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Decoding the Black Patches

Emenince Grise

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Came across this article in the New York Times this morning which attempts to decode the unit, mission and launch patches of what are believed to be some of the "Black" (i.e. classified) US military programs. Curiously, the US military and security apparatus has made little comment on this.

http://www.nytimes.com/1999/04/01/science/01patc.html?th&emc=th

It is, according to a new book, part of the hidden reality behind the Pentagon's classified, or “black,” budget that delivers billions of dollars to stealthy armies of high-tech warriors. The book offers a glimpse of this dark world through a revealing lens — patches — the kind worn on military uniforms.

“It’s a fresh approach to secret government,” Steven Aftergood, a security expert at the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, said in an interview. “It shows that these secret programs have their own culture, vocabulary and even sense of humor.”

One patch shows a space alien with huge eyes holding a stealth bomber near its mouth. “To Serve Man” reads the text above, a reference to a classic “Twilight Zone” episode in which man is the entree, not the customer. “Gustatus Similis Pullus” reads the caption below, dog Latin for “Tastes Like Chicken.”


And the Pentagon says...

A spokesman for the Pentagon, Cmdr. Bob Mehal, said it would be imprudent to comment on “which patches do or do not represent classified units.” In an e-mail message, Commander Mehal added, “It would be supposition to suggest ‘anyone’ is uncomfortable with this book.”


The original article leads to this article on decoding classified US space programs through their patches.

http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1033/1

Military patches and logos—simply the latest examples of heraldry dating back thousands of years—are by definition symbolic, so it is no surprise that they contain symbols. What is surprising is that these symbols often reveal information about the satellites’ identities and missions that are otherwise classified.





 
Excuse me while I get my tinfoil hockey helmet with full cage on......
 
One patch shows a space alien with huge eyes holding a stealth bomber near its mouth. “To Serve Man” reads tha text above, a reference to a classic “Twilight Zone” episode in which man is tha entree, not tha customer. “Gustatus Similis Pullus” reads tha caption below, dog Latin for “Tastes Like Chicken.”

Hmmm - check the date?
 
Hit th.e link and then change th.e date to 2.0.0.8. without th.e periods.
 
I just want one of those patches. "To serve man".... that's pretty good.
 
I wonder what it means when what really struck me was how butchered the Latin was... but I want one too.
 
Good lord... could this mean that REAL CLASSSIFIED JTF-2 patches are circulating on EBAY?? Oh dear... there's some men in black suits at the door...
 
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