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The Redfern Files
Mar 12 2007

Happy Birthday!

The Myrtle Beach, Florida Sun News reports that: “It’s been used to reveal how many times disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff visited the White House, to search for previously undisclosed details on President John F. Kennedy’s assassination and to aid UFO buffs in their never-ending effort to find out what’s really happening in Roswell, N.M. The Freedom of Information Act, which gives citizens access to federal government files, turns 40 this year. Born during Lyndon Johnson’s presidency, FOIA came of age after the Watergate scandal and is a vital tool for individuals, journalists, corporations and academics who seek information that the government may be reluctant to release.”

The FOIA is a tool that I’ve used on numerous occasions in my attempts to secure official files from agencies such as the FBI, CIA, National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, and others. Personally, I’ve found the FBI to be the one agency more than any other that has been useful in trying to secure official documentation on a whole range of weird topics - never mind just UFOs.

Check out their A to Z listing of declassified documents at their FOIA site, and you’ll find, collectively, thousands of pages of formerly classified FBI files on UFOs, Majestic 12, Project Blue Book, Cattle Mutilations, Aztec “crashed UFO” player Silas Newton, Aleister Crowley disciple Jack Parsons, alleged Spontaneous Human Combustion victim Mary Hardy Reeser, ESP, and much more - including countless files on Hollywood celebrities and rock-stars, many of which I used in my new book, Celebrity Secrets: Government Files on the Rich and Famous - and all of whch can be downloaded in PDF format.

Of course, the FOIA isn’t the secret key that opens all doors: the Act contains a variety of clauses that allow for continued withholding of official files - and for reasons ranging from personal privacy to national security. But, if you’re interested in opening still-closed doors in the world of officialdom, the FOIA is a good place to start.
 

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6 Comments to “Happy Birthday!”

  1. Smylex Says:

    Believe me, The Govt. won’t let too much info get out there. When they release vital info you’ll see half of it blacked out.

  2. Nick Redfern Says:

    Agreed:

    Looking at some of the files that surfaced in the late 70s and 80s, it almost looks like the Government was the sole purchaser of black-marker pens. They certainly cornered the market in using the things!

  3. Adam Gorightly Says:

    Thanks, Nick! I turned 47 today. A birthdate I share with George Van Tassell, Jack Kerouac and Albert Einstein. (Not to mention Darrell Strawberry.)

    Also, a fellow researcher has discovered something interesting about the Parsons FBI files, that everyone else has apparently overlooked, this having to do with a method of seeing through the black ink. I’ll fill ya in, later.

  4. Nick Redfern Says:

    Adam

    Very cool re the birthday connection!

    That’s interesting re the black ink and reminds me of a semi-related issue: namely that on several occasions I’ve found examples where someone’s name has been deleted from the FBI’s FOIA files, but where the FBI have overlooked deleting all the references to the relevant name, and the censor missed them by mistake.

  5. Kenn Thomas Says:

    Happy Birthday, Adam (and Albert, Jack, etc.)! Damn, the only person I share a birthday with is George Bush the First.

    I wrote a long article for Flatland once on how to use the FOIPA and it’s reprinted in my current book, Parapolitics, for those who want to use it but don’t know where to start.

    I’ve had tremendous success getting new prison files released on Wilhelm Reich and I still get an occasional box of files on Tim Leary. One came in thye mail with “TOP SECRET” stamped all over it. I figured that was some joker at the FBI.

    Somehow I just don’t think these agencies regularly flag “top secret” releases in the mail like that any more than they post their real secret files on a web site.

    Also, John Judge’s group, COPA, is pushing a new “JFK Act” which would help define assassination records in a way that would grant public access to a wider array of files. So don’t think the JFK effort is exhausted just yet. In fact, my congressman happens to be the head of the NARA committee overseeing this!

    Kenn Thomas

  6. alanborky Says:

    God help me, I share my birthday with Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Tarbuck!

    The horror of this fact is a tweaky bit redeemed, though, by the additional fact I also share it with Bob Marley!

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