Disclose.tv – Aliens caught on tape in China – TV news Report Video

Although the footage is labeled (rather sensationally) as “Aliens Caught on Tape in China,” what it appears to depict, in fact, is one of the better instances where the rare and ubiquitous phenomenon known as Ball Lightning has been captured on film. Previously, due to the sporadic nature of this sort of manifestation, it has been seldom filmed or photographed. Is this indeed the identity of the anomaly in the film, or is it something else?

But when it comes to Sleep Paralysis in particular, nobody comes to mind more quickly than my friend Louis Proud, author of the book Dark Intrusions: An Investigation into the Paranormal Nature of Sleep Paralysis Experiences (a close second would be Dr. David Hufford PhD., who authored Proud’s introduction). Recently, Louis sent me a recorded segment he has done where he gives a wealth of information about the nature of Sleep Paralysis, delving into a variety of the subjects discussed in his book, as well as rather startling personal experiences of his own with the phenomenon. Below is a link where you can listen to Louis discussing the scientific and paranormal nature of this strange sleep science:

Louis Proud on Sleep Paralysis

Also, to purchase the book, you can visit this link.

Frank Frazetta Passes

Frazetta’s contributions to the world of fantasy art alone could have awarded him mention on this blog, but my specific reason for paying him homage here has to do with his colorful rendering of “The Mothman” (right), as well as a variety of other characters and situations with Fortean overtones.

At the Washington Post blog, Michael Cavna commented today that “Frazetta’s worlds of heavily muscled, barely clad men and women fending off creatures became so iconic, his name became synonymous with a genre,” noting that Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett recently paid 1 million for one of Frazetta’s original oil paintings.

Respected among metal heads and art connoisseurs alike, Frazetta’s work will long be recognized as some of the finest in his genre–or anywhere else–and his name will live on through his beautiful paintings.

Before getting to the aforementioned categories, I must say I was a bit shocked by this bit of research for a number of reasons. First of all, the observations made are based on things which were videotaped by recreational users of hallucinogenic substances, then subsequently posted on the Internet. Although I am an advocate for considering the potential economic and political benefits we might garner from legalization of certain substances for medical and personal use (namely marijuana, for which many states are already taking measures to create legal markets for its sale), it must also be acknowledged that recreational use of many substances–particularly the more potent psychedelics available today–can be very dangerous and potentially deadly. Because of this, what other circumstances should be considered pertaining to the study in question?

Granted, debating the ethics or legalities of drug use is not our present consideration, especially since the hallucinogen in question, Salvia Divinorum, is already legal in many areas. But when discussing the recreational use of any substances with potent mind-altering effects, questions based on moral and legal principles inevitably come into question. That said, the fact that videos online of individuals engaging in this behavior now serves as the basis for scientific study (apparently by San Diego State University’s Prevention Science Collaborative) seems a bit unusual altogether.

Additionally, when compared alongside previous studies with hallucinogens, it seems that a controlled setting such as those created in the past might have contributed to a more consistent body of knowledge. Take for instance the DEA-approved clinical research performed in the 1990’s by Rick Strassman M.D. that involved DMT, arguably one of the most powerful psychedelics available today and, ironically, one produced within the human body (I spend a good bit of time on this subject in Magic, Mysticism and the Molecule). On the other hand (and before I start sounding too damning of the circumstances surrounding the recent Salvia research in question), let’s take into consideration the potential benefits as well. First, Salvia is, at present, legal in many states. Second, by watching videos posted online of individuals getting a “legal high” off the stuff, arguably the researchers are shown a “window” into how recreational use of similar substances might affect individuals in environments other than those clinical in nature. In other words, taking “setting” into consideration, environmental factors within, say, a hospital room might affect the participants in much different ways than those depicted in the videos used in the study.

But setting some of the more serious debate aside, the categorization resulting from the study were as follows:

(1) hypo-movement (e.g. slumping into a slouched position, limp hands, facial muscles slack or relaxed and falling down), (2) hyper-movement (e.g. uncontrolled laughter, restlessness, touching or rubbing the face without apparent reason or thought), (3) emotional effects included being visibly excited or afraid, (4) speech effects (unable to make sense, problems with diction, problems with fluency, inability to speak, and having problems recalling words) and finally (5) heating effects related to being hot or heated (e.g. flushed, or user makes a statement about being hot or sweating).

So how will such information continue to shape the way science interprets the use of such substances? Do you find this sort of thing more helpful or hindering to the advancement of our understanding of nature and the world around us?

Over at Mysterious Universe I recently blogged about a new book two of my favorite Forteans, Loren Coleman and Mark A. Hall, are working together on, titled True Giants: Myth, Legend, Folklore, and Fact. The book, according to Coleman, will deal with lesser-known reports of Bigfoot-like animals seen throughout the Pacific Northwest that are much larger than typical Bigfoot reports (sometimes described as being 20 feet tall)! This is an extraordinary claim, but nonetheless one worthy of consideration from folkloric perspectives, particularly in how they pertain to Native American legends and history.

Take for instance legends shared among the Cherokee in the South Eastern United States, where legends dating back several centuries described “slant-eyed giants” that traveled from the west, and after befriending the Cherokee, stayed with them for a period before returning to their home in a distant land unknown to the Cherokee. Such reports were first gathered in the late 19th century by anthropologist James Mooney, who wrote about such legends in his book Myths of the Cherokee. Incidentally, the Cherokee god of the hunt, Tsulkau (later bastardized by the English into “Judaculla”) was described as a man of tremendous stature, fitted with the now familiar (and somewhat peculiar) trait of slanted-eyes. Who were these “slant eyed giants” that were meeting the Cherokees and other indigenous tribes throughout the United States prior to settlement by Western Europeans?

Perhaps another clue lay hidden in this recent tome of Fortean strangeness and folkloric interest, The American Goliath, as reviewed by my partner in crime Nick Redfern over at his There’s Something in the Woods blog. “I have contributed a section to the book on the weird saga of the notorious Cardiff Giant,” Redfern explains. “The story of the hoaxed Giant is an entertainingly strange one; and one that – as you’ll see from my section of the book – is getting even stranger.” Be sure and give this one a look, ladies and gents.

One of the most credible reports of such phenomenon stems from a Chilean news reporter, Cecelia Lagos, who was interviewed by MSNBC and CNN networks. Lagos described “seeing the sky change colors outside her window as her house shook.” Lagos describes “I saw through my window, while I was still in bed, I saw the sky changing colors, it was absolutely surreal. I really thought it was the end of the world…I don’t know I hope you understand me because I’m not exaggerating really because I saw it through my window like that. That was the most terrifying thing seeing the sky changing colors with the terribly, amazingly, strong movement of the earth, I thought, ok…this is mother earth… the earth opened up and buildings crumbled into the earth …like in the movie 2012…”

Obvious comparisons have begun to be made to 2012 prophecies, especially with the apparent recent proclivity for earthquakes around the world at present. One observer in the Western United States (who prefers to remain anonymous) shared the following observations with the Gralien Report:

We (not necessarily you) are living right on the fault here, and a lot of us cannot sleep lately, at all. By ‘a lot’ I mean like 60% of the people I know around here, and by ‘lately’ I mean the past 45 days. There are a lot of other symptoms besides sleep loss. Here’s the basic problem however. The USGS maps have, for about the past 60 days, shown a shocking upsurge in activity to put it lightly. At least a 400% increase in earthquakes in general. Zero warnings from the USGS. There’s a lot to this story and it began prior to Haiti when I started telling people that the USGS maps showed that the ENTIRE PACIFIC PLATE was in motion and no one was paying attention! People utterly scoffed at me. Then we had a 4.0 in milpitas. Some days later, -while I was writing a craigslist post- asking people to prepare and explaining this situation, there was a 6.5 off the coast of Eureka. Then, short time later, Haiti 1.

Doctors in our area do not know what’s happening and are starting to seriously wonder, because -everyone- has been sick, mothers and children more than the men in general (children are more sensitive and women have -wombs- essentially a natural Earthquake detector). None of the people I know have connected their malaise to the plate activity, and usually when I suggest it they simply look sickly or yell at me. This isn’t going to work.

Meanwhile, scientists have discovered a new ‘deep tremor phenomenon’ which essentially indicates a likely 9.0 quake somewhere near puget sound in short order.

While it is wrong to stir panic unnecessarily, I consider it absurd to remain silent when something this obvious and this serious is clearly happening right now. There are probably other causal factors, maybe many, but this particular vector appears common, obvious, and largely unacknowledged – probably due to these factors.

Certainly, large amounts of geomagnetic activity could be a factor in sickness or other disorientation that might occur in conjunction with (or in this case, leading up to) earthquakes. Similar to the earlier reports of colored lights and strange phenomenon reported earlier in Chile, are any readers privy to information regarding similar illuminations or other activty occurring in the Western United States?

Special thanks to Reality Sandwich for the link to CNN transcripts.

Popular Paranormal: A Closer Look at Paranormal Themes in Popular Culture

McCollum is a member of the L.E.M.U.R. Paranormal Investigation team, led by Joshua P. Warren, and will be featured in his first nationally televised appearance tomorrow night (Monday March 1st) on National Geographic’s Paranatural. This fellow will no doubt continue to become one of the newest movers and shakers in the esoteric community… be sure and check in at his site often to learn more about his observations into the link between movies, books, media, and the unexplained.

When he’s not hunting UFOs and reading conspiracy books, Chris enjoys playing soccer and praising the exploits of the Great Flying Gople of Denmark.

Although I was skeptical about the nature of the phenomenon we videotaped during our visit (featured in this video segment), we proceeded after the taping with an extensive analysis. Although the cause remains unknown, we were able to determine two things that seemed to rule out operator error:

1) The light observed was not a reflection, since the cameras being used were fitted with night vision apparatus using tight Velcro straps that fit snugly over the body of the camera (mostly for stability; this also blocked any ambient external light sources completely).

2) You can, in fact, produce colors with the night vision goggles, if they are used in close enough proximity to a plasma discharge (i.e. a lightning bolt, or even “lightning globe” novelty lamps available at most variety stores). Below is a photo of such a device used in a dark closet, photographed through a pair of night vision goggles by LEMUR investigator and Gralien Report Correspondent Mobius:

At long last, our BIG National Geographic program is slated to air this Monday, March 1, 9pm east coast US (New York) time on the National Geographic Channel.

Our team has captured some truly weird and amazing stuff. As usual, I was skeptical and doubtful when I first saw the footage. After analysis, I realized what we got was truly out of this world.

Using 3rd Generation Night Vision technology, Dean Warsing (www.UFONightShift.com) was able to capture something at Brown Mountain we cannot explain. It was enhanced by Brian Irish, assisted by Chris McCollum.

If you tune in, you might even catch a (very fleeting) glimpse of yours truly (although I was on set, most of the work I did was off-camera… you know what they say about guys like me having a face made for radio, right?).

Click here and start writin’ up a storm!

Among the prize titles are Caverns, Cauldrons and Concealed Creatures, The Pulsifer Saga: Omnibus Edition, Pulp Winds: Pulse Pounding Adventures in Fiction and Verse, and This Tragic Earth: The Art and World of Richard Sharpe Shaver by William Michael Mott, as well as Pet Ghosts and The Secret Wisdom of Kukulkan by Joshua P. Warren, and finally, my own book, Magic Mysticism and the Molecule. Thanks to those of you who have sent in essays for entry already, and for those who are holding out until the last minute, ya better make ‘em good!