In 1997, for Sightings magazine, I wrote an article that hit ufology like a bolt from the blue.
Well, like everything else it seemed to not make the slightest difference. But I found a copy as I was going through my boxes of UFO publications looking for something else -it's how I find most things. Titled "Alien Symbols" on the contents page, the editor decided that the actual article title would be "Symbols of Abduction"; this seems to have been traditional in UFO publications -title on contents page different to the actual title!
The article was somewhat chopped up by the editor across two very badly designed pages that someone must have thought looked good. As a consequence there are points where the text reads badly. This is not my fault!
I am not really that surprised that in over 20 years nothing has changed. I shall include scans of the original article so just click on to make larger.
I also need to point out that I was actively looking for evidence to back-up the work of Hopkins, Mack and Jacobs to make a stronger case.
Symbols of Abduction
Terry Hooper delivers the conclusion to his life's research on alien abductions and in particular symbols seen during abduction in Britain. Many Ufologists and researchers alike may find it a bitter pill to swallow.
I spent twenty five years looking into cases of alleged abductions by aliens or encounters with aliens. Back in 1973 I suggested to the British UFO Research Association, Contact UK and many others that we start looking for periods of time that could not be accounted for in UFO sighting cases. No one was interested. In fact, no one was interested in alleged Close Encounters of the Third Kind at all. I was advised that such cases were so very rare in the UK that it would be pointless trying to find any.
By 1977 I had accumulated 100+ such cases and this excluded missing time reports. The late Lord Clancarty and Air Vice Marshal Sir Victor Goddard found this figure remarkable. I suppose that this was one of the reasons why they backed my going ahead with the Anomalous Observational Phenomena Bureau (AOPB) back in 1983. In 1993 I closed shop on the AOPB as most of its original members were dead by then (one for the conspiracy theorists there!) and I had reached the conclusion that UFO activity was rarer than we believed and also that 95% of everything to do with the 'Greys', 'Dolphinoids' et al was nothing more than pure junk.
The evidence was far from convincing but I put my faith in:
1) Radar-Visual/multiple witness UFO incidents at the time of abductions ruling out the possibility that natural phenomena (UNP -Unidentified Natural Phenomena) were merely sparking off UFO reports along with physical traces.
2) Missing foetus cases -how could you argue with a foetus vanishing from a pregnant woman?
3) Implants allegedly retrieved from abductees.
4) Symbols recalled by abductees under hypnosis that they had seen on UFOs.
By 1997 MUFON in the United States confirmed to me that they had no 100% "solid" cases. Yet it is one of the most respected, largest UFO investigation groups in the world. That was a major disappointment. Missing foetus cases also seemed to have been ably by veteran Ufologist Ann Druffel. Two down, two to go.
By November 1997 I had written to every investigator and researcher I could find, who claimed to have handled or surgically removed the kind of alien implants that were being reported on TV and in the UFO press. Not a single response. So I did more digging and what I found were lies, more lies and damned deceit. There appeared to have been not a single genuine implant retrieved from any abductee -"bits" removed seemed to be nothing more than plain ordinary organic matter that was produced by the 'abductees' own bodies.
To say that I was finding this all very depressing is putting it mildly. I had one last hope. The symbols. These had been gathered by researchers from abductees in Canada, USA and the UK who had never had any contact whatsoever with one another, or with any UFO researcher before. These symbols were so closely guarded that some had only ever been seen by one Ufologist. If a woman in Michigan had reported seeing the same symbols as a woman in Dundee, then that would be near impossible to explain.
Having been a supporter of Budd Hopkin's work and even having an annotated copy of his 'Intruders' book, I started there. Yes, Peter Robins and Budd would study symbols I sent to them and return them annotated, as to matches with symbols they had. Budd has never revealed his symbol collection, not even with Peter!
i then contacted Dr. David Jacobs, whom I have been in contact with, and Prof. John Mack with the same deal. My colleague in Texas, Lindy Whitehurst, passed copies on to Robert Davies who was studying such symbols for comparisons. Another set went to yet another psychologist dealing with abductees.
Oddly enough, Philip Mantle of BUFORA ruled out that aliens had anything to do with abductions and wrote to me stating he had never come across such symbols in the UK. Others had, however.
After over a year of repeatedly writing to Budd Hopkins, nothing had turned up. I sent registered letters that were signed for but Budd would not respond and nor would Jacobs or Mack.
Rather desperately I wrote to Lindy in the US. It seemed that Robert Davies had not found any symbols that matched. Some, actually one or two, looked "similar" but there was not a single match. In fact, it seems that out of the thousands of symbols now available, not any matched other abductees' symbols.
It seems that I had struck the explanation to Budd's lack of cooperation. If these symbols were all different, we had no evidence here.
For the first time I would like to publish symbols reported by British abductees, since everything points to the fact that none of the symbols held by ufologists can be considered as corroborating the genuine nature of other claimed abductees -because they don't report the same symbols. The British symbols are shown here. As anyone can see, these are a mish-mash of astronomical, astrological, Phoenician and Egyptian symbols - as well as some used in the publishing business to annotate manuscripts and indicate alterations. I checked occult symbols and anything else I could get my hands on. I checked linguists and others. The symbols just do not make sense or mean anything. They are simply a mixed bag of nonsense. Budd Hopkins and the Intruder Foundation jumped at the chance to study these symbols -as did others- but I think their silence has to say it all.
The 'evidence' for UFO abductions CANNOT be confirmed or backed up in any way.
I am not saying that abductions haven't taken place, simply that if all of these abduction researchers cannot provide back-up for their claims now, they never will.
Of course, anyone who can provide implants, symbols or other proof is free to contact me, No doubt I'll now be chased from the UFO field but, clearly, we need the evidence, we need the proof.
Above: the original Sightings article: after this was published pressure was put on the editor by "contributors" to drop my other articles planned for following issues.
>>>>>>>>Well, I need to point out that my "life's work" never stopped in 1997! Also there are date inaccuracies in the published article.
When it came to MUFONs declaration of no 100% solid evidence I named my source -a letter from Director Walt Andrus Jnr (a copy was sent with the article).
In the UK Gary Anthony told me that he had a collection of symbols that he was working on and asked for copies of the ones I had in return for those he had. I sent the copies. After a year Anthony had not responded to my letters or phone calls.
Malcolm Robinson of the SPI also had symbols sent to him. Again, it took a year but he then wrote to state that he had no symbols and that he was referring to marks on a person's body.
A small number of the symbols were fakes from Eric Morris who had also openly admitted in UFO circles that he had faked a number of abduction reports. Ufology didn't care.
The problem is that if we have a genuine alien abduction agenda and abductees are seeing symbols and writing then there should be some matches. Even if the Greys have a different language to the Reptilians, or Tall Whites or whatever there logically have to be some common usage symbols or writing. Yes, abduction folk come up with all sorts of excuses but it all tends to be bull or they will point and scream "Debunker!"
Above: said to have been seen in several cases...this is a hoax, however so.....
Regarding the "missing foetus syndrome" and other aspects of the Grey Abduction Scenario were covered completely in my book UFO Contact? while looking at the evidence that exists -the book is not a debunking exercise; I mention that because when you look for evidence people start thinking that far from being a sceptic looking at the evidence you are trying to debunk UFOs completely. That would have been me wasting over 40 years of my life. I want answers before I die!
I hate to think that over twenty years later I am still giving the same sermon and no one listens but at least I am conducting research and that is yielding more results.
Below: symbols scanned from the original Grey Book
