But it's a bit more complicated than that. Various groups have accused the government of using the public's growing belief in the paranormal as a handy tool when it wants to cover up questionable activities. There's substantive evidence, as revealed in the September 1993 issue of Omni, for instance, to support the notion that the Air Force spread the story of a crashed UFO in Western Pennsylvania in December of 1965. Now, the government is under siege from organizations that fervently believe it's using paranormal techniques in warfare and hiding remains of aliens and UFOs. If it willfully used paranormal cover stories like the Pend Oreille lake monster, then blame for these groups' beliefs, the public's distrust of the government, and the growth of pseudoscience falls squarely in its lap.
History shows that the U.S. military is no stranger to nonparanormal cover stories.
But with belief in such paranormal phenomena as UFOs and Bigfoot skryocketing over the past few decades, the line between believable and preposterous has gotten pretty blurry, a development that the military has likely been tempted to exploit for its own purposes. Intrigued, I went to Lake Pend Oreille and talked with witnesses, amateur historians, and Navy scientists in an effort to find the truth behind the Lake Oreille Paddler. OMNI Toons Questions, comments and suggestions can be mailed to the webmaster . Ltd. All Rights Reserved.