They're all Qaeda

What will it take to end the obnoxious behavior of DoD briefers who refer to every Iraqi insurgent group as Al Qaeda? And what will stop the press from compounding the problem? Here's the lead from an article on CNN's web site:

A major movement of Iraqi forces gathered on Sunday in Mosul as a prelude to a planned offensive against Islamic fighters loyal to al Qaeda, an Iraqi government spokesman said.

No, you dunderheads, they offensive is targeting Al Qaeda in Iraq, which is not the same as Al Qaeda. How many years does it take to learn the difference? Long ago, the press should have insisted on using some version of the former's full name, Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn, instead of confusing it with the latter, the group responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Call them Tanzim, if you need a shorter version. Just don't use Al Qaeda.

There's no reason to play along with the misleading agitprop of both the group founded by Zarqawi, who wanted to steal some marketing from the real Al Qaeda, and American officials, who want to market the Iraq war as somehow related to 9/11. For shame.

Comments

[MSS]

Well put.

Remember way back in the 1980s, when a US government tried to get the media to call an insurgent group by its actual name, but the media insisted on using the propaganda term preferred by the government the insurgents were fighting?

Ah, the liberal media. Oh, how I miss them!