Rich – I generally agree, though I think the name-game matters less now because of where we are in this war. If, immediately after 9/11, the White House had settled on Islamic Fascism — regardless of the technical merits of the term — I think it would have stuck. He had something like 90% approval back then. American anger towards our enemies was at maximum strength and there was a real atmosphere of moral clarity. This would have been a very advantageous move because once people lock-in to the idea that Islamists are Fascists, it is difficult for them to unlock themselves from the logical implications of the label. For all the talk of Bush’s “crusading” and war-mongering, the truth is he began his war presidency insisting “Islam means peace.” It doesn’t bother me so much that he said that, but it would have been nice if he’d fleshed out “evil doers” with a bit more specificity. I think this is a good example of why rhetoric is important even when it seems it isn’t.