A war by
any other name ...

We may be headed into a war or a "police action" or a skirmish. Whatever it turns out to be, this conflict will need a good name.

World War II wasn't named until Congress made it official in 1944. Then, history had to be rewritten. The Great War and The War To End All Wars became World War I. The name for the next war was likely a foregone conclusion since the press had already been calling the conflict "the second world war" for some time. So far, the new conflict is being called "Attack on America" or "War on Terrorism." It can't be called the "Afghan War" for fear of mistaking it for all the other Afghan wars.

Although "World War III" is scary, it might be appropriate. The issues that percolated through the first two wars, national identity and the limits of civilized behavior, are still with us. In the Sept. 11 attacks, about 1,000 of those killed in New York were nationals from dozens of different countries. The terrorists have evidently decided to take on the whole world.

Maybe this one can keep the title The War To End All Wars.

--Burl Burlingame

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