(SNN Washington) Very soon, you will no longer be hearing about the Global War on Terror. The term is slowly being replaced by names such as "a global struggle against violent extremism".

If you call it a war, then you think of people in uniform as being the solution.

General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the National Press Club on Monday that he had "objected to the use of the term 'war on terrorism' before, because if you call it a war, then you think of people in uniform as being the solution." It can only be assumed that the General is referring to the huge number of civilian mercenaries that have been fighting in Iraq under titles such as “Security Consultants” and the thugs and criminals that work for our warlord allies in Afghanistan.

"The president then said we were going to use all the means of national power and influence to defeat this enemy," Pentagon Spokesman Larry Di Rita said. "We must continue to be more expansive than what the public is understandably focused on now: the military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq."

This is not the first time that the name of the Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism has been changed.

This is not the first time that the name of the Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism has been changed. An early version of the same slogan “The War Against Terror” was rejected to an unfortunate acronym. Another slogan “Fight the Future” was rejected because it was later found to be the title of an X-Files movie.

As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan stretch on, the Bush administration wishes to remind citizens that the Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism is more than just a military exercise. "It is more than just a military war on terror," said Steven Hadley, the national security adviser. "It's broader than that. It's a global struggle against extremism. We need to dispute both the gloomy vision and offer a positive alternative."

The American people are growing increasingly pessimistic about the Iraq war. By stressing to the public that the effort is not only military, the administration wants to reassure the American public that when all avenues of war have been exhausted, then there is a time for diplomacy.

posted by NewsBlog 5000  # Wednesday, July 27, 2005