From: "Graders" To: Subject: Immanuel Velikovsky Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 03:35:16 -0500 Hello, First, I'd like to compliment you on a very impressive website. Just a great great job. On almost every topic I touch, you guys have great research on it. The reason I'm writing you, is just to let you know that you have very little on a subject which deserves much more of your attention. Immanuel Velikovksy, wrote a bestseller in 1954, Worlds in Collision. This is the only book you mention. What you may not realize, is that although he has been relegated to *cult* or unorthodox status, and mainstream scientists view him as fringe, the fact is that he received a lot of respect from many scientists and enjoyed a close relationship with Einstein, visiting with him in his house. I believe there is even an article about it in Scientific American just after Einstein died where Einstein's secretary confirmed his relationship w/ Velikovsky, and Einstein's efforts on V's behalf, and there is copies of Einstein's letter to Velikovsky. Einstein was using his power to have certain scientific institutions reverse their desire to not do stuff like carbon dating of items which Velikovsky questioned etc.. Anyways, I'm not trying to sound like a groupie, because I do feel that V. made some mistakes, but there is much to learn from Velikosvky, and many of the authors which you cover better, like Sitchin, has borrowed stuff from Velikovsky. Also, Velikovsky himself based a lot of work on Ignatius Donnelly's Ragnarok, which I've seen nothing on in your website. This is great stuff. Also, Graham Hancock took a lot from Earth in Upheaval, as well as Ragnarok, which Hancock mentions in his foreward. Velikovsky's books are rare for this field in that there are a ton of footnotes, and in the copies I have, it's on the bottom of the page instead of having to go to the back of the book while reading. Also, he appeared in Harper's magazine in large articles, and had been mistreated by critiques from establishment scientists who didn't even read his book during some of their criticisms. For example, Sagan, Asimov, Stephen Jay Gould, and the list goes on. But there are a lot of scientists who backed him up. Why did these guys care enough about his work to bother writing books criticising him? I think it's because they felt threatened and knew he had something to offer which could take the attention and funding away from them. They silenced him to the point that his first runaway bestseller which everyone was talking about in 1954, had follow ups which were more and more ignored as time went on. He wrote, Earth in Upheaval, Oedipus [sp?] and Akhnaton, Ramses II and his time, Stargazers and Gravediggers (describing his fight with scientists, and includes some correspondence with Einstein), Mankind in Amnesia. His scholarship was far more impressive than any of the popular guys I've read since in this field, eg Daniken, Sitchin etc... If you take my advice to read more, my best wishes to your enjoyment. I remember how much fun it was to open my mind from these reads. Just incredible stuff. I know you're really busy, and have much to read, so please excuse this intrusion on your time. Best Regards, Gilbert, http://www.diamondgrading.com