Planker MATTHEW WILLIAMS responds to Mary Bennett's write-up on his talk at Devizes Town Hall. Mary Bennett stands her ground...



I would like a right of reply to Mary Bennett's recent article on my talk in Devizes.

I can easily address a number of factual inaccuracies in her interpretation of my talk.

Firstly, I did not plan the free talk to centre around crop circle researchers, but members of the local community. I do not really care for the attitudes or opinions of many crop circles researchers out there, Mary Bennett included. It is not because I dislike these people, but because by trying to help these people it usually ends up with me being accused of things I haven't done, saying things I didn't say and people always interpret what I say for what they want to hear. Dealing with researchers is often like walking chest-high in mud.

The reasons I object to words like 'Alien' and 'Earthlings' is because they are divisive and bring into play the concept that these intelligences may be involved in making crop circles. Who says so? To jump to conclusions that they are is a falsehood. We should research the subject from the ground up and ask ourselves what do we really get from the subject and does it really matter if I create crop circles, or aliens do. What matters is people's experiences due to crop circles. Taking aside our own cultural conditioning and biases that hold us back, perhaps the message of the crop circles would never be transferable from one human to another because of the vast differences in understanding we have.

As a very convoluted example, could any man ever know what it is like to be a woman? Perhaps I could read a lot about it, but would I ever really know. No woman would ever let me say that I knew women better than they do. Quite right too! However, apply this logic to crop circles.

This is the type of problem you get... its easy to tell me that I don't make them, but would you ever really know? I could take you out and show you, but you still might doubt even then. It is for such types of philosophical reasons that I feel crop circles researchers will never fully convince the public, nor will I. It doesn't matter how much science you throw at it, nor how much night-vision footage I give you of me making them... there will always be people like ilyes (American researcher) who will say that I could never know, because I do not know what they know. (Also stories will come that Steven Spielberg helped me fake the night-vision footage... etc. etc.)

I also have to laugh at some of the crazy excuses for witnesses the crop circle world often presents forth as the latest clue to the crop circle "riddle". Silver lawn mower blades descending from the sky... microwave beams sent from distant galaxies... beings from Alpha-Centauri sending out thought power. It is all very visually provoking and, for sure, "I want to believe", but I do draw the line at feelings and wants over truths and facts. They ARE different.

It is very hard for me to work with people to help them understand crop circles because I know who is making most of the circles and they don't. This basic lack of understanding and the conspiracies and misperceptions that exist around the subject is due to myth, misidentification, self-blinding humans and that the crop circles researchers mistakenly think that their work is "other" in origin. It clearly is not. However, I understand researchers' confusion based on their ignorance of the truth, it is understandable. I was once where you are. (Ooh, that sounds very self righteous... still it is my truth.)

Mary says "over the centuries better minds than his have created their own magic spaces in order to interact with the paranormal". Well, yes we do know how you see yourself as above others and to be able to judge others, on alien paranormal things. Mary, you must hold a high position of authority in alien council to know this! Of course, Mary's aliens tell her that I am not involved in making circles - so that's ok... no insanity or delusions involved, honest. Mary's aliens also tell her a lot of other things I could probably never understand, but would make me wonder about the factual proof of, or lack of it.

For those who think I am joking, Mary does actually speak to aliens! When she writes about why I am totally wrong, framed against why she would trust non-physical voices in her head over me out in a field creating magical works of art, which is in fact proof with provable fact, which stands up in courts of law (I know, I have been there)... how could I ever beat Mary and her aliens? Of course, her aliens have never been taken to court, nor probably never will. I wonder why. (Diplomatic immunity, of course).

I have a message for Mary's alien friends (including Bashar) and it is simple - stop lying, if you even exist! Or if you are not lying, then, my friendly aliens, you are getting it totally wrong on who is making the circles, which doesn't say much for your eyes, ears or third eyes. If aliens are that shabby at getting simple facts like which circles I made wrong, then I wouldn't trust those aliens with making a cup of tea!

Aliens... if you exist at all, do you bend the truth and mislead humans? I find this far more sinister than the truth of it being humans out making circles.

However, if a spacecraft landed in front of me tomorrow, yes, sadly I probably would forget all my misgivings and get on board. Sad really isn't it! Perhaps it really is like Douglas Adams said, and UFOs are just "teasers". That's why they don't just land and take us all away.

Mary is wrong regarding human-made circles having lots of broken stems. Statements like this are totally vague; what stems, where, when? Which circles are man-made? It takes a very brave researcher these days to pin their colours to the tree in fear of having circlemakers prove them wrong and make admissions! Even the mighty Glickman reserves his judgements these days.

I have made circles that looked terrible after we left and researchers have entered and said, "WOW look how neat the circle is". Also some of the circles we knew were messy were magically cleaned up by a hand other than ours. I find this truly mysterious, but how can we ever pass on the truth of a circle being man-made and be believed so science could work with this data and get to the truth. We can't! So opinions of Mary Bennett and the opinions of others who weren't there, didn't see us make the circles and have bias and agendas, cloud true research. Bad research spawns myths that get incorporated into even worse research.

Slides...

My inability to remember which circles were where is based on the fact that I didn't make the ones I was confused on. The ones I did make I remember very well, surprise, surprise! We are not all gifted with perfect memory recall and I am sorry that I am not perfect. Many of the crop circles believed to be "other worldly" aren't perfect either, if Mary chooses to realise this - so, hint hint hint, who made them? Mary deals with me in such a way as if I make one mistake or two mistakes or even three mistakes then I am totally worthless and cannot be believed. Is this reasonable? Some events I recall from several years ago. I might get dates wrong and my memory does become hazy. This is natural. Please don't crucify me for it.

People even attack me on my level of education. Yes I might be a bit duhhhh and didn't do that well at school... but when your PC is broken, "who you gonna call"? - little old me, because I excel at fixing them. We all have our down sides, and we are all great at something else. My spelling is atrocious... I forget important appointments because my head doesn't want to hold numbers and dates. Still, I can create great crop patterns in fields at night, and without any formal training. I am proud of what I can do, and I don't shy away from it. If people can't take that and choose to attack my abilities on lack of state-enforced and learned skills, I will go for my self taught skills any day. Maybe I should start making spelling circles, and see if the aliens correct my spellings for me in the fields!

Mary edits books. She proof-reads them and corrects mistakes. Why doesn't she go on the offensive to attack the lack of skill of the people she edits books for? Does she in fact respect them, or is she just taking the money and keeping quiet? You see, Mary, to me you have a strange ability to overlook simple truths about your own work dealing with other people's shortcomings and accepting them, yet not accepting mine. What gives?

Some of the circles I have made have been hailed complete crap, others a work of higher genius. Luck of the draw. It really is, because factors affect circlemakers, which they sometimes have no control over - weather, already present crop damage, maturity or immaturity of crop, or even apparent magical effects which we have no real control over.

Mary completely misheard, or heard what she wanted to hear, relating to my statements on the Basket formation [see Mary's statement below - Ed]. I did not say I created the basket AFTER my arrest. I said that I decided to reveal I had made the Basket in anger DUE to my arrest. A vast world of difference. Many people there at the lecture will remember this, so I am sorry Mary, you are very much wrong here.

Circlemakers are not trying to confuse people. Circlemakers are what crop circles are about. Remove circlemakers and the circles go too. Look how slow this year is starting. It is because of apathy amongst circlemakers. I for one am fed up with the research communities insistence to try and take everything I have ever done and twist it around and read words of conspiracy into it. Crop circle researchers on the whole are the most shoddy bunch of researchers into the paranormal I have ever met. They claim scientific research practices when they are not scientists. They also hang on the every breath of one or two scientists who seem to research the subject with bias and gullibility. Some people think that scientists don't get it wrong. Just look at the world today and ask yourself if scientists get it mostly right. I think not. Or are we destroying this planet through spirituality and holistic beliefs? Both premises are false because each side has its own believers and critics. So questions of right and wrong are dependant totally on subjective realities.

I for one would not put my faith in science. I would not put my faith in crop circle researchers either, especially when they get false information from alien sources, which denies what I know as fact to be truth. I would suggest to anyone with an alien friend that they demand that the alien appear and come to my house and tell me in person why I am wrong. Then I will back down. Before that, where are these aliens??? In some peoples heads, that's where! (I would put more faith in science than in crop circle researchers, however).

If anyone wants to pick my brains, they are welcome. I just cant promise to give you verbal or physical proof on a level that will change your mind. However, I can give you a few vital clues as to how to convince yourself.

Circlemaking made simple:

1. Make some circles.
2. Whilst making circles, have some paranormal experiences.
3. Don't tell anyone what you have done.
4. Watch researchers muse over circles you have created and proclaim them works of higher intelligence's or energies - this will happen!
5. Try and tell others about the above.
6. Fail in your attempts to convince them, but go so far as to get arrested.
7. Realise you are probably now on your own as you know a truth they won't accept.
8. Decide you're wasting your time on researchers and just direct your efforts at the world at large.
9. Sit back and watch researchers mislead the public and try to earn a living from it.
10. Be glad you were part of something good, even though you are mostly hated for it.
11. Then, decide if it's time to get out and let someone else carry on, or carry on, but keep quiet about what you are doing.

Conclusion...

If the above doesn't give you clear defined answers, not only about crop circles but also your life and place in the universe... perhaps nothing will.

I would finish with words similar to Mary's. It would be beyond foolish to rely on the beliefs of people who say their hear alien voices in their heads and who have yet to date provided no proof that these aliens are real or have any objective use in our lives other than to apparently lie to us. So I really do wonder about you Mary.

It seems as if you live in a world as crazy as mine. We both believe/know things we cannot prove. So why do we even bother with our posturing?

MATTHEW WILLIAMS

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MARY BENNETT REPLIES:
I stand by my article as being the true and accurate report of the events described therein. All Williams's personal comments, including the assumption that I have access to some 'higher authority', are totally unfounded, factually incorrect and, in any case, irrelevant to my report on the meeting in Devizes on May 27th 2002.