Nuking the Moon: And Other Intelligence Schemes and Military Plots Left on the Drawing Board

by Vince Houghton

Operation Northwoods has been (and will probably continue to be) a lightning rod for conspiracy theorists—the go-to case study for the evils of the American government. This story is just as appealing to the mild-mannered “second shooter on the grassy knoll” kind of conspiracy theorist as it is to the tinfoil-hat-wearing “the lizard people are going to drain our precious bodily fluids” kind of wacko. It’s an equal opportunity offender: It can bring out a natural, innate distrust of government in just about anyone. As much as we might like to, it’s hard to blame conspiracy theorists for latching on to this story. I certainly don’t. Because in the end, Operation Northwoods may be one of the most shameful plans in the history of the U.S. military. And that’s why it’s here. As much as we’d like to, we can’t ignore the ugly side of our history. Good and bad, right and wrong, our history is what makes us who we are. And maybe, just maybe, we can learn something from it.