Dale E. Graff

I was in Baltimore, MD on Wednesday, October 28 as part of a small group who previewed the
movie, The Men Who Stare at Goats. After the movie, I was interviewed by a Baltimore Sun
newspaper reporter and movie critic, Michael Sragow, for my views and comments on the movie and
to provide background on the Stargate program.

The Movie: It is what I expected; a mix of factual information with considerable distortion, including
situations that were not true. The movie blended two scenarios: (1) the visionary First Earth Battalion as conceived by author Jim Channon and the Stargate program, although the term, Stargate, was not used in the movie. The result was an odd mix of martial arts, new age philosophies, human potential movement concepts, shamanism and military use of remote viewing (RV). The RV part had some aspects that were correct, such as how Soviet ESP research helped initiate the US government RV effort and how some RV research and training aspects were conducted (describing the content of a concealed picture). But the rest of the story shifted away from reality and became a search-run-chase-shoot-fight series of chaotic scenes. The setting for the movie appeared to be at Ft. Bragg, a desert area and somewhere in Iraq. Some of the activities such as how RV is activated and a later drug use scene are fabrications that could have been left out of the movie. The mind-over-goat scene presents a totally unrealistic and incorrect perspective of psi/RV and, unfortunately, may become a lasting image.

As a movie intended to entertain, it did achieve that objective. I enjoyed it and will see it again when it plays in this area. The “spoofing” both for the new age aspects and the military RV part, was mostly unbelievable and I did not feel bothered by the obvious distortions. Movie viewers will very likely see it as a typical media production and be amused by it. It is only those who were knowledgeable of either the book by Jim Channon or those of in the Stargate program that might feel troubled. However, I did not react negatively to the movie and felt that the movie might actually help initiate constructive dialogue among the public about something within ourselves, a hidden potential, that can be uncovered. I can only hope that the erroneous negative portrayals of psi/RV, especially as presented in the “mind-over-goat” scene do not become the only message taken from the movie.

The Interview: I was the only one present who had any connection with the Stargate program. No one was present who could discuss Jim Channon’s new earth battalion vision book. There was one individual present who had been with the National Security Agencey (NSA) at Ft. Meade, MD with some indirect information about Stargate. He was interviewed briefly but had nothing substantial to
say.

I provided a brief history of Stargate and the early RV research at the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) and cited a few projects (he wanted the “exotic” ones). He was very interested in why and how I became involved in RV and Stargate. I very clearly explained where the movie significantly distorted RV and Stargate, and can only hope that he acknowledges these distortions and false presentation in his article. I left a few photos from Stargate with him which may be in the article. This interview may have been a bit risky since I am not sure if it will be presented realistically or will track the spoofing theme of the movie. His article will probably have two aspects: a critique of the movie and information on the Stargate program with focus on my personal involvement. Baltimore’s proximity to FT. Meade, MD will raise interest in the story due to the Stargate Ft. Meade connection.

I regret that others familiar with Stargate were not present. I would have preferred to share the interview and hear of their views about the movie.

Prior to the movie viewing I had prepared a few comments on what I expected about the Stargate aspect of the movie and left them with the reporter. These are below. Now that I have seen the movie, I believe that they are appropriate.

I have two concerns: the image presented by the goats in this movie and the slant the Baltimore Sun
newspaper gives to my interview. I can only hope for the best. I regret that others familiar with
Stargate were not present. I would have preferred to share the interview and hear of their views about the movie.

The article was published in the Sunday edition of the Baltimore Sun, November 1, 2009.

COMMENTS

THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS

My first reaction when I heard about The Men who stare at Goats was to ignore it. Why take the time
to sit through another distorted presentation of our natural psi or remote viewing potentials? But now that I have seen the movie, I have a different reaction. It reminded me of the need for humility when exploring our psi potential. I saw beyond the goats and realized that a topic considered mysterious, even off-limits, was brought down to earth. Even though presented in a comical fashion, I could see that this movie is a door opener that can lead to constructive dialogue and better understanding of the potentials within each of us. It is my hope that this movie will actually contribute to the ongoing spirit and accomplishments of the Stargate endeavor.

This movie is a satire of a natural ability but the movie goes to unnatural extremes to create comedy

The negative side of this movie is that it distorts the phenomenon into ridicule.

The positive side of the move is that it creates awareness within the viewing public of the basic phenomenon.

I coined the name, Stargate, to symbolize an innovative effort in expanding the range of human potential.

ADDENDUM:

On Sunday, November 1, 2009, the article written by Michael Sragow was published in The Baltimore Sun, beginning on the front page of the Arts and Entertainment Section. I was pleased with the article as he presented an objective and balanced perspective of the movie and my interview.

I was amused by one sentence in the article where he referred to me as a "subtle joker." In order to keep the interview on a not-too-serious tone, I included a few relevant pun-like remarks. Here is one of them:

He asked me to comment on some of the Stargate operational projects and was especially interested in the Unit's drug interdiction activities at coastal areas. When he asked me what remote viewers do for such tasks, I replied, "You should know by now. They stare at boats!"
 

If you would like further information about PSI - SEMINARS - INITIATIVES, please e-mail Dale E. Graff.