Yes, I pointed out that Symington had credibility problems (and I’m sorry, but a criminal conviction, even when overturned, is a PR problem if nothing else), but the more important thing, as I was at pains to point out, is that he’s really irrelevant. Even assuming he was 100% clean, spot on A plus solid citizen, so what? He’s just another witness in a parade of witnesses who saw… something. Add him to the pile, but being Governor in and of itself doesn’t make him any more credible.

It’s like people who jumped on the Paul Hellyer bandwagon two years ago. Yes, Hellyer was Canada’s Minister of Defense forty years ago. So? He said he didn’t see anything back then related to UFOs, but rather based his belief in ET on Philip Corso’s discredited book.

Thud.

A final note to Alanborky - there is a world of difference between some guy like Korff (wrongly) nitpicking over one’s legal bona fides, and a man who was charged with, and convicted of, bank fraud, with the conviction overturned on appeal on legal grounds, and then a pardon issued in the dying days of the Clinton regime before the prosecutors could file to re-try him.

Paul

A sense of humor is great and much needed in any subject.

A sense of humor around UFOs is needed or one will quickly lose sanity.

A sense of humor about UFOs in the media is warrented and carries the average reporting. In the UFO community it is much needed and usually not to be found.

But when your the governor; the executive of the State and a commander of military forces, a press conference addressing public scrutiny and concern is not the place for that sense of humor.

A simple “An object was seen by many citizens, we do not know what it was and we have a small team of top officials reviewing the evidence, thank you and have a nice day.” Would have sufficed and left the governors image nicely intact.

People have a right to expect competence and tact from public officials don’t they?

I know, where do I think I am? The United States or something?

Jess

I misquoted Paul. He said basically the same thing as Kenn did in his clarification about Symington and his pardon by Clinton. Kimball’s not a UFO witness either, at least not that I know of. You also have to take a look at the accuser.

I have changed the text in the post. Thanks for pointing out my laziness.

Haven’t heard from you for awhile. Thanks for clearing things a bit. The UFO community does not take kindly to jokes about them. If it did, perhaps the public would take them more seriously!

Now regardless of the fact Korf was, as is often the case, talking out his fundament, (because Paul actually had the credentials he was impugning him over), it remains the case Paul was ‘accused’.

Later in 1997, Symington was convicted of bank fraud charges stemming from his bankrupt real estate empire. The conviction later was overturned and he was pardoned by President Bill Clinton in 2001 before federal prosecutors decided whether they would retry the case.
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[kt]: Symington had his chief of staff, Jay Heiler, dress up as a grey and led to that press cibference in cuffs, saying that they had caught the culprit behind the Phoenix craft. I wonder if this idea of turning such things into jokes to put the public at ease might have a broader application in the UFO community in general.

Anyway, the news report included this as well, suggesting that Symington’s ideas about aliens came from TV more than an authentic dismay over whatever he witnessed:
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Heiler, who says Symington is one of his closest friends, said he is not surprised he believes in UFOs. He described his former boss as a “Trekkie” — a Star Trek fan — who believes earthlings will travel to distant solar systems at above the speed of light “in our lifetimes.”