If you believe that UFOs are hallucinations or cases of mistaken identity, you have lots of company. Is it possible that the U.S. government encouraged that line of thinking- in order to keep the public from demanding serious answers about UFO sightings?

That question, and one answer to it, will be part of a presentation by author and professional speaker Richard Thieme, who will present a free, public program at Mead Public Library. It will be held on Thursday, Nov. 7, at 6:30 p.m. in the library's Rocca Meeting Room.

The field of UFO research "is so full of nonsense that it has been discredited," said Thieme in an interview. "But we are painstakingly attempting to show that one can do serious research in this field."

Thieme is one of a team of researchers who wrote the book, "UFOs and Government: A Historical Inquiry." It describes how the military and intelligence communities responded, from World War II to the present, to credible reports from credible people of UFO sightings.

"How did the government respond to something they knew was real, yet decided to debunk to the public?" he said. "The CIA determined that UFOs were not a threat to national security, but reports of UFOs were and needed to be debunked."  An example of their success is that UFOs reported as news in respectable newspapers like the NY Times and Washington Post were gradually replaced by fantastic fanciful accounts in tabloids.

With nearly 1,000 footnotes, almost 600 pages, and five years of research, "this book is a work of history," Thieme said. "It is not about UFOs so much as the government's response to UFOs. With serious academic research, we connect the dots to show what was going on. It makes for a fascinating story and reads like a detective novel."

Before embarking on his current career more than 20 years ago, Thieme was an English literature instructor, then an Episcopal priest and holds two master's degrees. He now travels to speaking engagements all over the world, focusing on the deeper implications of technology, religion and science. He has spoken at computer conventions, security and intelligences conferences and to many government agencies, including the National Security Agency, the Pentagon, the FBI, the US Secret Service, and many universities and private businesses.