Leslie Kean

Extremely valuable and worthwhile for getting some truth about UFOs amidst all the theories and misinformation. I’ve been going down the rabbit hole and encountering ideas and supposed conspiracies I don’t know what to make of, like Vallee’s inter-dimensional hypothesis, unsettling multi-generational abduction plots, secret pacts between top level government officials and physicists and billionaire industrialists, misinformation campaigns by CIA operatives… there’s a sea of show more supposed plots occurring under the surface, and so far I’m not ready to fully believe in any one of them, but I’m not closing myself off to the possibilities either. On the other hand, I’ve come across pretty credible debunkers like Mick West, who convinced me the official Navy videos circling American media are probably not really of UFOs, and so far i haven’t found any solid credible takeaway from David Grusch’s confessions to Congress. So, what is really going on?

Kean’s book successfully establishes the fact we can hold onto amidst all this confusion: at the very least, there are objects in the sky we aren’t able to identify, and they seem to operate with some kind of intelligence. We aren’t yet at a place where we can say whether they’re aliens, but at the very least we can safely say that something is there that is beyond our understanding. There’s also lots of good discussion about the taboo against UFOs in the US and the official investigations happening in other countries like France, Brazil, Peru, Chile, and the UK, paradigms for what our own government should be doing. show less

A book that is highly likely to alter the way that you think about UFOs. What makes this book stand out above other resources that address UFO sightings is that in this case the collection of reported visual sightings comes from highly respected and qualified pilots and government officials, with most if not all involving multiple witnesses and many accompanied by recorded impacts including electromagnetic readings, radar tracking, photographs, and plant cellular degradation. You will not be show more alone if you feel frustrated at never having heard about most of these events, despite the information being publicly available. Beware that the writing is basic and many arguments are restated throughout the book. The meat of the book comes with the stories as told directly by the individuals involved in the encounter.

I suspect that the majority of people that will not like this book are existing UFO enthusiasts, to whom the material here will be rather tame and already known. I, however, was previously a skeptic (cliche as that line is for such a review) and could have only been "converted" with such a conservative yet highly interesting look into the UFO phenomena as is contained in this book.

One key point made throughout the book is that most reporters are not convinced that the UFOs are extraterrestrial just because they cannot currently be explained by what humans know. On the other hand, most people are also quick to point out that the UFOs perform acts that do not obey the laws of inertia and gravity as we currently understand them, so, at least, they are not man made.

Now that I am a converted skeptic I'm just going to keep on sliding past stable pupil into the realm of crazy UFO enthusiast and state that I believe that UFOs are in fact not extraterrestrial, but that they are instead from a society of highly enlightened beings that populate the earth in the (future) year 10500 AD and time travel back to study humans. However, they do not want humans to know that they are from the future for fear that humans will attempt to change the course of history and not annihilate themselves in the year of Quaigon circa 2078 AD, thus making it so the race of enlightened beings cannot develop from the ashes of the nuclear holocaust of that very same year. Now I must fashion my tinfoil skullcap so that I may telewarp down the block and buy a couple of donuts. show less

Making the end of the world boring
Mar. 7th, 2011 | 04:21 pm

Leslie Kean's NYT bestseller on UFOs is an infuriating read.

The complete title is:

UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record

Right away you begin to see part of the problem. The only people that count in her universe are Important People, like generals, pilots, and government officials. Anyone without the proper credentials is clearly beneath notice.

It follows, of course, that since Leslie is one of those show more Important People, being an investigative journalist and all, that the whole subject of UFOs only became really important when she began to pay attention. Don't look for any history of the phenomenon that extends very far into the past when she wasn't paying attention. For the same reason, don't expect her to mention previous books or important researchers.

And don't look for any information on the stickier and more baffling aspects -- alien abductions, or crashed UFOs, for example. That would only get in the way of her Important Message: some Important People are interested in the phenomenon right now.

Her book is very superficial -- and ultimately boring. Which is pretty hard to do when writing about a subject of such enormous importance and fascinating drama.

Since UFOs exist and they reflect contact with another reality, they are the most significant event in human history. Leslie makes the phenomon as boring as a NATO budget meeting.

There have been many far better explorations of the subject that have never attracted 1/1000 of the attention that this New York Times bestseller received.

I suppose that the success of this book could be considered a good sign. Maybe knowing that Some Important People are admitting that we should be paying attention, maybe we actually will.

But don't count on it. show less

I won't put a rating on this book as there are many ways in certainly could have been better. However the subject is so important that it is worth anyone and everyone to read the book.

It certainly will be a disappointment to the thrill seeking crowd who yearn for the green, blue, and orange men to appear. And long yarns of abduction. They are not here. And thankfully it deals with real encounters by yes officials like military and airline pilots. People who for the most part deal in reality show more not fantasy.

So it leaves out the characters that make UFO's the characterization of ridicule that plays into our governments intent to make it just that and therefore worth ignoring which they have done quite successfully over the years.

The real central issue here lies in this last statement. Why do they take this position?

I suppose there are several reasons that may be plausible. First and foremost may be they don't believe there is any substance to it. Second they may know much more about the nature of these things and are busily studying the technology of what they possess obviously for military purposes and therefore is no one's right to know for security reasons. And finally I propose their own fear of the unknown. A fear based on power and control. Which superior powers of unknown origin leave them........less than powerful. In fact frighteningly undermining political, scientific, and religious omnipotence in our structured society.

What I found revealingly humanistic in this book was the intent of a South American military to shoot one down. Human nature to shoot first and ask questions later. No threat given yet threat perceived. And almost laughingly absurd to put our pea shooter technology up against such. Hmmm sounds like a movie plot.

We stand as cavemen yet as we peer into the universe beyond still wondering what's out there. Clinging to our beliefs in fear not seeing what may be right in front of us is we would only choose to look. show less