==Phrack Magazine==
Volume Five, Issue Forty-Six, File 21 of 28
****************************************************************************
[Several of us had plans to tempt fate and join the other pop-culture
lemmings running off to Area 51 during Defcon. The not-so-secret
base has seen more press this year than Madonna. Armed with
our ICOM 2SRAs and a copy of "The Area 51 Viewer's Guide"
we planned to put our lives on the line purely for the sake of
being able to say "We were there!"
The night before we were planning on going, FOX-TV broadcast
an episode of "Encounters" that focused heavily on Area 51.
The thought of tromping off on our little recon adventure
accompanied by winnebago-loads of families taking the kids
to see "that dang UFO place from the TV," just sorta ruined
the mood.
Hopefully, this won't happen to you. And if you do go,
you really should consider getting the "viewer's guide"
from Glenn Campbell (psychospy@aol.com). Email him for
a catalog of Area 51 stuff.
Glenn also publishes an electronic mag documenting recent activities
surrounding Area 51, and related activities. With his permission,
Phrack is extremely please to bring you the latest issue of
"The Groom Lake Desert Rat."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE GROOM LAKE DESERT RAT. An On-Line Newsletter.
Issue #15. Sept. 2, 1994.
-----> "The Naked Truth from Open Sources." <-----
AREA 51/NELLIS RANGE/TTR/NTS/S-4?/WEIRD STUFF/DESERT LORE
Written, published, copyrighted and totally disavowed by
psychospy@aol.com. See bottom for subscription/copyright info.
In this issue...
SUBTLETIES OF THE TELEVISION TALK SHOW, PART I
NEW AIR FORCE STATEMENT ON GROOM
EG&G TO ABANDON TEST SITE
JANET "N" NUMBERS
JANET HANDOFF FREQUENCIES
GROOMSTOCK '94
SOUND FAMILIAR?
CAMPBELL ARRAIGNED
LARRY KING NOT CLONED?
MYSTERIOUS SIGN DISAPPEARANCE
INTEL BITTIES
[Note: This file ends with "###".]
----- MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS 103A -----
SUBTLETIES OF THE TELEVISION TALK SHOW, PART I
In DR #10, we reviewed the major news media--print, radio and
television--and showed how each could twist reality in their own
special way. Strictly for the sake of science, Psychospy allowed
himself to be turned into a minor media celebrity so we could
report to our readers the sometimes dubious processes behind the
scenes. There was a limit, however, to how low we would sink in
the pursuit of knowledge. We would not take off our clothes for
the camera, and we would not place ourselves in any situation
where our credibility, reputation or dignity could be seriously
trashed.
Now we can report that this barrier has been broken. In the next
two issues of the Rat we will recount our first-hand experiences
with the lowest form of mass media, the television talk show.
..... THE MEDIUM OF TALK .....
Talk shows come in three basic formats. The rarest but most
respectable is the SERIOUS ISSUES talk show exemplified by "Meet
the Press," "Nightline" and the roundtable discussions on PBS--
maybe even "Larry King Live." They are dignified and serious,
explore meaningful political and societal issues, and hardly
anyone watches them.
The next rung down the ladder--vapid but benign--is the CELEBRITY
CHAT talk show, like the "The Tonight Show," "Late Show with David
Letterman" and "Arsenio Hall." Movie stars and Big Money authors
pump their latest work in a non-confrontational environment
designed only to promote laughs.
The last and lowest form of the genre is the HUMAN CONFLICT talk
show. These syndicated programs always bear the name of the host,
like "Oprah," "Geraldo," "Vicky" or "Leeza." He or she is a
charismatic and camera-loving character, no doubt ruthless in real
life, but blessed with the ability to convey warmth and sincerity
on TV. The fodder for these shows is a steady diet of human
suffering, crises, angst and tragedy. Former spouses and
estranged friends face off against each other; grown men and women
reveal to the parents their until-now-hidden perversities, and
human oddities of all shapes and sizes present themselves for
humiliation before a nationwide audience. The ultimate goal of
these shows is the public expression of private feelings. They
seek tears, anger, jealousy and graphic self-immolation recorded
by the camera on a tight close-up. With a dozen such shows now in
syndication, the competition is intense to seek out new forms of
conflict and expose the latest narcissistic trends.
Talk shows are produced "live on tape" with minimal editing, and
this presents special problems for a guest. In other forms of
television, sound bites rule the show. It may seem artificial,
but tight editing at least assures that each party has their say
and only their finest bon mot will be used. The courteous speaker
with a few good ideas can confidently compete with any
extravagant, microphone-hogging blowhard, because most of what the
blowhard says will be cut. In the almost-live talk show, the more
reasonable speaker has to compete with the blowhard head on.
There is no time for an orderly presentation of evidence; he who
makes the most outrageous, confident and colorful claims,
groundless or not, gains the camera's eye and controls the game.
If you have any shred of personal dignity and are asked to be a
guest on a Human Conflict show, the best response is obvious:
"Just Say No." Unless you are a masochist or a natural born
actor, there is no way you can win in this format. We know it
now; we knew it then, but sometimes, like Oedipus, you just can't
stop the inevitable march of Fate....
..... ONWARD TO HUMILIATION .....
The path to our own downfall was indirect. For several months, a
number of journalists have been making the pilgrimage to Freedom
Ridge, and we generally escort them as a sort of local public
relations representative. We do not charge for this service, and
we do not discriminate between journalists. If TASS or Penthouse
or the Podunk Review came to call, we would treat them no
differently than the New York Times.
In May, we got a call from a producer from the Montel Williams
Show, one of the Human Conflict shows that we had never seen. It
seems that "Montel," as he is known to the world, had promised on
an earlier talk show that he would visit the border of Area 51.
We told the producer that we would be willing to escort Montel and
his crew to Freedom Ridge to tape a segment, but we declined an
offer to come to New York to appear on the studio show. Montel's
visit was originally scheduled for May 5 but was canceled at the
last minute, and we breathed a sign of relief.
In August, the project was reactivated, we suspect as the result
of the June 22 article in the New York Times. Montel's visit was
scheduled for Aug. 16, and we were again asked if we would go to
New York to appear on the later show. Again, we declined.
When Montel came to Rachel, he brought a Humvee, his producers and
a film crew. We went through the usual script for the camera:
Montel drives up to our Research Center, and we meet him in the
driveway. Inside, we show him where we are going on the map, then
we get in the car and drive the rugged road to Freedom Ridge. We
had done it before with countless crews, but never so quickly and
in so few "takes." When Montel arrived, there was no question
that he was in charge. He asked no significant questions, and
showed no particular interest in the secret base itself. We
sensed that he came only because he said he would and that his
primary aim was to film a sound bite on the ridge that said, "You
see, I did what I promised."
As we rode down from Freedom Ridge in the Humvee with Montel and
the producer, we were again asked if we would come to New York to
appear on the talk show the following week, Aug. 23. We hesitated
and were about to turn down the offer cold, when the producer
uttered the only horrible words that could force us to comply.
Sean David Morton.
..... THE EMBODIMENT OF EVIL .....
We first learned of Sean Morton over two years ago, before we came
to Rachel. We had heard his enthusiastic endorsement of the Black
Mailbox on a UFO video:
"Probably the most amazing thing about Area 51 is the fact that
this is literally the only place in the world where you can go out
and actually see flying saucers on a timetable basis. You can
literally go out there on a Wednesday night between about seven
and one a.m. and you'll see these things flying up and down the
valley. It's absolutely amazing. On even a bad night you'll have
ten, eleven, twelve sightings. On a good night--and I've been out
there with friends of mine camping--on a good night the sky will
just rip open with these things. You'll see anywhere between
twenty to forty objects in a night testing over the base for
anywhere from fifteen and forty minutes at a time."
We've lived near the border for over a year and a half now, are
genuinely interested in UFOs and have spent countless days and
nights in the desert; yet we haven't seen even ONE flying saucer,
let alone scores. The logical explanation is that we arrived too
late, after the saucers had been packed up and moved elsewhere.
The trouble with this theory is that during the early part of our
tenure, Sean Morton continued to bring tours to the area--at $99 a
head--and reported UFOs everywhere.
In one celebrated incident in March 1993, Psychospy spent the
night on White Sides, overlooking Groom Lake, with some aviation
watchers and a writer from Popular Science. We were looking for
the alleged Aurora spyplane--almost as ephemeral as flying
saucers--but we saw nothing more than a few satellites, some
distant aircraft strobes and an occasional meteor. The following
was reported in the March 1994 Popular Science....
"Last March, three chilly airplane watchers with binoculars
atop White Sides Mountain at this magic hour [4:45am] were
tracking a 737 airliner approaching Groom Lake, as a fourth member
of their group thawed out in his truck below. Parked on a knoll,
he was next to a vanload of UFO seekers. They were lead by tour
operator Sean Morton, whose leaflet described him as 'the world's
foremost UFO researcher.'
"Morton donned a horned Viking helmet and from time to time
pointed to the sky, exclaiming: 'Look at that one!' The airplane
watcher trained his binoculars in the same direction but saw
nothing out of the ordinary. Later, Morton's group became excited
by what they perceived as an entire formation of UFOs; the
airplane watcher's lenses revealed only stars. Finally, as the
morning's first 737 made its gentle approach toward Groom Lake at
4:45, the UFO enthusiasts rejoiced at Old Faithful's appearance.
Everyone had seen exactly what they hoped for."
In the beginning, when we were new to the area, we were generous
to Sean and called him "fantasy prone." As we got to know him
better and gained confidence in our own knowledge base, we came to
mince no words. Sean is a deliberate con man. He recognizes as
well as us the landing lights of a 737, but he knows that others
can be fooled and taken for a $99 ride to see them. If anyone is
spreading disinformation about Area 51, filling the air with noise
to make the truth harder to grasp, it isn't sinister government
agents; it's Sean David Morton pursuing only his own greed and
self-aggrandizement.
We have worked hard over the past 18 months to undo the damage
Sean has done and displace him from the Area 51 scene.
Discrediting Sean isn't complicated: We simply quote his own
words whenever we can. Sean is a broadly diversified charlatan, a
self-proclaimed expert in faith healing, earthquake prediction,
psychic prophesy and virtually every other New Age fad. We have
no problem at all with him plying his trade within the confines of
the state of California where he justly belongs, but when he
proclaims himself the foremost authority on Area 51, we get
territorial. We hope that our "Area 51 Viewers Guide" has reduced
the gullibility of newcomers and made the environment less
attractive for leeches like him. In fact, we haven't had a
confirmed Morton sighting near the border in over a year. We
heard from sources in California that he no longer gave tours to
Area 51 because the saucers had been moved elsewhere--which was
fine by us.
The saucers must have returned, however. As the recent Groom Lake
publicity reached its peak, "The World's Foremost UFO Researcher"
could not help but resurface to suck energy from it. In recent
months, reports began to reach us that he had appeared as an Area
51 expert at UFO conferences, on radio talk shows and on the
Montel Williams Show.
In the latter appearance, which was first broadcast in December
1993, Sean showed video footage of nighttime "UFOs" that he said
he photographed "at great risk to my own life." As we viewed them
later, one clip showed an isolated circle of light jumping around
within the frame. It could have been any stationary out-of-focus
light shot through a hand-held video camera. Notches seen on the
top and bottom of the "disk" correspond to protrusions inside the
lens assembly. In the other clip, only slightly out of focus, we
saw the lights of a 737 landing on the Groom Lake airstrip. To
Sean, it was "an object actually coming in from space." The time
stamp in the corner said "4:49 am."
It was on this show that Montel promised to visit Area 51 escorted
by Sean; yet when Montel finally made the trip eight months later,
Sean was not invited. The producer told us that word had reached
him from many sources that Sean was considered a fraud, that in
addition to UFOs he also did psychic prophesies and that his
claimed credentials were highly dubious. He and Montel felt that
Sean had taken advantage of them and that by having him on the
show they had inadvertently legitimized him.
But none of that prevented them from inviting him back as a guest
the second studio show.
As we rode down in the Humvee from Freedom Ridge with Montel and
the producer, the reality to us became crystal clear: If we did
not appear on the Montel Williams Show, then Sean would have the
stage all to himself and could continue to spread any sort of
nonsense about Area 51. We felt that we had no choice. Either we
did battle with this guy now, before he grew bigger, or we would
be cleaning up his mess for many months to come.
..... OUR RAPID EDUCATION .....
We had less than a week to prepare for the big show--nowhere near
enough time to do all the research we needed. The first item of
business was to actually watch the Montel Williams Show and
familiarize ourselves with the format. We cranked up our
satellite dish and surfed through the channels. On "Donahue":
"Six Year Olds Who Sexually Harass Other Six Year Olds." On
"Rolanda, a related topic: "Will Your Child Grow Up To Be A
Serial Killer?" On "The Vicky Show," we heard that Sean Morton
had just appeared as an expert on the prophesies of Nostradamus,
but we were unable to catch that one.
The first Montel Williams Show we saw was, "Mistresses Who Want To
End The Affair." On the stage, three women disguised by dark
sunglasses explained why they had been attracted to married men.
We could only tolerate about ten seconds at a time of this show,
but when we tuned back, we found that the women had shed their
sunglasses and revealed their true identities. Presumably, they
had also revealed, or at least seriously compromised, the
identities of the men they had been having the affairs with. When
we tuned in again later, one of the three was having an angry
argument with a fourth female guest. We guessed that this was the
wife of one of the married men.
A friend sent us a tape of Montel's original UFO show in which
Sean appeared as a "UFO Investigator" and Montel promised to
visit. The show included an abductee, a witness to the "Kecksburg
Incident," a former actress, WFUFOR Sean David Morton, a requisite
skeptic, a pro-UFO filmmaker and--as if you hadn't guessed--that
talk show regular Travis Walton. The show was conducted in the
"expanding chairs" format. It started out with two guests alone
on the stage, then more guests and chairs were added during each
commercial break until there were seven chairs and seven
squabbling speakers vying for attention on the platform. In this
format, attention is diluted with each new chair, so the people
who appear last, typically the skeptics, usually get only a few
seconds of airtime. During the free-for-all of a seven-person
debate, the camera always focuses on the most aggressive and
charismatic guest--i.e. Sean David Morton.
The last chair to be filled was occupied by filmmaker Russ Estes,
who the on-screen caption said, "Does Not Believe In UFOs." This
is false. He is a disciplined UFO investigator who has devoted
his career to making films on the subject, as well as exposing
obvious frauds. What is true is that he "Does Not Believe In Sean
Morton." In his few seconds of air time, he raised doubts about
one of Morton's many fake credentials, his claimed "Doctor of
Divinity" degree.
RUSS ESTES: "Montel, my biggest problem, and this is what I've
run into over and over again, is the quality of the individual who
is bringing me the message. You know, the-boy-that-cried-wolf
syndrome is phenomenal in this field. You get people out there
who are saying, I'm this, I'm that, and I hate to do this to you,
Sean, but here's a guy right here who claims to be the Doctor,
Reverend Sean David Morton. In his own biography, he claims to
have gotten his Doctor of Divinity at--excuse me, it will take me
one second...."
SEAN MORTON: "Berachah University."
RUSS ESTES: "Berachah University, Houston, Texas--the Berachah
Church. I called them. They don't have any type of degrees that
they give. They have Bible study at the best. He claims to have
attended University of Southern California...."
MONTEL WILLIAMS: "So the point that you are making, Russ, is that
there's a problem with the messenger, so therefore the message is
not real."
RUSS ESTES: "How can you believe the message if the people lie to
you from the start."
SEAN MORTON: "The thing I'd like to point out about Mr. Estes
here is that if you don't like the message, you can shoot the
messenger, and it's obvious to me that in the UFO field, we do
this for free, we do this because we want to know the truth,
because we have seen something...."
RUSS ESTES: "But does that mean you bogey up your credentials?"
SEAN MORTON (angry): "That is not true. You are flat-out lying
to these people. I went to USC for four years."
Just then, the debate was cut off by a sloppy edit, and Sean's USC
diploma appeared on the screen.
After watching the tape, we contacted Russ Estes. He said that
the debate between he and Sean went on much longer than was shown
on the screen. "Live on tape" does not mean totally unedited.
This show went on for over two hours to obtain a one hour's worth
of material. Sometimes, whole shows are thrown out when they
don't work. Unfortunately, Estes made a misstep on the USC
degree. As it turns out, this is just about the only authentic
credential he has: a B.A. in Drama and Political Science. We
certainly believe the Drama part: It's the last degree he ever
needed.
The Doctor of Divinity degree is still phony, but in the talk show
world, evidence counts for nothing; only emotions and presentation
matter. Sean walked away from the show as a brave and
knowledgeable crusader, legitimized by a promise from Montel to
take his tour, and with the implied invitation to reappear on the
show. Estes walked away alone, wasn't invited to return, and has
since had to live down the "Does Not Believe in UFOs" moniker.
Sean even had the delightful gall to send Estes a letter, through
the producers...
---
Mr. Russ Estes
c/o Alex Williams [sic]
The Montel Williams Show
1500 Broadway Suite 700
New York, New York, 10036
Dear Russ:
I am going to assume that you are not a bold faced liar who is out
for some kind of warped revenge, or a person who is just trying to
make a buck off baseless slander.
Let's try to solve this like gentlemen - enclosed is a copy of my
U.S.C. diploma. I have also called the school and my records are
intact. The rest of your "research" on me is equally faulty.
I hope this solves out problem. If not, I have consulted my
attorney and any further slander directed toward me through your
video series or elsewhere, will result in action taken against
you.
Yours Truly,
[BIG signature]
Sean Morton
---
Things were beginning to look grim for Psychospy. With the time
of the taping drawing near, we hadn't even begun to scratch the
surface of Sean David Morton and his path of destruction. Talking
to our contacts, we saw that Sean had accumulated a vast audience
of intimate enemies, more than we could possibly contact. If Sean
sounds knowledgeable and occasionally has some meaningful
information, it is because he has ripped it off from others. We
were amused to find that there was even an reputable astrologer
who hated Sean, who felt that Sean had stolen his predictions and
passed them off as his own.
It seemed a futile exercise anyway. We knew all the evidence in
the world wasn't going to matter when we actually faced off
against Sean on camera. We were leaving behind our own
comfortable medium of logic and data and stepping into his home
turf--the talk show--where presentation counts more than content.
We were obligated by our own ethics to speak only the simplest
truths and the cautious assertions supported by data. Sean David
Morton, bold faced liar that he is, faced no such constraints. He
could spout any lie he wanted to sound important and get himself
off the hook, and the only thing that mattered here was that he
said it with apparent sincerity and that it held up for
television's thirty second attention span. We knew that if we
started to make an accusation about him, he would instantly sense
the winds and make the same one against us with greater force.
The ensuing argument would make he and us appear to be equals.
Sean knew all the buzzwords and cliches of the UFO movement and
could spout the conventional wisdom much faster than we could. He
knew how to sound sincere and reasonable and adapt instantly to
the sentiments of any social circumstance. He was well-practiced
at responding to inquisitions and had emerged from many without a
scratch. Opposing him, all we had was a body of mundane knowledge
about a very limited area of the desert. Sean was smooth and
well-honed in his talk show delivery, and we were stumbling in for
the first time to a medium where we really didn't want to be.
It was with these reservations and a sense of dark foreboding that
we packed our bags and headed for New York City. There, in Times
Square, we expected a titanic battle between Good and Evil, and
things didn't look good for Good.
[To be continued in Desert Rat #16....]
----- NEW AIR FORCE STATEMENT ON GROOM -----
The following statement was recently released to inquiring
journalists by the Nellis AFB public affairs office. (We
requested our own copy from Major George Sillia on Aug. 26.) It
represents a significant shift from the previous "We know nothing
about Groom Lake" response.
"There are a variety of facilities throughout the Nellis Range
Complex. We do have facilities within the complex near the dry
lake bed of Groom Lake. The facilities of the Nellis Range
Complex are used for testing and training technologies,
operations, and systems critical to the effectiveness of U.S.
military forces. Specific activities conducted at Nellis cannot
be discussed any further than that."
That's a step in the right direction. What the base needs now is
a name and a history. For example, tell us about the U-2 and A-12
programs at Groom in the 1950s and 1960s. That's not very secret
or critical to our current defense, so what's the point in
pretending it is? Will the Air Force take control of the
situation and provide this information itself, or will the void be
filled by a dozen aggressive entrepreneurs?
We'd bet our money on the entrepreneurs.
----- EG&G TO ABANDON TEST SITE ----
According to an 8/26 article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, EG&G
and its REECo subsidiary will not seek renewal of their Nevada
Test Site contract when it expires in 1995. These are two of the
three companies that have managed the nuclear testing ground since
its inception. It is unclear whether this action will have any
affect on operations at the adjoining Groom Lake base, where EG&G
and REECo are also assumed to be major contractors.
Recent rumors say that EG&G no longer operates the "Janet" 737
jets that shuttle workers to Groom and Tonopah. That operation
has supposedly been taken over by the Air Force, using the same
aircraft and possibly the same staff.
----- JANET "N" NUMBERS -----
For aircraft watchers, here are the registration and serial
numbers of Janet 737s and Gulfstream commuter planes spotted at
the Janet terminal at McCarran airport. Based on observations in
5/94 and the 4/30/94 FAA registry. One or more of the Janet
aircraft are probably missing from this list. (We ask our readers
to find them.)
Boeing 737...
Reg. #/Serial #/Owner
N4508W 19605 Great Western Capital Corp, Beverly Hills
N4510W 19607 Great Western Capital Corp, Beverly Hills
N4515W 19612 Great Western Capital Corp, Beverly Hills
N4529W 20785 First Security Bank of Utah, Salt Lake City
N5175U 20689 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
N5176Y 20692 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
N5177C 20693 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
Gulfstream C-12...
N20RA UB-42 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
N654BA BL-54 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
N661BA BL-61 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
N662BA BL-62 Dept. of the Air Force, Clearfield UT
----- JANET HANDOFF FREQUENCIES ----
A DESERT RAT EXCLUSIVE! Published here for the first time are the
air traffic control frequencies for the "Janet" 737 crew flights
from Las Vegas McCarran Airport to Groom. The McCarran freqs are
public, but the Groom ones have not been revealed until now. Air
traffic control broadcasts are "in the clear" and any scanner
radio should be able to pick them up. Each of these freqs has
been personally confirmed by Psychospy or a close associate.
121.9 McCarran Ground Control
119.9 McCarran Tower
133.95 Departure Control
119.35 Nellis Control
120.35 Groom Approach
127.65 Groom Tower
118.45 Groom Ground
Here are some other Groom freqs (some of which were previously
reported in DR #8). The security frequencies are usually
scrambled, but not always.
418.05 Cammo Dudes (primary)
408.4 Cammo Dudes (repeat of 418.05)
142.2 Cammo Dudes
170.5 Cammo Dudes (Channel 3)
138.3 "Adjustment Net" (seems related to security)
261.1 Dreamland Control (published)
255.5 Groom Tower (repeat of 127.65)
154.86 Lincoln County Sheriff
496.25 Road sensors on public land
410.8 Pager (apparently from Groom but unconfirmed)
The most accurate way to detect a road sensor (AFTER you have
tripped it), is to program 496.25 into several channels of your
scanner, then scan those channels exclusively as you are driving.
When the scanner stops on one channel, you have just passed a
sensor.
----- GROOMSTOCK '94 -----
The "Freedom Ridge Free Speech Encampment" went pretty much as
planned, with at least sixty people in attendance but not all of
them staying for the night. There were no surprises and, sadly,
no confrontations with the authorities when we whipped out our
cameras and pseudo-cameras to point at the secret base. The Cammo
Dudes were visible but kept their distance, and the only authority
figure to show up on the ridge was a BLM Ranger in a Smoky-the-
Bear hat. He was concerned only that we clean up our trash, and
he warned us, by his very presence, that "Only You Can Prevent
Forest Fires."
The event was recorded in an 8/29 article in the Las Vegas Review-
Journal, which dubbed it "Groomstock." [The article may be
available at the FTP site.] We were disturbed to read in the
paper that the attendees included some "marijuana-smoking
slackers." We called around and found out it was true and that it
happened after Psychospy went to bed. Had we known, we would have
quashed it immediately. This sort of thing discredits our ability
to police ourselves and hurts the reputation of the land grab
opponents.
The hot gossip around the campfire was about the Review-Journal
reporter and the loony in the tie-dyed shirt. The loony had spent
about an hour moving rocks and dirt around to make himself a
comfortable bed, then he blew a conk-shell horn and banged cymbals
together to bless it. When the reporter arrived, he volunteered
to make a bed for her, too, not far from his own, and he proceeded
with the project without any encouragement. It is unknown why he
singled her out for this special honor, but evidently she was
"chosen." It should be noted, however, that while blessing the
reporter's bed, the loony accidentally dropped one of the cymbals.
We forget to check with the reporter in the morning to see if that
omen affected the quality of her nighttime experience.
----- SOUND FAMILIAR? -----
From an AP news story printed in the 8/5 Review-Journal...
"PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Authorities deported an American TV
crew Thursday, putting the three journalists in an open pickup
truck, parading them through the capital and then dumping them at
the Dominican border....
"Soldiers detained the freelance journalists for PBS's 'The
MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour' on Sunday while they were filming at
Port-au-Prince's airport. Three of their videotapes were
seized....
"The military-backed government has urged journalists not to
report 'alarmist' news and has attempted to restrict news
coverage....
"'I think it's deplorable, and it's obviously an attempt to
embarrass them,' [U.S.] Embassy spokesman Stanley Schrager told
The Associated Press. 'This treatment was not necessary; neither
was the deportation.... It's a transparent attempt by this
illegal regime to interfere with the free flow of information.'"
In related news, the four of the five video tapes seized on July
19 from KNBC-TV have still not been returned. The tapes were
taken without a warrant after the crew filmed an interview on
Freedom Ridge but not the Groom base itself. Activist Glenn
Campbell, who accompanied the crew, was arrested when he attempted
to interfere with this seizure.
----- CAMPBELL ARRAIGNED -----
Activist Glenn Campbell reports that his Aug. 24 arraignment on
obstruction charges was "amicable." Charges were presented, but
the District Attorney did not appear. The complete text of the
charges, stemming from the July 19 KNBC incident, reads as
follows...
---
Case No. P55-94
IN THE JUSTICE COURT OF THE PAHRANAGAT VALLEY TOWNSHIP
IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF LINCOLN, STATE OF NEVADA
CRIMINAL COMPLAINT
STATE OF NEVADA, Plaintiff,
vs.
GLENN P. CAMPBELL, Defendant.
STATE OF NEVADA ) ss.
County of Lincoln )
DOUG LAMOREAUX, being first duly sworn and under penalty of
perjury, personally appeared before me and complained that on or
about the 19th of July, 1994, in Lincoln County, State of Nevada,
the above-named Defendant, GLENN P. CAMPBELL, committed the
following crime:
COUNT 1
OBSTRUCTING PUBLIC OFFICER, a violation of NRS 197.1990 and LCC
1.12.010, a MISDEMEANOR, in the following manner:
The Defendant did, then and there, after due notice, willfully,
hinder, delay or obstruct a public officer in the discharge of his
officer powers or duties. Specifically, the Defendant did, then
and there, after due notice, willfully hinder Sergeant Doug
Lamoreaux in the discharge of his official duties by locking the
doors of the vehicle which Sergeant Lamoreaux was retrieving
certain items from and further refused to unlock the doors after
being requested to do so by Sergeant Lamoreaux.
All of which is contrary to the form of Statute in such cases made
and provided and against the peace and dignity of the State of
Nevada. The complainant, therefore, prays that a Warrant be
issued for the arrest of the Defendant, if not already arrested,
so that he may be dealt with according to law.
[Signed]
DOUG LAMOREAUX
Sergeant
Lincoln County Sheriff's Department
SUBSCRIBED and SWORN to before me
this 24th day of August, 1994
[Signed] NOLA HOLTON
NOTARY PUBLIC/JUSTICE OF THE PEACE
---
The only surprise in these charges is the line "and further
refused to unlock the doors after being requested to do so by
Sergeant Lamoreaux." That is not how Campbell recalls the
incident. DR#12, published less than 12 hours after the incident,
reported it as follows...
"At this point Campbell, who had been standing on the opposite
side of the vehicle, reached in and pushed down the door locks on
the side that Lamoreaux was approaching.
"Lamoreaux said, 'You're under arrest.' Campbell was
immediately handcuffed and placed in Deputy Bryant's vehicle."
Campbell claims that Lamoreaux said, "You're under arrest,"
IMMEDIATELY after he pushed down the door locks, with no request
being made to unlock them. Campbell says he has two other
witnesses, the KNBC crew, who can verify his story. In this case,
where the basic recollection of facts is in conflict, it will be
interesting to see what the second officer, Deputy Kelly Bryant,
will say under oath.
However, the core of Campbell's defense rests on Constitutional
issues. He is guilty of obstruction only if the officer was
indeed engaged in the "lawful" execution of his duties. Lamoreaux
justified his warrantless search by citing, in vague terms, a
certain Supreme Court ruling, the name of which he could not
recall at the time. That ruling is apparently in the case "Ross
vs. U.S." which allows the warrantless seizure of "contraband"
from a vehicle when there is a danger of flight. It is unclear at
this point whether the video tapes of a news crew constitute
contraband in the same manner as a shipment of marijuana or stolen
merchandise. Complex First Amendment issues may be invoked. The
case may be further complicated by the repeated offer by the TV
reporter to allow Lamoreaux to view the video tapes himself.
Campbell has requested, and has been granted, a jury trial.
According to the Justice, this will be the first jury trial held
in this court since about 1987. Campbell announced his intention
to represent himself at the trial, with possible legal co-council.
A tentative trial date of Oct. 25 has been set, but it is likely
to be postponed. Campbell indicated that he will waive his right
to a trial within 60 days to allow more time to conduct legal
research.
----- LARRY KING NOT CLONED? -----
Our report in DR#13 about the diversion of Larry King's plane to
Nellis AFB continues to disturb many of our readers. It raises
the specter of secret contacts between King and the military or
even a surreptitious replacement of the talk show host by a look-
alike clone. Now, we wonder if our panic was only a false alarm.
A producer from a Las Vegas TV station tells us: "I checked into
it and think it is legit. According to the FAA, McCarran Airport
was never really closed, but they did have pilots choose not to
land on that Saturday afternoon because of inclement weather.
They also confirm that there is an agreement with Nellis to allow
planes in trouble to land there. I spoke to the control tower at
McCarran. They checked their records, and they indicate that on
that Saturday a nasty thunderstorm was noted by the tower at 1:45-
2:05. In fact, four takeoffs were delayed during that time due to
weather. Planes in the air just flew holding patterns until the
weather cleared."
Presumably, King's plane didn't have enough fuel to maintain the
holding pattern. Thunderstorms can be very localized, and perhaps
Nellis was clear. A producer at Larry King Live says that, in her
opinion, he is definitely the same Larry King. She says he got
the military escort because he was late for a speaking engagement
and made his wants known on the plane.
So what can we say? Obviously, the FAA, the TV station and the
King producer ARE PARTIES TO THE CONSPIRACY. This story is deeper
than it seems, and the Rat will pursue the investigation for as
long as it takes. THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE.
----- MYSTERIOUS SIGN DISAPPEARANCE -----
The big "No Photography" signs on the Groom Lake Road have
disappeared. For over a year, they were installed on public land
about two miles from the military border, but sometime in the
first week of August they were cleanly removed, posts and all,
apparently by the Air Force. (A civilian thief--like SDM, who has
a number of these signs in his possession--would have simply
unscrewed the signs, not uprooted the heavy posts and carefully
filled up the holes.) The two signs on either side of the road
were each about 3 feet by 4 feet and bore the following text:
WARNING: THERE IS A RESTRICTED MILITARY INSTALLATION TO THE WEST.
IT IS UNLAWFUL TO MAKE ANY PHOTOGRAPH, FILM, MAP, SKETCH, PICTURE,
DRAWING, GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF THIS AREA, OR EQUIPMENT AT OR
FLYING OVER THIS INSTALLATION. IT IS UNLAWFUL TO REPRODUCE,
PUBLISH, SELL, OR GIVE AWAY ANY PHOTOGRAPH, FILM, MAP, SKETCH,
PICTURE, DRAWING, GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF THIS AREA, OR
EQUIPMENT AT OR FLYING OVER THIS INSTALLATION. VIOLATION OF
EITHER OFFENSE IS PUNISHABLE WITH UP TO A $1000 FINE AND/OR
IMPRISONMENT FOR UP TO ONE YEAR. 18 U.S. CODE SEC. 795/797 AND
EXECUTIVE ORDER 10104. FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:
USAF/DOE LIAISON OFFICE
PO BOX 98518
LAS VEGAS, NV 89193-8518
The signs first appeared in May 1993 shortly after WFAA-TV from
Dallas took video of the base from White Sides. (When challenged
by the Sheriff, they admitted photographing the base but managed
to retain their tape.) The signs were removed in Aug. 1994
shortly after KNBC-TV from Los Angeles lost their video tape after
NOT photographing the base. It is unclear why the AF removed the
signs. Perhaps they have become a little smarter and are adopting
a "don't ask, don't tell" policy toward photography (but we
wouldn't want to be the ones to test that theory). The signs
themselves had become a tourist attraction, and no visitor could
resist having their picture taken beside them.
At the same time the "No Photography" signs vanished, the
misplaced "Restricted Area" sign also went away. This is the
crossed out sign seen in the NYT article, where the "stupid
faggot" comment had later been written and then erased (DR#12,13).
God, we'll miss that sign! It was as illegal as hell--being on
public land--but an old friend to us nonetheless.
At least now we can assure the public: If you see a Restricted
Area sign, it's real and they mean it.
----- INTEL BITTIES -----
ENCOUNTERS TRANSCRIPT. Complete, unedited transcripts (not just
the sound bites) of the interviews in the 7/22 Encounters show
(DR#10) are available to Compuserve users. Type GO ENCOUNTERS,
and look under "Browse Libraries" and "Interview Transcripts."
Interviews include Rep. James Bilbray (file FREED2.105), Agent X
(FREED1.105) and Glenn Campbell (FREED3A.105, FREED3B.105). This
is a transcript for video editing, so every "Um" and "Ah" is
recorded.
NEW GUARD FACILITY. We send our congrats to the Dudes on their
newly constructed prefab building next to the guard house on Groom
Lake Road (about a half mile inside the border). Apparently, they
are expecting more business along this part of the border and need
a new substation. Interested taxpayers can view the new building
from the first hill on the hiking trail to F.R. ("Hawkeye Hill"),
a location that will continue to be public even if F.R. is taken.
UPCOMING TV SEGMENTS. UNSOLVED MYSTERIES will broadcast a show on
UFOs with a segment on Area 51 on Sunday, Sept. 18 at 8pm. The
broadcast will include a new interview with Bob Lazar. THE
CRUSADERS will broadcast a segment on UFOs, including a visit to
F.R., on Sept. 10 or 11 (date and time vary by city). Air date
for THE MONTEL WILLIAMS SHOW taped on Aug. 23 has not been
confirmed, but it could be the week of Sept. 12.
===== SUBSCRIPTION AND COPYRIGHT INFO =====
(c) Glenn Campbell, 1994. (psychospy@aol.com)
This newsletter is copyrighted and may not be reproduced without
permission. PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED FOR THE FOLLOWING: For
one year following the date of publication, you may photocopy this
text or send or post this document electronically to anyone who
you think might be interested, provided you do it without charge.
You may only copy or send this document in unaltered form and in
its entirety, not as partial excerpts (except brief quotes for
review purposes). After one year, no further reproduction of this
document is allowed without permission.
Email subscriptions to this newsletter are available free of
charge. To subscribe (or unsubscribe), send a message to
psychospy@aol.com. Subscriptions are also available by regular
mail for $15 per 10 issues, postpaid to anywhere in the world.
A catalog that includes the "Area 51 Viewer's Guide", the Groom
Lake patch and hat and many related publications is available upon
request by email or regular mail.
Back issues are available on various bulletin boards and by
internet FTP to ftp.shell.portal.com, directory
/pub/trader/secrecy/psychospy. Also available by WWW to
http://alfred1.u.washington.edu:8080/~roland/rat/desert_rat_index.
html
Current circulation: 1440 copies sent directly to subscribers
(plus an unknown number of postings and redistributions).
The mail address for Psychospy, Glenn Campbell, Secrecy Oversight
Council, Area 51 Research Center, Groom Lake Desert Rat and
countless other ephemeral entities is:
HCR Box 38
Rachel, NV 89001 USA
###
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