As the self-proclaimed “sole world superpower,” the United States has taken a sharp turn toward militarizing its response to a wide range of problems, both social and political. It has moved toward a nearly constant war footing, using the metaphors of war – if not actual attacks – in multiple contexts, domestic and international. Despite the defeat in Vietnam and the quagmires in Afghanistan and Iraq, American power remains the power to make war, in both words and deeds, and its military is one of the few growth industries in a nation that was once an industrial superpower. But to maintain this war footing, to constantly requisition public funds into the military budgets and the industries that feed off the military, American policy makers need an enemy. For half a century, the Soviet Union served that purpose well, but in the wake of its collapse the Americans needed to find another enemy. The specter of “Islamic terrorism” has served this purpose well for international affairs, and has also provided service to a range of security based domestic policies that many fear are marching the American society toward a police state. This article will examine the role of Islamic imagery in formulating and conducting American policy, from the Patriot Act and its domestic predecessors to the international occupation of resource rich regions of the Middle East and Central Asia, and will also consider the role of the global media and the contribution of academics to maintaining that imagery.
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