The investigation the AP article referred to was that of the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON).

Kenneth Cherry, MUFON´S Texas director, told the AP that although his investigators concluded that many witnesses saw planets and cloud formations, other reports by very credible observers were more difficult to explain.

"Hard-core" evidence included nearly identical descriptions by three area peace officers.

Cherry said, "The bottom line is: We really do believe something did occur down there. That doesn't mean we know what it was, who it belongs to or where it came from."

Now that MUFON has issued a report, it may be appropriate to review some of the key timelines and events of the Stephenville and Erath County sightings.

FIRST REPORTS

In January 2008, residents in the towns of Stephenville, Dublin and other areas of Erath County reported seeing unusual lights and/or what seemed to be solid objects in the skies there.

The local newspaper, the Stephenville Empire-Tribune, carried articles about these citizen reports written by reporter Angelia Joiner.

In a Jan. 14 article, the AP's Brown wrote the first story on the incident for the national and international news media.

According to the AP article, "several dozen" local residents observed "a large silent object with bright lights flying low and fast."

These witnesses included "a pilot, county constable and business owners," the AP reported.

When I covered the initial AP report in a Jan. 15 article (link), the sightings seemed like another of several, including the 2006 Chicago O´Hare airport incident and others.

What was particularly interesting was the account of one local citizen: "Local resident Ricky Sorrells said he spotted a flat, metallic object hovering approximately 300 feet above a pasture near his home. Sorrells said he used the telescopic sight on his rifle to view the object."

By Jan. 17, the story of the Stephenville UFOs had spread around the country and the world. CNN and other major media had picked up the AP report and, surprisingly to some people, covered the case with objectivity and intelligence.

Soon, researchers and news media were heading for Erath County. Maybe even some government spooks were looking around too.

In a Jan. 17 article (link) on these developments, I included additional background on the UFO phenomena, as I understood it, because many Texans and others were apparently curious about any background on the subject.

In the article, I also touched on the idea of "acclimation" of the public about the UFO situation.

BIGGER PICTURE

As CNN's Larry King, the NBC Today show's Matt Lauer and other media continued to cover the Stephenville sightings, it seemed that some deeper background and context would be helpful.

So, in a Jan. 22 article (link) I took a look at other emerging phenomena and the way things like social psychology, religion and human consciousness might be part of a larger picture.

I touched on the issue of "remote viewing," ESP techniques developed by U.S. military and intelligence communities, because this is another unusual and somewhat unexplained situation too, like UFOs. In addition, the topic of remote viewing helps get to the heart of research about human consciousness and what it is connected to.

By late January, as the Air Force changed its story about F-16s being in the air over Stephenville the night of some of the sightings, the public was getting more curious about the case. More witness accounts and rumors were surfacing. Many people thought the Air Force reversal about military aircraft activity in the area was interesting.

My Jan. 25 article (link) provided some updates and reminded readers that public information officers and public affairs officers are sometimes put in difficult positions.

Related to this, issues of distribution of "intelligence" have both secret and open aspects. I touched on "open source intelligence" or OSINT. Human intelligence (HUMINT) was obviously another kind of intel playing a big part in the Stephenville incidents.

As Texans and people around the U.S. and the world pondered the Stephenville case, more natural questions emerged: What if we are being "visited?" If so, who are they? And how long have they been visiting and what are they doing?

Of course, many people interested in this field have wondered about and researched these questions. So, in my Jan. 26 report (link) I tried to give a reasonable overview of what some of the views and theories were.

From the basics such as the so-called "Roswell incident" to reports of different kinds of ETs, the article kicked around concepts and rumors to get people thinking "outside the box" a bit.

WITNESS THREATENED?

Then things got a big scary back in Erath County. One of the main witnesses who had appeared on TV news shows, Ricky Sorrells, reported he had been threatened on the phone by a person identifying himself as an Air Force colonel. Then, a menacing stranger appeared at his rural home in the middle of the night.

Sorrells' story was covered in the Stephenville Empire-Tribune newspaper by reporter Angelia Joiner, who had been swamped with calls and e-mails over past weeks from local residents, researchers and other news media representatives.

The details of Sorrells' 2:30 a.m. encounter with an intruder was frightening to many and injected a more serious factor into the UFO sightings.

My Feb. 7 piece (link) detailed this troubling incident and pointed out that, according to some researchers, witnesses to UFO sightings have frequently been subjects of interest for apparent government operatives or others, both in the U.S. and other countries.

Then another strange development took place in Stephenville. The reporter who had been covering the reports from residents from the beginning, Angelia Joiner, suddenly left the Empire-Tribune in an apparent falling-out with newspaper managers.

Joiner had apparently done an admirable job in covering the story and fielding inquiries and tips. Her solid reporting had caught the attention of the national media and the tone of her articles seemed to contribute to the serious and professional news coverage that followed.

Local residents who stepped forward were treated with respect by Joiner and others in the media.

Shortly after Joiner's article on the apparent threats to Sorrells, which appeared to be a law enforcement and public safety story as much as a UFO topic, Joiner left the paper.

As a former community newspaper reporter myself, this development seemed particularly interesting and I took a look at it in a Feb. 9 report (link).

The fact that the roles of the news media and the dissemination of information about the UFO situation are such important and apparently complex elements made Joiner's separation from the Empire-Tribune all the more interesting.

The issue of censorship and the manipulation of the news media have long been and are now very crucial topics of public discussion about everything from unusual phenomena to the invasion and occupation of Iraq.

POLICE VIDEO AND FOREIGN-OWNED MEDIA

Although it turned out that Joiner's decision to leave the newspaper was somewhat of a mutual decision or sorts, many interested people wanted to contact the owners of the Empire-Tribune, apparently a Texas-based media company.

However, as people looked deeper into this matter, it turned out that the paper, and dozens of other community papers in Texas and around the U.S., had been purchased by a huge foreign financial conglomerate in Australia called Macquarie.

Macquarie also had a road construction division that was pushing a huge toll-road project in Texas – a project that many Texans apparently opposed.

This, of course, was an element of the possible manipulation of the press not by shadowy government intelligence agents covering up UFOs, but by a foreign company with business interests and a reputation of very friendly relations with government officials, including high-paying positions with the company.

This was a slight detour from the main UFO subject, but one that was interesting to Texans and others interested in the integrity of the U.S. news media and the journalism profession.

In my Feb. 13 article (link) I covered this angle as well as other even more shocking news emerging from sources in Stephenville: A UFO had been caught on police car videotape.

Erath County Constable Lee Roy Gaitan, who had been an original witness to unusual lights in the area and had been interviewed by media representatives, revealed that local peace officers had caught the UFO on a "dash cam" mounted on patrol cars.

It was also made clear that several local law enforcement officers had witnessed highly unusual lights and/or solid objects and had compared notes and drawn sketches. These officers were reluctant to come forward publicly, Gaitan said.

As an elected official, Gaitan indicated he did not have concerns about being fired for treating the situation honestly and as openly as possible, though other officers did have these concerns.

Around this time frame, things started breaking fairly fast on this story. In a second Feb. 13 piece (link) I reported on more details of accounts by local public safety officers about what was on the police video.

Gaitan himself watched the video and provided a detailed description to researcher and Emmy Award-winning journalist Linda Moulton Howe.

The fact that the police dash cam had a zoom feature allowed officers to see a more detailed view of a very unusual object.

It also became clear that local officers were in a delicate position of knowing more than was reaching the public and they were coordinating among themselves about how to handle these surprising developments.

They didn't learn how to handle a situation like this in law enforcement training.

But, for those who have looked into how public safety personnel handle UFO matters, there is the well-known 1992 firefighter training manual A FIRE OFFICER'S GUIDE TO DISASTER CONTROL published by Fire Engineering Books & Videos.

Authors and experienced firefighting experts William M. Kramer and Charles W. Bahme cover many aspects of this important public safety profession. Along with conventional firefighter training, there is an interesting chapter titled "Disaster Control and UFOs."

I included that chapter verbatim in my article. This was intended to provide information and support for peace officers, firefighters and citizens about research, planning and procedures.

As the media were covering the Stephenville situation in a fairly robust way, and there seemed to be a lot of public interest, a natural question seemed to arise: Why should people and the media care about UFOs? This was a good question and I tried to give some food for thought about it in a Feb. 15 article (link).

DEVELOPING STORY

By Feb. 24, one officer involved was identified as Erath County Sheriff's Department Sgt. Jim Clifton. Reporter Angelia Joiner, now writing for the new Web site StephenvilleLights.com, provided continuing coverage from sources in the Stephenville area, including the law enforcement community.

Clifton and Constable Lee Roy Gaitan were responding to an alarm at a local restaurant on Feb. 2 when they saw something unusual in the sky, Joiner had reported. The object was picked up and taped by a patrol car dash cam.

In my Feb. 24 report (link), I provided an overview and details of this encounter as reported by Gaitan, Joiner and researcher Howe.

The account of the two officers observing the object was fascinating.

Then, on Feb. 28, Joiner reported on StephenvilleLights.com that a third respected officer had come forward.

In a March 1 article (link), based on Joiner's reporting, I wrote, "Mike Zimmerman saw something in the sky that he cannot explain. Zimmerman, 62, is a veteran officer of 25 years with the Texas Department of Public Safety. He served on the protective detail for five Texas governors over a period of 19 years, including former governor George W. Bush."

Joiner's relationships and mutual respect and trust with local people had once again led to amazing information.

On Jan. 31, Zimmerman saw something from the window of his home that was not quite like other witnesses, but was very out of the ordinary.

He showed Joiner a sketch and notes he had made. In her article, Joiner wrote that "the two white lights were shooting out beams of white light in a pulsating strobe light effect. The reddish orange light closer to the horizon did not have beams shooting from it."

Joiner also quoted Zimmerman as saying, "At first I thought it might be three helicopters with really bright search lights until I noticed the beams of white lights shooting out to the side of the bright lights."

By late March, local officers who had witnessed something created a sketch and it was released to the public via StephenvilleLights.com.

In a March 25 article (link) I included descriptions by officers and Joiner's quotes of an officer about an incident that occurred Jan. 8, 2008, between 7:30 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. The officer's name was not released.

The diagram of the object described it as being somewhat flat and octagon-shaped with raised portions on the top and bottom. Views from the side, top and bottom are illustrated in the diagram.

The object was described by witnessing officers as 400 feet long and 35 feet from bottom to top. Officers reported that it was a dull green in color, with lights in various configurations.

The verbatim narrative of the officer, referencing the diagram, as reported by Joiner, is below:

"This is what I and several other officers saw. I did not see the back, only the frontal view."

"The two large lights were bright like landing lights, but solid light blue in color similar to LED. The wing tip lights remained steady. The top and bottom tower lights strobed sporadically."

"It had three towers on the bottom and two on top. It was bigger than a B1 Bomber."

"It lumbered around town then headed off towards Mineral Wells."

"It did not leave fast like some are saying. It left slowly. I saw it make a turn. It turned slightly at a 30 degree angle and stayed there for a moment with no movement. It then went to 90 degrees, added a large light in the middle, and moved off at 27 mph and accelerating."

UFO SPEED TRACKED WITH RADAR DEVICE

When it seemed like the Stephenville UFO incidents could not get any more interesting, something even more surprising was revealed.

The officer who said the object was traveling "at 27 mph" apparently either had a good eye for measuring speed or some other information.

Sure enough, Joiner once again broke the story in a March 30 article on StephenvilleLights.com that the officer had tracked the object with his police radar gun and measured the speed precisely as the UFO departed.

This development was too good for me to not write a piece about it so I made it the focal point of a March 31 article (link).

Joiner did not identify this officer and referred to him as "Officer X" in her reports.

"I want people to know that the citizens are telling the truth," Officer X told Joiner.

"They're not lying," he said. "They are telling the truth. There was something there. I think it's stealthy. It has a stealth capability. I think it can change colors with the sky. It was as dark as the sky until it lit up."

He also confirmed that several other local officers also witnessed the craft.

When he first observed the craft, it was hovering in a horizontal position. It was approximately 100 to 500 feet off the ground, based on reports of other officers.

Officer X told Joiner, "My estimate is the object was about a half mile away at the most. At first, I thought it was a big aircraft, but then I realized it was hovering. I then thought, 'An aircraft that size doesn't hover.'"

Joiner quoted him as stating that, "It started out horizontal, went up to the left at 30 to 40 degrees, and stopped for about five seconds. Then it went slowly vertical. It took about another five seconds to do this; then it slowly moved away to the northwest. It was one big craft."

The object eventually slowly moved away from him, still at a low altitude. Then he could no longer observe it as it went behind trees. He was also called to respond to an unrelated official police situation.

ONGOING SITUATION

Just last week, the government of the United Kingdom released previously classified files on UFO sightings and investigations.

The chief astronomer at the Vatican Observatory said in published reports that extraterrestrial visitors are possible and tried to integrate this possibility or probability with Christian beliefs.

CNN's Larry King and NBC's Dateline shows both recently covered the ongoing topic of UFOs and the idea of extraterrestrial and/or extra-dimensional visitation.

We are sure to hear more about this topic in the coming days.

Whether we like it or not, we are becoming used to sightings, reports and theories about what these objects in the sky and close encounters might mean. We are becoming acclimated to these incidents and to a possible unusual situation.

The Stephenville incidents helped put the issue in the media spotlight and the brave and down-to-Earth people of Erath County helped all of us deal with these reports in a straightforward and responsible way.

There are sure to be more such incidents in the future and hopefully we will handle them with intelligence, safety, compassion, strength, common sense and open minds.

UFO acclimation now underway?

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

The NBC show “Dateline” and msnbc.com have put out a request to the public to submit photos and videos of UFOs.

According to the msnbc.com Web site (link), a show is planned this Sunday, May 18, using photos and videos of UFOs they receive.

On the msnbc.com site, the public is asked, “Do you think you have seen a UFO? Tell us about it and you may be featured in a future episode of Dateline NBC or on msnbc.com.”

“On Sunday, May 18, Dateline plans to count down ‘10 Close Encounters Caught on Tape,’" according to msnbc.com.

“If you think you've had your own close encounter, submit it here with any photos or videos, and you could be featured on Dateline or on msnbc.com. Videos and stories should be authentic and not staged. Material may appear on NBC’s Dateline broadcast and/or Web site. Tell us your story …”

This Dateline and msnbc.com call for submission of photos and videos for a show is just another development that has raised national and international public awareness about the UFO situation.

The recent news that the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) is releasing more previously secret documents about UFOs, with some of the information apparently quite compelling, has been viewed as a positive step by those interested in further disclosure about this subject.

In the Vatican newspaper, the pope’s chief astronomer, Father Gabriel Funes, has written an article about intelligent extraterrestrial beings titled “Aliens Are My Brother.” Funes is director of the Vatican Observatory and is respected as a scientist who works with other international astronomers, according to published reports.

These developments further acclimate the public to theories, reports, questions and perspectives about the possible visitation to Earth of intelligent extraterrestrial and/or extra-dimensional beings, as well as other possible emerging phenomena.

ACCLIMATION AND DISCLOSURE

Orienting and informing the public about possible developments in the area of extraterrestrial visitation to Earth has been a subject of much speculation and concern in the decades since the end of World War II.

Journalists and writers, TV and film project producers, government military and intelligence personnel, as well as interested people in the U.S. and around the world have been exposed to more ideas, theories and rumors about UFOs and ETs over the years.

We have been acclimated to the idea that it is possible for our planet to have been visited by intelligent beings from elsewhere in space, time and/or other dimensions.

There may even be indications that disclosure of real information about the UFO situation has been subtly released to the public to further orient, acclimate and prepare Americans and people internationally.

Recent UFO reports such as those in Stephenville, Texas, and Chicago’s O’Hare airport were reported in responsible and serious ways by many in the news media.

The most recent incident in Phoenix, reported to be road flares tied to helium balloons and launched by a local resident, does little to cast doubt on the 1997 incident in Phoenix when a massive object cruised at low altitude over that city’s metropolitan “Valley of the Sun” early one evening.

It was reportedly witnessed by hundreds or thousands of Phoenix residents, including the governor at the time, Fife Symington, a former Air Force officer.

All of these cases, as well as many others, help acclimate not only the general public, but also journalists and those in the media.

When some people interested in this field seek significant disclosure of information possibly held by governmental military and intelligence groups, they have had mixed success.

Interesting documents and “off the record” information can provide a partial picture of what might be going on. At the same time, it could be that significant sensitive and classified reports are “not ready for prime time” and release to the public.

Accounts of formal and even official acclimation efforts and programs indicate that a gradual and safe orientation for the public about a possibly significant UFO and ET situation may be a wise course of action.

PSYCHOLOGY, EMOTIONS, SPIRITUALITY

Adjustment to developments such as confirmation that UFOs are related to visitation to Earth by intelligent civilizations might be difficult for some people. This would disrupt their world view, possibly causing anxiety. For some people, their spiritual beliefs might be impacted in some way.

In addition, many kinds of natural concerns would arise: Are these visitors friend or foe? Are they here to help us or hurt us? What is the role of our governmental and defense organizations? Will human society and civilization change in good ways or bad ways?

This is where safe and intelligent acclimation may be a wiser approach than simply disclosure of too much information. Of course, in actuality, these two ideas work hand-in-hand. Acclimation is disclosure and disclosure is acclimation.

Yet, the subtle interactions and distinctions between these two concepts may be worth considering.

Another element rumored to be in play is the possibility that humans are facing multiple kinds of emerging developments.

Different kinds of visitors may be near, including some who are friendly, some hostile and some neutral. In cases like this, various intelligence-gathering, liaison and rapport-building, dialogue, negotiation and defensive activities could be in play.

Have humans been visited in the ancient past? Were Native American Indians and other cultures exposed to anomalous phenomena that may be of interest to us now?

Are there aspects of our genetics and DNA that may in some ways connect with other unconventional questions?

What are the concepts involved in scientific research into a “unified field” or “zero-point field” that may be an underlying layer or force of Nature and the Universe?

What are the sources of crop circles and what are the messages they seem to contain?

Additional metaphysical phenomena such as connections with other dimensions, including the afterlife or “Heaven” and even beliefs about activities of “angels” could be factors to consider.

All of these ideas and scenarios pose interesting and fundamental questions about where we have been, where we are now and where we are going.

Being prepared for various kinds of developments or contingencies is usually constructive. Reading between the lines of information we come across can also be useful.

Our roles in any acclimation or disclosure processes underway would seem to include improving our “intelligence” in the many meanings of that word – gathering information, interpreting it, sharing it and using it to enhance our personal and collective situational awareness.

Human consciousness, intelligence may suddenly shift

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

Many researchers have hypothesized and attempted to prove that human consciousness is undergoing significant change.

This alleged change is not just increased intellectual knowledge or even social networking via the internet and other mass media.

Rather, people from diverse fields including, but not limited to, various sciences, education, defense and intelligence communities, psychology and spirituality have conducted research about the fundamental nature of individual and group changes in human consciousness.

That is, our individual awareness is purported to be increasingly linked with a larger energy or field in terms of quantum physics theories, spiritual concepts and Nature in ways we may not fully understand at this time.

Over the last few decades, research into extra-sensory perception (ESP), “anomalous cognition” (unusual or unconventional awareness or abilities), “remote viewing” (ESP methods developed in Project STARGATE by the U.S. military and intelligence communities) and similar areas have indicated that new ways of understanding human consciousness were emerging.

Sorting out the truth and the questionable claims and beliefs can be challenging.

Learning about theories of changing consciousness and changing realities around us can cause anxiety for some people, be interesting for others and a little of both for many folks.

With the difficulties facing us in terms of war and armed conflict, social problems, natural disasters, threats to our natural resources (including global climate change) and other developments, any help we can get in improving human intelligence, knowledge and consciousness would seem to be very helpful.

SCIENCE AND SPIRIT

Accompanying continued progress in understanding the potential and apparent direction of human consciousness, some researchers point out that a “unified field” or “zero-point field” probably exists around us and within us.

In addition to this hypothesized energy field underlying what we see and experience around us, there may be various dimensions that we may not always see. Some researchers propose that boundaries or membranes, sometimes referred to as “branes,” separate these dimensions.

For people who wonder about ideas like an afterlife, Heaven and angels, theories about other dimensions actually existing along with our normal reality might make sense. Individuals who say they have had a “near-death experience” or NDE report crossing a boundary, a tunnel of beautiful light, to a different reality.

Some spiritual researchers have hypothesized that there could be several layers or kinds of dimensions in the afterlife.

How do these ideas fit with emerging discoveries and theories in modern physics and other sciences? There seem to be some common elements between the scientific and spiritual views.

Spiritual philosophies and faiths often note that intellectual or brain-oriented thinking can only get us so far in understanding a larger intelligence or force around us.

Transcending our thinking minds, then using our hearts and what is often called a soul take us to new levels of perception, according to certain belief systems.

These same kinds of methods are used in ESP and remote viewing. Using internal resources that are not simply thinking with our brains, people can tap into perceptions we often call intuition, instincts, gut feelings, hunches, dreams and visions to gain new insights and information.

This is one area where science and spirituality seem to be merging. And it seems to be where new phenomena and insights are emerging.

GRADUAL AND SUDDEN DEVELOPMENTS

Will the human race continue to develop in awareness, intelligence and compassion at a steady pace so that we will gradually solve some of our problems and succeed as a species on our planet?

Or, might more sudden events trigger increased urgency or progress toward positive and constructive developments? It could be that both a steady trend in our understanding of new discoveries and certain significant events and breakthroughs will happen together.

Our trajectory of increased knowledge and understanding seems to be increasing steadily. And, the possibility of sudden jolts of events could also be on the horizon.

A reason for concern, of course, is that these jolts could be of a problematic nature.

Things like a significant increase in human warfare, including the use of nuclear weapons, are real and current concerns that we see in the news quite frequently.

Natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic activity and powerful storms are also occurring in devastating ways, causing loss of life and human suffering.

Global climate change with melting polar ice, rising sea levels, impacts on agriculture, fresh water supplies and other outcomes could also be very damaging.

Some people even talk about legends and theories of a global “pole shift” of the Earth’s crust, causing devastating damage to human civilization. A magnetic pole shift is reportedly already occurring, according to some reports.

Concerns about meteors, activity of the sun and possible events in or from space can make us wonder about possible threat scenarios.

Theories of a “Planet X” that may be heading for our solar system also can be interesting and alarming.

For those with very open minds, or maybe inside intelligence information, visitation to Earth of intelligent beings from other planets and/or other dimensions cannot be ruled out. In fact, the nature of possible visitation of this kind could include developing friendships and alliances with extraterrestrial visitors as well as preparing for conventional or unconventional and asymmetric defense and conflict.

The unidentified flying objects (UFOs) that are sometimes spotted in the skies around the world, and even closer encounters that some people report, make us wonder if something along these lines could actually be going on.

Very credible people within the scientific, military and intelligence fields seem to be gradually and carefully letting us know that it is wise to be prepared for more information about this kind of situation.

From the down-to-Earth views to the far-out scenarios of both positive and problematic trends and events, we can see an interesting range of possibilities. What will the future bring?

Native Indians of the Americas, for example, have many legends about the larger cycles of life on this planet and about different ways of looking at and interpreting the nature of Nature around us and within us.

From ancient Native American sources, we might look at prophesies about the year 2012, when some significant development might occur. But what?

As we go about living our everyday lives, many of us wonder about what could happen in the coming days. What disasters or miracles might occur? Are there wars and battles on the horizon or a new era of peace?

Will the human race develop into a more wonderful species or will we destroy ourselves in foolish warfare and destructive treatment of our planet?

Human consciousness is a key element of all of these possible scenarios.

Maybe now is the time to continue and improve our understanding about discoveries in human perception. Because time may be running out for us. Or, time as we know it may itself change in unusual ways.

We can all look into our consciousness. We might discover surprising new insights that can help us individually and globally prepare for the trends and sudden shifts that we face in the days ahead.

Many in West Virginia, Kentucky might ‘kin’ Obama

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

In the wonderful book THE EDUCATION OF LITTLE TREE about the life of a boy in the Appalachian region during the 1930s, the title of Chapter 5 is "I kin ye, Bonnie Bee."

Though most of us associate the word "kin" with family ties, as in "kinfolk," there is another meaning that is explained in THE EDUCATION OF LITTLE TREE.

The word kin, as used in previous eras of the Appalachian culture, can also mean "to understand" others as part of human relationships, including family relationships.

Understanding the many factors involved in the upcoming West Virginia and Kentucky Democratic primaries may involve more than some people realize.

For many decades, people of the Appalachian region, including West Virginia and Kentucky, have experienced poverty, limited educational resources, lack or absence of professional health care, problems with self-image and repression by economic powers-that-be, most notably the coal mine operators.

It has often been correctly pointed out that most of the disadvantaged people and children living in poverty in America are actually white, though we might frequently associate disadvantaged circumstances with Native American Indians, African-Americans, Mexican-Americans or ethnic groups.

For Obama to kin the people of the Appalachian region, and for them to kin him, it seems as though a look at some old and more recent cultural history could be helpful.

HISTORY OF THE MOUNTAINS

Having been born and raised in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area, and attended college in the southeastern Appalachian Ohio region, I am somewhat familiar with the culture and demographics of both Kentucky and West Virginia.

For those people unfamiliar with the region, Cincinnati sits on the Ohio River in the far southwest corner of the state, bordering both Indiana and Kentucky.

In fact, the area of northern Kentucky just across the river is considered part of metro Cincinnati. The Cincinnati international airport is actually in Kentucky.

About halfway across southern Ohio and along the Ohio River to the east, West Virginia is the southern neighbor to Ohioans. Southeastern Ohio is part of the Appalachian region, both geographically and culturally.

The foothills of the part of western side of the Appalachian mountain range start there in southeastern Ohio.

The people speak with a moutain accent. Coal mining and old-timey traditional (pre-Bluegrass) mountain music is common.

Like many Kentuckians and other Appalachians, my great grandfather migrated to Cincinnati from Kentucky. Other relatives stayed in the hills of Kentucky.

Undoubtedly, like many other Americans who came from England, Wales, Scotland and elsewhere to the American colonies in the 1600s and 1700s, and later to the new nation after the American Revolution, my ancestors probably landed in Virginia and slowly moved across the Appalachian mountains, through West Virginia to Kentucky.

As part of that migration, in some cases over decades and across generations, these Scottish, Welsh and other settlers and pioneers met the Cherokee people whose homeland for at least a thousand years had been the Appalachian mountain region.

There was a significant amount of intermarriage between these pioneers and explorers with the Cherokee during the 1700s. By the time of the forced removal of the remaining Cherokee nation in 1839 on the infamous "Trail of Tears," (triggered in large part by the people of Georgia) there were already several generations of mixed-ethnicity Scottish-Cherokee, Welsh-Cherokee and similar families.

Although African-American slaves were introduced into this region, generally the huge plantations and much of the culture of the old South were not present throughout the Appalachian mountain area.

A few of the wealthy mixed-ethnicity Cherokees did own slaves, though according to historical reports, the Africans were treated more like family.

Some of these slaves accompanied the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears.

Today, many people in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and throughout the United States have Cherokee DNA in their family trees as a result.

During the Civil War, both West Virginia and Kentucky were "border states," officially siding with neither the North nor South.

In many cases, families and neighbors were split on this, some supporting and fighting for either side.

According to tales in my family, some of my grandfather's relatives in Kentucky fought for the North, some for the South.

RELEVENCE NOW

And what does this have to do with Obama and the direction our nation and society is heading in?

One element is that West Virginia and Kentucky have a long history of ethnic diversity and blending as demonstrated by those with Cherokee in their family trees.

When they, and we, take a look at this, the idea of being able to "kin" a guy like Obama whose mom was a Dunham from Kansas and whose dad was from Kenya, Africa, is not as difficult as it might seem.

Those who are pandering to "less-educated whites" and implying that this group is intolerant and ethnically identify only as "white" may be in error. Many in the Appalachian region and elsewhere in the U.S. are proud of any Cherokee or other Native American Indian bloodlines.

In fact, we really don't know the complete ethnic background of Obama. His mom's side of the family reportedly has roots back to the pre-Civil War eras and possibly further back in American history. Obama's "white" side of the family might be more diverse than we think.

Apart from the issue of voters getting past the issue of Obama's African dad, it should be clear that disadvantaged people of all ethnic groups and geographic roots have much in common.

Educational and economic opportunities have often been out of reach for people who are white, black, brown and red ... and the various mixtures of those ethnicities.

Though some people may think of West Virginians and Kentuckians as "hillbillies," undereducated and backward, there is a type of wisdom in the culture of this region.

And this takes us back to THE EDUCATION OF LITTLE TREE, published in 1976, and written by a man who used the name "Forrest Carter" but whose real name was Asa Earl Carter, a former speechwriter for Alabama governor George Wallace, and reportedly a man with connections to the KKK.

This also takes us to other related recent developments of interest: Oprah Winfrey removing the "Little Tree" book from her book list and the Oklahoma Cherokee Nation holding an election to disenfranchise black "Freedmen" from tribal membership.

For further exploration of Oprah's position and deeper aspects about "Little Tree," readers can visit my article "Oprah bumps book 'Education of Little Tree' from list; readers can explore many factors involved".

I also took a look at the Cherokee Nation election in "Who is a Cherokee? Many Americans have Indians in the family tree".

The elements looked at in these articles might provide food for thought about who we are as Americans, where we have been and where we are going.

The upcoming election has been rightly called one of the most important in recent times. It is requiring us to look deep within ourselves and to search our hearts and minds.

When we also search our history, going back to the days of Daniel Boone, the American Revolution, the ancient Cherokee homeland and other rich aspects of the culture of the Appalachian region of West Virginia and Kentucky, we may discover that we can "kin" each other and move forward to a much brighter future.

Obama not ‘black’ enough for Jeremiah Wright?

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

The angry feelings that Jeremiah Wright has about the treatment of African-Americans and other dishonorable aspects of the history of the United States are obvious.

It may be natural for him to have these kinds of feelings.

However, what is confusing and troubling for many people is why he is apparently bringing forth this anger and these complaints, many of which may be legitimate, in ways that divide Americans and damage the candidacy of Barack Obama.

Although his background indicates he is an intelligent person, Wright's anger seems to lack reasonable and intelligent "situational awareness."

He seems to be lashing out like an angry child or teenager, without mature consideration of the consequences of his actions.

The other significant element of his public appearances is his apparent disdain for Barack Obama's candidacy and maybe, in some way, Obama himself.

DIFFERENT LIFE EXPERIENCES

Wright is well informed and experienced in many ways about the history of African-Americans in U.S. history, and apparently views this in the context of other problematic aspects of our history, such as the near-genocide of Native American Indians, the treatment of other minority groups, racism among some elements of American society and similar serious situations.

Obama, on the other hand, as many people have pointed out, was raised in large part in Hawaii by his white grandparents, his mom's parents, Stanley and Madelyn Dunham, who were originally from Wichita, Kansas. Stanley Dunham fought under Army Gen. George Patton in World War II.

Obama's dad was not an African-American with a history of generations of slavery and active or passive repression and discrimination like many or most African-Americans. He was from Kenya, Africa, and came to the U.S. for his college education.

Although Barack Obama obviously learned in Hawaii, and later on the U.S. mainland, that there are obvious and subtle kinds of dynamics among different ethnic groups, and some of the history of the U.S. is unpleasant or worse, he claims he wants to transcend these difficult and painful histories, though not ignore or forget them.

Jeremiah Wright obviously is not on the same page.

In addition, having spent six years in the Marine Corps, Wright probably has heard the military-oriented saying, "Lead, follow or get out of the way." He has chosen to be a leader. But is this former Marine leading in a constructive direction?

He seems to many people to want to show and inflict more pain and more division, and present himself as a leader of the African-American church community and, therefore, a great African-American leader.

He seems to want conflict. He seems to want a fight.

So, in Wright's view, maybe he is more legitimately "black" compared to Obama. Or, put another way, maybe Wright thinks Obama is "too white," a label that is an ultimate insult to many black kids, teens and adults ... but maybe has different meaning to someone like Barack Obama.

FROM HAWAII TO THE MAINLAND

Obama, raised in the multi-cultural Pacific region, both in Hawaii and Indonesia, where many people are different shades of brown, with different shaped eyes, different kinds of hair and different historical backgrounds, undoubtedly looks at things differently than Wright.

No doubt that when Obama came to the mainland he quickly learned of the different racial dynamics and history here. Maybe he chose Wright's church because he wanted to learn about the African-American history from the view of those who had experienced it for generations on the mainland.

Now, Obama seems to be trying to find and create a more stable and strong center that transcends the old divisions and hatreds. Maybe he is trying to teach us something about what he learned growing up in Hawaii about different shades of people living and enjoying life together.

Wright seems, in some ways, like a portion of older, less-educated white voters that are currently tending to support Hillary Clinton. He can't get past the issue of ethnicity and the past. He can't transcend it.

Maybe, in some odd way, Wright himself is "too white," like some of those white voters who find it challenging to vote for Obama.

It has become a cliché – Obama is too black for some older and less-educated white voters and he is too white for blacks with big chips on their shoulders, like Jeremiah Wright.

Obama and his supporters seem to be working hard to find the balance, the center and the transcendent new America that will take us to the next level in our social, political, economic and human development.

Message to people like Jeremiah Wright: "Lead – in a good direction, follow or get out of the way."

Project STARGATE’s transcendent effects surfacing now?

(This article also appears on AmericanChronicle.com.)

By Steve Hammons

More than 30 years after elements of the U.S. military and intelligence community began research into unusual “psychic” projects being conducted by the government of the former Soviet Union, we may be seeing interesting results emerging.

When looking at anomalous phenomena like the ESP “remote viewing” techniques developed and used by U.S. military and intelligence personnel (later called “Project STARGATE”) as well as other unusual developments, it can be useful to consider that in 2008 the unconventional can be integrated with conventional thinking and human activities.

For example, in 2001 a Navy SEAL officer studying at the Marine Corps War College submitted a paper on remote viewing titled “Unconventional Human Intelligence Support: Transcendent and Asymmetric Warfare Implications of Remote Viewing."

To some readers, the report appeared to indicate that discoveries in remote viewing extend to many others areas of human endeavor – not just national intelligence, defense and warfare.

In fact, the very nature of remote viewing makes it clear that human consciousness, and what human consciousness is connected to, are elements that are fundamental to our survival and success as individuals, communities, nations and as a species on Earth.

TRANSCENDENT SOLUTIONS

SEAL officer L.R. “Rick” Bremseth, who held the rank of commander in 2001, wrote in his paper about transcendence when it comes to national defense activities.

"The real challenge for the United States is not asymmetric warfare, but rather what this writer calls transcendent warfare, the ability to conceptualize and subsequently actualize an entirely new form of warfare that transcends all previously known models," Bremseth wrote.

He continued, "Granted, transcendent warfare reflects Zen-like qualities that elude definition thereby making the above challenge more difficult. Non-linear/multidimensional and abstract/metaphysical are tentative terms that convey this concept, however, ascribing to a pat definition may in fact signal inability to comprehend the concept altogether."

These concepts can be somewhat confusing to the average reader. However, if we familiarize ourselves with psychological concepts of the “collective unconscious” and physics theories of a “unified field,” “zero point energy” and related ideas, we can get a glimpse of what Bremseth was getting at.

Put simply, there may really be an energy in the Universe like “The Force” described in the STAR WARS movies. It is within us and around us. We can tap into it. It works with us. It has intelligence and a communication capacity.

When we transcend our everyday thinking, we can utilize new approaches to accomplish many worthwhile goals.

Transcendent operations can apply to “peace operations” and humanitarian efforts. Transcendent solutions can be geared toward the problems of climate change, oil dependence, overpopulation, disease, poverty, hunger, injustice, crime, drug abuse, slavery, child abuse, social and international conflict, political corruption, pollution of natural resources and many other challenges.

The relatively narrow slice of unconventional and transcendent phenomena called remote viewing is a small part of the larger opportunities available when examining the potential of human consciousness.

“Anomalous cognition” is a term that is related to remote viewing that sometimes brings to mind wider and deeper kinds of abilities and insights via consciousness. Still, for many of us, this term, too, can be limiting.

How can humankind achieve transcendent breakthroughs on the many difficulties we face through, as Bremseth said, “Zen-like qualities that elude definition?”

PROJECT STARGATE’S LEGACY

When information about the U.S. military and intelligence community’s activities in Project STARGATE surfaced in 1995, some people made fun of it as another waste of money by the defense community.

Some people were concerned that “mind control” programs by unethical people in government could damage our liberty and our nation.

What had the intelligence officers and scientists been doing in this field from the mid-1970s, when projects were developed, through the mid-‘90s when the public was told that these programs were discontinued? And, what has been going on since? Were these activities really ended or did they just go to a more covert or “black ops” status?

However, as the ideas of connections between human consciousness and modern quantum physics started to seep into society through films, books and other communications, and people saw how these ideas merged with spiritual thought, a different kind of awareness slowly developed.

Those who chose to take an objective look at remote viewing started to understand that this was something very empowering for individuals and for the human race. It was something within all of us and an ability that we can all tap into.

What Navy SEAL Bremseth called “non-linear/multidimensional and abstract/metaphysical” was a way of saying that concepts like time, space, spirituality, a higher intelligence and other ideas may not be exactly as some people thought. Or, they may be more surprising and interesting than people believed.

Now, more than a decade after news of Project STARGATE reached the general public, not only in the U.S. but internationally, and we face continued serious threats and dangers of many kinds, we might wonder if or when the seeds of remote viewing research will bear fruit.

Bremseth noted in his 2001 paper that "... transcendent and asymmetric warfare necessitate and exemplify proactive approaches that envision these efforts as opportunities ... for the exploration and advancement of human and/or institutional potential. Such a readjustment in thinking will require dynamic, visionary leadership ..."

Do we have that kind of leadership now? Maybe more importantly, do we have this kind of visionary consciousness among the grassroots people of America and the rest of the world?

If we are to see the significant advancement of human potential, it may be probable that it will emerge from everyday average people – people with good hearts, compassion, intelligence and courage to look within their societies, themselves and the deeper realities we are connected to.

The legacy of Project STARGATE may not yet be fully apparent. This may be because these kinds of phenomena are subtle and discreet.

The possible outcomes related to anomalous cognition could include greater knowledge of other dimensions in physics and Nature, discovery of new energy sources, enhanced human development and other improvements … improvements that could be viewed as miracles.

Obama faces Midwest hearts and minds

(Note: This article was orginally published on AmericanChronicle.com on Feb. 28, 2008, as "Obama faces Ohio hearts and minds." Many similar demographic and historical elements apply to Pennsylvania and Indiana, which border Ohio on the east and west respectively. Cincinnati is on the tri-state border with Indiana and Kentucky.)

By Steve Hammons

The recent controversial remarks from Cincinnati radio personality Bill Cunningham about Barack Obama at a McCain rally can be instructive about the Cincinnati region and Ohio.

I was born and raised in the Cincinnati area, was given the mandatory Ohio history classes in school and later went to college in southern Ohio at nearby Ohio University in Athens, a couple of hours east of Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati and southern Ohio region has a unique history that may be relevant in the run-up to the Democratic primary and the 2008 elections. This history and current flavor of the whole state might also be of interest.

We know that Ohio has been in the news during recent elections. Concerns about questionable election processes in Ohio have been part of this.

After Cunningham made his comments at the McCain rally, another Ohio politician followed him to address the crowd ... former Congressman Rob Portman who represented the Cincinnati area.

Portman has been mentioned as a possible vice-presidential running mate with McCain, and a possible presidential candidate in 2012.

SPECIAL ELECTION

Portman left his congressional seat in 2005 to take a position in the George W. Bush administration as U.S. trade representative, which carries the rank of ambassador.

From 2006 to 2007, he took another position in the Bush administration as director of the Office of Management and Budget. He currently is working at a law firm in Cincinnati.

What is interesting is that when a special election was held for Portman's congressional seat in 2005, the solidly Republican-voting area almost elected another attorney and Marine Corps Reserve major who had served in Iraq, and was running as a centrist Democrat.

That person was Paul Hackett, and during the campaign he said that he had opposed the Iraq war, yet felt it was his duty to volunteer to serve there.

In the congressional race in August 2005, Hackett, who notably opposed gun control, gained attention by referring to George W. Bush as a "chicken hawk" for avoiding combat service in Vietnam during that war.

Hackett also said Bush made "stupid" remarks such as "bring it on," challenging insurgents in Iraq to attack U.S. troops there.

Hackett reportedly bluntly stated about Bush, "I've said I don't like the S.O.B."

Hackett's opponent, Jean Schmidt, strongly supported Bush and the Iraq war.

Hackett lost by about 3,500 votes, getting about 48 percent of the vote in a district that routinely elected the previous Republican congressman there by about 70 percent.

This was a very surprising development in southwestern Ohio.

Obama's stance on the invasion and occupation of Iraq may resonate in Ohio, where many active duty and reserve Army and National Guard personnel have been killed and wounded. Active duty Marines and Marine reservists from Ohio have also been killed and injured in high numbers in Iraq.

GEOGRAPHY AND DEMOGRAPHICS

The hilly country of southwestern Ohio around Cincinnati is very much like southern Indiana next door and northern Kentucky, just south across the Ohio River.

If you go further east, the southern neighbor becomes West Virginia and southeastern Ohio is considered part of the Appalachian region, as the western foothills of the Appalachian Mountains start there. There is coal mining in this region.

Many people in southern Ohio speak with a slightly or markedly southern-type accent.

An ancient glacier that flattened central and northern Ohio stopped just short of the still-hilly southern part of the state.

In that flat central Ohio area, there are plenty of farms, small and medium-size towns with the state capitol of Columbus right in the middle.

Northern Ohio has a lot of the industrial areas around Lake Erie that have had historical links with Detroit and other centers of the old "rust belt" regions.

Many people here speak with a somewhat northern type of accent.

There are many good union people in Ohio. Sometimes their social and political views are centrist and they might find positions and candidates of either major party to be valid.

Some Ohioans who have benefited from unions and have a middle class or even upper middle class economic status are educated enough to know that the struggles of the union and labor movements over the decades resulted in the benefits they have now.

Some realize that the social, economic and political forces in America that supported or opposed working people and the unions were associated in certain patterns with the two major political parties. Some Ohioans who have benefited from unions may not fully understand this history.

Obama's efforts and results in Ohio will be related to many of these these factors.

OHIO HISTORY AND ETHNICITY

Will Obama's mixed-ethnicity be a factor? Probably. There are not too many Ohioans who had a father from Kenya, Africa.

Although Ohio is not as diverse as Hawaii, where Obama mostly grew up, raised by his grandparents from Kansas, there is some interesting ethnic and historical background.

Today, you can find people of virtually every ethnic background living in Ohio.

Italian-Americans in northern Ohio, German-Americans in southwestern Ohio, you name it. People from Eastern Europe often came to work in Ohio's steel mills and mines.

In the early 1800s, Germans were a dominant ethnicity that settled early Cincinnati. There reportedly were German or even Nazi sympathizers there before and during U.S. entry into World War II.

At the same time, some local German-Americans, including some distant relatives of mine, thought about changing their very German names to avoid problems during the war years, such as being thought of as "the enemy."

It could be that some German-Americans in Cincinnati then went overboard the other way, feeling that being a "super American patriot" required certain political and social positions.

Going further back in history, during slavery, for a period of time, laws provided that escaping slaves who crossed north of the Ohio River into southern Ohio could not be returned to slave owners and were, as a practical matter, free.

Subsequent laws required escaping slaves to reach Canada to be free from slave catchers.

Amish and Quakers are found throughout areas of Ohio. The Underground Railroad was very active in southern Ohio during the slavery era. Some Quaker relatives of mine, according to stories and rumors, were involved in the Underground Railroad in the rural areas of southwestern Ohio.

There is a problematic element here. Next door in southern and central Indiana, the KKK is quite strong and active. This is also an aspect of the region in general.

My grandfather told a story about a relative of ours who, decades earlier, had run for sheriff in Kentucky. One night the KKK came to visit him, white robes and all. They told him if he was not on board with the KKK, he would not get elected.

He apparently told them he was not on their side … and he did not get elected sheriff.

Many people entering southern Ohio in the 1800s and 1900s were migrating from the Appalachian Mountain regions in Kentucky, such as some relatives of mine, and from elsewhere in the Appalachian region.

In more recent decades, many Appalachians chose to escape the poverty, oppression and violence of the coal-mining regions. Cincinnati was a center for these escapees too.

Among these migrating groups were people who were mixed-ethnicity European and Native American Indians such as the Cherokee whose native lands were in the Appalachian region.

Many early explorers in the 1700s had intermarried with the Cherokee and generations of mixed English-Scottish and Cherokee families lived in the region.

In the years before the 1839 "Trail of Tears" forced march west, and the confiscation of Cherokee lands and homes, many mixed-ethnicity families blended into the mainstream society, with only a few family stories or suspicions remaining about the Indian connections in the family tree, such as my own family.

Another interesting aspect of Ohio is that after the American Revolution, many Revolutionary War veterans and their families moved over the mountains to settle in eastern Ohio. Today, in the cemeteries of southeastern Ohio, you can find the gravestones of many who fought in the American Revolution.

Ohio University, where I went to college, was founded by Revolutionary War veterans.

I am happy to say that I had ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War and were associates and relatives of George Washington and the other American leaders of that period.

I also recently learned that, according to a genealogy researcher in the family, Obama and I are distantly related too.

How do all of these and many other cultural, ethnic, geographic and historical elements fit together in our current political landscape as we approach the Democratic primary and then the general election?

We will soon be finding out.

Obama will probably have significant support in Ohio from a wide variety of people.

I bet that many Ohioans will be thinking long and hard about Obama, about the invasion and occupation of Iraq, about the direction our country has been going in for the last few years and about themselves and their core beliefs, deep down inside.

NOTE TO READERS: Readers interested in this article may also want to read the Jan. 28 piece: "Obama's Iraq position, mixed ethnicity are key factors."