NEWS BREAK: THE SUSPICIOUS DEATH OF GENE HACKMAN

Gene Hackman's death and the deaths of his wife and dog are puzzling authorities, who have labeled his passing "suspicious."

According to a search warrant, obtained by the media, a Santa Fe detective who sought a search warrant wrote in his affidavit, he believes "the death of the two deceased individuals to be suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation because the reporting party found the front door of the residence unsecured and opened, deputies observed a healthy dog running loose on the property, another healthy dog near the deceased female, a deceased dog laying 10-15 feet from the deceased female in a closet of the bathroom, the heater being moved, the pill bottle being opened and pills scattered next to the female, the male decedent being located in a separate room of the residence, and no obvious signs of a gas leak."

Breaking this down ... Gene's wife, Betsy Arakawa, was found in the bathroom on the ground near the countertop, lying on her right side. The deputy saw a black space heater near her head. The deputy believed the heater could have fallen in the event Betsy abruptly fell to the ground.

The deputy also noticed an orange prescription bottle on the countertop, which was open with pills scattered on the countertop. It appears she had been dead for some time, because the body was in a state of decomposition with bloating in her face and mummification in her hands and feet.

Gene was found in a separate room off the kitchen. He was fully clothed and they suspected he may have suddenly fallen, because his sunglasses were found next to his body.

The fire department came and advised they did not see any signs of carbon monoxide leak or poisoning. The New Mexico Gas Company came to the residence and conducted testing on the gas lines in and around the house, and concluded, "As of now, there are no signs or evidence indicating there were any problems associated to the pipes in and around the residence."

The deceased dog, a German Shepherd, was found 10 to 15 feet from Betsy, in a closet of the bathroom. Two other dogs were found alive and healthy -- one inside the house and one outside.

The bodies were discovered by 2 maintenance workers, who said they hadn't seen them in approximately 2 weeks. When the maintenance workers arrived to discover the bodies, the front door was ajar, but the deputy says there were no signs of forced entry. The story is developing...

HISTORY OF THE ALIEN DIGEST

The Alien Digest was a UFO phenomena research newsletter that ran from 1991 and ended before August 1993. Headed by former Air Force intelligence agent Ron Rummel, with additional collaborations including from prominent UFO researcher Phil Schneider, it discussed conspiracy theories concerning the relationship between humanity and extraterrestrial life, the latter's potentially hostile agenda, and the investigation of possible government cover-ups. Irrespective of whether the theories can be conclusively proven, the newsletter has garnered infamy among the UFO research community for the fates surrounding Rummel and Schneider. The first four issues are widely publicly available, but some sources claim three others were also released in limited quantities.

Details surrounding Ron Rummel are limited, with most sources regurgitating the same information. According to Project Camelot, Rummel previously worked in the United States Air Force as an intelligence agent.However, for more than a quarter century of his life, Rummel had developed a strong fascination for UFO phenomena. As detailed in volume 1 of the newsletter, Rummel, under the pseudonym of "Creston", explained that his devotion to all things alien and UFO-related had led him to become a full-time and self-proclaimed professional UFO researcher. He was therefore considerably unlike other notable UFO researchers of the era, who saw their studies as a part-time hobby. However, this led Rummel to greatly depend on friends to continue his studies, as he lacked any income sources after leaving the Air Force.

By the early 1990s, Rummel believed he had enough viable findings to produce a newsletter for like-minded individuals. Titled The Alien Digest, these newsletters were published by The Aquarian Church of Universal Service. It was a non-profit organisation founded by Paul Shockley, with its members holding the shared belief that the living universe has multiple dimensions containing entities linked to Christian interpretations. It was the Church's belief the "Absolute Truth" could be uncovered via the unification of religious and scientific approaches. Shockley also became the newsletter's editor. Each issue was sold individually for $10, though a subscription would enable one to obtain six issues for $27 per annum. Rummel stated in Volume 1 that The Alien Digest was targeted towards free-thinking UFO researchers who sought critical information that was being withheld from public view.

Aside from Rummel and Shockley, five others collaborated on the newsletter. Among them was Phil Schneider, a fellow UFO researcher and close friend of Rummel. The pair had previously embarked on a several-hour observation of supposed UFOs at Area 51 in early December 1989. Analysis of Volume 1 indicates the first issue was likely published in 1991. While it is unclear when the others were circulated, Volume 4 would have been published no earlier than 19th July 1992, as it discussed that year's Northwest UFO Group conference. Each issue consisted of 24 to 25 pages.

Analysis of available volumes indicates the first was centred around extraterrestrial motivations. Creston stated that while he was of sufficient confidence that malevolent alien life exists, Earth and humanity were under threat of hostile and desperate beings already inhabiting the planet. He cited that a grey species called the "Zeta Reticuli" had regressed into beings that could only reproduce via growingly inferior clones. It was therefore ruthlessly experimenting on human abductees and their tissue to potentially cross-breed and successfully restart their natural reproduction. Also discussed was the Strategic Defense Initiative aka Star Wars, and how its establishment was connected to a Secret Wars between humanity and a large planetoid the size of Jupiter nicknamed "Nemesis".

The second volume concerned the controversial history and theories regarding alien abductions, which Creston claims had regularly commenced for over five decades. One motive he raised pondered the idea a galactic black market exists which is farming and selling the meat of humans and other Earthlings. Creston also discussed the influence of UFOs in ancient human history, particularly on Aztec, Balinese, and Mayan cultures and the practice of sacrifice. The newsletter nevertheless also indicated "friendly" beings were also assisting the US and USSR in tackling rogue UFOs and their bases on the planet.

Volume 3 provided a deeper dive into UFOs, firstly by detailing the Roswell incident which occurred in July 1947. While mainstream sources state the accident site was merely caused by a military balloon, others believe crucial evidence of a wrecked UFO was recovered by military personnel. Creston, in particular, cited Charles Berlitz's claims the incident allowed the United States to begin meetings with aliens, allowing it to also gather useful information on the craft's origins and technology. The volume additionally discussed how Adolf Hitler may not have actually committed suicide, but instead faked his and his wife Eva Braun's deaths. He instead supposedly began plans with UFO research team ULTRA on spacecraft to be produced in an area of Antarctica nicknamed "Neuschwabenland". Near the end of this volume, it brings up the Southern Television broadcast intrusion though does not expand on whether the hijacker was a real alien or merely a hoax.

The fourth volume again tackled abductions, particularly suspicious disappearances of ship crews. It began by summarising Christopher Columbus' accounts of unusual sea activity and the disappearance of three ships from "whirlwinds", in addition to listing missing ships near the infamous Bermuda Triangle. It links such disappearances and the unexplained deaths of crews from other sea vessels to UFO activity. It also speculates that the Third and even Fourth World Wars may be contended between humanity and aliens, potentially fighting a "network" of worlds. The Western Bigfoot Society Newsletter's Bigfoot reports are harnessed in order to establish a possible connection between Sasquatch and UFOs. The proposed fifth volume promised to delve further into Bigfoot, other malevolent extraterrestrials, and how some may have created underground bases on Earth.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, a large majority of theories discussed in The Alien Digest have never been fully verified, with some being especially obscure and controversial among the UFO research community. A particular issue concerns the extensive classification of UFO documentation by the United States compared to other countries, making it difficult to validate or debunk allegations. Therefore, all content within the newsletter should be viewed with discretion.

Rummel continued his extensive UFO research into 1993, boosted by a growing subscription base for The Alien Digest. He focused on the Strategic Defense Initiative and planned to publish a book that detailed its supposedly true motives, as well as the suspicious deaths of over 30 British scientists connected to classified defense projects. However, on 6th August 1993, his lifeless body was discovered in the Macleay Park in Portland, Oregon. Upon examining the scene, the official detective's report concluded Rummel had committed suicide. They found a suicide note apparently written by the author and determined he had killed himself through a pistol shot to the mouth. Following this conclusion, the police and FBI firmly closed the official investigation into his death. Ultimately, no sources detail what was written in the suicide note.

Schneider and other UFO researchers were shocked by Rummel's death. In a 2nd June 1995 interview with FOX, Schneider claimed Rummel and other supposed suicide victims involved in conspiracies actually enjoyed relatively stable lives, enhanced through loving families and bright futures. Thus, the UFO research community began to speculate Rummel's passing was not self-inflicted, but an act of murder. After viewing the detective's report, which has also become difficult to locate, friends and relatives identified some discrepancies. Rummel was known to have been right-handed and was not ambidextrous, but a left-handed individual was identified as having written the suicide note. It was also determined the pistol contained neither blood nor fingerprints, but Rummel's right hand contained blow-back blood. These revelations appeared especially suspicious, as Rummel obviously could not have cleared the blood himself.  Additionally, traces of sodium pentothal, also known as sodium thiopental, were found at the scene, with thiopental commonly used in executions.

Some, including Schneider, Schneider's former wife Cynthia Drayer, and some of Rummel's relatives, believe he was murdered and that his assailant is still at large.They allege The Alien Digest's viewership numbers and topics discussed provided ample motivation for Rummel's killing. Project Camelot cited the discussion of alien predators and allegations they were harnessing humans for recyclable and edible body parts as being significantly sensitive for the time period. His friend's death convinced Schneider, a former structural engineer who worked on projects like the Dulce underground base, to start conducting public lectures detailing his knowledge and experience of UFOs and government cover-ups. He claimed that in 1954, the Greada treaty was signed by the federal US government and the Grey aliens/Zeta Reticuli, enabling the latter to conduct implanting experiments on humans and cows, in exchange for providing full details of their experiments. Alas, negotiations broke down in 1979, which intensified when construction of Dulce base revealed a previously unlocated alien settlement, which in turn triggered a battle also involving Schneider.

Schneider managed to kill two of them but was shot in the chest, suffering dangerous exposure to cobalt radiation that triggered battles with cancer. The Zeta Reticuli was apparently eradicated at this base, with later analysis alleging they had been operating on Earth for around a million years. Only he and two others survived the battle. From 1994 to 1996, Schneider continued publicly discussing UFO conspiracies, including about the Star Wars project, how AIDs may well have been a biological weapon invented to wipe out the United States, and that a New World Order was being planned. Again, discretion must be taken concerning these otherwise unverified claims. By May 1995, Schneider was suffering from terminal cancer, which he blamed on his sensitive federal government work. He threatened to upload 140,000 pages of sensitive documents should attempts on his life be made. In January 1996, Schneider's body was found, having passed away aged 48.

An official report initially determined Schneider had suffered a stroke, but later changed its verdict to suicide after discovering that a rubber catheter hose may have been wrapped around the man's neck.However, Drayer contested that her former husband's death was an act of murder, having cited the theft of all UFO-related materials in his home yet valuables were left untouched. She also alleged the case was mishandled by the police and medical examiners who flat-out insisted the death was a suicide and refused to investigate other possibilities. Further, Schneider had frequently told relatives that any "suicide" verdict should be a sign he was murdered. Even if he did commit suicide, the usage of a hose was deemed suspicious as he had obtained a 9mm pistol and pills that would have ended his life instantly and less painfully. A possible suspect in the case was a blonde woman who had been found chatting to Schneider into the weeks leading to his death. Rummel and Schneider's deaths have since been frequently listed as among the most suspicious within the UFO and wider conspiracy communities...

THE LAUNDRIES: WHAT ARE THEY HIDING

With the new documentary on Netflix on the sad murder of Gabby Petito, the family of her boyfriend Brian Laundrie are coming under fire. The Laundrie family's yard has become a target for scorn, with people tossing trash, including soiled diapers and dog waste, onto their lawn. 

The parents of Brian Laundrie, who murdered Gabby Petito, have been shunned by their Florida neighborhood in a "unanimous" vote of hatred towards the couple, with people leaving dog waste on their property

Christopher and Roberta Laundrie have become increasingly isolated by their community. Neighbors have told the New York Post that this alienation is likely to intensify following the release of Netflix's "American Murder: Gabby Petito".

The documentary portrays the Laundries as aloof and unwelcoming towards Petito during her relationship with their son. More damningly, it highlights accusations that the family obstructed the investigation and withheld cooperation in finding Petito after she was reported missing on September 11, 2021.

Local resident Miriam Woodby, who resides close to the Laundrie household in North Port, shared her growing anger with the series: "The more I watched, the more pissed I got," she confessed. "When I pass their house, I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I hate them, and I've never even met them. I wish they'd just leave."

Another neighbor, whose home borders the Laundrie property, echoed the sentiment, branding them "Just horrible people, in my belief," and adding, "It's unanimous. No one wants anything to do with them."

The sentiment among neighbors is harsh, with one expressing deep animosity: "I wish them nothing but the worst," and adding, "Seriously. I hope they know how much we all hate them here. I hope they know they don't have any friends."

Jorge Ruiz, another local, disclosed that the Laundrie family's yard has become a target for scorn, with people tossing trash, including soiled diapers and dog waste, onto their lawn. On some occasions, individuals have even accosted Roberta Laundrie with verbal abuse as she moves between her car and home.

Gabby Petito's tragic story takes a darker turn as new insights unveil her secret struggle and desperate attempts to escape from Brian Laundrie. Ruiz sarcastically commented on the situation: "Yeah, my heart breaks for her," before delivering a cutting remark.

"That's what you get. That's what you get when you prolong the pain of innocent people to protect someone you know is guilty. You reap what you sow."

These words come as neighbors spill details about Petito's hidden cries for help, with one recounting how she witnessed the unfolding nightmare right across the street.

According to a documentary, Petito, only 22, confided in an ex-boyfriend, "I have a plan," expressing her intent to leave the 23-year-old Laundrie. She determinedly said, "I think I want to leave him. I'm going to do it. I have to figure out when to do it."

Another neighbor bluntly expressed outrage to The Post: "That family destroyed her." The young travelers spent the summer of 2021 exploring the western U.S. in their white van, sharing the journey on YouTube, but the trip ended with Laundrie returning home to North Port without Petito on September 1.

After failing to extract information from the Laundries, Petito's family reported her missing on September 11. Sadly, her body was found in Grand Teton National Park eight days later, resulting from strangulation at the hands of Laundrie. In the wake of Petito's death, and amidst growing frustration over the lack of cooperation, the US District Court of Wyoming issued a warrant for Laundrie's arrest.

His parents, however, remained silent on his whereabouts. A month after the initial search, the remains of Brian Laundrie were found in a Florida nature reserve, alongside his backpack and notebook, revealing his suicide and a written confession to the murder of Gabby Petito. Attempts to reach the Laundrie family attorney, Steven Bertolino, for comments by The Post via phone message or email remained unanswered.

In the wake of these events, new bodycam footage has emerged, painting Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, parents of the deceased, as uncooperative during questioning by authorities about the Long Island native's whereabouts. With the release of a Netflix docuseries this Monday, tensions have been reignited within the Laundries' palm tree-adorned community...

AMERICAN MURDER: GABBY PETITO

If anyone enjoys True Crime documentaries, I recommend the new Netflix three-part documentary called American Murder: Gabby Petito. As a father, it not only scares me, but I know now what are the warning signs of abuse. Gabrielle "Gabby" Petito made headlines in 2021 for her suspicious disappearance and subsequent death. She moved to Florida in 2019 from New York to be close to then-boyfriend Brian Laundrie and his parents. They had been dating for nine months before relocating and getting engaged in July 2020.

The docuseries details the couple's decision to put off a wedding and instead purchase a 2012 Toyota Transit Connect van to travel the country in 2021. Petito recorded their journey on a YouTube channel she created called Nomadic Statik.

On Aug. 12, 2021, someone called 911 to report a domestic disturbance after seeing a man in a white van slapping a woman in Moab, Utah. But when police investigated, they determined Gabby was the aggressor and sent the couple on their way.

She was last seen alive Aug. 27. Gabby's body was found Sept. 19 at Spread Creek Dispersed Camping Area, near Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park, according to the FBI's investigation. Her cause of death was determined to be "blunt-force injuries to the head and neck, with manual strangulation," according to the Teton County Coroner’s Office.

A month later, a police search found Brian's remains in an area of Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park that had previously been underwater due to flooding, with an autopsy reporting that he'd died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

A waterproof notebook was discovered beside his body, containing an untrue version of the story of Gabby's death, claiming she had become unwell after getting caught up in some ice-cold water.

The note also contained a nine-word claim that was interpreted as his confession to her murder, after Brian wrote: "I ended her life, I thought it was merciful."

After looking at telephone records, the FBI found that - around the time that the autopsy ruled that Gabby had died - a text message had been sent to her from Brian's phone.

Brian attempted to cover his tracks by sending himself a series of texts. Brian's parents have also been linked to covering for Brian, but no chargess were ever filed against them. Again the Netflix documentary is chilling, and it's sad that a young girl's life was ended in such a violent and senseless way...

VIDEO BREAK: UNSOLVED MYSTERIES - BEYOND THE LEGACY

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ASHA DEGREE

Twenty-five years to the day, young Asha Degree disappeared on Valentine's Day. In the early morning hours of February 14, 2000, for reasons unknown, she packed her bookbag, left her family home north of the city and began walking along nearby North Carolina Highway 18 despite heavy rain and wind. Several passing motorists saw her; when one turned around at a point 1.3 miles (2.1 km) from her home and began to approach her, she left the roadside and ran into a wooded area. In the morning, her parents discovered her missing from her bedroom. She has not been seen since.

From what Asha packed, she had planned this for weeks before the diaappearance. In March 2000, police erected a full-size color billboard, featuring Degree's image and identifying information, along Highway 18, near where Degree was last seen. In May 2001, stock car racing driver Travis Kittleson featured an image of Degree on the hood of his car for an event in Concord, North Carolina, which was broadcast live on TNN. Kittleson said, "We've got a perfect opportunity to put Asha's picture on our car and maybe, with any luck, we can help bring her home."

On August 3, 2001, Asha's bookbag and other items were discovered during a construction project off Highway 18 in Burke County, near Morganton, about 26 miles (42 km) north of Shelby. It was wrapped in two black trash bags. The worker who found it said the bookbag contained Asha's name and phone number. The FBI took it to their laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, for further forensic analysis; results from that testing have not been shared publicly. To date, it is the last evidence found in the case. On the 20th anniversary of Asha's disappearance, the FBI confirmed that the bookbag contained a copy of Dr. Seuss's McElligot's Pool and a T-shirt depicting the band New Kids on the Block. Neither appeared to have been her property before they were found in her bag; the book was from the library at her elementary school.

The Degree Family has taken steps to keep the memory of Asha in the public eye but little new clues have turned up. In November 2020, an inmate named Marcus Mellon, who had been convicted of sex crimes against children six years earlier, wrote a letter to The Shelby Star, claiming that Degree was murdered and he knows where to find her. In February 2021, Cleveland County Sheriff Alan Norman announced that Mellon's claims had led to another dead end.

In September 2024, a search warrant was executed by the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office and the FBI in relation to the disappearance of Asha Degree. A news release from the sheriff's office said the warrant was issued based on physical evidence in the case. No human remains were recovered, but multiple items of interest, including a green 1964 AMC Rambler, were taken from the site. The search warrant indicates that authorities believe Degree was a homicide victim and that her body has been concealed. Two local residents, a husband and wife, were named as suspects in the case. 

As of this Valentine's Day 2025 - no more news on the case. If you have any clues or anything that might assist in finding Asha, please reach out to me on this blog or contact the FBI...

L.A. WILDFIRE CONSPIRACY THEORIES

I did not write this article. It was written too well, but I thought it would be interesting to share this on this blog...

Ever since Jan. 7, when the first fire erupted in the greater Los Angeles area, people have been looking for answers. There has been no shortage of explanations offered, ranging from governmental strategy to celebrity crime cover-ups. Even though almost every conspiracy cause has since been debunked, they continue to be discussed, and new theories continue to surface. However, it is harmful to both victims and our broader society for people to focus so much energy on coming up with conspiracy theories on the causes of the fire.

Throughout history, people tend to focus on scapegoats rather than the real problem at hand. Jews were not the real cause of Germany's struggling economy in the 1930s, and Iraq was not responsible for the attacks on 9/11. Even though this is true, it is much easier for people to point fingers and blame than to take a step back and focus on solving the larger problem at hand.

The most common scapegoats for the Los Angeles fires are U.S. funding to Ukraine and Israel. “We sent $250 billion to Ukraine, and yet we can’t get water to fight fires in California,” said Charlie Kirk, a popular pro-Trump social media figure and CEO of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA. Not only do theories like this scapegoat others, they are also factually incorrect. According to the Council on Foreign Affairs, $175 billion have been spent related to the war in Ukraine, and only $61 billion have been sent in the past year.

In addition, some blame the fact that the United States is sending military aid to Israel that should be used to fight fires in Los Angeles. Indeed, the U.S. government has spent a record-setting $17.9 billion in aid to Israel after the terrorist attacks of Oct. 7. However, the assertion that the money spent on war takes away from the money available to spend on fires is false. Regardless of what one thinks of either conflict, they have nothing to do with what is happening in Los Angeles. California itself has the fifth largest economy in the world, surpassing countries like India, France, Great Britain, and Canada. The federal government has a budget of $6.8 trillion, meaning only a fraction of its money is being spent to aid Ukraine and Israel. As such, there is no lack of government funds to fight the fires.

Those who claim that foreign wars are the cause of the fires are doing so to further their own political agenda — not to provide useful commentary about the situation. This is extremely harmful to those who lost loved ones and homes in the fires as well as those who were displaced. Such theories take away from efforts to help victims recover and use their pain to spread falsehoods. Moreover, they make it impossible for our society to move forward and rebuild. Rather than asking, "What did we do wrong?,” they seek to blame others. As a result, there is less focus on preventing future catastrophes and more room for government failures to persist.

In sum, the bizarre theories about the origins of the L.A. wildfires are as harmful to victims as they are to society in general. When people pin our domestic problems on foreign countries, they stop any effort to truly confront those problems. However, it is unlikely that scapegoating and conspiracy theories will ever become a thing of the past, no matter how harmful they are. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that fake information spreads, on average, 10 times faster than factual information on social media. The algorithms of most popular social media apps are designed solely for profit. They do not care if information is fake, as long as people are clicking and double-tapping. It is up to the consumers of news and media to be skeptical of such conspiracy theories — knowing that they endanger us all...

SOURCE

THE SUICIDE OF CHRISTINE CHUBBUCK

In 1974, the world was not yet overrun with digital cameras, cell phones, and DVRsthat could record anything in an instance. Maybe that was a good thing in 1974, because when news reporter Christine Chubbuck took her life in a very public way not many people witnessed it. She deserves to be remembered for her achievements as reporter and not the horrible and sad way her life ended.

Born in Hudson, Ohio on August 24, 1944, Christine Chubbuck attended the Laurel School for Girls in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland. During her years at Laurel, she started a small tongue-in-cheek group called the "Dateless Wonder Club." She attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio for one year, majoring in theatre arts, then attended Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts before earning a degree in broadcasting at Boston University in 1965.

She worked for WVIZ in Cleveland for a year in 1966-67, and attended a summer workshop in radio and television at New York University in 1967. Also in 1967, Chubbuck worked for a few months for public television stations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Canton, Ohio before moving on to spend four years as a hospital computer operator and two years with a cable television firm in Sarasota, Florida. Immediately before joining WXLT-TV (now WWSB), she worked in the traffic department of WTOG in St. Petersburg, Florida.

WXLT-TV owner, Bob Nelson, had initially hired Chubbuck as a reporter, but later gave her a community affairs talk show, Suncoast Digest, which ran at 9:00 in the morning. Production Manager Gordon J. Acker described Chubbuck's new show to a local paper: "It will feature local people and local activities. It will give attention, for instance, to the storefront organizations that are concerned with alcoholics, drug users, and other 'lost' segments of the community." Page five of the article showed a smiling Chubbuck posed with an ABC camera.

Chubbuck took her position seriously, inviting local Sarasota–Bradenton officials to discuss matters of interest to the growing beach community. After her death, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported that Chubbuck had been nominated for a Forestry and Conservation Recognition Award by the Bradenton district office of the Florida Division of Forestry. She was considered a "strong contender" by Mike Keel, district forester, who had been scheduled to appear as a guest on Ms. Chubbuck's show the morning of her suicide, but had cancelled because of the birth of his son.

Chubbuck spoke to her family at length about her struggles with depression and suicidal tendencies, though she did not inform them of her specific intent beforehand. She had attempted to overdose on medication in 1970 and frequently made reference to the event. She had also been seeing a psychiatrist up until several weeks before her death. Chubbuck's mother chose not to tell station management of her daughter's suicidal tendencies because she feared she would be fired as a result.

Apparently, she had an unrequited crush on co-worker George Peter Ryan. She baked him a cake for his birthday and sought his romantic attention, only to find out he was already involved with sports reporter Andrea Kirby. Kirby had been the co-worker closest to Chubbuck, but she was offered a new job in Baltimore, which had further depressed Chubbuck.

Chubbuck's lack of a romantic partner was considered a tangent of her desperate need to have close friends, though co-workers said she tended to be brusque and defensive whenever they made friendly gestures toward her. She was self-deprecating, criticizing herself constantly and rejecting any compliments she was given.

Three weeks before her death, she had asked the station's news director if she could do a news piece on suicide. After her suggestion was approved, she visited the local sheriff's department to discuss with an officer methods of suicide. In the interview, an officer told her one of the most efficient ways was to use a .38 caliber revolver with wadcutter target bullets, and to shoot oneself in the back of the head rather than in the temple.

On the morning of July 15, 1974, Chubbuck confused co-workers by claiming she had to read a newscast to open her program, Suncoast Digest, something she had never done before. That morning's talk show guest waited across the studio while she sat at the news anchor's desk. During the first eight minutes of her program, Chubbuck covered three national news stories and then a local restaurant shooting from the previous day. The restaurant was the Beef and Bottle Restaurant at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport on U.S. 41. The film reel of the restaurant shooting had jammed and would not run, so Chubbuck shrugged it off and said on-camera, "In keeping with Channel 40's policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts, and in living color, you are going to see another first—attempted suicide." She drew the revolver and shot herself behind her right ear. Chubbuck fell forward violently and the technical director faded rapidly to black. Camera operator Jean Reed later recalled she thought it had been an elaborate prank and did not realize Chubbuck had actually shot herself until she saw Chubbuck's twitching body.

Chubbuck was taken to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, as her script had predicted; there, she was pronounced dead fourteen hours later. Upon receiving the news, a WXLT staffer released the information to other stations using Chubbuck's script.

Chubbuck's body was cremated. The funeral ceremony was held on the beach where her ashes were scattered into the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 120 people attended, including local officials who had appeared on her show. Three songs by Chubbuck's favorite singer, Roberta Flack, were played. Presbyterian minister Thomas Beason delivered the eulogy, stating "We suffer at our sense of loss, we are frightened by her rage, we are guilty in the face of her rejection, we are hurt by her choice of isolation and we are confused by her message."

Chubbuck's family brought an injunction against WXLT to prevent the release of the 2" quad videotape of her suicide. The Sarasota Sheriff's Department file lists a copy of the tape seized as evidence and later released it to Christine's family along with her possessions. I contacted the Sarasota Sheriff's department, and an official there who did not want to be named, said the only existing footage of the sad events was destroyed in the late 1980s. Whether the tape still exists or not is kind of the holy grail of death hags, but the sad end of Christine's life is not the most important thing. What is important is that she was pioneer in the news field in the 1970s when the news was a male dominiated field. Christine Chubbuck's life was short and tragic, but it was so much more than the sad events of July 15, 1974...

On December 21, 2012 I received this strange letter in the mail...

I was never able to prove or disprove the letter. A video has made its rounds on the internet a few years ago reportedly to be the video of the suicide. It has been taken down but if you google enough you may find it. Here is a screen shot I found...

THE MYSTERY OF THE BLACK HAWK CHOPPER CRASH

A tragedy occured on January 29, 2025 in the air over Washington DC when a Black Hawk chopper collided with an airline. There is also a shocking 'conspiracy theory' due to the Army withholding a pilot's identity.

The three troops, who all died, were rehearsing a plan that included the evacuation of the White House when their Black Hawk crashed into the passenger flight.

In a shocking revelation, it has been disclosed that the US Army helicopter involved in an airborne collision with American Airlines flight 5342 on Wednesday was practicing for a possible event of attack on the capital. According to officials, the three troops, who all died, were rehearsing a plan that included the evacuation of the White House when their Black Hawk crashed into the passenger flight on Wednesday night just before 9pm, Daily Mail reported.

Defense sources informed the media about the intended purpose of the training program, after internet detectives developed a notion that it was accomplishing precisely what sources said.

On social media, conspiracy theorists blamed the US government for the incident, claiming that it must have been deliberate as "military helicopters don't fly into planes."

However, other individuals theorised that the helicopter was executing the president's emergency evacuation route as part of a contingency plan for the continuity of government. In the United States, a set of rules and regulations known as a Continuity of Government mission (COG) is intended to guarantee that vital government operations continue during and after a catastrophic event, such as a terrorist or nuclear attack, natural disaster and cyberattack.

The main component of a COG mission is to protect infrastructure and notable figures. Staff Sergeant Ryan O'Hara, the crew chief, and Andrew Eaves, the pilot in command of Chief Warrant Office 2, were identified as being on board the helicopter on Friday.

The name of the third pilot was just recently named. Supposedly, her social media account was scrubbed before the announcement was made. The third pilot in the Black Hawk helicopter involved in the Washington DC air crash has been praised as a "bright star in all our lives" by her family.

Her identity was initially withheld in the aftermath of last Wednesday's disaster, but she was named on Saturday as Captain Rebecca M Lobach from Durham, North Carolina.Capt Lobach, 28, was one of three soldiers on board the military helicopter when it collided with an American Airlines jet. She also served as a White House military social aide during the Biden administration.

The bodies of O'Hara and the co-pilot have been found, while Eaves and some other airline passengers remain under the water. The two planes collided in a massive explosion before it fell into the river. The cause of the crash is still being investigated as conspiracy theories grow that Captain Lobach purposely crashed into the airlines, but no concrete evidence has emerged.

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THE 1993 KHAMAR DABAN INCIDENT

 Last month we talked about the Dyatlov Pass incident, which was a tragedy where nine hikers died in 1959 under mysterious circumstances. I just stumbled on another hiking tragedy, this time in Siberia which happened in 1993. Again deaths happened under mysterious circumstances. On 5 August 1993, six Kazakhstani hikers died in the Khamar-Daban mountain range under uncertain circumstances. The event has been likened to the Dyatlov Pass incident, earning it the name "Buryatia's Dyatlov Pass".

The six hikers who died were members of a seven-person hiking group led by Lyudmila Korovina; Valentina Utochenko was the group's sole survivor. Despite the police receiving a report, no formal search was carried out until 24 August. It took two days for helicopters to locate the remains, because Utochenko had not yet been able to recount her version of what had happened. According to an autopsy report, all of the victims died of hypothermia, except Korovina, who died from a heart attack.

The group of seven hikers, led by Korovina, arrived in Irkutsk by train in August 1993. Korovina's hiking group was one of three in the area, one of which was being led by her daughter, Natalia. Starting on 2 August 1993, their trip led from the village of Murino along the Langutai river, through the Langutai Gates pass, along the Barun-Yunkatsuk river, up the Khanulu mountain and along its ridge, ending on the watershed plateau of the Anigta and Baiga rivers. Korovina's group was meant to cross paths with her daughter's on 5 August.

The first two days of the hike turned out to have gone better than the group had planned, with them making good time up Retranslyator peak, however, on 4 August, as they were beginning their descent, they were hit with an unexpected rainstorm. Korovina decided to make camp in an exposed location, with the group failing at an attempt to build a fire that night. They managed to build a fire in the morning of 5 August and ate breakfast together before continuing their path.

According to Valentina Utochenko, the sole survivor, while descending down the mountain, at the altitude of 2,396 metres (7,861 ft), Krysin, who was at the back of the group, started screaming. He was bleeding from his eyes and ears, frothing at the mouth. He fell to the ground convulsing and then went still. Korovina ran up to him, trying to get him to gain consciousness. A moment later, she cried out, having the same symptoms as Krysin. She convulsed and then collapsed on top of Krysin. Filipenko, who had gotten to Korovina first, was the next to collapse, grabbing at her throat as though she couldn't breathe. She crawled over to a nearby rock and bashed her head against it until she went limp. Zalesova and Bapanov started to run. While running, they collapsed and died throwing up blood and clawing at their own throats, tearing their clothes off. Utochenko and Shvachkin hurried away, but shortly after Shvachkin also collapsed convulsing.

Utochenko ran down the mountain, set up a tent for the night under tree cover and fell asleep. On the next day, she returned to the site of her friends' death to retrieve supplies she needed from their bodies. For four days, she followed power lines down the mountain in hopes that someone would find her. She found a river and started following it. On 9 August, she was found by a group of Ukrainian kayakers, who took her to the nearest police station where a report was filed.

Like the Dvylatov pass incident, theories started on what happened. Hypothermia is the most likely explanation, but theories also arose like military experiment, nerve agents, or mushroom poisoning. It is yeat another mystery that may never be solved. However, after reading and learning about this story, I will never go hiking in Russia...

THE BIRTH OF THE UFO CRAZE

The flying disc craze began on June 24 1947, when media nationwide reported civilian pilot Kenneth Arnold's story of witnessing disc-shaped objects which headline writers dubbed "Flying Saucers". Such reports quickly spread throughout the United States; historians would later chronicle at least 800 "copycat" reports in subsequent weeks, while other sources estimate the reports may have numbered in the thousands.

On July 8, 1947, Roswell Army Air Field issued a press release stating that they had recovered a "flying disc". The Army quickly retracted the statement and clarified that the crashed object was a conventional weather balloon.The Roswell incident did not surface again until 1978, when ufologist Stanton Friedman interviewed Jesse Marcel.

In late July, Palmer contacted Kenneth Arnold and asked him to investigate a "flying disc" report from Fred Crisman near Maury Island, Washington.. In June 1946 and again in May 1947, Palmer had published fantastical letters from Crisman, who claimed to have battled inhuman underground monsters in Burma.  Arnold agreed and Palmer wired him $200 to fund the investigation.". Arriving in Tacoma, Arnold interviewed Crisman, who told a tale of a flying disc that emitted rock-like debris and a visitation from mysterious black-clad stranger who gave ominous instructions not to speak of the disc.

Arnold summoned two Air Force investigators who took possession of the supposed debris, described as lava rocks, from Crisman. Is the investigators returned to base, their B-25 caught fire and crashed. A local paper ran a story suggesting the plane had been sabotaged or shot down to prevent the shipping of the flying disc fragments. Though Crisman later confessed to a hoax, Peebles argues the story was the "first to give a sinister air" or "conspiratorial atmosphere" to the flying saucer myth...