Language Note: “Escalation”

The Media are full of articles discussing “the surge” proposal which is frat boy talk for sending more troops to Iraq.

For today, at least, we will pass over the minor fact that the The Decider™ has told us over and over that he doesn’t actually decide troop levels, he leaves that to Generals, and try not to figure out why we are discussing sending more troops over the objection of the Joint Chiefs with no reference to this oft-cited rule.

Rather, I should just like to point out that sending more troops into a war is properly called “escalation.” Yet, somehow, this term seems to have eluded much of the major media.

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