Allegra Stratton on the Guardian News Blog reports that the Bush Administration has decided to use more "culturally sensitive" phrases to describe Islamic terrorism.
The reason given for not using the word jihad is that there are a different types of jihad, which seems fair enough. But what about not using Islamic terrorist, Islamofascist or Islamist?
Do these "call a spade a spade" terms cause unnecessary confusion and tension? Should this be primarily a tactical issue or an academic one? It seems to be an endless debate.
Our resident experts Dr Martin Parsons and Douglas Murray recently criticised Brian Paddick and others for claiming that Islam and terrorism are mutually incompatible. Also worth reading is an article on the City Circle blog recently in which Mohammed Amin, Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum, rebuffs the arguments of those who complain about the term "Muslim terrorists".