Jun 20th, 2011
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Mission patches are
used by military and space organizations to identify, symbolize and
describe a mission’s objectives and its crew. This tradition is also
observed in the shady world of PSYOPS where each secret mission of the
Pentagon gets its patch. These patches offer a rare glimpse into the
Pentagon’s secret operations and the symbolism on them is rather
striking: ominous and cryptic phrases, dark occult symbolism, references
to secret societies, and sometimes even a rather dark sense of humor.
Here’s the top 10 most sinister PSYOPS patches.
In 1965, NASA began using cloth patches
to identify each of its missions and to symbolize the missions’
objectives and their crew. Each rocket launch has therefore a patch
designed by crew members and in collaboration with the official design
team. The patches are then proudly displayed on equipment and worn by
NASA astronauts and other personnel affiliated with a particular manned
or unmanned space mission.
Since then, other organizations involved
in space travel and secret operations began using mission patches,
including those that specialize in PSYOPS (psychological warfare): the
CIA, the Department of Defense and the National Reconnaissance Office
(NRO). What does space travel have to do with psychological warfare? Spy
satellites. Since 1960, the NRO (whose existence was only declassified
in 1992) has launched dozens of secret spy satellites into space,
collecting an incredible amount of information on the United States’
friends, enemies and citizens.
As it is nearly impossible to obtain
information regarding these highly classified endeavours, mission
patches offer a rare glimpse into the world of PSYOPS. Even if one is
not well-versed in symbolism, it is easy to perceive a sinister “vibe”
emanating from the patch designs. Laced with strange symbols, ominous
creatures, obscure Latin phrases and even dark humor, these patches
reflect the mindstate of those wearing the patches.
“The iconography of the United States
military. Not the mainstream military, with its bars and ribbons and
medals, but the secret or ‘black projects’ world, which may or may not
involve contacting aliens, building undetectable spy aircraft, and
experimenting with explosives that could make atomic bombs look like
firecrackers. Here, mysterious characters and cryptic symbols hint at
intrigue much deeper than rank, company, and unit.”
—UTNE Reader
“Of course, issuing patches for a covert operation sounds like a
joke … but truth be told, these days everything is branded. Military
symbols are frequently replete with heraldic imagery—some rooted in
history, others based on contemporary popular arts that feature comic
characters—but these enigmatic dark-op images, in some cases probably
designed by the participants themselves, are more personal, and also
more disturbing, than most.”
—Steven Heller, The New York Times Book Review
Since the release of this book, new
mission patches have been released that are as strange and cryptic as
their predecessors. If these patches are meant to symbolize “the values
of the crew and the objectives of the mission”, perhaps we should be a
little concerned. Here are the top 10 most sinister mission patches:
#10 – Alien Face
TENCAP is an acronym for “Tactical
Exploitation of National Capabilities” and is a collection of programs
involving the cutting edge of warfare.
“The purpose of the AF TENCAP program is to exploit
the current and future potential of existing national, commercial, and
civil space systems and national air-breathing systems, and to provide
these capabilities to the warfighter as rapidly as possible.”
- Source
In PSYOPS, “Special” almost invariably
means “black” or highly classified. Does the “highly classified part” of
the mission have something to do with the fact that the badge bears the
face of an alien? The saying at the bottom does not help: The phrase
“Oderint Dum Metuant” is usually associated with Caligula, the
first-century Roman emperor whose name became synonymous with depravity,
madness, and tyranny. It translates as “Let them hate so long as they
fear.” Right.
#9 All Your Base Are Belong to Us
A giant angry dragon clutching the
planet, bringing destruction from space. That’s a nice way to symbolize
space missions. In PSYOPS symbolism, dragons typically represent
signals-intelligence satellite launches; the dragons’ wing patterns
symbolize the satellites’ massive gold-foil dish antennae meant to
collect all types of information from earth. The phrase “Omnis Vestri
Substructio Es Servus Ad Nobis” can loosely be translated to “All your
base are servant to us”. This phrase does not make much sense, except
that it vaguely states that the world is owned by those who made that
patch. But this phrase is also reminiscent of a geeky 2002 Internet meme
based on a poor translation in an old-school Sega game.
This allusion to popular culture is
quite funny yet disturbing … I’m pretty sure they truly believe that all
our base are belong to them.
#8 Hymn to Pan
The PAN satellite was launched in
September 2009 and is so top-secret that no military or governmental
organization claimed to have built it.
“A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket has launched
with PAN, a classified satellite which will be operated by the US
Government. The launch was on time, at the start of a two hour, nine
minute launch window which opened at 21:35 GMT (17:35 local time).
Unusually for an American government satellite, the agency responsible
for operating the spacecraft has not been disclosed.”
- Nasa Space Flight
According to the patch, PAN stands for
“Palladium at Night”, Palladium being a silvery-white metallic element
that is probably present in the satellite. The mission is so secret,
however, that it is jokingly said that the name PAN actually stands for
“Pick a Name” (notice the subtle question mark underneath the rocket on
the patch).
PAN is also the name of an ancient
horned god important in occultism and that has a strange link with the
history of rocket science in the United States.
Jack Parsons, a pioneer in American
space propulsion who is often credited for having “propelled” the United
States into the space age (a crater of the moon is named in his honor),
was also a notorious occultist. He was a prominent member of the Ordo
Templi Orienti (the O.T.O.), an occult secret society popularized by
Aleister Crowley. Seeing no separation between his professional and his
occult work, Parsons was known to chant Crowley’s poem entitled Hymn to Pan before each test rocket launch.
“Parsons would dance and chant poetry—most notably Crowley’s “Hymn to Pan”—before rocket tests.”
- Goeffrey Landis, The Three Rocketeers
Is Pan still invoked during rocket launches?
#7 Supra Summus
This is a patch for a NRO spy-satellite
launch. Those familiar with this site will probably recognize this
Illuminati 101 symbolism: An unfinished pyramid topped by the All-Seeing
Eye. This All-Seeing Eye requires help: it needs spy satellites to be
even more all-seeing.
“LMA” at the bottom right most likely
refers to Lockheed Martin Aerospace, which is the ultimate Big Brother
mega-company working with the
CIA, NRO, NSA and IRS.
Above the All-Seeing Eye is written
“Supra Summus”, which can be translated to “Most Superior and Highest”,
which, if nothing else, indicates a healthy level of self-esteem.
Other NRO spy-satellite launches have also used similar designs.
#6 Two Faced Shadow Guy
The 23rd Space Operations Squadron (23
SOPS) is a United States Air Force unit located at New Boston Air Force
Station in New Hampshire. The patch of this mission features a
creepy-looking figure in a creepy hood looking over the earth with
creepy eyes, staring creepily at the American continent. However, that
is not the creepiest thing in this patch. If you look closely at the
contour of the black face, you’ll see another face, with pointy nose and
pointy ears, looking left. Who is this creepier dude within an already
creepy dude? And what’s up with all the layers of creepy?
The saying “Semper Vigilans” means
“Always Vigilant”. At least I can relate to that. But in the context of
this patch, it is definitely creepy.
#5 The Grid
Are you thinking of selling your condo
and your Prius in order to leave everything and “go off the grid”? Try
it and this knight might slash your head off. It would probably be
useless anyhow. Look closely at this patch: there is no “off the grid”.
This patch actually depicts the “information grid” those crazy
conspiracy theorists keep rambling about, complete with nodes at the
intersections.
Defenders of the Domain is a
subgroup of the NSA Information Assurance group and is comprised of
individuals “who are on the front lines in developing the strategy, the
concepts, the planning and the technical implementation in the
Information Assurance domain. They are the true leaders in the world of
Cybersecurity.” In other words, they monitor the cyberspace using the
latest technologies.
The man with the sword is in the
distinct dress of a Knight Templar, this ancient group of Crusaders that
became an occult secret society. The Knight represents the descendants
of the Templars, the modern Illuminatus.
#4 NRO Snakes
This is another mysterious patch of the
NRO. The program associated with this patch is totally unknown. All we
know is that it is represented by three menacing vipers wrapped around
the the earth, making us all warm and fuzzy inside. The Latin
inscription “Nunquam Ante Numquam Iterum” translates to “Never before,
never again.” What never happened before and will never happen again? We
may never know.
#3 I Could Tell You…
You know that a mission is top-secret
when not even an obscure symbol can be used to represent it. This patch
was designed as a generic insignia for “black” projects conducted by the
Navy’s Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Four. The Latin phrase “Si Ego
Certiorem Faciam … Mihi Tu Delendus Eris” is roughly translated to “I
could tell you … but then I’d have to kill you”. That is cliché phrase,
but considering these are the people who actually created it, they
probably don’t think it is corny. In fact, they’re probably dead serious
about it.
Furthermore, there is a twist on the
phrase. According to Paglen, the Latin phrase is worded in a peculiar
way in order to refer to Greek and Roman texts.
“The Latin phrase Si Ego Certiorem
Faciam … Mihi Tu Delendus Eris roughly translates into a cliché commonly
heard in the vicinity of “black” programs: “I could tell you, but then
I’d have to kill you.”
But the phrasing here is unusual because it is written in the
passive voice: a more accurate translation of the Latin would be “I
could tell you, but then you would have to be destroyed by me.” By
employing the passive voice, the patch’s designer makes two references
that would not exist in other phrasings. The first reference is to the
Greek god of Chaos, Eris, about whom Homer wrote in Book Four of the
Iliad: “[Eris] whose wrath is relentless … is the sister and companion
of murderous Ares, she who is only a little thing at the first, but
thereafter grows until she strides on the earth with her head striking
heaven. She then hurled down bitterness equally between both sides as
she walked through the onslaught making men’s pain heavier.”
The passive phrasing of the Latin also echoes the words of the
second-century BCE Roman senator Cato the Elder, who roamed the Senate
repeating the words Carthago delenda est—”Carthage must be destroyed.”
In 149 BCE, Cato got his way and Rome attacked the North African city,
located near present-day Tunis. Three years after beginning their
assault, the Roman army overran Carthage, tore down its walls, and sold
its inhabitants into slavery. After the Roman Senate declared that no
one would ever again live where the city had stood, legend holds that
Rome salted the earth around the city in order to ensure that Carthage
would remain a wasteland.”
- Source
So the badge does not contain a simple
death threat: it also alludes to a “wrath from above” of mythological
proportions, turning your city into a wasteland for generations to come.
Now that’s a threat.
#2 Get Your Kicks on 66
The Minotaur program is composed of
top-secret NRO spy-satellite launching missions. Minotaurs are
bull-headed creatures from Greek mythology that are always angry,
violent and merciless. Minotaurs bear many resemblances to the
Middle-Eastern deity Molech, a bull-headed god with the body of a man to
whom child sacrifices were made.
In this patch for NROL-66, the red
Minotaur (as if hailing directly from hell) is holding a street sign of
the mythical route 66. It is rather difficult not to see an allusion to
the devil (who is often portrayed in red) and the number 666.
Furthermore, according to some occult researchers, route 66 was originally laid out to become a sort of “occult pilgrimage”.
“The famous old American highway “Route 66″ was laid
out by Freemasons with the apparent intention of sending masses of
automobile riders into a self-processing occult “trip.”
Route 66 began at the Buckingham Fountain in Chicago, near the
site of the University of Chicago’s collection of Aztec ritual
incunabula. It ended in Barstow, California in the Mohave desert, which
is for the Freemasons, the cosmic graveyard of the West, the final
destiny of Anubis, the celestial jackal, otherwise known as Sirius (see
Giorgio de Santillana andHertha Von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill: An Essay on
Myth and th Frame of Time, p. 358).
If this version of Route 66 smacks of some medieval pilgrimage
made more appropriately on a camel than by car, it is for good reason.
Most of Route 66 was based on a road forged in 1857 by Lt. Edward Beale
and his caravan of the U.S. Camel Corps.”
- Michael A. Hoffman II, Secret Societies and Psychological Warfare
So who is really getting their kicks on Route 66?
#1 The Devil You Know
This patch for NROL-49 depicts a
phoenix rising from the flames with the flag of the United States in the
background. The Latin words “Melior Diabolus Quem Scies” roughly
translates to mean “The Devil You Know,” as in the phrase “Better the
devil you know than the devil you don’t know”. Cryptic. According to
NASA, this saying refers to the return of the use of an old system after
attempting to use a new one, which had resulted in failure.
“The mission patch for NRO L-49 shows a phoenix
rising out of a fire, with the words “melior diabolus quem scies”, which
translate into English as “better the devil you know”, indicating the
return to the older system following the failure of the attempt to
replace it.”
- Source
It is a rather odd choice of words for a
governmental agency, but definitely on-par with this whole sinister,
hellish theme going on with PSYOPS patches.
Another patch related to NRO-49 depicts the satellite as a winged
fiery being (referred to by NASA as a devil named Betty) who is holding a
trident and a wrench.
“An image of a devil features on the launch patch.
The old tradition of giving rockets personal names also appears to have
been revived; Delta 352 seems to have been named “Betty”, and the Atlas V
that launched from Vandenberg last year was named ‘Gladys’.”
- Ibid.
The patch shows the moon (or a comet?)
partially covering the earth. If you look closely, there are letters in
the detail of the grey astral body. What do they refer to? At the bottom
of the patch, the Latin phrase is also enigmatic: “Primoris Gravis Ex
Occasus”. Primoris means “First”, Gravis stands for “important, heavy
or serious” and Occasus means “setting of the sun, the West, or fall”.
In other words, I don’t know what it means. “First heavy setting of the
sun”? “The most important thing after the sunset”? “First serious fall”?
Regardless of the exact meaning, there seems to be an emphasis on the
concept of darkness. Betty is pure darkness wrapped in flames and is
partially covering the sun. There is a grey celestial body moving
towards the earth … and we’re still talking about a spy-satellite. Okay.
Honorable Mentions
There are many other patches giving a glimpse in the somehow twisted world of PSYOPS:
In Conclusion
Although it isn’t possible to know exact
meaning of the symbols found in these mission patches, they still
provide a rare insider’s look at the philosophy, the mind state and the
background of the organizations creating them. Sorcerers controlling the
earth, vipers surrounding the earth, angry dragons clutching the earth …
this is how they perceive themselves and their work. My question is:
Should we maybe be a little concerned? One could argue that these
patches are meant to be menacing to America’s enemies. This could be
true, but most satellites launched by the NRO are meant to spy on North
America, hence the emphasis on the continent in many of these patches.
One thing is certain, mission patches
are the most honest descriptions we have of these secret missions. Since
most of the patches were not intended for mass exposure, they are
devoid of public relations sugar-coating. The patches do not talk about
“bringing democracy and the light of freedom to the world”… they show
the world in chains and in flames, controlled by dragons and sorcerers,
and their words threaten death and destruction.
The occult symbolism illustrated in
these patches is also reminder that these organizations have relations
to secret societies and are “in the know”. And those who are not in the
know, the uninitiated masses, the profane, are not welcome.
Sources
When PsyOps becomes Military Intelligence Special Operations...
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