Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
John Hollenhorst reporting A small southern Utah community has gained international notoriety from its campaign to become a United-Nations-Free Zone.
Now, the LaVerkin city councilman who started that campaign has published a book revealing a truly astounding belief about the U.N.
But a prominent historian says the real worry is that 1950s style "conspiracy theories" are gaining momentum in our X-files generation.
The United Nations may have some image problems lately. But most people will have real trouble swallowing Al Snow's theory.
He thinks the U.N. is conducting a campaign of mass murder by spraying poison into the atmosphere. Is LaVerkin's chief anti-UN crusader onto something? Or is he seeing boogeymen under the bed?
Al Snow believes in the Red, White & Blue. And in a seemingly UN-believable threat from the blue sky.
Al Snow: "Well, today's a good day for you guys to be here because there's lots of chemtrails in the sky."
Most people would call them con-trails. Or vapor-trails.
But LaVerkin city councilman Al Snow says these trails are different. They spread out for hours and fill the sky. He says they are Chemical Trails sprayed almost every day by strange aircraft.
Al Snow: "They're all silver with no insignia or no number. Or they're all white. Or they're all white with a red tail."
In his new book, "Chemtrails: Death in the Sky," he claims the aircraft are spreading barium powder. He thinks it's likely they're trying to kill millions of people. His book asks the question, "Is the United Nations doing the spraying?"
Al Snow: "I think they are, yeah. I think they are. But I want people to think about it and make up their own mind."
"Chemtrails" are the latest in a half-century saga of bizarre, mostly discredited UN conspiracy theories.
Historian Robert Goldberg has studied and written about conspiracy theories. They persist, he says, even without evidence, because they give people a sense of power.
Robert Goldberg/ Professor, University of Utah History Dept.: "The people who claim conspiracy theories picture themselves as latter-day Paul Revere's. That is, 'The people are asleep and the danger is close by. If only we can awaken the American people.' Then the danger can be set aside."
Al Snow is a sort of LaVerkin Paul Revere.
He drafted the town's original anti-UN ordinance. His mind is clear on the UN's overall motive.
Al Snow: "Getting control of our system and taking our sovereignty."
Snow has four theories about the purpose of Chemtrails.
Weather modification. Inoculation. Chemical weapons testing. Or, most likely, de-population.
Al Snow: "The elitists have said we need to eliminate 350.000 people a day until we get back to the 1.5 billion, and that's what the earth can sustain."
Who are those elitists pushing for mass murder?
Al Snow: "Jacques Cousteau is one of them."
And who's dying?
Al Snow: "People over 70 years of age, okay? People with emphysema, with asthma and respiratory problems."
Snow claims he's seen dozens of spray planes on an almost daily basis, right there in LaVerkin. He says it's going on worldwide, which implies thousands and thousands of planes.
The absence of evidence for such massive conspiracy theories doesn't stop them, Goldberg says. Conspiracy thinking appeals to people because it gives the illusion of understanding.
Prof. Goldberg: "Creates a world which eliminates ambiguity, which creates clarity, where clarity doesn't exist. Conspiracy theory also orders and provides meaning to events that don't have meaning."
Goldberg worries that conspiracy theorists weaken America by undermining faith in our leaders.
But Al Snow plans to keep watching the skies, and sounding the alarm.
Al Snow: "Most people think that's a real cloud."
Councilman Snow is not the only one. There's an Internet-TalkRadio underground of ChemTrail "true believers".
Tuesday, we'll introduce you to a woman in Escalante who claims she hid out for two years in fear for her life after trying to blow the whistle.
