Premetto che sto (ri)scoprendo Fort soltanto in questi giorni.
Opinioni in merito?....Fantascienza? Pseudoscienza? Fuffologia? Scienza che incontra l'irrazionale? Opera di un visionario? Uno scettico scientista 'credente' al soprannaturale? Un'ossimoro?
Il 'libro dei dannati' (la versione elettronica, come sempre l'ho trovata soltanto in lingua inglese), raccoglie una serie di brevi cronache dell'epoca e osservazioni 'bizzarre'.
Quanti riconducibili a fenomeni naturali, leggende, palloni aerostatici di fine '800 e inizio '900? E quanti riconducibili a fenomeni 'ufologici'?
Per esempio nell'estratto seguente si parla di un caso del 1909. Un avvistamento di 'ruote di fuoco' , oggi potremmo definirlo una via di mezzo tra ufo e uso.
Cita:
Scientific American, 106#8722;51:(23)
That, in the Nautical Meteorological Annual, published by the Danish Meteorological Institute, appears a
report upon a "singular phenomenon" that was seen by Capt. Gabe, of the Danish East Asiatic Co.'s
steamship Bintang. At 3 a.m., June 10, 1909, while sailing through the Straits of Malacca, Captain Gabe saw
a vast revolving wheel of light, flat upon the water #8722;#8722; "long arms issuing from the center around which the
whole system appeared to rotate." So vast was the appearance that only half of it could be seen at a time, the
center lying near the horizon. This display lasted about fifteen minutes. Heretofore we have not been clear
upon the important point that forward motions of these wheels do not synchronize with a vessel's motions,
and freaks of disregard, or rather, commonplaces of disregard, might attempt to assimilate with lights of a
vessel. This time we are told that the vast wheel moved forward, decreasing in brilliancy, and also in speed of
rotation, disappearing when the center was right ahead of the vessel #8722;#8722; or my own interpretation would be
that the source of light was submerging deeper and deeper and slowing down because meeting more and
more resistance.(24)
The Danish Meteorological Institute reports another instance:
That, when Capt. Breyer, of the Dutch steamer Valentijn, was in the South China Sea, midnight, Aug. 12,
1910, he saw a rotation in flashes. "It looked like a horizontal wheel, turning rapidly." This time it is said that
the appearance was above water. "The phenomenon was observed by the captain, the first and second mates,
and the first engineer, and upon all of them it made a somewhat uncomfortable impression."
In general, if our expression be not immediately acceptable, we recommend to rival interpreters that they
consider the localization #8722;#8722; with one exception #8722;#8722; of this phenomena, to the Indian Ocean and adjacent
waters, or Persian Gulf on one side and China Sea on the other side. Though we're Intermediatists, the call of
attempted Positivism, in the aspect of Completeness, is irresistible. We have expressed that from few aspects
would wheels of fire in the air look like wheels of fire, but, if we can get it, we must have observation upon
vast luminous wheels, not interpretable as optical illusions, but enormous, substantial things that have
smashed down material resistances, and have been seen to plunge into the ocean:
Altre parti di questo libro
Sembra (non ho ancora letto quella parte, sempre che esista) che Fort nel suo "libro dei dannati" (o in "Lo!" ?), ipotizzi - tradotto in chiave moderna - l'interferenza di certi 'antichi' di origine extraterrestre o comunque non umana.
S
Nel libro "Lo!" invece, Fort conia nel 1931 il termine teleportation (termine 'aracaico' di teletransport, -teletrasporto-)
Cita:
...The outstanding suggestion, which, however, like many other suggestions, I cannot now develop, is that, if Teleportation exists, it may be used. It may be criminally used, or it may be used commercially. Cargoes, without ships, and freights, without trains, may be of the traffics of the future. There may be teleportative voyages from planet to planet...
Cita:
If, in other worlds, or in other parts of one relatively little existence,
[p. 574]
there be people who are far ahead of terrestrians, perhaps, teleportatively, beings from other places have come to this earth. And have seen nothing to detain them. Or perhaps some of the more degraded ones have felt at home here, and have hung around, or have stayed here.
Praticamente ipotizza esseri più evoluti dei terrestri che si sono teletrasportati sul nostro pianeta. Alcuni sono ripartiti e altri forse rimasti sul nostro pianeta.
Altri 2 libri di Fort: "Wild Talents", "New Lands"
opinioni e recensioni
http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Books-Charles-Fort-Talents/product-reviews/0486230945/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1