Many studies of the “UFO phenomenon” have been conducted around the world since the 1940s, perhaps even earlier. In our opinion, the two most historically significant reports are: “The Condon Report,” funded by the United States Air Force and published as the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects, and UFOs: What to Do?, published in draft by the RAND® Corporation—whose clients include the United States Air Force and the Central Intelligence Agency. We will refer to the RAND® document as “The RAND Report.” RAND® states that their “draft” was neither prepared for, nor delivered to, any client. For a time RAND® denied that this “think piece” even existed.
The Condon Report is considered by the scientific community and public at large to be the most influential document representing a scientific perspective on UFOs. In our brief treatment here—many books are available—PluribusOne™ has one goal: to encourage everyone interested in the UFO phenomenon to consider The RAND Report to be the most important, concise, and (if read carefully) profound document on this topic.
Apart from the release date, the two reports have little in common. The Condon Report was copyrighted and presented to the public in January, 1969, whereas The RAND Report was never copyrighted and was not available to the public until 1993—exactly 25 years after its creation. The Condon Report debunked the UFO phenomenon, deeming it unworthy of further attention by scientists (or anyone), whereas The RAND Report enthusiastically encouraged further study. The Condon Report is a massive document (more than 1,400 pages), including detailed field studies and analyses of evidence that—by the way—contradict Condon’s absurd conclusion. The RAND Report is fewer than 50 pages long, about the length of the summary section of Condon’s report.
Condon’s agenda, as later revealed, was to debunk UFOs and discourage interest. Was The RAND Report—drafted in parallel with the Condon Committee’s assemblage—prepared as a second summary of the body of Condon’s tome, but not a summation intended for public distribution? Our skepticism is supported by the great coincidence that both reports were released non-publically at the same time—November, 1968, not months later as frequently and erroneously stated elsewhere on the internet. It seems obvious that both reports were issued to the Air Force simultaneously, which indicates that the United States military was given The RAND Report to supplant Condon’s bogus summary.
Although the government told the public that the UFO phenomenon posed no threat, it was reported in 1984 (source material not cited) that “…the Rand Corporation was once asked to feed UFO data into a computer and fight an imaginary war with the elusive entities. But since we didn’t know their origin or their technology or how to attack their bases, the computer advised that we surrender.” Thirty years later, with the body of UFO information now available to the public, that report is even more credible than it was at the time.
RAND®, a think-tank serving governments, universities, and nonprofit foundations, states its mission as this: “To help improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis.” Rand® is not in the business of publishing wildly speculative ideas or groundless opinions. Visit their website at Rand.org and download the free UFO report—document DRU-1571—in PDF format. Also free, the full text of The Condon Report can be viewed online at: files.ncas.org/condon (website of National Capital Area Skeptics). The NCAS is chartered to promote “critical thinking and scientific understanding.” PluribusOne™ is not affiliated with either organization.
The Rand Report, drafted by George Kocher, exemplifies Leonardo da Vinci’s insight: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Kocher’s overview is simple, complete, and supportable by decades of evidence-gathering. The profound cream of his encapsulation is: (1) there is no scientific reason why life-forms in other solar systems would differ from those on Earth; (2) in our own galaxy, 100 million planets are likely to be home to people whose technologies surpass ours by billions of years; and (3) if light-speed can be exceeded (and it can, as CERN observed in 2011), some advanced race is certain to have discovered and harnessed it. In short, we say: it is more than reasonable to accept that some UFO encounters are with visitors from outer space.
[Post updated April 14, 2015 by addition of the italicized material in paragraphs 4 and 5.]
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