James DeMeo's OBRL-News Blog

In what must be a trend, news journalists often "become the story" by inserting themselves into the action, scenes, and narrative of events.  They stand in front of a fire or shooting, and talk about themselves, how they are being influenced, and how they feel about it all, primping their hair-do and with one eye fixed on a mirror.  Narcissists with defeated egos, needing a boost by any means possible.  This is somewhat like the defeated character in the James Thurber short story, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", who isn't a narcissist by any means, but more of an innocent fellow who so badly yearns for excitement, he's constantly drifting off into a dream world where all kinds of heroic actions are undertaken, without any hard work or risks, of course.  The borders between fantasy and reality blur.

I am now informed of a certain German video camera-man, Mr. John Trettin, who some years ago on my invitation, made some video shots of one of my field research projects.  Specifically my OROP Arizona cloudbusting expedition back in 1989.  That was an amazing field operation, composed of five different expeditions into the Arizona deserts, near Blythe California.  It was a project conceived and carried out by myself with different assistants and helpers on the five different expeditions, myself who organized and planned it, acting as primary operator of the cloudbuster apparatus, which produced a "rainfall doubling" influence over the course of the year.  A German film-crew volunteered to come along and document the first of the five operations... and that's all they did, was to make a video recording.  During an off-time, when I was napping or something, one of the camera-men stood near the equipment, and had his picture taken.  That's harmless enough.  But now, needing that ever-elusive ego-boost, and gripped by the ghost of Walter Mitty (but in this case, not so innocent or lacking in narcissism), he claims it was his project, which he organized and carried out.  You can read about the original "OROP Arizona" project on my research website, with citations to published accounts in scholarly journals authored by myself, along with summaries of some of my other field projects using the Reich Cloudbuster.  Here:

As to the German Camera-Guy, here is his fantasy version of events:

The apparatus shown in the photo at the bottom is my large Cloudbuster Icarus, which I constructed back in 1976, and used in various projects.  It is today located at my institute in rural Oregon.  The Trettin "TV" website actually has many shots of him walking by the equipment, all carefully edited so as to end exactly as I walk into the picture, so I am now completely censored out of it.  Oh, yes, my hands are shown in one sequence, pointing to a weather-map I drew.  But... in this new "Secret Life of John Trettin" the narrative of events has been re-written.  His head is in the clouds, his eyes on the mirror, and nobody is around except himself.

To be absolutely clear, Mr. Trettin was NOT the "Projektleiter" nor any kind of "Operateur" for the Arizona work, which he now abuses as a fund-raising gimmick.  He may as well proclaim he also did the Tucson project of Wilhelm Reich, and personally wrote "Contact With Space", just because he took a photograph near Tucson, or read that book.  Should he take a photograph of the German Chancellor, he'll next be calling himself "Chancellor Trettin", and imagine giving a serious, prophetic speech before the Bundestag, followed by a standing ovation, with calls for him to please, please accept the position of Secretary-General of the UN!  For years he has presented himself to the public as "an officially recognized Tibetan Buddhist Lama", complete with certificates!  Also now "a Professor Dr.", also with "certificates".  Maybe also "Space Shuttle Pilot".  Or, "Rock Star".... With Certificates!  Certainly he must have paid at least 100 Euro for all that paperwork.  Where does the truth end, and the fantasy lies begin?  I can't tell, but I don't particularly care to have my good work being made the subject of this man's delerium.

For those new to the whole subject of Reich's orgone energy research, this kind of pestilent behavior has been going on for years. Reich called such people "emotional pests".  If people aren't throwing bricks at us for doing this work and obtaining successful results, then they are stealing our work, or Reich's work, distorting it, and claiming it as their own.

J.D.

PS.  For you young ones, there is a film "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" which is worthwhile.  No cursing, pornography, drug abuse or blood-splatter as people are shot dead, so it may not appeal to the modern demands.