James Carrion Ain’t No Sissy!

By Frank Warren
The UFO Chronicles
© 9-1-09

Whatever one might think about James Carrion, there are a few things that have become abundantly clear: he has a strong opinion, he can give as good as he gets, and he stands his ground!

August 17th (last month) saw the birth of Follow The Magic Thread, Carrion’s personal blog, where he makes clear that in that realm, “he isn’t speaking in an official capacity for MUFON.”

For those not familiar with the man, he is the International Director of the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON—as James states is a scientific research nonprofit organization that studies UFOs for the benefit of humanity through investigation, research and public education.), having taken the reins from former director, John Schuessler in 2006.

In James’ introduction to his blog, he correctly acknowledges the distortions and misinformation etc., re Ufology, which exist on the Internet, and proclaims his desire that his blog might be a beacon for critical thought and perhaps a protocol for wading through this thing we call Ufology.

Once the reader takes in the introductory commentary, it’s time to hold on, as James jumps right into “the thick of things!” In his piece entitled, The Mysterious Men in Black, he not only fires back at those who would (foolishly) suggest that he perhaps is a notorious Man in Black (MIB), some nefarious undercover agent who has infiltrated MUFON, but also puts his entire background on the table for all to see; accordingly, he then illuminates the verity that his accusers make their proclamations anonymously, and hide behind creative avatars . . . I find the irony amusing.

We get to delve further into what makes Carrion tick, as he published an earlier interview of him conducted by Brazilian researcher, Milton Frank. The Q&A session pretty much sums up Carrion’s views on Ufology; however, in a prelude to the interview Carrion states, “Although my basic opinions have not changed, the last three years have opened my eyes about UFOs in a way that I would have never been able to experience otherwise.”

From this point on Carrion posts articles in rapid-fire succession that are often sharp, critical and to the point! He makes no bones about his position on a myriad of sub-topics to Ufology.

He talks of deceptions, government conspiracies and intelligence agencies pertaining to Ufology in his piece entitled, The Collision Course of Intelligence Agencies and Ufology. In it, he correctly recognizes the national security concerns that UFOs present and lays down the foundation of his dogma and how he arrived at it.

In a few of his articles he mentions his investigative work concerning the Great Lakes Dive Company Hoax of 2006; I took special interest in these declarations, as I began my own investigation into the matter the minute the story broke. Moreover, I thought the acts of this man that perpetrated the hoax were despicable, as they were done at the expense of the missing servicemen’s families, who for a brief moment undoubtedly thought may finally get closure to the mystery of their missing loved ones.

In The Internet Matrix, James “incorrectly” suggests that the GLDC hoax may have been performed by an intelligence agency; admittedly, this concept isn’t too far-fetched; however, my investigation came to fruition and the “crime” was perpetrated by one individual, with perhaps occasional help from friends—the motive is still unclear!

In the very same article James elucidates the idea of how easy it would be for intelligence agencies to inject misinformation or propaganda onto the Internet via forums, blogs etc. He makes the valid point that members are not vetted and most often times use an alias and are essentially anonymous; this thesis is carried on through a number of his articles, where he cites particular forums and arguments.

One of the more controversially pieces he wrote, was entitled Lost in Space, where he takes issue with the veracity of the statements of self-professed experiencer, “Stan Romanek.” As the editor of The UFO Chronicles, I was intrigued by the arguments; I requested and was given permission to publish the article; upon publication, I received an e-mail from the Romanek camp, expressing their displeasure re Carrion’s opinions etc.; in the spirit of fairness, I offered to publish any rebuttal they’d like to present (the offer still stands); during the interim, researcher and fellow MUFON investigator, Chuck Zukowski offered refutation to Carrion’s penscript. Given the significance of Romanek’s declarations, and the evaluation of them by no other then the director of MUFON, it’s no surprise that this has become a hotbed of controversy.

At the end of the day, for those of you that stop by and peruse Carrion’s Follow The Magic Thread blog, you might find yourself disagreeing with the author; his ruminations may evoke your ire; you may learn something; you may applaud his efforts enthusiastically; however, one thing is for certain—you will not be bored; you will be forced to cogitate, and you will be compelled to continue reading!