# Cruise Missile...offensive name for Muslims? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 7, 2001, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005 "2001-10-07T23:27:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![saudade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@saudade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saudade)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2001, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/1 "2001-10-07T23:27:55Z")
The word “cruise” by way of the Dutch “kruis” comes from the root _crux_: Latin for cross (in the sense of traverse). In other languages that I know, the words for cross all look or sound sort of like “Cruise”, cruz, kreuz, croce and so on. I don’t think Arabic, Farsi, or Pashto would use Latin roots, but what are their words for “cross” or “crusader”? I mean wouldn’t it be stupid if we are lobbing what sounds to their ears as “Cross Missiles” at Islamic fundamentalists. I know it sounds far fetched. But if “crusader” is a problematic term, would “cruise” be? ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2001, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/2 "2001-10-07T23:45:04Z")
No, what would be stupid would be to slam a passenger jet into two of their skyscrapers while shrieking “God is great”. It would be stupid to stab an innocent flight attendant in the throat with a box cutter. It would be stupid to think that murdering 6,000 civilians in cold blood will get us tickets to a paradise where nubile young virgins wait on us hand and foot. All these things are stupid. As for the tender sensitivities of the radical Muslims responsible for this, I wouldn’t be too perturbed if allied forces were painting thick coats of pork fat on their cruise missiles before firing. ---
**Author:** ![saudade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@saudade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saudade)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2001, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/3 "2001-10-07T23:57:43Z")
I don’t give a damn for the tender sensitivities of Islamic fundamentalists either. I was just wondering if “cruise” sounded like “cross” in Arabic…like “crusader”. After all the United States can’t get at many of those terrorists without support from the moderate Islamic world…as appealing as bombing Afghanestan with lard encrusted missiles may be. ---
**Author:** ![micco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f8ce5/32.png) [@micco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/micco)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/4 "2001-10-08T00:25:21Z")
During the Gulf War, Bush Sr. modified the pronounciation of “Saddam” to sound like “Satan”. Americans weren’t terribly fooled. I think your premise basically assumes Arabic speakers are stupid, and I wouldn’t bet on that. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/5 "2001-10-08T01:13:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by micco \* > \*\*During the Gulf War, Bush Sr. modified the pronounciation of “Saddam” to sound like “Satan”. Americans weren’t terribly fooled. I think your premise basically assumes Arabic speakers are stupid, and I wouldn’t bet on that. \*\* I thought he pronounced “Saddam” like “Sodom”. ---
**Author:** ![johnson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@johnson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnson)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/6 "2001-10-08T01:24:18Z")
I seem to recall that he pronounced it along the lines of s’DAMN. Whatever the pronounciation, I do recall some discussion of the fact that it was intentional, and meant to offend Sodom. I mean Saddam. ---
**Author:** ![micco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f8ce5/32.png) [@micco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/micco)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/7 "2001-10-08T01:28:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Qadgop the Mercotan \* > \*\*I thought he pronounced “Saddam” like “Sodom”. \*\* IIRC, the usual pronunciation I was familiar with before the Gulf War was “Saddam” with both “a” sounds like “father” and the emphasis on the second syllable (like “Sodom”, but with the stress on the second rather than first syllable). After the invasion of Kuwait, Bush et al. began pronouncing it “Sadam” with both “a” sounds like “Adam” and the emphasis on the first syllable, so it really was close to “Adam” with an “S” on the front. The change was abrupt enough that I noticed, and I reasoned that it was supposed to evoke “Satan”. I have no more evidence than that… ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/8 "2001-10-08T01:28:29Z")
Damn, DR: The point is to not piss off the Muslims (the non-radical ones) who are our allies. Sheesh. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/9 "2001-10-08T02:24:41Z")
Did it occur to you that a (so-called) muslim terrorist would not choose a **cross** as a symbol? The arabic equivalent of crusader would not use cross as a root. Sorry for being so dense if you were trying to be intentionally ironic. The only similarity is that the WTC/Pentagon attackers were no more following the will of Allah than European crusasers were following the teachings of Christ. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/10 "2001-10-08T03:22:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Doghouse Reilly \* > \*\*No, what would be stupid would be to slam a passenger jet into two of their skyscrapers while shrieking “God is great”. It would be stupid to stab an innocent flight attendant in the throat with a box cutter. It would be stupid to think that murdering 6,000 civilians in cold blood will get us tickets to a paradise where nubile young virgins wait on us hand and foot. All these things are stupid. As for the tender sensitivities of the radical Muslims responsible for this, I wouldn’t be too perturbed if allied forces were painting thick coats of pork fat on their cruise missiles before firing. \*\* This post is not appropriate to GQ. Please don’t do that again. bibliophage moderator GQ ---
**Author:** ![johnson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@johnson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnson)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/11 "2001-10-08T03:29:12Z")
> [@](#): > > But if “crusader” is a problematic term, would “cruise” be? I’m not a sociologist, but I don’t think Muslims are offended by “crusader” because of the etymology of the word… ---
**Author:** ![Trucido](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@Trucido](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trucido)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/12 "2001-10-08T03:35:41Z")
The Frankish crusaders were called Franj by the Muslims, and Franj became a blanket term for all crusaders. ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/13 "2001-10-08T10:10:19Z")
- - - We could switch to calling them “f\*\*\* y\*\* missiles”. - MC, being no help whatsoever ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/14 "2001-10-08T16:55:53Z")
The problem with the term “crusade” is not it’s etomology. References to a cross per se are not offensive, but the fact that the Christians in 1099 used that term for their charge into Islamic territory to recapture Jerusalem. Therefore the word “crusade” has taken on a loaded meaning, harking back to the ostensible religious wars of that time. When Dubya used the word “crusade” recently, his staff tried to do damage control by restating what he meant. He unintentionally used a word that commonly means any heartfelt cause, but in this situation reminded the Muslims of this Christian attack in the name of God. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/15 "2001-10-08T16:58:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jseigle \* > **etomology** ☹ Man, where did I learn to spell? ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cruise-missile-offensive-name-for-muslims/86005/16 "2001-10-08T18:08:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jseigle \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by jseigle \* > > **etomology** > > ☹ Man, where did I learn to spell? \*\* Cruisify him ! 😉