Forum Overview :: Reviews :: Future caltrops historians will thank you for your open mindedness

[quote name="E. L. Koba"][quote name="Lizard_King"]...entire chains of command circa 2006 onward were being explicitly ordered to watch for it and correct it (probably for public relations reasons exclusively, but it still gave me pause). While as you point out there is nothing good in trying to erase it from history, discouraging the continued usage of the word and encouraging Marines not think of the Iraqis in dehumanizing terms had straightforward benefits in a counterinsurgency strategy where restraint was (suddenly) one of the more important characteristics. You know, even when living in the rubble of an Iraqi city. So, I enforced it and encouraged others to do the same, etc, etc. [/quote] I didn't know this, and am glad to hear it. FWIW, when I went back as a civilian in late '07 I can't really recall at all ever hearing any soldier say Haji. But, the only Iraqis the soldiers I was around then ever saw were the ones cleaning the latrines or emptying the trash. For anyone wondering about the origins of "Haji", and why it caught on, here is my latest theory in short: Most soldiers (and Marines) have a lot better sense of history, and their place in it, than your average American. And this was our generation's war. And part of going to war is having a slang (/derogatory/dehumanizing) term for the enemy and/or the locals (imagine WWII without "Jerry" or "Kraut" or "Jap" or "Nip", or Vietnam without "Charlie". Impossible). So naturally when my unit landed in Kuwait and was prepping to roll into Iraq, as soon as one person heard that the term for Iraqis was "Haji", it LITERALLY spread through the entire company within an hour. I was so excited I think I even emailed my brother (tricknology) about it once we discovered it. Now we were ready for war![/quote]