UFO ROUNDUP Volume 7 Number 23
Volume 7
Number 23
June 4, 2002
Editor: Joseph Trainor
E-mail: Masinaigan@aol.com
CATTLE MUTILATIONS SPREAD IN ARGENTINA
"Two cows were found dead under strange circumstances this weekend in a field located north of the town of Jacinto Arauz" in Argentina's La Pampa province.
"As occurred in the other cases, recorded in several locations of the provincial east, the cows were missing certain organs, and no traces or clues as to their deaths were found."
"Professional veterinarians who examined the animals were notified on Saturday," May 25, 2002, "by the field's owner, whose name was not disclosed. The cows were some 8 meters (26 feet) away from each other in an area with dense ground cover."
"The animals were examined by veterinarians Evaristo Doumoulin and Gaston Granieri. The first could not find a logical explanation when asked for one: 'In 21 years in this profession, I never saw anything like it. Both cows are missing teeth, and one was missing abdominal tissue from the inguinal area. The mammary glands were missing, having been completely excised without leaving traces or damage in surrounding tissues. The incisions to the skin were clean and irregular and did not affect tissue in immediate contact with the skin. No muscles were affected. (The cow) was also missing an ear and had a ring of skin concealed between both parts of the outer ear, which was perfectly cut.'"
The animal "was also missing its lips and 60 percent of its tongue. The other animal showed similar characteristics, with the difference that the mammary gland was only partly missing."
"'In both cases, normal blood coagulation was found in the jugular vein,'" Dr. Doumoulin said.
"As readers will recall, other animals were found dead in equally strange circumstances in the fields of" Macachan and General Acha in La Pampa province and Salliquelo in Buenos Aires province. The town of Jacinto Arauz is located 180 kilometers (108 miles) southeast of General Acha and 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of Salliquelo. (For more on the cattle mutilations in Argentina, see UFO Roundup, volume 7, number 19 for May 7, 2002, "Three cattle mutilations reported in Argentina," page 1 and UFO Roundup, volume 7, number 22 for May 28, 2002, "Another cow mutilated in central Argentina," page 4.)
"The find has drawn the attention of provincial and local authorities alike."
Jacinto Arauz is about 400 kilometers (250 miles) southwest of Buenos Aires, the national capital. (See the Argentinian newspaper La Arena for May 28, 2002, "Two cows found dead in an Arauz field." Muchas gracias a Scott Corrales, autor de los libros Chupacabras and Other Mysteries y Forbidden Mexico, y tambien Gloria Coluchi para eso articulo de diario.)
GLOWING PURPLE UFO DIVES INTO THE SEA OF MARMARA
On Sunday, May 26, 2002, at about 5 p.m., Turkish fishermen hauling in their neats near Sivri Island in the Sea of Marmara "saw a bright, purple-colored object fall into the sea."
The UFO slipped beneath the waves at an estimated position of 40.55 degrees North latitude and 28.50 degrees East longitude."
"The witnesses said the object fell at an extreme speed. By chance, an amateur video camera captured images of the falling object. The object caused a panic among the fishermen. As the phenomenon lasted only a few seconds, it wasn't seen by many people."
According to the research group TUVPO, the video is now being analyzed by the Turkish Ministry of Defense, by the National Observatory in Istanbul and by TUVPO. A full-resolution image of the object can be found at the group's website at http://www.tuvpo.com. (Many thanks to John Hayes and TUVPO for this report.)
(Editor's Comment: Okay, readers in Turkey and Greece, here is your BOLO--Be on the lookout for an unidentified submarine object (USO). The USO can probably be spotted from shore at Barbaros, Murette, Sarkoy, Gelibolu, Lapseki or Canakkale in Turkey. If you're in the Aegean Sea area, keep a close watch on the seas around the islands of Gokce, Bozca, Limnos, Thasos, Samothraki and Evstratios.)
DAYLIGHT DISC HOVERS OVER SANTURCE, PUERTO RICO
Ana Torres, 45, is a computer programmer who lives on the Calle del Parque in Santurce, P.R., near San Juan. On Thursday, "May 23, 2002, Ana woke up" decided to have a snack, "and upon looking through the window (which faces the southern part of the island--L.G.) she noticed a UFO suspended over the Caguas-San Juan Expressway."
Sra. Torres described the UFO as "shiny and silvery, rounded but appearing to have a tail on one of its sides, which appeared to be part of the UFO itself. In other words, a single piece (object--J.T.) The 'tail' was surrounded by lights all around. The UFO was four blocks away and at a height of 16 stories (165 feet or 15 meters), giving the appearance of a mid-sized car."
Ana Torres "was so excited that she decided to go to the terrace, which is next to the kitchen, to confirm the sighting. The UFO was there and stationary. It was shiny and silvery, made of a material similar to 'stainless steel.' Ana has no idea when the UFO arrived. She only knows that it was there, in a stationary position, for some two minutes. It gave her enough time to reach the terrace, to see it with greater detail. The UFO suddenly darted towards the Caguas-San Juan Expressway. Ana was so 'excited and joyful' at seeing the UFO that she telephoned her father (who lives in the city of Ponce--L.G.) and her friends Yadira, Maritza and Jose to describe her experience." (Muchas gracias a Lucy Guzman y Orlando Pla para esas noticias.)
ORANGE UFOs SIGHTED IN FRANKFORT, INDIANA
Rufus D. lives in a rural area north of Frankfort, Indiana (population 16,662.) "Last night, (Friday) May 30th (2002), I was talking and looking at the stars with my girl friend. All of a sudden, something caught the corner of my eye. I stood up and saw two bright orange lights, that appeared to be very big, (remaining) still in the sky. Three seconds later, they faded out."
"Another three seconds and three lights appeared west of the first set. Then fading again. We ran inside to tell her parents. We all came out and looked for about 15 minutes. Then the same light caught my eye. We stood up, seeing three orange lights fade away."
"Then, four seconds later, four huge orange lights appeared in a vertical line. The middle light faded out, then the rest went out. Are these common? Does anyone know what they are?"
Frankfort is on Routes 28 and 421 about 40 miles (64 kilometers) north-northwest of Indianapolis. (Thanks to UFO Reports for this item.)
DAYLIGHT DISC SPOTTED IN PENSACOLA, FLORIDA
On Friday, March 15, 2002, at 1 p.m., in Pensacola, Florida (population 56,255), the witness, Ms. Stone, "looked up and saw it already in the sky. I went to get family and friends, and it was gone. It was slightly northwest of me, almost directly overhead."
"The object was a bright silver shiny disk that made no sound and cast no light. It appeared to reflect the sunlight. It hovered and moved in a tight, jerky, circular, even level, pattern. Looked to be about 100 to 200 feet (30 to 60 meters) in the sky, but I am not a good judge of distance."
"The sighting took place for about a minute. I was mesmerized. It was almost like it wanted me to see it. And when I left to get my family and come back, it was gone. Two of my neighbors were nearby and heard my commotion. There are a lot of tall pine trees in my area of Myrtal Grove in Pensacola, and I saw the object through a tiny clearing."
Pensacola is on the Gulf of Mexico about 200 miles (320 kilometers) west of Tallahassee, the capital of Florida. (Email Form Report)
(Editor's Note: Pensacola and the neighboring town to the south, Gulf Breeze, are the most notorious UFO "hot spots" in Florida.)
CYLINDRICAL UFO SIGHTED IN ENDICOTT, NEW YORK
On Sunday, May 26, 2002, at 6:25 p.m., the witness, F.A., "saw a white cylinder flying from the center of the sky, almost directly above me, to the south-southwest. It was flying under two airliners that were flying at their usual altitude. (33,000 feet or 10,000 meters--J.T.) I suspect that the object was at about five to ten thousand feet (150 to 300 meters). It made no sound, had no markings. It didn't change shape or color."
"When it turned from the east to the south-southwest" over Endicott, N.Y. (population 13,038) "the angle was much too sharp to be a normal aircraft. The whole thing (encounter) lasted two minutes. Another family member also saw the same thing."
F.A. described the UFO by saying, "The object was white, looked like the shape of a Tylenol gel caplet but was all white. Speed was approximately Mach-1 Plus."
Endicott, N.Y. is on Route 26, near Bignhamton, and is about 200 miles (320 kilometers) northwest of New York City. (Email Form Report)
LUMINOUS UFO SPOTTED IN KINGSBURG, CALIFORNIA
On Sunday, May 26, 2002, at 9:15 p.m., the witness, Jim, "went out to my truck" at his home in Kingsburg, California (population 9,200), a small town near Fresno, "to get a package I left in it from shopping. I noticed what at first I thought was an aircraft of some sort coming from the west. But right away I thought to myself that aircraft rarely fly in that direction (eastward) around here. They usually fly north to south between L.A. (Los Angeles) and the Bay area (San Francisco), or Fresno, which is only 20 miles (32 kilometers) from here."
"Well, this bright light, which I would say was larger and brighter than the brightest star or planet, came cruising closer a bit south of me," Jim reported, "I thought, O.K., it's a satellite. But satellite got dismissed pretty quick because it was much brighter and larger, and at the same time I could see an airliner traveling much higher!"
"As far as I could tell, there was no sound coming from the object, no red or green (navigational) lights or flashing strobes--just a bright light. I had plenty of time to go in and grab the binoculars, which did not help show any detail at all. It was traveling at a slow rate of speed in a straight line. I watched it for about four minutes until it was out of sight."
"This thing was BIG! A small handful of other people, and a policemen friend of mine who, with other officers, was out on a SWAT Team practice that night, saw the display also," he added, "It was mostly clear weather--light thin clouds to the south and over the Sierra Nevada Mountains." (Email Form Report)
CROP CIRCLES APPEAR IN CANADA
On Tuesday, May 28, 2002, four crop circles were discovered in a field near Duncan, B.C. (population 4,583), a small town on Vancouver Island, which is just offshore from Canada's British Columbia province.
According to Paul Anderson of Canadian Crop Circle Research, "The largest circle was approximately 6 meters (20 feet) in diameter, the second about 3 meters (10 feet) and two smaller ones." The circles were "somewhat irregular with hay flattened in one direction and a small 'vortex' in the center. The hay is approximately three feet (0.9 meters) high." The circles were "reputedly NOT there the day before (May 27, 2002). No tracks were seen going into the circles when they were first found."
Two days later, on Thursday, May 30, 2002, witnesses reported "unusual non-circular flattened areas" of tall grass "in a remote agricultural area" of Mansfield in Canada's Ontario province. "Grass is bent, not killed. Landowner reported that this has happened before, including in a lily patch, with lily plants being bent in a sweeping rotational pattern."
Unfortunately, by the end of the week, before cerealogists could study either the Duncan or the Mansfield site, persons unknown had tramped through the field, destroying any opportunity for a detailed survey of the crop circles. (Many thanks to Paul Anderson of Canadian Crop Circle Research for these reports.)
STRANGE MIRACLE REPORTED IN SICILY
"The local archbishop declared it a malcious prank."
"The prankster's mother has gone on (Italian) television and apologized for her son's misbehavior. She blames it on his drug problem."
"But the faithful won't take no for an answer. They stubbornly believe the bronze statue of Padre Pio (birth name: Francisco Forginone--J.T.) outside the Church of the Madonna of Pompeii in" Messina, a port city on the northeastern tip of the large island of Sicily "shed tears of blood last March (2002), further proof of the saintliness of the Capuchin monk who died in 1968."
"Padre Pio is revered by many Roman Catholics for being the first person in centuries to carry the stigmata: the bleeding wounds of the hand, feet and abdomen that reflect the crucifixion of Jesus."
"His wounds first appeared in 1918, and miraculous healing powers were said to have followed. As word spread, the faithful began flocking to the monastery where he lived in the southern Italian town of San Giovanni Rotondo."
"After World War II, his following grew huge, and San Giovanni Rotondo soon came to rival Lourdes, France as a pilgrimage destination for those seeking miracle cures."
"At first, the Vatican was unconvinced of Pio's healing powers and tried to curb the cult that he was attracting. Church authorities opened his mail and even bugged his confessional. For a time, they ordered him to stop saying Mass in public and not to display his wounds."
"But a young Polish priest" named Karol Wojytla "met Pio in 1947 and was immediately struck by his holiness. That priest would become Pope John Paul II and a leading advocate for canonizing" Padre Pio.
"Since becoming the Vatican leader in 1978, the current pontiff has canonized more than 450 saints and beatified an additional 1,700 candidates, which exceeds the combined total of all his predecessors going back to Pope Clement VII in the Sixteenth Century. Some of his choices have been highly controversial; others have been real crowd pleasers. Pio is a bit of both and his canonization next month (June 2002) is expected to draw half a million people to St. Peter's Square in Rome."
"Given all the excitement, perhaps the bleeding statue of Messina was to be expected."
"The teardrops on the seven-foot (2.1 meter) high bronze statue were first noticed by a passerby on the evening of March 5. As the news spread, hundreds of (Sicilian) residents rushed to the monument."
"By the next day, the crowd swelled to thousands as dozens of buses carrying pilgrims from San Giovanni Rotondo, near the Adriatic Sea on the Italian mainland, were diverting to Messina, on the northeastern tip of Sicily."
"Police took a sample of the liquid on the statue and confirmed that it was human blood."
"Reports of weeping Madonnas and bleeding statues of saints are fairly common in this part of Italy, and Vatican-sanctioned 'miracles,' such as the thrice-annual liquefaction of Naples' patron, San Gennaro, have long been part and parcel of people's faith."
(Editor's Note: "San Gennaro" was Januarius, the bishop of Benevento in Italy during the reign of the emperor Diocletian. While visiting four Christians in prison, he was turned in to the imperial secret police by informers. After miraculously surviving an attack by beasts in the arena, he was beheaded by a Roman centurion in 305 A.D.)
"But the church is reluctant to sanction new miracles, and the Vatican seemed relieved two days later (March 7, 2002) when a woman came forward and said the blood was placed on the statue as a prank by her drug-addicted son."
Roman Catholic "Archbishop Giovanni Marra of Messina declared the statue's tears a non-miracle and cautioned the faithful against getting carried away by phenomena 'that remain marginal with respect to the true faith.'"
But "to the church's chagrin, the faithful have kept coming. The piazza around the (Padre Pio) monument has become a sea of floral bouquets, giving it the appearance of a well-attended Mafia funeral."
"'They leave flowers, jewelry, money, things you can't imagine,' said Giovanni Licandro, who lives nearby and has become the unofficial custodian and traffic control supervisor at the makeshift shrine."
"Licandro, 43, said he witnessed the miracle himself: the teardrops of blood and an unexpected whitening of the statue's weeping eye. He scoffed at the archbishop's lack of faith and expressed doubt over the confession of the woman who blamed her son."
"'She was coerced,' he insisted, noting that the word on the street has the woman recanting."
"During an hour on a recent afternoon, dozens of residents visited the statue. Young couples arriving on motor scooters sought Padre Pio's blessing on their engagements; students asked for his blessing ahead of their upcoming exams."
"Almost everyone who came felt the need to touch the statue. One elderly woman came with a purse filled with handkerchiefs. She rubbed each one on the statue before putting it in her purse."
"Father Francesco Gullo, pastor of the Madonna of Pompeii Church and himself a Capuchin, has tried to make the best of a dubious miracle."
"'We have to distinguish between miracles and God's grace. Real miracles have to be proven from a scientific point of view, and, according to the scientific enquiry, this was not a miracle,' Gullo said."
"'But the people are convinced it was a miracle, and for me, if this is something that draws people closer to their faith, I see it as an example of God's grace.'" (See the Chicago Tribune for May 27, 2002, "Prank or miracle, you decide," page 4.)
(Editor's Comment: This type of phenomenon I call the "Pygmalion Effect," in which part or all of a statue exhibits lifelike behavior. Remember the Greek legend of Pygmalion and Galatea? The Pygmalion Effect actually predates the Christian era. There are accounts in antiquity of weeping and moving statues of the Olympian gods dating back to about 800 B.C. Why this phenomenon appears to be confined to the Mediterranean Sea region, though, is a mystery.)
UNKNOWN CIVILIZATION DISCOVERED IN SYRIA
"After three seasons of excavation in northeastern Syria, archaeologists say they are more sure than ever that they have broadened the geography of early civilization."
"The ruins at a site known as Tell Hamoukar, in the northern fringes of the Tigris and Euphrates (river) valleys, have revealed that people were apparently undergoing profound changes in the way they lived, worked and organized themselves politically in the early fourth millenium B.C."
"That development seemed to occur about the same time and independently of the more prominent cultures of southern Mesopotamia (then Sumeria--J.T.), traditionally viewed as the sole birthplace of cities and civilization."
"Archaeologists said the findings, which the University of Chicago is announcing this week, disputed the standard view that civilization first appeared in southern Mesopotamia, the modern-day Iraq."
"'Hamoukar has the appearance of a critical step in the history of civilization,' said Dr. McGuire Gibson, an archaeologist at the Oriental Institute in Chicago and the co-director of the Hamoukar Expedition, a venture of the university" and the government of Syria.
"The new excavations, Gibson said, have turned up remains of a monumental city wall and an imposing solidly-constructed building. Both are considered strong evidence of centralized government sometime before 3,500 B.C. Such an elaborate building, for example, would have been necessary to house a governing bureaucracy and specialized craft production."
"In the ruins, the archaeologists found a mix of stamp seals, from small ones with simple geometric patterns to more decorative ones, the largest of which bore images of animals."
(Editor's Note: Animals appear prominently on the steatite seals unearthed in the ruined cities of the Indus Valley, Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, in Pakistan. Could there be a cultural connection between Harappa and Tell Hamoukar?)
"The Chicago team said the differences between the seals, presumably used in commercial and political transactions, indicated a bureaucracy with low-level functionaries, higher-ups and, perhaps, a king at the top." (See the Duluth, Minn. News-Tribune for June 2, 2002, "Researchers broaden civilization's cradle, page 18A.)
From the UFO Files...
1944: D-DAY AND EDGAR CAYCE
May 30, 1944 saw some of the heaviest fighting in World War II. In Italy, the British Eighth Army captured the town of Arce, while U.S. Army VI Corps broke out of the Anzio beachhead at Vellitri. In Romania, German and Soviet Russian forces battled for control of the city of Iasi.
But in UK, the key topic on everyone's mind was the coming Cross-Channel Attack, code-named Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Europe.
Three million men were poised for the invasion--1.7 million Americans, 1 million Britons and Canadians, and 300,000 soldiers from the anti-Nazi forces of France, Poland, Belgium, Norway and the Netherlands. But the Allied commander Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower had his misgivings, particularly about the Channel's unpredictable weather, which he confided to his diary.
"In contemplating airborne operations, which I originally thought would present little difficulty because of our tremendous preponderance of airpower, we have run into a great deal of difficulty because of the almost universal coverage of the European continent by strong flak," Eisenhower, also known as "Ike," wrote, "When going into area where we cannot land at night we run into the most appalling difficulties and obstacles because of this fire. This is the one phase of the operation that still worries me. I'm somewhat concerned that the (U.S.) Eighty-second Airborne Division will have a sticky time of it."
The Allied invasion had to take place "on 5 or 6 June (1944) or at the very latest 7 June. These are the only dates on which" the Allies "can rely on two conditions essential to success. First, the moon will rise late and help the landing by the parachutists and airborne troops--about 22,000 men of the American 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions; and the British 6th (Airborne) Division," and "second, low tide will be at dawn and will uncover all the mines and obstacles that (German Field Marshal Erwin) Rommel had put down."
But the weather was not cooperating. Ike's chief meteorologist, Air-Marshal I.N. Stagg of the RAF, forecast stormy weather for the immediate future. The Germans did not believe an invasion could take place. Vice-Admiral Ruge, Rommel's naval attache noted in his diary for June 4, "Rain and a very strong west wind."
The same day, Rommel left Army Group B headquarters at La Roche-Guyon for a visit to Germany. He planned to see Hitler at Berchtesgaden and then visit his wife, whose birthday, oddly enough, was June 6.
(Editor's Comment: Rommel also wanted to touch base with his fellow anti-Hitler conspirators in the Wehrmacht. Many high-ranking German officers knew and approved of Col. Klaus Schenk von Stauffenberg's plan to assassinate Hitler. On July 20, 1944, Stauffenberg planted a briefcase bomb in Hitler's bunker at the Wolfschanze (Wolf's Lair) in East Prussia. The bomb exploded, killing several Wehrmacht officers, but Hitler miraculously survived.)
Meanwhile, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA, Edgar Cayce, called "The Sleeping Prophet" by American newspapers, was carrying on his work for the Association of Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) which he had founded at the beginning of the 1930s. Although now in his late sixties, and in declining health, Cayce continued his arduous schdule of doing trance readings for thousands of families who had sons and daughters serving overseas.
On the morning of May 30, 1944, Cayce had an unusual visitor.
"At Edgar's request, (his secretary) Gladys (Davis) led the visitor," described only as "an unnamed government agent who arrived from Washington, D.C.," through the house and "into the study, and the doors were closed."
"Edgar's only words about this visit were in a letter to (his son) Edgar Evans (Cayce), in which Edgar described his visitor as 'one of the higher-ups' who was an advisor to those in authority, who were the ones that formulate the patterns about the inter-relations that are to be with all of the other countries after the war.'"
(Editor's Comment: Sounds like a description of the Council on Foreign Relations, based in New York City.)
No details of the reading that Cayce produced for this "unnamed government agent" were ever released. However, "also around this time (just prior to D-Day), Harmon Bro (a Cayce associate--J.T.) reported answering a telephone call, which he put through to Edgar, from the office of (then-Senator) Harry Truman, soon to be vice president of the United States." (Editor's Comment: Americans of the time knew Truman as the senator in charge of a watchdog committee on defense procurements. But it appears that Truman was involved with the highest circles of Allied intelligence during the war. That puts a whole different spin on Roosevelt's choice of him as a running mate in the 1944 presidential election. Next question--did Truman himself discuss the impending cross-Channel attack with Edgar Cayce?)
Meanwhile, in UK, the weather continued to worsen. On June 3, 1944, Ike wrote, "The weather in this country is practically unpredictable. For some days our experts have been meeting almost hourly, and I have been holding commander-in-chief meetings once or twice a day, to consider the reports and tentative predictions. While at this moment, the morning of June 3, it appears that the weather will not be so bad as to preclude landings and will possibly even permit reasonably effective gunfire support from the navy, the picture from the air viewpoint is not so good."
And it got worse. On June 4, Ike "ordered a 24-hour delay on account of bad weather. Gigantic convoys have already sailed from British harbours and anchorages, and now they have to turn about in a sea that grows more menacing every hour."
"About 10 p.m. on the (June) 4th, after consulting the Allied Joint Chiefs (Gen. George C. Marshall in the USA--J.T.) and receiving the weather report from the meteorologists, Eisenhower confirms the irrevocable decision. The landings will take place on 6 June."
"'I don't like it,' he (Ike) says, 'but I don't see what else I can do. I am absolutely convinced that the order must be given.'"
So, at Gen. Marshall's apparent urging, Eisenhower gave the order. "After midnight on June 5th, the weather turned against them" yet again, and still the Allies pressed on with their colossal gamble.
Where did Gen. Marshall obtain his strange confidence that the invasion would be successful? From the May 30, 1944 reading given by Edgar Cayce?
Marshall's diaries are silent about this topic.
Did Edgar Cayce give a reading about D-Day a week before the actual invasion? Good question. But the visit of that "unnamed government agent" underscores the continuing interest of the United States government in the paranormal. Which, as we all know, is a topic not to be discussed in polite society. (See the books Edgar Cayce--An American Prophet by Sidney D. Kirkpatrick, Berkley Publishing Group, New York, N.Y. 2001, page 518; World War II: Day by Day by Donald Sommerville, Brompton Books, Greenwich, Conn., 1989, page 230; The Eisenhower Diaries, edited by Robert H. Ferrell, W.W. Norton & Co., New York, N.Y., 1981, 116 to 118; and 2,194 Giorni di Guerra by Cesare Salmaggi and Alfredo Pallavisini, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, S.p.A., Milano, 1988, pages 524 to 528.)
Well, that's it for this week. Join us next time for more UFO, Fortean and paranormal news from around the planet Earth, brought to you by "the paper that goes home--UFO Roundup." See you in seven days.
UFO ROUNDUP: Copyright 2002 by Masinaigan Productions, all rights reserved. Readers may post news items from UFO Roundup on their websites or in news groups provided that they credit the newsletter and its editor by name and list the date of issue in which the item first appeared.
