Figure's controversial tale sparks heated debate.
3/10/2000
Written by Wiggz...also known as the AlienZoo prohibitor of dullness.
The story of Dr. Jonathan Reed is viewed skeptically by more than a few UFO experts. This controversy is probably what inspired a standing-room International UFO Congress (IUFOC) crowd to see Reed discuss his experiences with meeting an alien in the woods in the fall of 1996, and trying to survive the "warfare" brought on by life-threatening agents in the years since.
More than 700 Congress attendees were present at Reed's talk. Interest in the former child psychologist's case is due in large part to his appearance on several Art Bell programs over the last 18 months.
Reed, accompanied by writer and supporter Robert Raith, gave a tearful and emotional account of meeting a part-Reptilian, part-Gray alien while on a walk with his dog. He expressed particularly intense sorrow when he talked about watching his dog die. As the story goes, the dog veered away from their intended path, and when Reed caught up to his pet, a vibrating alien was shaking the attacking dog, to the point where its head ripped in half, and disintegrated into a pile of white ash.
After the dog was killed, Reed struck the alien with a baseball bat, and captured on film the creature and its accompanying obelisk -- which is possibly a spaceship, or possibly a doorway to another dimension. In his video, which he played before the IUFOC audience, Reed can be heard panting heavily, to the point of hyperventilating. However, critics say the video didn't shake enough, and his panic was too audible, to be authentic.
Reed took the alien home, where he made a video of investigating the four-and-a-half-foot being. He told the audience that his attempts to cut the alien's clothes were thwarted, as its black, spandex-like outfit automatically sewed itself up. When asked whether the being were male or female, Reed said he didn't know, adding offhandedly that he hadn't "made love to her." Ultimately, the being disappeared from Reed's freezer, presumably because it was stolen by burglars who reportedly had governmental license plates.
Reed has been on the run ever since. Wiping his eye, he admitted that he's been beaten up by agents three times, and two of his close friends have been killed. He goes as far as saying his life has been ruined, that he has lost nearly all of the things he enjoyed before his encounter, such as a steady job, home, and girlfriend. Recently, he was shot in the shoulder, after trying to wrest a gun from stranger approaching him in a parking lot.
With an equally emotional Raith, the controversial contactee recently co-authored a book called The Link, which contends that mysterious agents are chasing Reed for a technology that the alien wore on his wrist. Something like a transmitter-receiver, this hieroglyphic "link" bracelet turned from silver to black when Reed clasped it on the alien's arm. It is believed that the wristband served as a tracking device that maintained a connection with the alien's nine-foot-long, granite-like craft.
Some Congress attendees are unshakable proponents of Reed and his story. Shawn Atlanti, of San Diego, is convinced that government agents are bent upon torturing Reed to death, by physical and psychic means. Dan Iaria, of Indianapolis, having spent hours with Reed this week, contends that the purportedly hunted Reed demonstrates credibility and character as he tells his story. Dr. Heim, a remote viewing specialist from Colorado, told the audience that his colleague was able to remotely view the alien's craft with little prompting.
Reed, Raith, and their book's publisher were given a standing ovation at the close of their presentation.
Regardless, the skeptical argue that Reed's video comes across as having a little too much polish. They also take issue with his seemingly overdone emotionality, as demonstrated by his tendency to weep in mid-sentence. Further, critics wonder why Reed didn't make a greater effort to relate his story to the police, from the very beginning.
It's clear that the Reed story will continue to inspire debate for the near future. Most likely, the case will decisively divide the ufology community, as experts grapple with how much credence should be given to an encounter experienced by one person, alone in the woods.