# The War on Terror is Over (in the UK at least) **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 28, 2007, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320 "2007-10-28T09:38:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/1 "2007-10-28T09:38:06Z")
> **[sterlingtimes.co.uk](http://www.sterlingtimes.co.uk/enoch_test.htm)** > > This domain may be for sale! “The Prime Minister has also instructed his team – including new Home Secretary Jacqui Smith – that the phrase “war on terror” is to be dropped.” Sanity is slowly returning. Plans have also been leaked to withdraw all UK troops from Iraq in the middle of next year. Then we can start rebuilding our prestige and respect in the rest of the world- should only take about a generation! ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/2 "2007-10-28T09:45:46Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] > **[Radio Enoch - Sterling Times](https://www.sterlingtimes.co.uk/enoch_test.htm)** > > This is a test transmission from Radio Enoch from SterlingTimes. “The Prime Minister has also instructed his team – including new Home Secretary Jacqui Smith – that the phrase “war on terror” is to be dropped.” Sanity is slowly returning. Plans have also been leaked to withdraw all UK troops from Iraq in the middle of next year. Then we can start rebuilding our prestige and respect in the rest of the world- should only take about a generation! [/QUOTE] Sorry, that URL is wrong- it came from a debate I am having with a nasty little racist on another board. Will correct the cite as soon as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/3 "2007-10-28T09:55:45Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] Plans have also been leaked to withdraw all UK troops from Iraq in the middle of next year. [/QUOTE] Just in time for the election, no doubt. Sounds like normal service is indeed being resumed :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/4 "2007-10-28T10:07:34Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] Sorry, that URL is wrong- it came from a debate I am having with a nasty little racist on another board. Will correct the cite as soon as possible. [/QUOTE] Correct URL: > **[Brown: Don't say terrorists are Muslims](https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/12172/Brown-Don-t-say-terrorists-are-Muslims)** > > Gordon Brown has banned ministers from using the word “Muslim” in ­connection with the ­terrorism crisis. ---
**Author:** ![Aquila\_Be](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a698b9/32.png) [@Aquila\_Be](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquila_Be)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/5 "2007-10-28T12:24:08Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] Sorry, that URL is wrong- it came from a debate I am having with a nasty little racist on another board. Will correct the cite as soon as possible. [/QUOTE] Progress at last. I’m really, really chuffed about this on your behalf. Gordon Brown has the right medicine. Never again will you, or anyone else in the UK, need to worry about a devout Muslim wanting to plant an IED under their clodhopper. ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/6 "2007-10-28T13:28:41Z")
This is ridiculous - how much further backwards does the government have to bend to not offend Muslims over suspected links to terrorism. Why does the government have to say ANYTHING on this topic and not just get on with the job of policing the country and keeping it safe from the bomb-wearing nutjobs out there? Yes, it’s sad that many people have come to perceive modern terrorism as some perpetrated only by Muslims but in the UK, with about 80 years of experience of terrorism from the Irish, this is certainly not the only view held. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/7 "2007-10-28T13:52:30Z")
Don’t take it too seriously, **Illuminatiprimus** - remember it’s only the Express, not a newspaper. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/8 "2007-10-28T14:03:05Z")
What you are forgetting is that there are still vestiges of democracy in the UK. The great majority of the population want out of Iraq. They are getting that wish as quickly as Gordon can reasonably untangle himself from the axis of evil (Blair-Bush) and we will be out of there before your next elections and before our next elections. And in future it will be more difficult to go to war without the agreement of the legislature (including the new Upper House which is not under government control). I see a more stable future now for us. No One-Man wars. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/9 "2007-10-28T14:04:13Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] Don’t take it too seriously, **Illuminatiprimus** - remember it’s only the Express, not a newspaper. [/QUOTE] It does have the ring of truth about it- let’s look for many future use of that term or of identifying terrorists as Muslims. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/10 "2007-10-28T14:30:31Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] It does have the ring of truth about it- let’s look for many future use of that term or of identifying terrorists as Muslims. [/QUOTE] But has there really been a tendency in the past for Labour talking about ‘Islamic terrorism’? If we now hear them talking about ‘terrorism’ and ‘extremists’, won’t they pretty much be doing what they have been doing previously? As far as I can see, Brown was just reiterating this to colleagues, and the Express turned it into a bit of Labour-bashing. ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/11 "2007-10-28T14:43:43Z")
So, did you all win? We’re still loosing over here. Tris ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/12 "2007-10-28T14:59:00Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] But has there really been a tendency in the past for Labour talking about ‘Islamic terrorism’? If we now hear them talking about ‘terrorism’ and ‘extremists’, won’t they pretty much be doing what they have been doing previously? As far as I can see, Brown was just reiterating this to colleagues, and the Express turned it into a bit of Labour-bashing. [/QUOTE] It will help relations with our largely peaceable Islamic community if the words terorist and Islamic are not spouted together by government ministers. ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/13 "2007-10-28T15:09:16Z")
Why is your Islamic community unable to deal with the mention of Islamic terrorism? Was there a similar drive to avoid discussing Irish terrorism during the IRA’s bloodier periods, or is this a new phenomena of nomenclature? ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/14 "2007-10-28T15:25:46Z")
[QUOTE=FinnAgain] Was there a similar drive to avoid discussing Irish terrorism during the IRA’s bloodier periods… [/QUOTE] Partly it’s lessons which have been learnt from the treatment of Irish people at that time, yes. And it’s also a pragmatic view of the situation, where _some_ muslims _are_ alienated. To risk exacerbating that over a linguistic quibble seems silly and potentially dangerous. ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/15 "2007-10-28T15:52:20Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] What you are forgetting is that there are still vestiges of democracy in the UK. The great majority of the population want out of Iraq. They are getting that wish as quickly as Gordon can reasonably untangle himself from the axis of evil (Blair-Bush) and we will be out of there before your next elections and before our next elections. And in future it will be more difficult to go to war without the agreement of the legislature (including the new Upper House which is not under government control). I see a more stable future now for us. No One-Man wars. [/QUOTE] Hey look, a flying pig. Just dropping the phrase means bat shit, the war goes on ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/16 "2007-10-28T17:08:55Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] It will help relations with our largely peaceable Islamic community if the words terorist and Islamic are not spouted together by government ministers. [/QUOTE] Bring the troops home and all will be forgiven…. So if a British comedy team does a spoof on the life of Mohammed the largely peaceable Islamic community will laugh with you? If that’s not the full Monty of wishful thinking I don’t know what is. The reality of Iraq is Muslim on Muslim violence. The “religion of peace” has been warring with itself for centuries and will continue to do so unless something changes. The change will not come from a unified religious government because the country consists of separate religions and cultures. This was the direct result of British and French colonialism after WWI. The only thing that will change this is some form of democracy where everybody has a voice. Britain’s support of the war is a chance to fix a problem whose origins are a page in British history. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/17 "2007-10-28T17:38:05Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Bring the troops home and all will be forgiven… [/quote] Who said that? Oh, just you, creating a strawman. > [@](#): > > The reality of Iraq is Muslim on Muslim violence. The reality is of violence between ethnic groups and between cultures. That they happen to be Muslim doesn’t justify your condescending approach. > [@](#): > > Britain’s support of the war is a chance to fix a problem whose origins are a page in British history. Isn’t that just colonialism? ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/18 "2007-10-28T17:47:01Z")
You live in cloud cuckoo land **Pjen** if you think that we have a more stable future. The simple fact of the matter is that Islamic fundamentalists will not rest until the whole world embraces their religion I just hope I’m not around to enjoy the wonderful benefits to be bestowed on us should they ever succeed BTW. Your OP is wrongly worded, the war on terror is not over, not by a long shot. God only knows how you got that idea ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/19 "2007-10-28T20:33:04Z")
[QUOTE=FinnAgain] Why is your Islamic community unable to deal with the mention of Islamic terrorism? Was there a similar drive to avoid discussing Irish terrorism during the IRA’s bloodier periods, or is this a new phenomena of nomenclature? [/QUOTE] No-one referred to Catholic Terrorism then. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2007, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320/20 "2007-10-28T20:34:19Z")
[QUOTE=chowder] Hey look, a flying pig. Just dropping the phrase means bat shit, the war goes on [/QUOTE] Not with British troops after next June! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-war-on-terror-is-over-in-the-uk-at-least/424320.md?page=2)