Remember George Orwell’s 1949 dystopian novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four?
As fans will know, it centered around the Stalinist-style authoritarian regime of Oceania which was run by four big ministries: i.e. The Ministry of Truth, the Ministry of Peace, the Ministry of Love, and the Ministry of Plenty.
Ironically, according to Orwell, “The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war, the Ministry of Truth with lies, the Ministry of Love with torture and the Ministry of Plenty with starvation. These contradictions are not accidental, nor do they result from ordinary hypocrisy: they are deliberate exercises in doublethink.”
We thought of this when we heard the news of the Department of Defense being renamed to “the Department of War.”
As Defense Secretary Hegseth put it, “We won World War I and World War II, not with the Department of Defense, but with the Department of War.”
Or as Trump said, “‘Defense’ is too defensive. And we want to be defensive, but we want to be offensive too if we have to be.”
And there’s the minor detail that the Department of Defense was called the Department of War for 150 years before it got its name changed by Truman in 1949 in the aftermath of World War II. This potential rebrand is not so much a reinvention, but a restoration of its original remit.
No doubt this move will have its critics. Saber-rattling doublethink for example.
Except that it isn’t doublethink.
It’s an acknowledgment of the inherent paradox of warfare.
As the Romans loved to say, “Si vis pacem, para bellum.” If you want peace, prepare for war.
Or to steal from Teddy Roosevelt, speaking softly isn’t much use without carrying a big stick.
There’s a reason why we call the men and women in our combined military “Warfighters,” and not “Peace enablers.”
Some will love this, some will hate it – all depending on worldview. Either way, it sends the intended message: “We’re serious. Do not mess with us.”
What’s fascinating is how changing a single word could potentially realign the entire “telos” of the largest military force in the history of the world.
That is the power of framing, or in this case, re-framing.
Critics are already calling this name change “expensive” and “cosmetic.”
Mark Twain understood the distinction. He said the difference between the almost right word and the right word is “ the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”
Framing changes everything.
It is the first step, the very foundation of substantial Culture Change. Whatever side you’re on politically, we think this development is very much worth your further attention.
One word. One completely different reality.
