Dick Criswell will be a guest on The Kevin Smith Show tonight (Monday, 2/25/08). Listen online at http://www.kevinsmithshow.com Among other things, he will discuss the new developments we’ve turned up about the Stephenville, Texas, UFO Sightings.

Many UFO researchers—including nearly all the well-known ones—have never seen a UFO. Perhaps this fact makes them more impartial than those of us who have seen UFOs. Personally, I don't think your experiences or lack thereof determine the quality of your research. Some people who've seen UFOs themselves want to label every light in the sky an alien spacecraft. Some people who've never seen a UFO brush off every witness who claims to have seen something extraordinary as a liar or fruitcake.

I understand why some people want to see UFOs everywhere. The reasons why researchers ignore sightings baffles me. In my book Backyard Bigfoot, I chose to share my personal experiences with both Bigfoot and UFOs, for the simple reason that I believe personal experiences can tell us more about both phenomena than dry recitation of the mechanics of the Bigfoot in the Patterson film or the crash at Roswell.

As both a witness and an investigator, I have experienced these attitudes. In January of 2004, in Texas, I saw a set of six enormous lights hovering 100 feet off the ground, aligned in two diagonal rows with three lights per row. Each light burned ten times brighter and larger than any football stadium's lights. I had the impression the lights hung from an enormous object, though I can't quantify the reason for that impression. Since then, I have wondered whether the two rows of lights signified two objects; or, perhaps, each light represented an individual object.

The lights hovered above and just behind a horse ranch with a barn and small caretaker's house. Lights burned inside the barn, yet the ranch seemed eerily still, almost lifeless. We drove a little further down the road, pulling into the driveway for a gas well enclosure. We sat there in a daze for a minute or two. At least, it seemed like a minute or two.

The truth would prove disturbing.

I conducted my own investigation during and after the sighting. Originally, my mother and I spotted the lights from my backyard. We got into my car, drove down the winding country roads, and found the lights. While driving, we could see the glow from the lights from miles away, over the tops of the hills. A week later, we drove back to the area in daylight but found nothing that could have created the lights. We drove around all sides of the pasture where the lights had hovered. Nothing.

The night of the sighting, we returned to my house thinking the trip had taken 20 minutes. Instead, we discovered the voyage had eaten up 45 minutes—25 minutes longer than it should have. I had driven on those country roads countless times, and knew how long the trip should've taken. We had lost 25 minutes somewhere along the way.

At the time, I reported the sighting to a UFO organization. No response. Since that time, I've recounted to the story to other researchers and members of UFO groups. No one expresses the slightest interest. With all the talk about abductions and missing time, you'd expect someone to evince a mild interest. I don't think my mother and I were abducted. We did, however, have missing time and a close-up sighting.

I've talked to witnesses who reported their sightings to me because they'd received a dismissive response, or no response at all, from other UFO researchers. Some of these witnesses have had extraordinary sightings. I have never figured out why researchers will zero in on one particular case, which seems ordinary to me, and ignore myriad others. When they do investigate a case, many researchers perform a haphazard inquiry, as if the case only marginally interests them.

As witness myself, I understand what people go through after seeing something they can't explain. Perhaps if more researchers had sightings, they would concentrate less on moldy old cases like Roswell and spend more time on new investigations.

- Lisa A. Shiel

Lisa A. Shiel is the author of [http://www.backyardbigfoot.com/]Backyard Bigfoot: The True Story of Stick Signs, UFOs, & the Sasquatch, a ForeWord Magazine 2006 Book of the Year finalist. Critics have praised Backyard Bigfoot, saying “[it] is as informative as it is entertaining” (Midwest Book Review), “[it is] one of the best types of investigative reporting I've seen” (Reader Views), and “you may agree or not with her conclusions but you will be entertained by the discussions” (The Mining Journal, Marquette).

As a recognized Bigfoot expert, Lisa has been interviewed by big-city newspapers, drive-time talk radio hosts, local and national magazines, and TV reporters. In 2005, she founded [http://www.upbigfoot.com/]the Michigan Upper Peninsula Bigfoot Organization (MUPBO) to explore all aspects of the Bigfoot phenomenon, from sightings to evolution to UFOs. Lisa has a master's degree in Library Science. She currently pens a blog, http://backyardphenomena.blogspot.com/

Dick Criswell reported that several calls came into our UFO Hotline over the weekend reporting the sighting of UFOs in the skies over San Diego. We’ll provide more details as they become available. We have been receiving reports about UFOs over that area for some time. If you have any information to report about those or any other UFO sightings, please contact IPUS through our Website at http://www.CanYouStandTheTruth.com

If you’re a Member of IPUS, you can now enjoy some exclusive articles and information including some fascinating articles about UFOs and Ghosts. These are available exclusively to paid IPUS Members. You can join IPUS at http://www.CanYouStandTheTruth.com

After telling former Stephenville Empire-Tribune Reporter Angelia Joiner to stop writing about UFOs (according to her own accounts in various interviews), the newspaper ran a story about another meeting that would be held to collect UFO sightings from locals. I guess that fits into their idea of local news so it’s alright, but it seems a bit strange since they wanted to move past the sightings and were convinced that locals were tired of the entire UFO thing. Maybe they wanted people to attend that meeting (it was held this past weekend) to be sure that the local sightings are reported and judged in a certain way. Who knows? Read between the lines and draw your own conclusions.

If you want IPUS to report on UFO sightings as they happen and collect information that will allow us to keep you informed on the latest paranormal encounters, we need your help. UFO research is a cooperative effort. First and foremost, we need people to commit to the organization by joining it. We offer paid memberships. Once you’re a member, that qualifies you to take part in our organization as an investigator or representative. Members are just $20 a year and include many benefits. Another way to help is by passing on any reports of UFO or Paranormal Phenomenon that comes your way to IPUS. Part of understanding the Paranormal is keeping the lines of communication open and letting others know when paranormal or UFO events are reported. We also accept donations on our website. It looks like this year will be a very year busy time for paranormal activity and we can use all the financial help we can get to fund investigations.

Fans of IPUS Spokesperson and veteran Paranormal Researcher, Dick Criswell, can attend his classes in the Indianapolis area several times each month. Dick covers a number of paranormal subjects and it's a great opportunity for people interested in these matters to meet and greet each other. The classes are free.

The classes are held at The Magick Candle, 204 S. Audubon Street, Irvington (Indianapolis suburb), IN 46219. The next class will held on Wednesday, February 27, 2008 from 7pm to 9pm and the topic will be UFOs. Call Dick at 765-483-9089 if you need any more information. Otherwise, just come out and enjoy Dick's class!