From: UFO UpDates - Toronto <post.nul>
Date: Fri, 06 Feb 2009 05:50:56 -0500
Archived: Fri, 06 Feb 2009 05:50:56 -0500
Subject: Book Review 'Need to Know'




Source: Blog Critics Magazine - San Francisco, California, USA

http://blogcritics.org/archives/2009/01/05/034143.php

January 05, 2009


Book Review: Need to Know - UFOs, The Military, And Intelligence
By Timothy Good
Written by Glen Boyd

For those familiar with the subject of Ufology (the study of
UFOs and aliens visiting our little blue marble), British
researcher Timothy Good stands out from the rest of the pack.
Good's 1988 book Above Top Secret is widely regarded as one of,
if not the definitive volume on a subject where because of its
very nature, the crackpots, hoaxsters, and new-age devotees of
the world often occupy space right alongside those who take a
more serious approach at the bookstore.

The research involved was exactly what made Above Top Secret
such a classic. In addition to Good's determination at going
after facts and documenting his evidence, the book provides
pages and pages of actual government documents to back it up.
This is a guy who knows how to dot his "i's" and cross his
"t's."

In fact, pretty much the entire back section of Above Top Secret
is devoted to these eye-opening documents. The storytelling and
anecdotal evidence which characterizes most UFO research is of
course here as well. But whenever possible, Good corroborates
the stories with multiple witness accounts and just plain facts.

And then there are those juicy documents. We're not just talking
questionable pieces of paper like the so-called Majestic-12
briefing documents. Above Top Secret in fact devotes roughly 100
pages (in the appendix section) to official documents coming
from everyone from J. Edgar Hoover to Harry Truman. When taken
together, the combined documents seem to suggest that our
government (as well as those of other countries) have, at the
very least, been a lot more interested in the subject than they
have let on.

Need to Know: UFOs, the Military, and Intelligence is basically
an update on Above Top Secret, and it is no less impressive.
Once again, Good loads the volume with documents designed to
back up his assertion that not only are UFOs real, but that the
government has known about them dating at least back to the
Roswell incident in 1947.

Roswell is covered of course, and updated with new information
and sworn affidavits from some of the key witnesses. The book
itself is divided into three sections, going into the pre-
Roswell era of the thirties and early forties (did you know for
example that Benito Mussolini was a UFO believer?), the post
Roswell-era of the fifties (which is where many believe
government knowledge and the subsequent cover-up began), and the
modern era from the sixties to the present day.

In addition to the usual stuff about Roswell and Area 51
however, Good reveals lesser-known details about other cases.
The Ghost Rockets and so-called Foo Fighters of the pre-Roswell
era are a particularly interesting, though not often covered,
area where both governments were concerned and military men were
apparently often engaged.

More recently, Good digs into the story of a "Brazillian
Roswell" in the town of Varginha that happened in the nineties.
In the story, a UFO is alleged to have crashed in the town,
followed by reports of "strange beings" roaming the streets, and
even receiving medical attention. This book includes extensive
interviews with witnesses, including a doctor said to have
treated one of the extraterrestrial patients. In every case, the
often fantastic stories are backed with corroborating witnesses
and evidence.

Best of all, Good includes more of those juicy government
documents that seem to suggest more than the officials are
letting on. As fantastic as all of it sounds, Good actually
makes a very convincing case here that not only are we not
alone, but the government has been in on the world's best kept
secret for a very long time. In other words, you can stop
thinking you're paranoid. They really are out to get you (okay,
maybe that's overstating it a bit).

With Need to Know: UFOs, the Military, and Intelligence, Timothy
Good has once again distinguished himself with another classic
that lets the facts speak for themselves, and allows the reader
to render their own judgment. At the very least, whether or not
you are a believer, it is also a provocative and fascinating
read.