UFOs and the Media

The Edmonton Journal
July 12, 1998

Little 'Glamour' In UFO Research, But Many Unexplained Events
By James Wood

St. Paul - Investigating real life X-Files isn't nearly as X-citing as on television.

          "It's nowhere near as glamorous as Mulder and Scully," says Chris Rutkowski, a Winnipeg astronomer and writer who investigates UFO spottings across Canada. Rutkowski, who spoke on the topic of "Weird and Canadian" at the UFO conference in St. Paul Friday and Saturday, says most investigations are a matter of recording information over the phone. But while he's never actually seen a UFO himself, Rutkowski's looked into some fascinating, unexplained events, such as a boomerang-like ship spotted by a Coast Guard officer in Sault. Ste. Marie, Ont.
          And there was the southern Manitoba police officer who saw a purple object land in a field and then take off again. "This veteran policeman said it was the scariest thing he'd ever seen," said Rutkowski. Rutkowski is a little bit like both of his X-Files counterparts - like Mulder he's fascinated by UFOs, but he has a Scully-like edge of skepticism. "I want a chunk of spaceship in my hand," he says. "Abductees haven't brought back a towel from the Venus Hilton."
          That skepticism is shared by Gord Kijek of Edmonton, whose Alberta UFO Study Group deals with sightings throughout the province. Kijek says being an open-minded UFO investigator can be a catch-22. "I'm criticized by the skeptics for believing too much and by the believers for being too skeptical," he says with a laugh. That's not to say there aren't some stories that affect him. One of the most intriguing stories happened in Lethbridge in 1993 when strange black triangles were spotted in the sky by a multitude of witnesses. (To read about this account, use this link) And one story that he wouldn't share concerned contact with aliens came from a person he considered entirely reliable. "I had to sleep two nights with the light on," he says.
          While Rutkowski and Kijek can't say there are aliens involved with UFOs, one of the speakers at the conference claims direct contact with other races. Suzanne, a vivacious young woman who did not want her last name used, says since childhood she has been regularly abducted by aliens while sleeping. She had always had vague memories of pleasant experiences, but later became plagued by panic attacks and turned to Edmonton psychologist Helen Neufeld for help. Neufeld says many people have a misconception that abductions are always negative. She says alien abductions are not common but they have happened to some people she treats.
          Edmonton crop-circles researcher Gordon Sopczak also believes in aliens, but beings from other dimensions, not necessarily spaceships.