The World's Easiest Column

I find this sort of column trivial and silly. But conservatives pump it out, with minor variations, ever three months.

I have no real problem with it... I don't disagree with it, so much as I think it's just silly. It pleases readers while being perfectly trivial in its ambitions.

And this is Charles Krauthammer, who is a pretty smart guy. But I really do think this whole "Let's kick up a fuss about what euphemisms we use for terrorism" thing is kind of stale.

We conservatives, as a group, minted quite a few of these sorts of columns from 2001 to 2006 and I think all that can be said has been said.

I suppose my main problem is that I don't see the problem with using diplomatic language to discuss tricky things. I don't mean the absurd "workplace violence" claim about Nisan; that is an outrage.

But I don't see how the ball is advanced much by declaring, forthrightly, that America is engaged in War on Radical Islam. Which isn't true per se; we're engaged in a war on terrorist cells within radical Islam. Given that one third (or more) of the Islamic world adheres to what you'd call Radical Islam, I don't see it as a "war" on all of Radical Islam, unless people really want to bomb Lahore.

Which, by the way, yeah I know. It's a thought, I grant you.

So what we're engaged in is a war on terrorism supported by Radical Islam and a political/diplomatic effort to calm the not-terrorist (yet) elements of Radical Islam down.

Anyway, just an opinion. You may disagree. I just find this sort of a Kabuki argument we make when we don't have anything bad to say but want to say something.

posted by Ace at 06:21 PM

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