The biggest secret about "Area 51" is the fact that it had never been a secret
base.

       The construction of this  sprawling aerospace complex in Nevada,
erroneously known as "Area 51",  began in the month of May of 1955. 

      Since about 16 years ago  "Area 51" has become associated ridiculously
(wittingly, unwittingly, or "conveniently") with false rumors of "alien
technology" or "global" conspiracies.

I, Norio Hayakawa ,
Civilian Intelligence Network 
http://www.hometown.aol.com/groom51s4/index.html
was at one time a proponent of such conspiracy theories , but several years ago
I totally abandoned such conspiratorial views regarding this base.  
Furthermore I am no longer associated with any conspiracy theories, period.   
Today I am an ardent supporter of the importance and necessity of this vital
base for our national defense.   I have come to the realization that this base,
officially named  "an operating base near Groom Lake" is here to stay, no
matter what.   It is a real aerospace complex which had never been a top secret
base, to begin with.    (See the bottom excellent article by aersopace
historian, Peter Merlin)
It only became a "secret" base to those who were taken in by paranoia mongers
and through misinformation, resulting from false rumors which began in the late
80s and persisted throughout the mid 90s.

     Area 51 today is a vibrant aerospace R & D conglomerate test base,
employing anywhere from 1800 to 2400 defense contractor employees, working in
shifts on diversified projects.  Some of the contractors include Raytheon,
Lockheed, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, TRW, E..G. & G and General Atomics, 
One of the best recent color satellite photos of the base was taken on
Thursday, July 24,  2003:

Color Satellite Photo of Area 51 taken on July 24, 2003 
http://www.lasvegasnow.com/area51/Area51-072503-LG.jpg


     Finally, perhaps the best history of Area 51 was recently compiled by
Peter Merlin, an aerospace historian who resides near Edwards Air Force Base in
California:

Area 51 Was Never A Secret, Classified Base 
http://www.dreamlandresort.com/pete/no_secret.html

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THE CIVILIAN  INTELLIGENCE NETWORK
P.O. BOX 861051
LOS ANGELES, CA 90086-1051