On an unrelated note...

[Tony B.]

Jan Harzan, the current MUFON head honcho, is promoting a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for a new comprehensive global UFO database.

The link is here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/268164756/a-new-global-ufo-database/

I personally signed up for $75, but even a few bucks could be helpful. Of course, that's after you sign up for your premium subscription to the Paracast forums!

 

[Randall]

Great idea in theory. But will the public at large have free access without a MUFON membership? How much access will the MUFON members themselves have? Where exactly is the money going? Will they be tendering independent bids from non-biased service providers? Or will they be patronage appointments based on who's buddies with who? It's not like there haven't been concerns over these kinds of issues before. Personally, I'm loathe to send money to MUFON, though I have considered purchasing one of their investigator manuals, just to have it on-hand for reference sake. But besides all that, this is the kind of thing a small team of dedicated volunteers could put together at very little expense, but nobody wants to put in the time. Either that or they argue about how it should be done and consequently nothing gets done. I wouldn't be surprised if half the money raised gets spent on board meetings to decide exactly how it should be done and who is going to do it.

 

[Tony B.]

Here's a prototype of the new home page: www.mufonredesign.com for your perusal. I believe that yes, full access will be for MUFON members, but the public will also be able to access stuff, including digital back issues of the journal.

The Kickstarter page now has a video, and more in-depth explanation of the project.

Our current system IS " the kind of thing a small team of dedicated volunteers could put together at very little expense", and it shows. I'm a cynical son of a gun myself, but I do think this is a good idea. Even a few dollars helps.

 

[dyingsun]

I'm sorry, while I very much welcome the idea, the 'Star team' and other related 'occurrences' soiled Mufon, at least to me, for a time to come. Good luck.

 

[Tony B.]

I'm sorry, while I very much welcome the idea, the 'Star team' and other related 'occurrences' soiled Mufon, at least to me, for a time to come. Good luck.

Hey, fair enough. I fully agree that (as with any other group composed of humans) mistakes have been made. But we're trying.

Don't forget to upgrade your forum membership here, though.