Where Did the Road Go?

Aaron J Gulyas - The Chaos Conundrum - December 7, 2013

Aaron J Gulyas discusses his latest book, The Chaos Conundrum. In "The Chaos Conundrum," historian Aaron John Gulyas examines how the paranormal has intersected and influenced our culture in myriad ways, from the conspiracy beliefs of William Cooper and Exopolitics to the challenge that the stories of Gray Barker presented to our concept of self and time. He looks at the maelstrom of personalities, agendas, impressions, data, confusion, and contradictions that can be found in the world of the weird, and demonstrates how they have become an integral part of our lives, whether in the form of flying saucers, hauntings, religious revelations, psychic abilities, or dozens of other guises. Gulyas delves into the stories of the people who have attempted to create order out of the chaos. Along the way he recounts his own journey from enthusiastic believer in the "shadow government" and their underground bases to jaded academic skeptic, and then finally to someone who thinks there might just be something to the paranormal after all... but not what we have been led to expect or believe!

A teacher, historian, and writer (generally in that order), Gulyas received his BA in History from Hanover College in 1998 and promptly went to work for the state of Indiana assessing disability insurance claims. Wearing out his welcome in the civil service within a year or so, he shifted to the thrilling world of proofreading. Realizing he was only really good at history, he returned to school and was awarded an MA in United States History from Indiana University-Indianapolis in 2003. He then moved into teaching, eventually landing at Mott Community College, where he has taught since 2006.

Gulyas's first book, Extraterrestrials and the American Zeitgeist: Contact Tales since the 1950s was published in May 2013 by McFarland Books. His newest book is The Chaos Conundrum, a collection of essays on the paranormal, religion, spirituality, an the atemporal, published by Redstar Books. In Fandom's Shadow, a 50th anniversary retrospective of Doctor Who, Fandom, and its relationship to geography and time, was published in September, 2013 by Deserted Moon Press.

He contributed the introduction to Posthuman Blues: Dispatches From a World on the Cusp of Terminal Dissolution, a collection of writings by the late Mac Tonnies edited by Paul Kimball.

You can find more by Aaron at his website: www.ajgulyas.com or follow him on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/aaronjohngulyas.

Aaron Gulyas

Gregory Sams - Sun of gOd and The State is out of Date - December 14, 2013

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We speak this night with Gregory Sams. Gregory's book is entitled Sun of gOd, and we discuss the idea of consciousness and what it really means. Does it really make sense that our 13.7 billion year-old universe waited 13.698 billion years before anything in it developed what we call ‘consciousness’? And that the experience was restricted to humans?

Sun of gOd is a radical re-think of our Sun, our universe and what it means to be alive. Using scientific ideas and bringing them to their logical philosophical conclusions, Gregory Sams proposes that our Sun itself is conscious, living and fully aware of its place in the universe. Furthermore, our Sun communicates with other stars, and with us, in ways which mirror our own communities and even the way in which our own brains function.

According to Gregory Sams, ‘Creative intelligence is a ‘bottom-up’ system in which everything, from molecules of water, to neurons in our brain to the Sun itself is working together to gently steer and organize our universe. For humans, the Sun is the center of our lives, a fact that the ancient Sumerians, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Mayans, Inca, Aztec, Celts and Native Americans all realized, but we do not understand today. For all intents and purposes, the Sun is our God.’

Gregory Sams has been bringing novel concepts to the culture since the age of 19, when, in 1967, he and brother Craig introduced organic and natural foods to the UK marketplace. After 15 years of catering, Seed magazine, Ceres Grain Store & Bakery, Harmony & Whole Earth Foods, in 1982 Gregory conceived and christened the original VegeBurger, creating a marketplace for vegetarian food. Leaving food for fractals in 1990, he opened Strange Attractions, the world's only shop dedicated to chaos theory. This new science underpinned his first book, Uncommon Sense, the State is Out of Date, which is not about politics, but about not politics. His book, Sun of gOd, Discover the Self-Organizing Principle that Underlies Everything, re-introduces us to our local star, the most revered deity in history.

For more on the book; www.sunofgod.net

For more on Gregory; www.gregorysams.com

Gregory Sams

Mike Clelland - Owls and the UFO Phenomenon - December 21, 2013

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We speak with Mike Clelland about his research on strange owl encounters and the UFO phenomenon. He has been collecting stories and doing research on the strange connections in preparation for an upcoming book. We also speak to him a bit about his own personal experiences, which are fascinating.

You can find some of what we will be talking about on his blog; hiddenexperience.blogspot.com. You can also read the long form essay he has on the owl phenomenon here.

Mike, in his own words... "I was born in 1962 in the suburbs of Detroit. Even during my pre-kindergarten years I was a skilled illustrator, and most of what I would draw was goofy and cartoony. Curiously, the stuff I would draw in elementary school looks a lot like my drawing style now.

I was deeply influenced by MAD magazine, and that is still evident in my work today. I need to thank Mort Drucker, Sergio Aregones and Jack Davis for shaping my style. I also need to thank R. Crumb, who I discovered a little bit later in life.

In 1981 I moved to New York City, where I went to NYU Film School for one year. I was all too aware that I was a lousy student, and I dropped out and began working as a free-lance illustrator and art director for advertising agencies.

In the winter of 1986/87 I spent the season as a ski bum in Jackson Hole Wyoming. This experience would make it very difficult to fully embrace my urban career when I returned to New York. I eventually moved out west permanently in 1991, and this move paralleled the advent of the fax machine and Federal Express. These revolutionary tools allowed me to do illustration work anywhere I wanted, and I was still dealing with clients back in The City. All of this became much easier with the internet.

Once out west I began doing book illustrations and teaching for an outdoor school.

It was around 2005 or so when I felt a sort of oppressive need to look into some odd life events, stories and memories that I had denied had any importance. Little by little I realized that I simply could no longer ignore those memories and their implications.

The catalyzing event was a profoundly strange synchronicity involving a bottle of sunblock. From that point on, it felt like the floodgates were opened up.

Let me also add that the initial years of my self exploration have not been easy. The act of trying to peer into my own unknown life events has been enormously challenging. I became a shaky recluse, locked in a spiraling tape loop of insecurity and self-doubt. Presently, things have been a little less difficult, but it's by no means easy. The act of digging like this is no simple undertaking, it’s been hard work. The truth for me is that I simply have to go down this road, no matter what the consequences. It seems I am being pulled ever forward by some unknown force. This might be my own higher self, or it might be something interacting with me from outside my being, I truly don’t know. What I do know is that this new chapter of my life has been profoundly interesting."

Mike Clelland

John Ward on The Exodus Reality and much more... December 28, 2013

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John Ward joins us to tell us his theory on the Exodus as put forth in The Exodus Reality. The book is co-authored by Scotty Roberts, and we had him on the show on November 30th. You can hear that in the archive here. Both authors have compelling versions of what might have happen, and do agree on some points. See my review of the book here.

We also spend time talking about the state of Egypt at the current moment, as well as how academia deals with new discoveries.

Dr. John Ward is an archaeologist and anthropologist residing in Luxor, Egypt. Over the years, Dr. Ward has conducted numerous investigations of ancient Egyptian architecture and symbolism, while also carrying out research into the many mysteries surrounding medieval Templarism. In 2006, Ward was recruited by the Knights Templar of Britannia, which is a modern Templar order affiliated with and has been acknowledged by the Vatican. With the help of his partner, Dr. Maria Nilsson, John has managed to track the use of particular symbols through the various dynasties and the geography of ancient Egypt leading all the way into the present, with similar threads even extending into parts of Western Europe. The symbols that John and Maria have come to recognize play a very important and integral role, based from their studies, regarding ancient Egyptian life. It is through these symbols that they are driven with the passion to continue their work, which has enabled them not only to develop a greater understanding of the various cultures they study, but also to utilize and acknowledge the importance and sanctity of the symbols. These are aspects which, John argues, still remain largely unknown to mainstream academia.

John and Scotty are hosting a tour of the Exodus Reality in February. You can find more info about that at www.exodusreality.com.

Where Did the Road Go? Exploring the Fringe...

Where Did the Road Go?