The Department of “Forever" War

What's in a name?

President Trump made it known early last week that he plans to change the Pentagon’s name from the Department of Defense to the Department of War.

This would not be the first time the Pentagon has held the more aggressive moniker. After World War II, the Truman administration reorganized the Department of War and renamed it the Department of Defense. This was meant to help centralize power over the different branches of the military.

Trump and his Fox News host-turned-Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth claim the change aims to reclaim and restore a “warrior ethos.” The true intention behind the change, however, is more dubious.

“The comments from the Administration and its supporters imply that the change from 'Department of War' to 'Department of Defense' in 1949 signaled a loss of resolve to use violence to achieve national objectives,” said senior fellow Matthew Hoh. “Of course, the body counts from American wars, all lost since that name change, tell otherwise.”

“Renaming a bully doesn’t change the bully’s nature,” said associate director Christian Sorensen. “Beholden to corporate interests, DOD will continue to bully independent nations and peoples until the American public unites and changes the profit-over-people economic system, whose will DOD implements.”

While Trump claims the name change is imminent, it will likely need Congressional approval. Since we have some time, our fellows have some new name suggestions.

Source: National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution

“They should be even more honest and call it: The Department of Threat Inflation and Forever War.

Or, like the Star Trek "Mirror, Mirror" episode, we should admit America has entered a parallel universe where our military is nakedly imperialistic and bent on total domination,” said senior fellow Bill Astore. “Here's another possible name: The Department of Imperial War and Genocidal Domination. Motto: Respect Our Authority!”

“It clearly became the 'Department of Imperial War and Genocidal Domination' some time ago,” said senior fellow Coleen Rowley. “But before Trump came along, our insidious war propagandists must have still been a little worried about the old ‘Nuremberg Principle’ making wars of aggression the supreme crime. Trump's just the little boy blurting out the truth of the Empire's naked aggression.”

Senior fellow Karen Kwiatkowski pulled no punches in summarizing the harm that the Department of Defense inflicts around the world when she suggested it be renamed the “Department of Foreign Intervention, Genocide, Hubris, Threats, Nefarious ‘War Heroes’ and Over-Rated Equipment Sales.”

A grim status quo, indeed.

Finally, put most succinctly by senior fellow Ray McGovern: “I suggest: DOMA. The Department of Macho Assholes.”

Whatever the name is, the administration can’t erase the truth: the U.S. policy of infinite, forever war is killing us all. It does so in a few main ways: direct and indirect deaths, including but not limited to civilians, U.S. troops, and U.S. contractors; underfunding public programs here at home, such as infrastructure, transportation, healthcare, and education, in order to overfund the massive military budget; and polluting the soil, air, and water upon which we rely.

What do you think about the name change? Sound off in the comments below.