Within Debate
Why one sceptical review still matters
Barry Greenwood's review matters because it accepts military UAP concerns while challenging the paranormal evidence package.
On this page
- What Greenwood accepted about military UAP concerns
- Where the review challenged ranch linked claims
- Why fragmentary or withheld details affect credibility
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Introduction
Barry Greenwood’s review of Skinwalkers at the Pentagon became important in debates about Colm Kelleher because it did not dismiss every UFO or military aviation concern outright. Instead, Greenwood drew a line between two different questions: whether unusual aerial incidents can be a legitimate defence or intelligence issue, and whether the much broader paranormal claims associated with Skinwalker Ranch have been supported by evidence strong enough to justify the conclusions often promoted around them. That distinction goes to the centre of the credibility debate surrounding Kelleher. Greenwood’s argument was not that government interest proves nothing; it was that government interest and extraordinary paranormal claims are not the same thing. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
For supporters of Kelleher, Skinwalker Ranch helped trigger serious official attention to anomalous phenomena. For sceptics, the ranch became an example of how institutional interest can be used to imply evidential strength that has never been demonstrated publicly. Greenwood’s review remains one of the clearer attempts to separate those issues. [Wikipedia]WikipediaSkinwalker RanchSkinwalker Ranch
What Greenwood accepted about military UAP concerns
One reason Greenwood’s review attracted attention is that it came from a long-time UFO researcher rather than a conventional debunking activist. His criticism focused less on whether unusual aerial events are reported by military personnel and more on how evidence is presented and interpreted.
The review acknowledged that official programmes existed, that government agencies funded investigations, and that military and intelligence figures took some reports seriously. Those points are not especially controversial today. The existence of the AAWSAP programme, the role of Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies, and the participation of figures such as James Lacatski are documented parts of the historical record. Greenwood did not argue that these programmes were invented after the fact. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
That matters because Kelleher’s supporters often begin with precisely those institutional facts. Kelleher was not merely commenting on UFO stories from the outside. He worked within organisations that received government attention and funding. Greenwood’s review therefore did not attack the weakest version of the story. Instead, it challenged the leap from verified programme activity to claims about what those programmes supposedly discovered. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
In credibility terms, this narrows the debate. A sceptic can accept that military personnel encounter unidentified objects, that intelligence agencies collect reports, and that government contractors investigated unusual claims, while still questioning whether the evidence supports the more dramatic conclusions associated with Skinwalker Ranch.
Where the review challenged ranch-linked claims
Greenwood’s central criticism concerned the quality and availability of evidence behind the Skinwalker narrative itself.
The Skinwalker story, as presented in Kelleher and George Knapp’s Hunt for the Skinwalker and later related works, includes reports of UFOs, luminous objects, animal mutilations, strange creatures, poltergeist-like incidents, apparent psychological effects and other paranormal events. Supporters argue that the sheer variety of reports points toward a genuinely anomalous phenomenon. Critics argue that the diversity of claims makes rigorous verification harder rather than easier. [Wikipedia]WikipediaSkinwalker RanchSkinwalker Ranch
Greenwood’s review emphasised that decades of investigation had not produced publicly available evidence capable of independently establishing the extraordinary claims. He argued that the ranch had become associated with narratives that generated belief while leaving outsiders unable to examine the underlying material in a meaningful way. His review famously characterised Skinwalker as being “always in the business of selling belief and hope”, a phrase that has since become a frequent reference point in sceptical discussions of the case. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
The challenge here is not simply whether witnesses were sincere. Many sceptics accept that witnesses may genuinely report unusual experiences. The issue is whether those experiences were documented under conditions that allow independent verification. Greenwood argued that the public record remains weak on that point. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
This criticism directly affects assessments of Kelleher because he is one of the principal public narrators of the Skinwalker story. His credibility is therefore tied not only to his scientific background and programme involvement but also to the evidential strength of the cases he helped publicise.
Why fragmentary or withheld details affect credibility
A recurring problem in Skinwalker-related debates is that many of the strongest claims rely on evidence that is unavailable, incomplete or filtered through secondary accounts.
Supporters frequently argue that classified material, proprietary contractor files or unpublished witness records prevent fuller disclosure. That explanation is not impossible. Intelligence and defence programmes often contain information that never becomes public. However, Greenwood’s review highlighted a credibility problem created by that situation: claims become difficult to falsify and equally difficult to verify. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
For readers trying to assess Kelleher’s reliability, several questions follow:
- Which incidents were directly witnessed by investigators and which were reported by others?
- Which events were recorded instrumentally and which exist only as testimony?
- Which records remain unavailable because of classification and which have simply never been released?
- How much of the public narrative depends on retrospective accounts written years after the alleged events?
These questions matter because credibility is not determined solely by who makes a claim. It also depends on whether outsiders can inspect the evidence chain. Greenwood’s review effectively argued that the Skinwalker case asks audiences to accept a large evidential package while providing only limited access to the underlying material. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
The problem becomes sharper when claims move beyond unidentified aircraft or sensor anomalies and into reports of entities, portals, hitchhiker effects or other paranormal phenomena. The more extraordinary the claim, the more heavily credibility depends on transparent documentation. Greenwood’s criticism was that such documentation remains insufficiently available despite decades of discussion. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
Why the review still matters in assessments of Kelleher
Greenwood’s review remains relevant because it avoids two common extremes.
It does not argue that every military UAP report is explained or fraudulent. Nor does it accept that official interest automatically validates paranormal conclusions. Instead, it focuses on evidential standards. That approach is particularly significant for evaluating Kelleher because his reputation sits at the intersection of documented government involvement and highly contested paranormal claims. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
Supporters can reasonably point out that Kelleher occupied real investigative roles, worked with funded programmes and had access to information unavailable to most researchers. Greenwood’s critique does not erase those facts. What it challenges is the assumption that institutional access resolves the evidential problems surrounding Skinwalker Ranch. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc…
As a result, the review functions less as a rejection of all UAP research than as a warning about evidential inflation. It suggests that the strongest case for taking military UAP issues seriously may actually be weakened when those issues become bundled together with claims that remain largely unverified. For critics of Kelleher, that is the central credibility challenge. For supporters, it is an argument that the public has not yet seen the full record. The gap between those positions remains one of the defining disputes in how Kelleher’s evidence is judged. [Journal of Scientific Exploration]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc… [Journal]journalofscientificexploration.orgJournal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc… of Scientific Exploration
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Endnotes
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Source: journalofscientificexploration.org
Link: https://journalofscientificexploration.org/index.php/jse/article/view/2857Source snippet
Journal of Scientific ExplorationSkinwalkers at the Pentagon2 May 2023 — Greenwood, B. (2023). Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Journal of Sc...
Published: May 2023
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Source: journalofscientificexploration.org
Link: https://journalofscientificexploration.org/index.php/jse/article/view/2857/1851Source snippet
Journal of Scientific ExplorationGREENWOOD WORKING GALLEY.inddMixed in between these discussions is reporting of the more vaporous parano...
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Source: Wikipedia
Title: Skinwalker Ranch
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skinwalker_Ranch
Additional References
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/911734917145827/posts/1526650908987555/Source snippet
Brandon Fugal's disturbing discovery at Skinwalker RanchNew Insights on Skinwalker Ranch and UFO Activity. Cristina Gomez ▻ UFOs & ALIENS...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/911734917145827/posts/1525672102418769/Source snippet
Scientists stunned by Skinwalker Ranch UFO discoveryAre the aliens also hunting the livestock at Skinwalker Ranch? Tune into "The Curse o...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/500312439016444/posts/702331668814519/Source snippet
Skinwalker-Ranch fansUFO experiences at Skinwalker Ranch. Khushi Kumari ▻ Brandon Fugal Fans Page. 45w · Public · At Skinwalker Ranch, we...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2348676595481572/posts/2732468963768998/Source snippet
Strange creature spotted near Skinwalker RanchColm Kelleher's book of the same name, Hunt for the Skinwalker. There are many stories abou...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/officialdougiecorrado/posts/the-disturbing-truth-about-skinwalker-ranch/1240788571494095/Source snippet
The DISTURBING Truth About SkinWalker RanchThe Navajo believe Skinwalkers were once benevolent medicine men who achieved the highest leve...
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Source: dokumen.pub
Link: https://dokumen.pub/download/skinwalkers-at-the-pentagon-an-insiders-account-of-the-secret-government-ufo-program.htmlSource snippet
Most of those events remained private until the 2005 publication of Hunt for the Skinwalker, a book by Kelleher and...Read more...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/kinpub/posts/5411431152216507/Source snippet
The Navajo call them yee naaldlooshii—skinwalkers. Shape-shifters. Dark witches. Spirits in the...Read more...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/HISTORY/posts/when-ex-cia-agent-andy-bustamante-and-investigative-journalist-paul-beban-return/1140646390961669/Source snippet
The Navajo call them yee naaldlooshii—skinwalkers. Shape-shifters. Dark witches. Spirits in the...Read more...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/TheUnXplainedZone/posts/a-daring-rocket-and-helicopter-experiment-results-in-the-team-witnessing-a-pheno/1154352163560881/Source snippet
UFO-related activities on earth,Skinwalker Ranch.They will attempt to find out the truth behind more than 200 years of mysteries - involv...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/207974394252954/posts/1236569248060125/Source snippet
er to be "almost certainly illusory", given that NIDsci found...Read more...
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