I have known about these problems for some time. Some people
investigating this situation urged me to keep quiet a little longer
while they investigated. I am not Steve Krivit, and I have never felt it
is my role to investigate the private lives or credibility of cold
fusion researchers. I never discuss people's personal lives and I have
no interest in gossip or rumors. I do not plan to put this information
on LENR-CANR.org, unless it is independently confirmed and reported in
the mass media. On the other hand, I informed everyone I know in the
mass media and at places like PESN.com.
I wrote to the people who urged me to withhold this another week:
"I will not be accused of covering up appalling information that calls
this whole thing into question. . . .
[Rossi] may have discovered a real phenomenon. History is full of genius
inventors who were unreliable, unstable or dishonest people. Or -- who
knows -- he might have taken the discovery from someone else without
acknowledging it, the way Griggs did. Whatever he has, we should not
believe it until more and better independent tests can be done."
Flavio Tarallo just wrote to me:
"I think that we cannot say that Rossi is a cheater, because we don't
have the evidences, but there is too much strange things around him and
at least we have to pretend a new test with a well defined, shared and
approved method and protocol of measurements."
I agree with that 100%.
Some people have also suggested I should not say this because I might
upset or offend Rossi. Some have suggested that if his claim is real, he
may soon be the most powerful person on earth. Indeed, he may soon be
Bill Gates and Andrew Carnegie rolled together. However, I am never
inclined to curry favor with the rich and powerful, and I am never
furtive. I do not mind when people refuse to give me information, but I
resent it when they lie to me. So, to ensure that everyone knows where I
stand, I uploaded a copy of that Vortex message to Rossi's blog.
- Jed