James Carlson just provided a comment that Wikipedia has deleted all the Oscar Flight verbiage from it's Malmstrom article...and he's spot on.
James thinks that I was instrumental in the removal of the notations, but I seriously doubt that I had any part in Wikipedia's decision. I further doubt that any of the editors would have bothered to read my blog entries. As far as the original Oscar Flight article, I did rate and commented to Wiki, but that was before they initially merged it with the Malmstrom article.
If you read the "talk" section of Wiki's Malmstrom article, you'll see who was probably more of a driving force for Oscar's flush down the memory hole...James Carlson.
So, kudos to James!
And to Robert Hastings and Robert Salas...better luck next time...that is if your able to provide credible evidence.
Update, 8/17/2012:
Unfortunately, Wikipedia has re-added the Oscar story into the Malmstrom AFB article.
On March 24, 1967, ten of the base's Minuteman ICBMs known as Oscar Flight became inoperative, allegedly after UFOs were seen hovering over them.[16] Personnel who have reported witnessing the UFOs include Captain (then First Lieutenant) Robert Salas,[17][18]Colonel Frederick Meiwald, First Lieutenant Robert C. Jamison,[19] and Staff Sergeant Louis D. Kenneweg.
So now Salas, Meiwald, and Jamison, all witnessed the UFOs? Does wiki's editors even read the references that they attached to the story?
It appears that luck has struck on the side of Hastings and Salas proving, yet once again, that credible evidence and facts need not "cloud" the story.
Update, 8/19/2012:
As James Carlson stated in the comment section, he has mounted a challenge to the article. Read the "talk" section. If I read this correctly, James is to provided a sourced statement refuting the Oscar UFO claim and Wiki will re-look at the paragraph?
Guess what's back up?
ReplyDeleteWell now it reads that Salas and Meiwald witnessed the UFO itself. Give it time and the whole 490th will have reported to drop off line...sad.
ReplyDeleteHastings supposedly will have a few of his articles posted on the Air Force Missileers newsletter (June issue) I'll have to wait until its archived to see whats listed.
I'm mounting a challenge on the basis of verifiability, but there's no guarantees that it will succeed, especially on a "forum" that publishes as fact any fictions that can be addressed by anybody with the simple the desire to do so. I wonder how many other hoaxes can be referenced as fact on wikipedia -- come January 2013, it will be interesting to see if they've reported the end of the world as supposedly predicted by Mayan sorcerers.
ReplyDeleteHastings and Salas and crew will go to any lengths to publish these lies as fact, and accuracy be damned.
Hi, Time. This is just a quick update on the whole Oscar Flight trash discussed in your article:
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm just stunned with wikipedia's response to my latest. Please note: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Malmstrom_Air_Force_Base#RESPONSE_TO_WIKIPEDIA.27S_CARELESS_LAZINESS -- I've given them all of the validated evidence they have asked to be provided with, including complete references and links, and you know what their response was?
They want me to shorten it, because they're apparently too lazy to even read the report I sent to them! It's just unbelievable...
Anyway, I sent them all they need to completely delete the offending paragraph as a load of complete garbage, and I've told them that they can now do whatever they like; whatever they do, I'll chronicle it and publish it, and if they act stupidly, than that's what I'll write. Like I say in my response -- the ball's in their court, and I'll write up whatever they decide to do. I've already put more effort into correcting their ridiculous assumptions than they did whilst supposedly "verifying" the Oscar Flight claims to start off with, so they've got more than enough data to properly assess the issues. If they want to ignore it, than it'll be to their shame, not my own.
James Carlson
I figured that since wikipedia seems averse to deleting the Oscar Flight article for cause, the least I could do would be to provide more information. It's at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malmstrom_Air_Force_Base#Alleged_UFO_incident
ReplyDeleteJames