supporter-in-effect n.— «In the lengthening hall of mirrors created by the war in Iraq, friends become enemies. Legislators who voted against the war are called supporters-in-effect when they try to support the troops without supporting...
blue canoe n.— «Tired of squatting over slit trenches, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Kevin Powell scavenged for wood and built a first-class “blue canoe,” complete with a padded toilet seat and magazine rack.» —“Troops in Iraq find comfort...
tail cost n.— «That was not counting so-called tail costs, such as caring for veterans and replacing lost equipment, which the Iraq Study Group said “will run into the hundreds of billions of dollars.”» —“The Iraq war has...
pump out v. phr.— «A few days later, he leaves for Camp Geiger in North Carolina for infantry school, which lasts about a month. Now, he’s there training to be a rifleman, his specialty. According to Hess, George could “pump...
Chicago way n.— «When asked how he could have pulled off such an escape, Mr. Alsammarae, who moved to Chicago in 1976 but returned to Iraq just after the invasion, laughed uproariously for 20 seconds. Then, recycling a famous line from an...
self-licking ice-cream cone n.— «However disappointing Colin Powell’s knee-jerk saluting of the commander-in-chief, at least Powell had been around and knew something of the world. (Rumsfeld, of course, is good riddance.) But what you now...