(thought I would start throwing out some interesting bits of trivia that I come across in various information gatherings)
Did you know the Department of Defense was once known as the Department of War?
from wikipedia:
"The United States Department of War was the department of the United States government's executive branch responsible for the operation and maintenance of land (and later air) forces from 1789 until 18 September 1947, when it became part of the National Military Establishment, renamed on 10 August 1949 as the Department of Defense. The War Department was headed by the United States Secretary of War, who was also a member of the President's Cabinet. The War Department was also referred to as the War Office."
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4 comments:
I'm a longtime Civil War semi-buff, so yeah I knew that. One wonders why we ever felt it necessary to change the title.
Because it's easier to justify an almost continuous state of war to the public when we re-label it "defense."
It sounds so much more necessary and justified that way, I guess.
Yep, I knew that, too. I believe the mindset at the time was that we were no longer at war, but were entering the cold war period. Communism was an actual threat then, and the Soviets were on a bit of a roll. Nationally, we were coming into an ideologically defensive posture. It made much more sense back then.
That said, it's probably time to change it again.
Wow Jeff, one normally must go to MoveOn.org for that kind of content.
:)
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