X-Conference 2008: Scott Jones & John Alexander, speakers

X-Conference 2008 is to be devoted to uncovering the truth about government activity with UFOs. It is scheduled for April 18-20 in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Two of the speakers merit special attention: C. B. “Scott” Jones and John B. Alexander. Both have had decades-long involvement with ufology (as well as with remote viewing and parapsychology).

In the early 1990s, Jones publicly proclaimed that he “honestly did not know of any activity of the U.S. government” in the field of UFOs.¹ But in 1992 Robert J. Durant produced a detailed, widely circulated white paper demonstrating that Jones was in a position to throw considerable light on government-UFO activities. (I am not aware of any response Jones made to that report.)


The Durant paper is available here


Colonel John Alexander (U.S. Army, retired) was heavily involved with the U.S. government’s psychic spying program, but he was also active with UFOs. In fact, Alexander admitted that he was the model for the “Harold Phillips” character in Howard Blum’s book Out There: The Government’s Secret Quest for Extraterrestrials (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1990). (I was present when Alexander made the admission. Joseph Stefula was also present and can confirm it.)

Alexander has some unusual connections, such as the person of Gordon Novel—an exceptionally “colorful” character.² Novel was somehow able to evade the extradition attempts of prosecutor Jim Garrison during his investigation of the Kennedy assassination. Garrison concluded that Novel’s intelligence associates were protecting him.³ Whatever the truth of the matter, other peculiarities in his background are disturbing.

Novel was convicted of illegally transporting electronic surveillance equipment in Nevada. Later in Georgia, he pleaded guilty to illegal possession of firearms. After being charged with fire bombing in Louisiana he jumped bail, but after recapture, his trial ended in a hung jury.⁴

Alexander has spent some time with Novel and has flaunted the affiliation,⁵ perhaps in an attempt to intimidate others. Martin Cannon, an investigator who has written on government mind-control projects, received a call from Alexander’s wife on May 30, 1993. She left a message on his answering machine saying: “Martin, as an ex-friend I have to warn you. John and Hal [Puthoff] are really pissed off at you. And they’ve given the matter over to Gordon [Novel] to handle. Watch out.” Cannon had no idea what had provoked the threat, but in his book The Controllers he had suggested that perhaps some UFO abduction accounts were actually due to screen memories imposed on the victims of a government mind-control program in order to conceal other atrocities. Cannon was well aware of Alexander’s interest in UFO abductions and of Novel’s background. He was quite alarmed, and the day he received the message, he called and played me the tape. I suggested that he alert a number of people in the media, and he also notified the FBI.

But Cannon was not the only one targeted by Alexander. Armen Victorian of England was one of the most effective researchers to use the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to uncover government involvement in paranormal areas.6 Citing the FOIA, Victorian requested information about research at Los Alamos National Laboratory, but it was denied him. Undeterred, he placed a second request, seeking copies of all paperwork relating to the denial. Victorian thereby obtained a memorandum written by John Alexander to Gilbert Ortiz, dated 28 September 1993. In that memo, Alexander discussed Victorian and specifically complained about his role in the expose of Bruce Maccabee, a Navy physicist who spread rumors that the U.S. government knew of ET alien bases on earth.⁷ (Maccabee is scheduled to speak at X-Conference 2008.)

Alexander’s memo revealed that the CIA had requested “British Intelligence and the police to assist in resolving problems with” Victorian. Alexander did not discuss court action, legal remedies, or regulations that might be used to deny information. Rather it implied retaliation by government agents without due process, a serious abuse of power. Victorian subsequently reported that his home and car were broken into, that computer disks and other records stolen, and that someone had tampered with his mail.⁸ After an account of all this appeared in the January 1, 1995 edition of British newspaper The Observer⁹ his problems seemed to stop.

Concluding Remarks

Whatever one may think of Jones and Alexander, one cannot reasonably conclude that they have worked to inform the public about government-UFO activities. They have fostered ambiguity and suspicion, and perhaps worse. One might be skeptical of any statements they may make on the topic.


For more on Jones and Alexander, see The Trickster and the Paranormal pages 169-170, 228, 237-241, 243-244.


Endnotes

1. For instance: Jones, Cecil B. Government - UFO Connections in Mufon Symposium Proceedings, 1991, pp. 173-184. Seguin, TX: MUFON. See page 176.

2. An entire chapter is devoted to Gordon Novel in The Kennedy Conspiracy: An Uncommissioned Report on the Jim Garrison Investigation by Paris Flammonde, New York, NY: Meredith Press, 1969, pp. 96-109.

3. On the Trail of the Assassins by Jim Garrison, New York, NY: Warner Books, 1991, see pp. 208-211. (First published 1988)

4. Bizarre Rome Case Ends with Man Pleading Guilty by Betsy Neal, Atlanta Constitution, November 6, 1977, p. 15-B (page depends on edition).

5. A picture of Alexander with Novel was printed in Saucer Smear, Vol. 41, No. 9, December 5th, 1994, p. 6. Available at: http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v41/ss941205.htm. Accessed March 28, 2008.

6. Victorian formerly used the name Henry Azadehdel. On June 6, 1989, he was convicted of smuggling orchids into England.

7. Alexander’s memo was reproduced in Third Eyes Only (No. 19, March-April, 1994, pp. 33-38). Maccabee’s spreading of rumors of ET bases on earth can be found in his article Hiding the Hardware (International UFO Reporter, Vol. 16, No. 5, September/October, 1991, pp. 4-10, 23. See pp. 10, 23.) The expose of Maccabee was the Associated Investigators Report AIR #1 The Fund for CIA Research? or Who’s Disinforming Whom? (Third Eyes Only, No. 14, July, 1993, pp. 1-14.)

8. Britain in the 90s: Up Against the State by Armen Victorian, Lobster, No. 28, 1994, pp. 12-13. Victorian sent me copies of police reports he filed. If he had filed false ones, he could have been subject to prosecution.

9. Secret Service ‘Targets’ Military Writer by William Goodwin, The Observer (London), January 1, 1995, p. 10.