Editing Behold a Pale Horse (book)

{{Infobox book | name = Behold a Pale Horse | title_orig = | translator = | image = File:Behold_a_Pale_Horse_cover.jpg | image_size = 250px | caption = Front cover of the book | author = Milton William Cooper | illustrator = | cover_artist = | country = United States | language = English | series = | subject = Conspiracy theories, government secrets, Illuminati, UFOs | genre = Non-fiction | publisher = Light Technology Publishing | release_date = December 1, 1991 | media_type = Print (paperback) | pages = 470 | isbn = 978-0929385228 | isbn_note = ISBN-10: 0929385225 | preceded_by = | followed_by = }}

''Behold a Pale Horse'' is a non-fiction book written by [[Milton William Cooper]], published in 1991. The book is known for its impact on UFO and militia circles and is considered a seminal work in conspiracy theory literature.<ref name=Nattrass>{{cite book|last=Nattrass|first=Nicoli|title=The AIDS Conspiracy: Science Fights Back|year=2012|publisher=[[Columbia University Press]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0231149129|pages=[https://archive.org/details/aidsconspiracysc0000natt/page/4 4], 23–27|url=https://archive.org/details/aidsconspiracysc0000natt|url-access=registration|author-link=Nicoli Nattrass|access-date=January 17, 2013}}</ref>

==Background==
Milton William Cooper, a former United States Naval Intelligence Briefing Team member, wrote the book to share what he claimed were suppressed truths hidden in top-secret government files. According to Cooper, this information had been classified since the 1940s. The book discusses topics such as the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the war on drugs, secret government activities, UFOs, and the Illuminati.<ref name=Gilroy>{{cite book|last=Gilroy|first=Paul|title=Against Race: Imagining Political Culture Beyond the Color Line|year=2000|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|location=Cambridge, MA|isbn=978-0674000964|pages=352–353|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wWpt-Js7JPEC|author-link=Paul Gilroy|access-date=January 17, 2013|chapter=Planetary Humanism|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wWpt-Js7JPEC&pg=PA352}}</ref> Cooper claimed his predictions, including the lowering of the Iron Curtain, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the invasion of Panama, were based on plans he encountered during his time in naval intelligence and over 17 years of research.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Behold-Horse-Milton-William-Cooper/dp/0929385225|title=Behold a Pale Horse|publisher=Amazon|access-date=November 27, 2024}}</ref>

The book’s original edition included the infamous hoax ''[[Protocols of the Elders of Zion]]'', which Cooper later removed in revised editions upon learning it was a forgery.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Behold-Horse-Milton-William-Cooper/dp/0929385225|title=Behold a Pale Horse|publisher=Amazon|access-date=November 27, 2024}}</ref>
 

==Contents==
''Behold a Pale Horse'' is divided into multiple chapters, each addressing a different aspect of Cooper's conspiracy theories. Key topics include:

The [[Illuminati]] and the [[New World Order]]
Alleged government UFO cover-ups
Secret technologies and suppressed advancements
Political assassinations, including that of [[John F. Kennedy]]
The war on drugs as a government control mechanism
The book includes reprints of what Cooper claimed were official documents, such as executive orders, military reports, and other materials, which he used to substantiate his claims.

==Reception and Legacy==
''Behold a Pale Horse'' has been both widely influential and highly controversial. Just prior to the trial of [[Terry Nichols]] in 1997, ''[[The Guardian]]'' described it as "the manifesto of the [[Militia organizations in the United States|militia movement]]".<ref name=Vulliamy>{{cite news|last1=Vulliamy|first1=Ed|last2=Dirks|first2=Bruce|title=New trial may solve riddle of Oklahoma bombing|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/1997/nov/03/mcveigh.usa|access-date=January 17, 2013|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=November 3, 1997|location=London}}</ref>

[[Political science|Political scientist]] [[Michael Barkun]] characterized it as "among the most complex superconspiracy theories" and credited its widespread popularity in militia circles and mainstream bookstores for its influence.<ref name="Barkun2006">{{cite book|author=Michael Barkun|title=A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LiwjVsNBw-cC&pg=PA60|access-date=January 5, 2012|year= 2006|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|isbn=978-0-520-24812-0|page=60}}</ref> Sociologist [[Paul Gilroy]] noted Cooper's claim of an "elaborate conspiracy theory" linking the Kennedy assassination, secret world government activities, and covert Illuminati schemes.<ref name=Gilroy/>

Historian [[Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke]] criticized the book as a "chaotic [[:wikt:farrago|farrago]] of conspiracy myths" filled with extraneous material, such as reprints of government documents, intended to depict the alleged imposition of a world government on the American people in violation of the Constitution.<ref name=Goodrick-Clarke>{{cite book|last=Goodrick-Clarke|first=Nicholas|title=Black Sun: Aryan Cults, Esoteric Nazism, and the Politics of Identity|year=2002|publisher=[[New York University Press]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0814731550|pages=284–285|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xaiaM77s6N4C|author-link=Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke|access-date=January 17, 2013|chapter=Conspiracy Beliefs and the New World Order}}</ref>

Despite the criticism, the book remains a cornerstone in conspiracy literature and has had a lasting influence on various communities, including UFO enthusiasts, militia groups, and conspiracy theorists.