In the waning months of the previous year, expectations for the unveiling of truth regarding UFOs were dampened as a US government bill, initially designed to mandate the controlled disclosure of all classified UFO-related documents, underwent significant dilution to ensure its passage through Congress.
The catalyst for this renewed interest in Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs), the updated term for UFOs, can be traced back to June 2023. During this period, former US intelligence agency whistleblower David Grusch revealed to the Debrief website that, during his official duties, he had stumbled upon evidence indicating that the US had been retrieving spacecraft of non-human origin over several decades. These revelations prompted a congressional hearing where Grusch, alongside others, shared details about this clandestine project or recounted their first-hand experiences during military service. The culmination of these testimonies led to the formulation of the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Disclosure Act, a bipartisan initiative led by Democrat majority leader Chuck Schumer and Republican senator Mike Rounds.
While the focus tends to be on the extraordinary nature of the subject and the credibility of those reporting UAP sightings, the potential existence of alien spacecraft raises profound questions beyond the mere inquiry into whether we are alone in the universe. Scientific endeavours are underway not only to search for signs of extraterrestrial life but also to explore the psychological implications if indeed extraterrestrial beings exist, and, perhaps more troubling if authorities have been less than forthright about their knowledge.
The primary concern when it comes to governments is centred around trust. Republican congressman Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin articulated this sentiment during his opening statements on July 26th, stating, “The lack of [government] transparency regarding UAPs has fueled wild speculation and debate for decades, eroding public trust in the very institutions that are meant to serve and protect them.”
The original intent of the Disclosure Act was to rebuild public trust and assure Congress that secret projects were not operating beyond its oversight. Drawing inspiration from the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992, which sought to address growing public perceptions of a government-military conspiracy in the assassination of President Kennedy, the Disclosure Act proposed the establishment of a national archive for UFO-related records, overseen by an independent panel. This panel, comprised of nine US citizens free from military, political, or corporate influence, would decide when and how to disclose information from the archive. The act also empowered the panel to conduct additional hearings, with witnesses granted immunity from prosecution. Furthermore, it suggested, “The federal government shall exercise ’eminent domain’ over any and all recovered technologies of unknown origin and biological evidence of non-human intelligence that may be controlled by private persons or entities in the interest of the public good.”
Essentially, the act proposed that the US government could seize any alleged artefacts held by private citizens or companies, with an obligation to disclose them to the public. Concurrently, the act called for the secretary of state to contact foreign governments holding material relevant to unidentified anomalous phenomena, technologies of unknown origin, or non-human intelligence, seeking disclosure of such material.
However, the anticipated unveiling of the truth about UAPs took a significant hit as the Disclosure Act underwent substantial alterations. Most of its provisions were stripped away, leaving only the archive, which would no longer be subject to independent oversight. Following the vote, Schumer acknowledged the archive as a “major, major win for government transparency,” but expressed frustration that the proposed review board was not adopted. He stated, “Now it means that declassification of UAP records will be largely up to the same entities that have blocked and obfuscated their disclosure for decades.”
In a scathing critique, former USAF intelligence officer David Grusch labelled the changes “the greatest legislative failure in American history” during an interview with News Nation on December 12. Instead of enhancing transparency, the revised act is fostering suspicions that the US government may indeed have something to conceal.
Clinical psychologist Daniel Stubbings of Cardiff Metropolitan University emphasizes, “If it is the case that there is no substance to the UFO/UAP issue beyond misperceptions, paranoia, delusions, hallucinations, gullibility and disinformation, then the government, military, and academic organizations need to openly and transparently look under every alleged rock in this topic.” However, the current trend, characterized by reduced transparency, raises concerns that there might be something to hide.
For centuries, individuals have reported observing unexplainable phenomena in the sky. While it’s easy to dismiss such accounts as illusions or imaginative tales, the credibility of photographs and videos from reputable sources adds a layer of complexity. In 2021, the office of the Director of National Intelligence in the US released a report titled “Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena,” detailing the examination of 144 UAP reports filed between 2004 and 2021. This report, primarily based on military personnel sightings, also declassified three videos capturing some of these UAPs in action.
This material played a crucial role in convincing individuals like Stubbings to take the subject seriously. Stubbings conducted interviews with people who believed they had witnessed unexplainable events, aiming to identify any potential underlying mental health needs or common personality traits among them. His research revealed that various personality profiles reported sightings of UAPs, and many were left with unmet psychological needs.
“I think it’s very important to do this kind of [nearby] searching for extraterrestrial objects because the [astronomical] community mostly looks for things very, very far away. I think it’s time to do something new,” says Villarroel, who is currently working on establishing the ExoProbe project to identify anomalous objects among the multitude of human satellites in orbit.
However, the question remains: what if she or someone else uncovers indisputable proof that non-human intelligences have visited or are currently visiting Earth?
Physicist John Priestland, running an engineering consultancy, pondered the implications a few years ago. “If there is something here to be disclosed then I’m very conscious that there are a lot of people who will be affected and there isn’t an entity out there, as far as I can see, that is putting people first,” he says.
In response, Priestland established Unhidden, a charity aimed at reducing the stigma surrounding UAP discussions, emphasizing the need for support. Stubbings support this mission, noting, “There is still a stigma around this topic; people are so frightened about discussing it. But it only takes one account to be real, and it changes the narrative of humanity forever.”
These developments underscore why the Disclosure Act was deemed important, and its altered version is considered a significant disappointment, even potentially dangerous, according to Priestland.
“These days it’s all about ‘my truth,’ except for people who happen to see strange things in the sky. We don’t legitimize their truth.” He says they need help and support. “And we need to do that in the context of possible disclosure because there might suddenly be 8 billion people who have to get used to the fact that they’re being told that there’s a very different worldview by exactly the organizations that they now realize have lied to them for the past 80 years.”
