It is widely known that President Bush is an avid amateur linguist. So it came as no surprise when the president made note of terms the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam had contributed to our language in a speech to veterans. "Boat people," "re-education camps," and "killing fields" were the words he singled out.

What is curious is his omission of the rich lode of words originated or popularized just prior to that period, during the Vietnam War itself.

No doubt the oversight can be attributed to time constraints. Had more time been available, President Bush could have mentioned such gems as "napalm," "fragging," "Agent Orange," "domino theory," "pacification," and "free fire zone." He could have also referenced war's ability to resuscitate unique words in danger of obsolescence -- "quagmire" being probably the most famous example.

Imperfect though the speech may have been, we applaud the president's use of his position to highlight one of the many ways in which way war enriches our language. Learning shouldn't stop once a citizen leaves school. Leaders can and must use the pulpit provided by elected office to make citizens more aware of their world.

Language is especially important in the current conflict - the Global War on Terror - as the enemy itself is (evidently) a noun. If we are ever to vanquish grammatical elements, our effort must begin at home, with our choice of words.

External Links:

Text of the president's speech to Veterans of Foreign Wars
BBC: The redemption of the Vietnam War?