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- Some of the UK's most experienced investigators today
launched a bold initiative.
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- They have banded together under a common name - UFOIN
(UFO Investigators Network) in an attempt to professionalise UFOlogy in
Britain.
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- UFOIN is a very different kind of UFO network. It is
not a membership group. It is not seeking to replace existing groups. It
will operate without bureaucracy, committees or rulers and free of all
politics. Its most basic principle is a commitment to openness in all that
it does. Its decisions will be taken by a vote of all team members. Its
actions will be open to public scrutiny. Its publications and files will
be accessible to all participants for research purposes. Anyone who works
with UFOIN will feel part of a team, not apart from team leaders. Indeed
every UFOIN participant has equal status.
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- UFOIN will be run by investigators for investigators
and with 100% of its resources devoted to this task. Nothing will be spent
pandering to enthusiasts, putting on lectures or printing magazines. UFOIN
will exist purely to conduct objective, in depth investigations to well
honed scientific principles . It will also conduct new research that will
seek to answer basic questions about the UFO mystery.
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- Here are some of the decisions taken by the founders
of UFOIN for immediate implementation.
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- 1: UFOIN is to be a union of UFOlogists with proven desire
to investigate objectively, research through scientific principles, promote
solutions to cases whenever they are found but to recognise and speak up
for unsolved data when discovered.
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- 2: It will seek to work in harmony with each other and
all other responsible aspects of UFOlogy .There will be no members, membership
fees, committees, rulers, hierarchy nor structure. The team will be a UK
network of people with similar principles working towards a common goal.
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- 3: A professionalised team of investigators will be based
upon proven expertise. Entry will be open to anyone who believes that they
can meet the rigorous standards. This requires the submission of a recent
case investigation report to prove skill, competence, objectivity and a
personal quest to find answers behind a sighting. It also requires acceptance
of the ban on the use of hypnotic regression and signature to the code
of practice.
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- 4: UFOIN will be highly selective in its investigation
work - focusing on in depth re-appraisals of important old cases and seeking
new reports that offer potential to add to our knowledge. To this end the
professional expertise of the team will be offered to science and education.
UFOIN will emphasise the 90% track record in case solving as professed
by serious UFOlogy and will play down the use of emotive terms such as
UFO and alien, focusing instead on anomalies, scientific puzzles and using
phrases such as IFO and UAP. It will seek to work with both open minded
scientists and sceptics and handle UFO data from a rational perspective,
steering away from the extreme views and ideologies expressed by parts
of the old style UFO community.
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- 5: Participants will benefit from working as part of
a professionalised, experienced investigation team whose only goal will
be truth, however mundane that may prove to be. Access to a team of advisers,
comprising scientists, MOD officials, etc, is already in development. And
a research fund will be offered for use by the team. Grants from that fund
for R & I work will be speedily decided without cumbersome committees.
Regular meetings of the team will foster exchange of experience and UFO
information.
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- 6: UFOIN will not produce a magazine. Publication policy
will involve a steady stream of special reports under the UFOIN banner.
These will comprise research projects, retrospective case investigations
and current case histories. They will be compiled and produced to a common
format by the investigator / researcher directly involved in each project.
All proceeds will enter the central R & I fund - in turn allowing future
projects . UFOIN will aim for at least 3 - 4 reports per year. Assistance
and contributions from scientists and experts outside the UFO field will
be included to help make these progress reports more definitive. Diverse
projects are already under development for early publication.
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- 7: One priority report will involve scientists and sceptics
assessing the strengths and weaknesses of UFO investigation to provide
UFOIN with guidelines on how to develop its objectives to mutual advantage
and furtherance of common goals.
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- 8: Another new venture will be an annual research report.
Each January UFOIN members will define the topic for that year's report.
An initial briefing paper introducing the topic will define the questions
that most need answering within that field. The briefing paper will be
circulated widely to UFOlogy and beyond to professional agencies that might
assist in fulfilling its objectives. A series of research components will
be allocated so that all major areas of exploration are followed within
the defined topic. The book length report (a definitive study of these
questions) will then be published including all research results and contributions
before the year-end. The following year a new research topic will be pursued
on a similar basis creating a momentum of ongoing work involving the UFOIN
team.
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- 9: A high quality, user friendly web site is under professional
design. This will include many features of value to investigators and researchers.
Electronic copies of all UFOIN reports will be published on the site after
sale of hard copy versions. All local UFO groups who publish their own
small run magazines or independent journals are invited to participate
in a new electronic magazine here. Each month a selection of highlighted
material will be compiled (with full credit and subscription details offered
as free promotion to local groups). The result will be both an Internet
based 'best of British UFOlogy' digest with the major articles, case investigations
etc and a net based advertisement for high quality local UFO groups and
their studies. The basic web framework is already in existence and will
grow rapidly in the next few weeks. During that time regular updates will
be posted showing the response of UFOlogists all over the world to this
announcement. As part of UFOIN's ideals your ideas, comments, suggestions
and constructive criticisms will all be aired. UFOIN will listen to views
of fellow UFOlogists.
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- 10: The R & I fund that will facilitate investigations,
research and publication will be the only money administered by UFOIN.
All proceeds from whatever origin (e.g. publication sales, donations, and
special ventures) will be devoted exclusively to this fund. No money will
be used on administration, organising lectures, or other none R & I
pursuits.
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- 11: A number of ventures are to be reviewed to find rapid
ways to create and renew this fund.This will allow it to continually fulfil
its purpose without courting inactive UFOlogists for membership fees:
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- A: Grant funding for an educational arm of UFOIN, that
will offer free lectures to schools, libraries and serve as an information
agency .
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- B: Exploration of public services from which 100% of
all proceeds will go into the fund
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- C: Production of a series of objective UFO videos on
the realities of UFO research to be created and marketed by UFOIN with
100% of proceeds into the R & I fund.
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- D: As a 'quick fix' to kick start the fund several members
of the UFOIN team (including David Clarke, Andy Roberts and Jenny Randles)
are to publish a commercial book that could raise substantial funding .
The ethos of this fund, disenchantment with traditional UFOlogy, the need
to revolutionise serious investigation and research and aims of the UFOIN
project will be used to help market the book.
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- The twelve people below who have founded UFOIN are convinced
that it is essential to progress UFOlogy beyond its current stasis. The
above plans are being put into practice now because an urgent need exists
to coordinate UFO study in the UK towards a more rational perspective.
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- As such a new style of UFOlogy for the 21st century has
now arrived .
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- If you feel that you have got what it takes to join the
fight to reverse the fortunes of serious UFO study and prove that UFOlogy
can be done objectively and scientifically, then what are you waiting for?
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- UFOIN needs you. And if you share the sentiments above
then you need UFOIN.
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- Contact:
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- E-mail:
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- enquiries@ufoin.org.uk
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- Snail mail: 1 Hallsteads Close, Dove Holes, Buxton, Derbyshire
SK17 8BS
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- Web site:
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- http://www.ufoin.org.uk
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- Signed (in alphabetical order):
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- Andy Blunn (NARO), Dr David Clarke (IUN), Paul Devereux,
Paul Fuller, Rory Lushman (The Labyrinth), Lynda Matthews (LUFOS), Tim
Matthews (Beyond), Robert Moore, Jenny Randles (BUFORA), Bob Rickard (Fortean
Times), Andy Roberts (IUN), Mike Wootten (SiteOne)
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