BuzzFlash Reviews

BUZZFLASH REVIEWS

Maybe we should begin this book review with a note about the author: Trevor Paglen is an expert on clandestine military operations -- to the extent that one can gather such information without being sent to Guantanamo. He leads expeditions to the secret bases of the American west and is the author, with AC Thompson, of Torture Taxi.

Then we should note that this is not a book for everyone, but it is a curious delight for those who have an interest in the billions of dollars that are spent on secret military projects. Although, as a further qualification, you won't find a lot of details about them, but rather tantalizing hints at what they do.

Now, Paglen has an unusual approach to these clandestine operations in this book. He has put together a collection of 75 patches that represent "black ops" units, and then done some groundwork to provide at least some information about what they might be up to do, even if it is general in nature, because the work of these units is, well, secret. But their patches are not, at least not now.

So each of the 75 patches is offered on a glossy page in color reproduction, with an "explanatory" page facing it.

And the cover of the book has its title embroidered on as an emblem. How neat is that?

Paglen, the author, readily admits that he can't confirm every patch as 100% accurate because of the secrecy of the units. But his notes about the emblems clearly show that he's done his homework, as best he can without getting arrested.

As we said, this is not a book with a narrative, but rather something like a campy art book based on what can be found out about secret military operations through the informal patches (most of them are not officially sanctioned) for each project.

Paglen's introduction tells you his methodology in collecting the patches -- and offers an intersting short history of the military unit "insignia." (It goes back to the civil war.)

From the publisher, Melville Books:

Shown here for the first time, these seventy-five patches reveal a secret world of military imagery and jargon, where classified projects are known by peculiar names ("Goat Suckers," "None of Your Fucking Business," "Tastes Like Chicken") and illustrated with occult symbols and ridiculous cartoons. Although the actual projects represented here (such as the notorious Area 51) are classified, these patches-which are worn by military units working on classified missions-are precisely photographed, strangely hinting at a world about which little is known.

By submitting hundreds of Freedom of Information requests, the author has also assembled an extensive and readable guide to the patches included here, making this volume the best available survey of the military's black world-a $27 billion industry that has quietly grown by almost 50 percent since 9/11

From BuzzFlash:

"Fascinating, creepy, intriguing. Just way out of the ordinary."


BUZZFLASH REVIEWS