Editing Behold a Pale Horse (book) (section)

==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 [[UFOs|UFO enthusiasts]], militia groups, and conspiracy theorists.