Copyright 2000 by Veritas News Service
by Jay Reynolds
VNS Central Bureau Chief
3/7/2000
One Year Later - "Those
Mysterious Lines in the Sky" - are Still Flying
(VNS)- On March 1st, 1999, Veritas
News Service published my article "Those Mysterious Lines
in the Sky" which described the origin, claims, and facts
surrounding the contrails/chemtrails controversy at the time.
That article was included in the Congressional Research Service's
Report on Contrails which found the claims that persistent contrails
were covert "spraying" of harmful substances to be "unsubstantiated
conjecture".
<http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/linesinsky.html>
<http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/congrep.html>
This article will describe events that
have transpired through 1999 to date, and begins by reiterating
the conclusion from last March, which read:
"Contrail formation mechanisms are ordinary and contrails
themselves are increasing in number as a result of increased air
traffic. Reports of persistent contrails are within what is known
to be naturally possible. Contrail studies are underway which
will increase our knowledge of their causes, frequency, and effects.
High altitude contrails are not consistent with effective dispersal
of chemical or biological agents. No known toxic or harmful components
have been proven to be in JP-8+100 fuel. Ethylene dibromide is
not a viable chemical warfare agent when delivered through jet
engine combustion. No medical reports, material analysis, or documentable
and confirmable evidence has been presented which supports the
hypothesis that chemical or biological agents are currently being
delivered or can be associated with jet contrails. There is a
threat to Americans from germ and chemical warfare, and vigilance
should be maintained. Speculation and rumor without factual and
specific information can only dull that vigilance. Those with
factual information have a moral obligation to publicize those
facts, but those who "cry wolf" are not acting in the
best interest of this nation."
For those interested in the bottom
line, or short on time today, the situation one year later remains
the same, all the above conclusions still stand undiminished and
unchanged after one year. For those interested in the rest of
the story, including the actual "contrails" virus that
I have identified, read on.
Normal contrails in history
Last year's article began with a discussion of normal contrails
and the conditions in which they form and can persist in the sky.
Those being processes governed by the laws of known physics, nothing
new can be said. Regarding the historical knowledge of contrails
and their persistence, investigation has yielded new information.
Historical photographic evidence dating back sixty years has been
displayed, and testimony from B-17 Bomber crew members confirms
that even before the age of jet aircraft,
"We often said that we created
weather over Europe. They would persist for many hours, maybe
days. " - Willard Reese- 457th
Bomb Group".
<http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/gallery.html>
<http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/deception5.html>
Scientific Research Continues
Scientific research on contrails and their effect on the atmosphere
culminated this past year in the release of the UN inspired Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change special report on aviation. The contribution
of current and projected future aviation contrails to a forcing
of earth's atmosphere towards warming can be summed up in these
quotes: "The computed global mean radiative forcing by line-shaped
contrails is 0.02 Watts/sq. Meter in 1992 and 0.1 Watts/sq.Meter
in 2050. At northern mid-latitudes, the zonal mean forcing is
five times larger than the global mean. The uncertainties in the
analysis suggest that the values may be smaller or larger by a
factor of 4."
<http://www.ipcc.ch/press/pr6-99.html>
<http://earth.agu.org/pubs/abs/gl/1999GL900358/1999GL900358.html>
The Claims
The claims made by those who believe they are being ‘sprayed'
have increased dramatically through the year since my original
article. These speculations expand and contract in popularity
according to the latest rumor, especially when vigorously promoted
or tangentially connected to a current event. During the course
of 1999, media focus on potential bioterrorism led to speculation,
notably by "The Spotlight" newspaper that contrails
observed were actually either an emergency response or a preventative
inoculation as response or prophylactic for a biological attack.
<http://www.spotlight.org/01_07_00/Chemicals/chemicals.html>
Similarly, as the end of the year approached,
fear of Y2K induced civil disturbance initiated many to speculate
that a mind altering substance was being ‘sprayed' to induce
lethargy or otherwise control the population. This last idea was
promoted by "Al Cuppett" who is billed as being a former
member of the US military's Joint Chiefs of Staff. One of the
more manic claims has begun coming from people who believe that
alien reptilian beings who are able to take on human form(including
Britain's Queen Elizabeth)are taking over the world. Their idea
is that contrails are for eliminating the human population to
make room for "reptilians".
<http://www.thegospel.org/pclub/html/cuppett.htm>
<http://www.davidicke.com/icke/index.html>
By late spring of 1999, the promoters
of the claims decided that the word contrail was not what they
needed to instill fear and exert control in the people they wanted
to convince were being poisoned. The term "chemtrail"
eventually stuck, which is quite ironic since most of the promoters
have dropped the idea that a chemical is being dispersed. The
problem with claims to a chemical being "discovered"
is that people would demand that any such claim be supported by
actual analysis.
<http://www.trufax.org/research3/contrails.html#chem>
Claims of Lab Analysis Still Remain
Undocumented
In fact, the main promoter of "chemtrails" has left
the ideas of chemicals behind and settled on a biological claim.
On April 22, 1999, Environment News Service published an article
"Sky Samples Analyzed", by William Thomas, which claimed
that various bacteria and fungi had been found in a sample of
"aerial fallout" at an undisclosed location one year
previously. Thomas claimed the substances had been scraped from
house siding and had been analyzed and cultured at an unnamed
laboratory. All the organisms claimed to have been found are normal
environmental inhabitants and their presence on the contaminated
surface of a house is not unusual. In the eleven months since
the article's publication, no actual analysis has been released.
In an interview by the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper(6/20/99,
pg. E1),Thomas said,
"My colleague and I will release
the name of our lab and detailed analysis as soon as we find a
publisher willing to pay us for many months of research and reimburse
those lab tests."
<http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/deception4.html>
Contrail Photos Proliferate
The main promoter of the ‘chemtrail' idea, William Thomas,
bases his speculation on the claim that persistent contrails are
not normal. Paradoxically, in a very early E-mail missive from
Thomas, entitled "Chemtrails Bulletin #3", on April
22, 1999, he made this statement,
"Four years ago I wrote one
of the first articles (published in Eco Decision magazine) describing
how atmosphere-altering contrails in high-traffic routes such
as the Atlantic corridor between the USA and Europe can occasionally
persist for hours, forming cirrus-type clouds that drift over
a large area."
The same article also said,
"Yet, photographs and videotapes
deluging my office clearly show unmarked, all-white KC-135 tanker
aircraft laying thick billowing ‘trails over American communities
at altitudes below 9,000 feet - where short-lived, ice-crystal
"con"densation trails cannot form."
In the ensuing 11 months, Thomas has
never displayed any photos depicting what he claims to have.
ENS "disassociates" Itself
From William Thomas
On 12/28/99, Environment News Service managing editor James Crabtree
wrote me saying,
"We have disassociated our news service from Will Thomas
and will immediately
ask that he remove anything relating to ENS from his website.
Please understand that this is not a reaction to anything you
have written, but rather to other circumstances between Mr. Thomas
and our company."
Currently, Thomas is promoting an 80
page booklet on his claims, which is advertised for $24.95, and
he is also soliciting $10,000 for a sampling program that will
take air samples by airplane. <http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/swallowtail/619/thomas.html>
"Nationwide Protests"
Held
Three "nationwide" protests
have been held by "chemtrail" activists which were very
ambitious but very insignificant. One call of the protesters was
for the resignation of President Clinton over the issue of "chemtrails",
of which they were certain he was aware. The first protest in
New York City on 11/20/99 was led by "chemtrails activist"
Andrew Amirault and was attended by six people. The second protest
in NYC was held on 12/11/99 and three people showed up. The third
"nationwide protest was held on 1/22/2000, and was only attended
by Andrew Amirault. The fourth protest was held in Boston on 2/12/2000,
and was attended by Andrew Amirault and a "flock of crows".
Protests were also held in Aspen, CO, and Oklahoma City, but less
than a dozen people combined attended.
<http://www.tiac.net/users/tobya/chemprotest.html>
New Mexico Investigates
The most active ‘chemtrail' activist through this past winter
has been Clifford Carnicom of Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has set
up an automatic system at his website which allows a reader to
send form letters to the President, Sec. Of Defense, Attorney
General, EPA, and FAA, with 2270 letters being sent so far. He
asked his State Attorney General for a criminal investigation
of contrails, which was done in a very professional manner, but
concluded that what was being seen was normal contrails.
<http://www.carnicom.com/conright.htm>
<http://www.carnicom.com/attgen1.htm>
<http://www.carnicom.com/responses.htm>
Carnicom's most recent work is about
samples he claims were sent to him from California and Oregon
during November and December of 1999. He does display photos of
the material which appears to be similar to other reports known
to be spiderwebs, which sometimes fall from the sky as masses
of spiders are migrating on air currents. The material is white
in color, and is described as being both adhesive and elastic.
Carnicom compares 100X microscopic photos of this material with
other fibers and spiderwebs on his website.
<http://www.carnicom.com/micro2.htm>
On a realaudio statement at his website,
he discusses how he tried unsuccessfully to interest Worldnetdaily,
an internet news service, in writing a story. In the statement,
Carnicom says,
"I then informed the reporter
that at this time certain lab results had come in, but that it
could be easily proven that the lab conclusions were false, and
that that portion of the story would not be discussed unless the
paper indicated a willingness to investigate my claim to a sufficient
depth."
As in past claims, no actual lab analysis
has been displayed at the Carnicom website. Carnicom has attempted
to portray the material as other than spider web material by all
means other than an actual material analysis, but makes incorrect
assumptions about the properties and size of normal spider web
material. It would be a simple and inexpensive matter to have
such material analyzed by a reputable laboratory and display the
results. Carnicom's statement above leads me to conclude that
he is attempting to avoid showing an actual lab analysis which
would not support his claim.
< http:/www.carnicom.com/real.htm>
Media and Military Response
During 1999, some media coverage was received on the contrails
issue, and response was made by the US Air Force. On 9/12/99,
AP carried a short story about the controversy including this
quote,
"The Air Force doesn't do anything
that emits anything other than a normal contrail, which is vapor,"
said Margaret Gidding, a U.S. Air Force
spokeswoman at the Pentagon.
<http://www.tiac.net/users/tobya/apchem.html>
On 9/14/99, the Sudbury Times(Canada),
carried a story about complaints of low-flying aircraft, and quoted
this USAF response,
"If there are problems being
caused by low-flying aircraft, "It's not the air force"
causing them, said Lt. Col. Stevie Shapiro of the USAF press office
in Washington D.C."
<http://www.tiac.net/users/tobya/sudstar.html>
Finally, the USAF Propulsion Directorate
responded with an official press release which states,
"In response to questions about
the contents of jet fuels, JP-8 fuel does not and never has contained
ethylene dibromide. No jet fuel used by the military or commercial
aircraft contains ethylene dibromide." The press release
concludes, "Contrails are safe, contrary to misinformation
on the internet and other sources. The creation of contrails may
give the illusion an aircraft is spraying something, however,
this is just an illusion. Contrails are created from the normal
emissions of jet engines at higher altitudes which condense water
vapor into a visible cloud. The emissions from jet engines are
basically the same as from car or diesel engines. These emissions
do not contain ethylene dibromide (EDB), since EDB is not a component
of JP-8, or jet fuel. The contrails are water vapor. They do not
pose a hazard."
<http://www.pr.afrl.af.mil/JP8plus100.html>
Flight Tracking Software Becomes
Available
During the summer of 1999, a new tool became available that portends
the end of all speculation about the identity of commercial air
traffic. Previously only available at high cost to corporate clients,
Air Traffic Control data became available to ordinary subscribers
over the internet at a reasonable cost. The subscribers of Flight
Explorer gain access to a visual display of the whole US airspace
and can see and track flights from takeoff to landing, continuously
updated every few minutes with altitude, speed, heading, and identification
numbers. This tool makes it possible to see an airplane leaving
a contrail overhead and completely identify it, learn where it
came from and where it is going. When the concept was introduced
to those watching contrails, it was rejected because it did not
track military flights. Unfortunately, or perhaps purposely, they
did not see the usefulness of being able to identify whether or
not a plane was a normal commercial plane and thus learning what
conditions promote contrails in normal planes, and being able
to test the claim that what they were seeing was not military
flights.
<http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/fe/review.html>
Not until 1/23/2000 did a proponent
of ‘chemtrails' finally release results of his experience
using flight tracking software. Michael McDonnough of Greenville,
TX, said,
"I was watching on Flight Explorer
and seeing when the next planes on the screen would pass over
my area. When I was sure that these 2 flights had passed overhead
I went out to see if there were any trails as a result. These
2 persistent contrails were in the air. There is no doubt that
these contrails were formed from commercial air traffic, AAL 1356
(American Airlines Flight 1356) and NWA 1241 (North West Airlines
Flight 1241)." McDonnough also
said, ""Presently my research indicates to me at
least that the Chemtrails make up about 10% of the reported sightings,
and the other 90% are in fact persistent contrails formed by ordinary
commercial air traffic."
<http://teksphere.com/discus/messages/77/78.html?FridayFebruary2520001254am>
European Environmental Concerns
During 1999, several people in Europe
became concerned about the effect contrails have on their activities.
Holger Pedersen, a Danish astronomer, has created a website which
discusses how normal contrails affect his observations. He has
created an extensive slide show which loads automatically through
multiple photos, and has a large file of links related to contrails.
Robert Van Waning of Holland, has seaside vacation cottages close
to heavily traveled air routes and is concerned about the general
environmental effects and loss of sunshine. These concerns are
the only ones based on reality, these people find the idea of
‘spraying' to be false.
<http://www.astro.ku.dk/~holger/IDA/S/s2.html>
<http://www.seaport-beach.nl/2000-03.htm>
Conclusion
As previously stated one year ago,
reports of persistent contrails are within what is known to be
normal. No photographs, medical diagnosis or lab analysis has
been presented which supports the idea that contrails seen are
anything other than normal.
There is a virus going around, however.
Much as a computer virus copies the behavior of an organic virus,
this virus is contagious, can mutate into myriad forms, and can
infect those with weakened immune systems. This virus is transmitted
orally and through the written word, from person to person and
group to group, and it can even be transmitted electronically
through radio and internet.
Those most afflicted are the gullible,
the ignorant, or the foolish who
carry the rumors and speculations to others without regard for
the
consequences of their actions, which mimics transmission of an
STD between consenting but careless people.
The protection for this very real contrail
virus is a strong dose of common sense, and regular application
of factual information thereafter. Nevertheless, even without
treatment, time will eventually heal this virus, except in the
most thoroughly entrenched cases. As time goes on, perhaps for
years in some people, and persistent contrails continue to be
seen year after year, all the theories developed years before
will become more and more ludicrous. It is certain that those
susceptible will become infected by yet another of these virii,
if they do not acquire common sense and take the time to check
what others tell them.
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