Roswell & Government Coverups Essay, Research Paper

On the night of July 4, 1947 a thunderstorm filled the sky with loud blasts of thunder and a distinct sound accompanied by a bright flash of light. Giving little thought to the strange occurrence, Mac Brazel went back to sleep and decided to inspect the damage in the morning. In the morning the farmer and his son were surprised to discover an area where pieces of metal were spread throughout the field. Mr. Brazel knew that the pieces appeared to be very strange, so he loaded his truck with some of the debris and took them to the closest city, Roswell which is some 75 miles from his farm. The Roswell Sheriff looked at the debris and decided to call the Roswell Army Air Field. He thought that the pieces could be the wreckage of a top-secret project and that the army would be the best authority for the situation. The army checked and found that in fact no secret projects had been performed in this location. Jesse Marcel and Captain Sheridan Cavitt decided to drive to the farm outside of Corona, New Mexico and look at the crash site for themselves. Upon seeing the crash site, they mutually decided that the wreckage was not from this world and that they must alert the Pentagon. The Pentagon already knew by this time what was happening in Roswell and General Clemence McMullen told Roswell Army Air Field that they must cover up the whole story. Thus a conspiracy between the government of the United States and the citizens was born (Acevedo 1-5).

Extraterrestrials exist and have visited our planet. The United States government as well as many other worldwide governments have proof of UFO existence but are afraid to release this information to the general public. It is up to the general public to examine the evidence and decide whether UFO?s exist. If the government is going to continue a policy of denial then the citizens must begin a policy of belief. Whether policy makers are afraid of UFO?s effect on national security or the potential mass hysteria that could follow such a release of information, the people must not sit back and let evidence of extraterrestrial contact slip through the cracks.

A UFO crashed into the side of a mountain on the night of July 4, 1947. The alien craft had malfunctions that may have been caused due to the thunderstorm. As the craft touched the ground on Mac Brazel?s farm, it again became airborne and was able to remain in the air until crashing to its final resting-place. This is where the craft was recovered shortly after the news was released that the 509th Bombardment group at Roswell Army Air Field had come into the possession of a flying saucer (RAAF 1A). The day after this newspaper was released many foreign countries began to call Roswell, New Mexico about the article so a new article was released. This article said that the mysterious objects found on the ranch were really nothing more than debris from a high-altitude weather balloon, not a grounded flying disk (General Ramey 1A). The nuclear physicist Stanton Friedman said, ?Unfortunately, the media bought the Air Force cover-up hook, line, and sinker (Stacy 34).? The first decorated man to inspect the initial crash site Jesse Marcel said ?I still don?t know what the material was, except it was nothing like I had ever seen before and it certainly wasn?t from any weather balloon (Stacy 34).? In 1997 a piece of metal alleged to be a fragment from the Roswell crash was presented to local Roswell scientists for analysis. Dr. Russel VernonClark performed the tests on the material and found that the object had an abnormal ratio of Germanium. This element is not found on earth and has a life of only 1.35 hours. This was proof to Dr. VernonClark that the material was from an extraterrestrial craft. Dr. Jesse Marcel Jr. also examined the piece to compare it with the memory he has from the wreckage his father showed him in 1947. Dr. Marcel agreed that this object looked like the objects that he had seen after the crash (Broussard 1). Roswell is the most known UFO contact site and date known around the world although many UFO?s have been reported throughout the 20th century. In 1948, Thomas Mantell, a pilot for the National Guard was ordered to pursue a UFO. He chased it in his F51 mustang, but he went to high and ran out of oxygen. He went unconscious and the plane crashed, killing him instantly. This was the first documented death due to a UFO (Reaban 2). In 1952 a wave a UFO?s flew over Washington D.C. and appeared visually on the radar. The government denied this and claimed the radar was malfunctioning because of a temperature inversion (Reaban 2). Although many different UFO stories are told everyday, the factor of the bodies makes Roswell stand out.

Upon the final impact of the craft at Roswell coming to a rest, the bodies of the crew were thrown out of the craft and left to die in the wreckage. A first-hand witnesses to the bodies, Mr. Gerald Anderson said ?they didn?t have a little finger? and ?his eyes was open, staring blankly.? The aliens had ?no visible ears?just a rise there and then a hole, they were all wearing one piece suits?a shiny silverish gray color (McAndrew 70).? Although it is probable that extraterrestrial bodies have come to earth and been recovered by authorities, this is one of the only instances where so many witnesses have come forward and claimed to have seen the beings. The government explains the extraterrestrials by saying that they were really only parachute test dummies. The Pentagon says that witnesses were mistaken about the crash and that the dummies were actually from a project ?Mogul? which was launched to monitor the atmosphere for evidence of Soviet Nuclear tests. Air Force Col. John Hayes said ?I have no other explanation for how recollections of ?bodies? could be associated with the debris at Roswell a decade earlier (Burns 1A).? Hayes points out the biggest flaw in the Air Forces? explanation for the alien beings, the Roswell incident occurred in July of 1947 and ?Mogul? did not occur until 1954 (McAndrew 23). How could witnesses be mistaken about an incident as miraculous as the viewing of extraterrestrial bodies? UFO researcher Karl Pflock said ?I think this is a real stretch,? ordinary people could not mix up dates the way the government has implied (Burns 2). The dummies that were used in these high altitude tests had a skeleton of aluminum or steel, latex or plastic skin, and an instrument cavity in the torso and head (Burns 2). This description of the dummies is far from the description of the alien bodies given by witnesses.

Information about UFO?s has been continually documented since before the Roswell incident and is still in existence some 50 years later. From the late 1940?s until December of 1969 the government collected UFO files for public affairs that was called Project Blue Book. Project Blue Book had little effect on the UFO community who believes that the project was most likely used to give the false evidence to the public and keep the real evidence in classified vaults (Stacy 37). In 1966 the government enacted the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which when amended in 1974 allowed individuals to view their own files. UFOlogists began to request certain UFO documents by filing lawsuits, but found that their cases would not stand up against the supreme power of the land (Stacy 38). When documents were finally turned over to these UFOlogists, they were very confusing and many were even marked through with black marker so that they could not be read. The National Security Agency is probably the most ultrasecret of all security branches of the government. UFOlogist attorneys filed for the release of all UFO documents from the NSA but were told that no such documents existed. Then the NSA admitted that some 160 of these documents did exist but could not be released on the grounds of national security (Stacy 39). If so many people believe in UFO?s then why not make the governments information available to the public for viewing if they desire to do so? By classifying information the government is merely submitting itself to the 5th amendment. We cannot accurately blame the government for its denial but we know that it is present. Even Nostradamus has prophesied on the existence of UFO?s, ?When the aliens? spaceship enters the atmosphere the fields will cause it to malfunction and many of the crew are killed. When they crash, soldiers will be on hand to capture or kill them (Oxford 1).? Nostradamus draws an eerie parallel to the Roswell incident and also to other less unknown UFO contacts that have happened worldwide.

The US federal government owns miles of land throughout the Nevada and Arizona where it conducts top-secret activities that is believed to deal with alien technology. ?Area 51 is the last big secret military bases in the US (?Area 51? 20A).? In 1997 the Air Force finally admitted that the ultrasecret Area 51 actually existed. The Air Force has admitted that the base was used to test Cold War-era aircrafts but authorities such as Colonel John Hanes are still reluctant to speak about the base. ?If you are talking about Groom Lake, Nevada?Quite frankly, I have no knowledge or expertise in the matter, I understand there are classified things that go on there. That is all I have to say about it (?Area 51? 20A).? Whatever goes on in Area 51 may be a mystery but what is certain is that 1,850 federal civilian workers are employed in ultra-high-security facilities in and near the range. There is uncertainty about what these people are employed to do but they are among the highest paid federal employees, making nearly $59,000 per year. In 1993 the federal government initiated procedures to seize another 3,900 acres adjoining Groom Lake to seal off two public viewing sites (Stacy 40). It is common knowledge that the Cold War has ended and that our government possesses nuclear arms, why is the government so secretive if it is only performing routine tests? The people are aware that tests have occurred and continue to occur in the midwest, it is time for the government to admit its activity and that it includes alien research.

It is obvious that with so much research pointing to the existence of extraterrestrials, a growing number of people are beginning to look for the truth. Although some sightings are hoaxes, these are merely the people?s way of trying to show the government that people are beginning to wonder if life exists outside of earth. According to a Newsweek poll, 48% of Americans believe UFO?s are real, 29% believe we have made contact with aliens, and 48% believe there is a government plot to cover the whole thing up (Stover 89). ?Will the ongoing cover-up of the government?s knowledge about extraterrestrial UFO?s and their terrestrial activities, known as ?Cosmic Watergate?? ever end or will it continue until true documented contact is made (Stacy 36). Instead of taking the governments side of fearing and denying new ideas, we must realize that amid the vast universe there is other life and it has visited earth.