List of wars on concepts

Wars on concepts are high-resource efforts to eradicate a perceived problem that use a war metaphor to rally support. These wars differ from more conventional wars in that they do not have a defined country or person as the opponent, but rather a concept. Thus, it is impossible for the opponent to surrender, so it is possible to continue investment forever.

The War on Cancer

In 1971, U.S. President Richard Nixon offered the phrase "War on Cancer" in 1971 to highlight the passage of the National Cancer Act, which attempted to unify efforts to treat and eventually eliminate cancer.

The War on Christmas

Although a close variant of the term "War on Christmas" is believed to have first been coined by British American journalist Peter Brimelow in 1999, [ [http://www.vdare.com/pb/cuomo.htm VDARE - How the HUD stole Christmas] — VDARE.com. Retrieved August 11, 2008.] [ [http://www.vdare.com/archive/99_articles.htm VDARE - Archived articles for 1999] — VDARE.com Retrieved August 11, 2008.] the concept of a "war on Christmas" only entered the public consciousness in the United States and Canada during the early-to-mid-2000s, mainly due to an exposure of the issue by American commentator Bill O`Reilly.

It was claimed by Brimelow, O'Reilly, and a variety of prominent media figures and regular citizens alike, that mention and celebration of the Christmas holiday was being increasingly censored, avoided, or discouraged by advertisers, retailers, government (prominently schools), and other public and secular organizations.

Rather than referencing "Christmas" directly, it was claimed that the secular entities and influences would reference more generic terminology such as "holiday(s)", or "winter". Several terms fitting this description have since become well-known neologisms throughout North America, including "holiday tree" (replacing "Christmas tree"), "winter break" (replacing "Christmas break"), and "holiday season" (replacing "Christmas season").

The War on Drugs

The "War on Drugs" is a term used by many politicians, notably U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, to describe funding for anti-drug efforts, both in terms of law enforcement and social programs. The War on Drugs helped justify actual wars such as Operation Just Cause, the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989. In the U.S. federal government, the leader of this effort is often referred to as the Drug Czar.

The War on Poverty

United States President Lyndon B. Johnson invoked the phrase "The War on Poverty" during his State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. With a national poverty rate just under 20 percent, the War on Poverty proposed massive governmental social programs to reduce that number to a tolerable amount. The resultant legislation was the Economic Opportunity Act, which established the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) to administrate the local application of federal funds targeted against poverty. [ [http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/women/html/wh_015300_greatsociety.htm] ] The official War on Poverty continued until the OEO was dismantled by the Nixon administration, though many of its programs transferred to other agencies.

The War on Terrorism

Though used to describe actions against anarchists in the 1800s and Zionists in the 1940s, the phrase "War on Terrorism" (or "War on Terror") was invoked by President George W. Bush in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States. It describes a large array of military and law enforcement programs involving at least two actual wars (the current war in Afghanistan and the Iraq War) and the USA PATRIOT Act's increase of police and federal powers against people suspected of terrorist involvement.

The War on Terrorism is sometimes linked to a suggested War against Islam.

Other uses of the phrasing

*War on Want is an anti-poverty charity based in Great Britain.
*The War on Terra, a pun off the name War on Terror, is a term popularized by "The Daily Show" to describe environmentally destructive policies of the United States.
*The concept is parodied in the Australian comedy series "The Chaser's War on Everything."
*"" is a documentary film critical of Fox News Channel.
*"The Republican War on Science" is a book which argues that the Republican Party is playing politics with science.
*"The War on Britain's Jews?" is a documentary film about antisemitism.
*"The War on Democracy" is a documentary film critical of U.S. policies in Latin America.
*War against Islam is a presumed bigotry against Islam in the Western world.
*War on War is a 2002 single by the American band Wilco from their album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.

References