Catalog Additions: Zen, Crystals, Nessie [4 reviews]
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas)
Date: Sun, 14 Dec 1997 10:49:01 -0800
|
All reviews are my own. These books are available from our
bookstore by phone (702-729-2648) or on-line shopping cart.
See more info at the given URLs.
USA orders received by Dec. 19 should arrived by Christmas
via Priority Mail.
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ZEN IN THE ART OF CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
Edited by David Pursglove, $14.50
http://www.ufomind.com/catalog/z/zen/
"Crazy Wisdom and UFOs." A sampler of pithy writings from many
well-known figures in the "liberal wing" of the UFO movement --
that is, those concerned with abduction, contact and other
human-interest aspects (rather than saucers, propulsion systems
and government cover-up). John Mack, Steven Greer, Whitley
Streiber, Michael Lindemann, Keith Thompson, Leo Sprinkle and
even LSD guru Timothy Leary put in guest appearances. With 36
authors and artists featured here, there is something to amuse
nearly everyone. Editor Pursglove pulls together some of the best
writing of each author, focussing mainly on philosophical themes
like "What do we really know about anything anyway?" Apart from
fine wordcraft, we appreciate this book as a window into the
personalities of the authors, many of whom we have heard of but
haven't seen in print before. We found plenty of unexpected
wisdom herein. Zen lives up to its name in letting the UFO
universe flow gently across its pages, never forcing the issue to
be that of "true or false." Fun and stimulating reading.
[See the catalog entry at the URL above for an extensive cross
reference of contributors.]
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THE LOCH NESS MONSTER: THE EVIDENCE
By Steuart Campbell, $14.95
http://www.ufomind.com/catalog/l/lochness/
(Skeptical.) The American edition of this best-selling British
book is published by Prometheus Books, which tells us immediately
that no real monster is going to be found. What impresses us,
however, is the sheer volume of data packed into this slim
volume. Virtually ever photograph, film, videotape and sonar
record of the purported "Nessie" is described and analysed here,
including above- and below-water photographs from the best known
cases. Every known book on the subject appears in the
bibliography, and countless periodical references are listed in
the footnotes. In short, this appears to be the best one-volume
source for information on the world's best known sea monster and
the lake in which he resides. (One chapter also reviews other
claimed lake monsters around the world.) There is relatively
little ideology on these pages: just facts, history, charts and
detailed analysis of each exhibit. Of course, for each photograph
and sighting that seems to "prove" the existence of Nessie, there
is an alternative prosaic explanation, but that will never dim
the mystique of the loch. As with Area 51, Roswell and every
other place of mystery, Loch Ness is just murky enough to hold
any creature you choose to imagine.
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CRYSTAL POWER: THE ULTIMATE PLACEBO EFFECT
By Lawrence Jerome, $19.95
http://www.ufomind.com/catalog/c/crystal/
(Skeptical.) Do crystals hold magical powers to heal, energize
and improve gas mileage? Will meditating under a pyramid improve
your psychic powers? Chances are, you already have your own
answers to these questions: Either (A) you believe in crystal
power, or (B) you don't. If you believe, then you probably won't
touch this book; if you disbelieve, then you may already
understand most of the pitfalls described. According to the
author, people who believe they have experienced the magical
power of crystals are experiencing instead the Placebo Effect,
wherein a purported remedy always tends to fulfull a patient's
expectations for it. If you believe that meditating with crystals
will cure your headache, then it probably will -- either by
selective attention or by the improved attitude this belief has
given you. The author reviews the proven uses of crystals in
industry and conducts methodical experiments disproving specific
New Age claims: that crystals increase plant growth, purify
water, improve healing, increase gas mileage, etc. (The only
trouble with this kind of exercise is that for every claim you
disprove, others emerge in its place.) Claims that crystals
increase ones psychic power are dismissed in one short chapter
arguing that "ESP powers remain unproven and only vaguely
possible theoretically." (We think the author ought to stick to
addressing specific claims.) Apart from the blanket dismissal of
parapsychology, this book is intelligently written, and we carry
it because it fills a niche, but we balk at the high price. For
twenty bucks, we expect more inspiration.
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BRINGING UFOS DOWN TO EARTH
By Philip KLass, $10.95
http://www.ufomind.com/catalog/k/klassyoung/
(Skeptical. Young readers.) In the battle for the hearts and
minds of the nation's youth, skeptic Phil Klass weighs in with
this children's book. Klass urges young people: "If you or a
friend should should chance to see something in the sky that
seems strange, don't jump to the conclusion that you have seen an
extraterrestrial craft." In text that is appropriate for children
between 8 and 13, Klass recounts dozens of cases where people
have mistaken meteors, military aircraft, birds, ball lightning,
hoaxes and meteorological phenomena for UFOs. Black and white
photos and cartoons illustrate various mistaken objects and how
easily that can be seen as something extraterrestrial. As with
the pro-alien children's book Ceto's New Friends, we carry this
one mainly as a curiosity. We are not sure any children would
want to read it, but adults may appreciate it as another strange
icon of the UFO movement. Overpriced given its thin size.
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(c) Glenn Campbell, 1997. This message may be freely
distributed on the internet as long as it remains intact.
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Created: Dec 14, 1997
