Why Call It "Operation Paperclip"?

[Fellow Aspirant]

I'd like to run something past the membership as a pet conjecture of mine. There's nothing earth-shaking about it, it's just a little epiphany I had that made me go "Of course!" and finally eased my mind about a nagging puzzle that had been cropping up for the last few years. I offer it to you all now, not as something that can be proved or not, but as a way to maybe ease your own little anomalous itch.

Or maybe it's just me, and I've seen one too many spy movies. Anyway, I hope you find it interesting.

Ever since I first came across the nefarious "Operation Paperclip", I have been intrigued by the name. At first I thought, "How clever - to give such an evil and insidious enterprise an innocuous and 'blah' name. Who would ever question the nature of it, given the low key (Loki?) title. Sounds like a book keeper's entry."

Thus did I consider it for many years. Then, suddenly, as I played around with a paper clip, I was jolted into another possibility for its selection, one whose function went beyond camouflage.

What if, I wondered, there needed to be a way for the insiders in the program to self-identify themselves to each other, something like a 'handshake', but without the need for open contact? Some sign that could be shared, in an office environment with 'others' around, so that two of the cognoscenti could reveal their secret identities to one another, without being detected by the others? Of course! Paper clips! Here's how:

It seems to me that an easy way to try out another guy's insider status would be for the initiator of the 'probe' to take a paper clip, casually bend it backwards into an "S" shape, and leave it in front of the other man during a meeting. If the other man was an insider as well, he could do likewise and put his paper clip down beside the first one, however briefly. In this manner, initial contact could be made. Further "tests' would then presumably ensue, until each was assured of the other's true status.

And why paper clips? Because, while the German scientists were, for the most part, Nazis, some of them were the real bosses, and were in charge of all of them. These were the ones in line for world domination as members of the true elite: the SS.


1828318284

[Bill Ryan]

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Most if not all military and intelligence project names (at least in the US and UK) are pretty much randomly chosen.

It'd make no sense for a project name to feature an implied description of the subject or purpose of the project. The whole idea is to make the names nonsensical -- so that no clues are inadvertently provided.

Here's a list. :)

From http://designation-systems.net/usmilav/codenames.html

A - Able Mable ... Autumn Forge (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/a.html)
B - Babylift ... Buzz Spring (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/b.html)
C - Cache Marker ... Cutty Sark (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/c.html)
D - Daguet ... Dust Hardness (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/d.html)
E - Eagle Eye ... Exotic Dancer (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/e.html)
F - Face Lift ... Fresh News (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/f.html)
G - Gallant Hand ... Gypsy Danger (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/g.html)
H - Halcon Vista ... Hybla Gold (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/h.html)
I - Idealist ... Ivy Owl (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/i.html)
J - Jack Frost I ... Just Cause (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/j.html)
K - Kee Bird ... King Fish (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/k.html)
L - La Faire Vite ... Lucky Dragon (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/l.html)
M - Mad Bomber ... Mystic Star (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/m.html)
N - Nancy Rae ... Nymph Voice (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/n.html)
O - Ocean Wave ... Oxeye Daisy (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/o.html)
P - Pacer Ace ... Ptarmigan Track (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/p.html)
Q - Quick Bolt ... Quiet Force (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/q.html)
R - Ranch Hand ... Rusty Bolt (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/r.html)
S - Saber Acquire ... Swiftlift (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/s.html)
T - Tacit Blue ... Tuba Groom (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/t.html)
U - Union Flash ... Urgent Fury (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/u.html)
V - Varsity Spirit ... Vortex (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/v.html)
W - Walking Shield ... Woodland Cougar (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/w.html)
X - (none)
Y - Yankee Team ... Young Tiger (http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/names/y.html)
Z - (none)

[Strat]

^ What about Midnight Climax?

[aranuk]

Bill you are a fountain of knowledge Sir! thank you.

Stan

[Mike]

^ What about Midnight Climax?

good one.

how 'bout: 'operation blackbeards delight'?

or..

'operation sex panther' (by odeon)

or

'operation blue steel'

;)

[Carmody]

the last one..'Blue Steel', starred Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver in his 'career peak' role, and Clancy Brown, and a quick but essential first film appearance by Tom Sizemore. Directed and co written by Kathryn Bigelow, and an atmospheric and eerie soundtrack by Brad Fiedel. In modern context it is kicked to the curb by many, but in 1989, I thought it was quite good.

[araucaria]

Randomness does not rule out some strange effects, such as a perceived poetic appropriateness, sometimes, after the event, or the trouble the Daily Telegraph crossword compiler got into in the runup to D-Day (Operation Overlord) for inadvertently devising clues to a whole string of code names. Some morphic resonance going on there, I reckon.

[bogeyman]

Codes for projects and operations and some times just designated numbers. This link is a censored list of codewords used by the DOD:

http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/joint_staff/jointStaff_jointOperations/42.pdf
http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/dod/cjcsm3150_29a.pdf

Some codewords have designated SCI (sensitive compartment information) attached to the original codeword or classification marking.

[Taurean]

I think the guy who came up way of choosing Horses names may have had some input here.

Dog kennel names are pretty bizarre as well.

Operation High Jump might be construed as a bit tongue in cheek ?

[Mike]

actually Carmody, i was referring to Derrick Zoolander's go-to pose in the comedy ''Zoolander', starring Ben Stiller.;)

but i love eerie and atmospheric, so i may check out the soundtrack to your version.

[Cognitive Dissident]

Choosing the wrong code name, which has a meaning close to the actual project itself, can be disastrous - just see what happened with Project Wotan in the Battle of the Beams - great story for history buffs:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Beams#Y-Ger.C3.A4t

[Healthy Skeptic]

I actually saw a documentary about 'Project Paperclip'.
For 'the life of me' I cannot remember where this was ---- It may have been on 'The History Channel' or 'Discovery Channel'.
Apparently, the US Military kept 'files' (Manilla Folders) of potential NAZI scientists that were 'of use' to bring into the US after the war.
The documents about the scientists within these 'files' were clipped together with a 'Paperclip'.
Hence the name given to the project.

[sigma6]

I like the way you're thinking, very creative, and it is something that could be spun into a fictional account... and then again, we can't discount it... I like the 'twist'... lol, but I would have to go along with Healthy Sceptic... that was something along my first guess... I remember watching a show where they literally took old file records, and using a pen marker add in a "v" as when you want to add in something and changed the designation on their files from "Nazi" to "not Nazi" imagine pulling up hundreds of files like that... I could imagine there must have been a lot of paperwork that must have been 'shuffled' around... when they pulled this illuminati stunt...

[ExomatrixTV]

Annie Jacobsen, "Operation Paperclip":

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Author Annie Jacobsen presents a fascinating topic from her new book, Operation Paperclip, and takes questions from the audience. This event was recorded February 26, 2014 at Politics & Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C. Founded by Carla Cohen and Barbara Meade in 1984, Politics & Prose Bookstore is Washington, D.C.'s premier independent bookstore and cultural hub, a gathering place for people interested in reading and discussing books. Politics & Prose offers superior service, unusual book choices, and a haven for book lovers in the store and online. Visit them on the web at politics-prose.com (http://www.politics-prose.com)




Nato Chief was a Nazi too ... Adolf Heusinger Chairman of the NATO Military Committee wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Heusinger (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Heusinger)

cheers,
John 🦜🦋🌳