--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In our charade with ourselves we pretend…" description: "\"In our charade with ourselves we pretend that our war is not really war. We have changed the name of the War Department to the Defense Department and c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/jack-kornfield-936_changed_in-our-charade-with-ourselves-we-pretend_2833618.png" --- # In our charade with ourselves we pretend that our war is… ![“In our charade with ourselves we pretend that our war is not really war. We have changed the name of the War Department to the Defense Department and call a whole class of nuclear missiles Peace Keepers!” quote by Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/jack-kornfield-936_changed_in-our-charade-with-ourselves-we-pretend_2833618.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/jack-kornfield-936_changed_in-our-charade-with-ourselves-we-pretend_2833618.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/jack-kornfield-936_changed_in-our-charade-with-ourselves-we-pretend_2833618.png) > “In our charade with ourselves we pretend that our war is not really war. We have changed the name of the War Department to the Defense Department and call a whole class of nuclear missiles Peace Keepers!” [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We rename war as defense and missiles as peacekeepers, masking true conflict. **In simple terms:** War is rebranded, hiding its reality. Key Takeaway Recognize true nature of conflicts. Themes war language peacekeeping Mood critical reflective Type philosophical political When to use this quote - media analysis - policy debate - education Key Concepts semantic framing political rhetoric militarism Questions to Reflect On - How does language shape perception of conflict? - What are the implications of calling war “defense”? A Different Perspective Renaming can obscure accountability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Changed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/changed/) [Charades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charades/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Defense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defense/) [Keepers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keepers/) [Missiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missiles/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Nuclear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear/) [Pretend War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretend-war-1308829/) [Really War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-war-855971/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War Changed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-changed-491355/) [War Department](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-department-3675566/) [War Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-really-847487/) ## Related quotes > [Soldiers don't complain...I am not going to do it; I will pretend this is part of a war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hodgson-burnett/soldiers-don-t-complain-i-am-not-going-to-do-it-i-will-pretend-this/) [Frances Hodgson Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hodgson-burnett/) > [The war on drugs is really no war at all - it's a business!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-brown/the-war-on-drugs-is-really-no-war-at-all-it-s-a-business/) [Jerry Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-brown/) > [“You can understand what is really a war, just living it, but once you live it, you do not understand anymore what is peace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dario-de-judicibus/you-can-understand-what-is-really-a-war-just-living-it-but-once-you/) [Dario de Judicibus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dario-de-judicibus/) > [If John McCain were really a war hero he would've won Vietnam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/if-john-mccain-were-really-a-war-hero-he-would-ve-won-vietnam/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [The Tea Party was really a two-front war - one against Obama, the other against any Republican politician who reeked of insiderdom or insufficient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-kornacki/the-tea-party-was-really-a-two-front-war-one-against-obama-the-other/) [Steve Kornacki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-kornacki/) > [The war on drugs was an ideology the government came up with, and there never really was a war on drugs. 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