Image by Polimerek

“When a problem with the Droid’s autofocus mysteriously disappeared overnight, paranoid Droid owners assumed that a secret update had been sent over the air to fix it,” Sorrels writes. “This would be rather creepy. It is also wrong. In a comment on an Engadget story about the mystery fix, Android developer Dan Morrill explained what had happened, and the truth is rather stranger than the fiction.” And what was Morrel’s excuse? He says there’s a rounding-error bug in the camera driver’s autofocus routine, apparently controlled via timestamp, that is making the autofocus function on the phone’s camera to malfunction on a 24.5-day cycle. “It’ll work for 24.5 days, then have poor performance for 24.5 days, then work again,” Morrel explained. “(November) 17th is the start of a new ‘works correctly’ cycle, so the devices will be fine for a while. A permanent fix is in the works.”

Many of us have experienced Windows Updates (especially on earlier, less-stable versions of some of Microsoft’s Windows operating systems, Vista in particular) which were downloaded and installed, thus actually compromising the speed and overall function of our PCs. On numerous occasions shortly after the release of Windows Vista, I was forced to do complete factory reboots to my Vista-sporting laptop, preventing it from downloading any updates for months at a time, until the various updates finally “stabilized.” Thus is the bane of any new operating system; if the buyer leaps on the new trend and buys a newly released OS, they are often forced to become “guinea pigs” to help weed out errors and bugs in the fledgling system’s software. Many early users of Vista were so unhappy with the new version that they were reverting back to Windows XP, which by now, is likely the most stable OS Microsoft offers.

This taken into consideration, users of the brand new Droid phones might begin to express the same feelings toward “secret” updates sent to their already malfunctioning phones. With most OS-based interfaces, users have the option of choosing whether they download and install updates on their computers. The same idea applies to applications used on the popular Blackberry phones, which users can browse the web and find for popular sites like Facebook, Twitter, and even for ease of accessing online banking.

However, some folks are casting a shady eye toward the notion of “secret updates” sent to Droid phones. Daring Fireball’s John Gruber is one of the few on the web screaming bloody murder about Verizon’s actions. “Am I the only one who thinks that if Apple issued an over-the-air iPhone software update — no notice, no confirmation — that it would generate a Category 5 shit storm?” Indeed, if Apple had done this with the popular iPhones, the web would be ablaze with criticisms.So why so much silence about the Verizon situation? Probably because, as stated earlier, the bug was only mistaken for being a secret update, rather than actually turning out to be one. Nonetheless, this sort of activity may have gadget junkies on their toes looking for future conspiracies of the update-kind.

With a vast and involved history having to do with research of the unexplained, we are fortunate to also receive some clarification from the retired Colonel regarding allegations made in The Men Who Stare At Goats, many of which he says were outright fabricated to fit a Hollywood screenplay.

Referring to the book the film was based on, Alexander states “While listed as nonfiction, the facts were extrapolated almost beyond recognition.” He tells in a review of the film appearing at the Films in Review website that, “With support of senior leadership, we were consciously pushing the envelope. It should be noted that all of the explorations undertaken were done based on solid rationale.” There were, however, a few allegations made in the film which don’t appear to have met this “solid rationale” that Alexander mandates, to which he emphatically states there was no participation, or even basis of reality to confirm these activities. Chief among these, regarding the use of LSD in government mind-science programs that involved remote-viewing and the like, he says “not only NO, BUT HELL NO.”

Among the projects for which he says there is a fact basis are hamster and goat-staring, “Jedi” projects, spoon bending (Alexander says this was taught to hundreds), cloud busting, computer crashing, fire walking, and many other activities. Strangely (or not), the practice of running into walls–perhaps one of the more mundane activities portrayed in the film–was never attempted.

News broke in May of last year that Funes was apologetic for the Catholic Church’s previous treatment of historic astronomers, namely Galileo. “Mistakes were made, but it is time to turn the page and look towards the future.” Galileo was condemned four centuries ago by the Church for his interest in worlds that may exist beyond our star system, as well as for his suggestion that the Earth may not be the center of the universe. Galileo wasn’t the only man persecuted by the Church of Rome for speculating about life elsewhere, however. Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake as a heretic in 1600 for holding similar views.

But, as Funes emphatically states, the Church’s views have changed since those times. “If biology is not unique to the Earth, or life elsewhere differs bio-chemically from our version, or we ever make contact with an intelligent species in the vastness of space, the implications for our self-image will be profound,” Funes says, begging questions such as whether or not man–made in God’s image–made aliens in his image also.

But what of other biblical stories that might involve strange inhabitants of other galaxies? After all, Fox News reported yesterday that “Scientists have discovered hundreds of planets outside our solar system — including 32 new ones announced recently by the European Space Agency.” How might the potential for extraterrestrial life in this way lend itself to Ezekiel’s famous encounter with a “wheel in the sky” from which “angels” emerged? Even the story of Noah’s ark, a vessel that saved the lives of male and female specimens of all animal life on Earth from a great flood, might be interpreted far differently if aliens were figured into the question. As one Catholic Priest told our Dutch Gralien Report correspondent Robert Vandenburg while visiting Switzerland, “there may have been many Noahs throughout the universe, and many arks. Who is to say that Noah’s ark wasn’t a spaceship itself?”

Indeed, the Church’s move towards embracing the notion of life in distant parts of the galazy is a step in the right direction; especially for a religious system which continues to receive pressure and criticism from more progressive groups for their stances on women entering ministry, birth control, celibacy of Priests, and a variety of other traditions the church maintains.

Well, it seems that history does indeed repeat itself. I’ve been reading extensively about our early fight for independence and European history lately. Tactics of the times were mind boggling. Tens of thousands of men and boys marching in hollow squares or vast parallel lines while their commanders watched from a safe distance. No regard to loss of life unless it exceeded that of the enemy. Gentleman warfare with breaks for care of casualties, inclement weather, holidays, whims of kings or the “Elite”, and sundry nonsensical reasons. Marching men across open fields to avoid wooded terrain. I could go on and on with idiotic examples but it is not pertinent to my intent with this short essay.

World War II was as close to being a true war as any in our recent (Last 100 Year) history. It was fought with one goal, “To Win”. In every conflict since then we have had the ability to win decisively but were held back for many reasons. Politicians more concerned with being re-elected, peaceniks with no understanding of war and human nature, religious zealots, concern for the feelings of those that hate us, offending anyone’s rights (except our own), power and control of the masses, etc.

We have advanced weaponry that can win any conflict without ground troops involved. These battles could be won in minutes, not months and years. Are you aware of the neutron bomb? This is already outdated technology and if it has been used it was done in secret. All living organisms are killed with no damage to any structures. It can be confined to relatively small areas with no residual harmful effects. Why do we continue to develop weapons to win without loss of our troops and sign pacts and treaties not to use them. If our enemies get the technology, they will damn well sure use it on us. We don’t need additional troops, we need the ability to actually use the weapons we have.

Why do these politicians, actors, actresses, and filmdom elite always threaten to leave our country but only do so to make a movie (More money) or take a vacation (Spend it freely)? They cherish capitalism, freedom, and our way of life, but only for their peers. They actually believe the rest of us are sheep and unable to make our own decisions.We do not have an immigration problem because America is a bad place. We have an immigration problem because this is the best country to live in on the entire planet.

I think we need to worry more about our politicians and communist ideologists working to promote remorse and shame for our past success overseas and pay more attention to the loss of our freedoms and the incessant push for socialism in the United States. My father and six uncles fought for our freedoms in WWII. Because of the values held by that generation we do not goose step and we do not speak German. Dammit folks, wake up, we know the enemy and he is us!

If you support government control of your life, cradle to grave, please move to Cuba or Venezuela and be sure to keep us updated on your new found freedoms and the bliss we are missing.

Today this is freedom of speech and thought. What about tomorrow?

But what of “real” remote viewing and use of the mind in ways that may help law enforcement, national security, and a host of other wholesome patriotic endeavors? In the video below, Mike Webster, one of Britain’s leading professional remote viewers, describes his job as “perceiving people, places or events that are separated from the viewer by distance or time”, for investigations funded by agencies including police forces and private businesses in Britain and America:

The reality of Remote Viewing may be somewhat less glamorous than the movies depict, but nonetheless fascinating.

“We’re hoping to see supersymmetry and extra dimensions,” said Bertolucci, who also postulates that, though the discovery would be ground-breaking, the event he warns of would be rather small, if noticeable. “Of course, after this tiny moment the door would again shut, bringing us back to our ‘normal’ four dimensional world … It would be a major leap in our vision of Nature, although of no practical use (for the time being, at least). And of course, no risk to the stability of our world.”

That’s reassuring… until Mothman comes through the dimensional doorway with a legion of Mothmen to take over Earth in the name of King Hybreed Manthuzlar IIV. Only time will tell, I suppose.

With the film’s release this weekend, the hubbub has yet to die down, and no doubt, it will be a good while before it does. One thing has changed, however; people are seeing the film, reviews are pouring in, and criticism of the film’s content, as well as its viral marketing campaign, are becoming prolific.

Prior to the film’s release, many avid web searchers (this one included) managed to find various websites that housed information about an Alaskan psychiatrist, Dr. Abigail Tyler, who is represented by Jovovich  (above, photo by Rita Molnár) in the film. At the time, I didn’t bother to look into how long the site had existed, or who the registrant information might point to, since doing Google searches for Abigail Tyler, as well as the so-called “Alaska Psychiatry Journal” led to very few results. Granted, much like the film Cloverfield, it seems that a majority of the movie-going blogging community enjoys solving the riddles presented by such obvious viral marketing campaigns, and a handful of them will continue investigating until they reach a dead end… which is exactly where the aforementioned website, as well as some other promotional information about the film, has gone.

“They are now gone,” reports Popular Mechanics writer Erik Sofge, who tells us they were “pulled offline when users posted publicly available registration records showing the sites launched in August of 2009. Those records don’t identify Universal (which released the movie) as the site’s owners, but for multiple sites to show up in the same month, just as promotion for the movie was getting started, is as circumstantial as it is damning.” Popular Mechanics famously “debunked” the 911 conspiracies (at very least to their own liking), and since then has tended to take a skeptical look at a variety of ambiguous claims that have appeared in years since. So far as Universal’s response, “The studio has stayed silent on the movie and its factual claims. And while the director, Olatunde Osunsanmi, is vested enough in this case to have personally interviewed Tyler, with clips of their conversation showing up throughout the movie, he hasn’t talked to anyone about the movie. No one is admitting anything, but all signs point to a hoax that backfired.” Read the entire Popular Mechanics article by clicking here.

Maybe the fact that film was an obvious hoax has less to do with the effect–desired or unintentional–that The Fourth Kind will have on its audiences. Mark Easter, International Director of Public Relations for MUFON, was interviewed by PM for their article, who said, “Even though this movie is written in Hollywood, and it’s sketchy, and has fake websites to promote it, people want to know about the phenomenon. MUFON sees it not as a half-empty cup. We look at it as half-full, and full to the point of overflowing. All we want is people to come out of the movie, and instead of looking at the sidewalk, and worrying about how their mortgage is going to get paid, they’re looking up at the sky. If we can get more people looking up at the sky, hopefully something will be seen, and they can get it into our database and let MUFON do our job.”

Is this really, by definition, a “hoax”, or is it merely Hollywood doing what Hollywood does: creating ambiguous hype for the ultimate purpose of entertainment? Looking at this from another perspective, do hoaxes actually help some UFO investigations? My fellow L.E.M.U.R. researcher Joshua P. Warren seems to feel that studying hoaxes may be a viable way to learn how to rule out fakes, which prompted him to establish a “hoax research” branch of L.E.M.U.R.’s ongoing investigations. To learn more about the Hoax Research Center, click here. Also, here is a link to the UFO Congress page detailing Joshua’s hoax research at this past year’s convention:

Joshua P. Warren Presents Physically Faking UFOs

GHOST TOWNS: First up is a link to the most desolate and abandoned cities around the world:

BIG SURPRISE: The Fourth Kind hits theaters today… and is a big fake. Didn’t see that one coming…

BEATLE BUGS: Next, bigger than Jesus might not qualify, since this Beatle is only the size of a water droplet

TURN LEFT AT THE (GIANT) FORK IN THE ROAD: Super-sized silverware in Pasadena

HOSPITAL HELL-LETTER: Overhaul of health care is needed in more ways than we realize

GROWIN’ SHARPIES: Encouraging spikes to grow on an abandoned naked hedgehog

A RENDEZVOUS WITH DEATH: Man shows up at his own funeral in Brazil

“After being informed at Parkland Hospital that Kennedy was dead,” Gillon writes, “Johnson raced back to Air Force One, where he waited for Mrs. Kennedy and the body of the slain president, and made preparations to take the Oath of Office.” Meanwhile, the widowed first lady waited on board the plane, desperate to leave. Brigadier General Godfrey McHugh had been Kennedy’s military aide on the fateful Dallas trip, and interacted with Mrs. Kennedy on board the plane, and at her request, tried to find out why the plane couldn’t leave immediately. According to a newly declassified oral history McHugh has released, certain claims made about Lyndon Johnson’s behavior in the wake of the assassination are startling at best.

After being told “the President wanted to remain in the area,” McHugh says he went throughout the plane in search of Johnson, if he was indeed on board Air Force One at the time. “I walked in the toilet, in the powder room, and there he was hiding, with the curtain closed… hysterical, sitting down on the john there alone in this thing.” Johnson frantically warned McHugh “They’re going to get us all. It’s a plot. It’s a plot. It’s going to get us all.’”

Interestingly, McHugh had apparently discussed this incident at another time. Gillon recalls, “I soon discovered that McHugh had told a similar story when he spoke by phone with Mark Flanagan, an investigator with the House Select Committee on Assassinations.” In the interview with Flanagan—which took place only one week before he sat down with the Kennedy Library in May 1978—McHugh had then recounted his difficulty finding Johnson on the plane “but finally discovered him alone,” as written in Flanagan’s summary to the Committee. Flanagan’s notes go on to state that General McHugh had found Johnson “hiding in the toilet in the bedroom compartment and muttering, ‘Conspiracy, conspiracy, they’re after all of us.’”

Does this admission that McHugh speaks of lend weight to theories implicating LBJ in an assassination conspiracy? Is there enough evidence to support the claims, and if so, what could their implications be? Perhaps another piece of the mystery to what is arguably the greatest conspiracy to ever erupt in American politics will continue to capture the public imagination, just as it has for so many decades already.

In all likelihood, you did play this game, but failed to see a bloody witch glaring back at you. Still, many have professed an interest in the legend of Bloody Mary over the years, variously referred to as Mary Worth, Hell Mary, Mary Jones, and a host of other names. According to Snopes.com, Bloody Mary research began around 1978 in an essay published by folklorist Janet Langlois, at which time belief in summoning the mirror-witch was still widespread. “Mary is summoned whenever squealing girls get together for a sleepover,” Snopes says. “We typically performed the ‘ritual’ in bathrooms, because the bathrooms of our suburban homes had large mirrors and were easily darkened even during the day since they had no windows.” Typically, when the Bloody Mary ritual is performed correctly, a murderous ghost is said to emerge from the mirror, often attacking the individual who summoned her.

There is indeed a bit of history associated with the notion that ghostly images appear in mirrored surfaces. One early 20th century rhyme featured on Halloween post cards read, “On Halloween look in the glass, your future husband’s face will pass” (see image at right). Although this reference certainly pre-dates Langlois’ 1978 research into the phenomenon, even earlier references to magical arts like mirror-gazing and the use of “shew stones” dates back to ancient Egypt, where black obsidian mirrors were sometimes used in the process of divination known as “scrying.”

According to Raymond Moody M.D., the ancient Greeks used a similar process with the specific intention of contacting the dead, which they called the psychomanteum. In modern times, this environment (sometimes called a “spirit booth”) is used in a fashion similar to that of the Ganzfeld Technique, in that it is a form of sensory deprivation (staring into the optical depth of a mirror in a darkened room). Moody says the effect that produces “apparitions” is purely psychological—but it also causes one to consider whether, if the appearance of the dead in psychological studies can be achieved, the same might have occurred in other, less formal situations.

Ghosts in mirrors have indeed become an item of fascination. Various different takes on this theme include everything from the popular Candyman films to widely-circulated videos such as the one below, purported to show a young girl’s deceased sister staring back at her from a mirror as she turns her head back towards the camera.

Similarly, many parapsychologists have suggested that ghosts may become visible in reflective surfaces due to the way that mirrors, while maintaining an optical reversal of their surroundings, nonetheless reflect one of the most common forms of electromagnetic energy: light. Thus, a variety of images purported to show ghostly manifestations in haunted locations achieve their affect by aiming the lens of a camera diagonally into mirrors and reflective surfaces.

Have you ever seen a ghost in a mirror? If so, was it an apparition you recognized, or did you instead witness some strange aspect of the neither realms too horrifying to judge apart from a nightmare? Email your stories to info@gralienreport.com.

UPDATE: Sheridan Walker of San Antonio, TX sent along the following response to this story:

A friend in England, Dr. Harry Oldfield, has been interested in ghost research for many years. At the request of a friend who believed her house was haunted, Harry visited to take photos with his specially equipped camera. He and the friend stood in the doorway of the bedroom where a lot of activity had been happening and he snapped a quick photo when he saw a flash of motion–neither could say at the moment what it could have been. The wall opposite the door contained a bureau and mirror. When the photos came back there was one( the one with the mirror) that showed 3 people in medieval dress with shocked looks on their faces, one reaching his hand out as if to bravely try to touch the unknown room they were seeing. These people were within the mirror. The mirror also reflected back a small table with some things on it–a table not in the physical room. The house was of an age to date back to the time that these other people might have lived. I always got the feeling that perhaps the location of the mirror was a portal of some sort–and these folks were not ghosts. Very intriguing!