inauguration – noun

[Origin: Latin inaugurare "to consecrate by augury."]

A formal ceremony in which an official is installed into his post after the careful observation of the flight and caws of pundits.

incentivize – verb

(Also: "incent")

To entice someone to do something he would normally abhor, such as acting for the good of the public or of the company for which he works.

independent – adjective

Not requiring control or influence, due to predictability of behavior.

inspection - noun

A search for incriminating evidence, the absence of which confirms the worst.

interim - adjective

Without advice or consent.

USAGE: The White House is leaning on interim appointments.

insurance - noun

A popular game in the rackets, despite its unreliable payoffs

intent – noun

A thought formed about a past action that causes it. Retroactive motivation.

COMMENT: Who says backwards causation doesn't happen?

integrity – noun

A strict adherence to one's principals.



"Al Gonzales is a man of integrity..."

issue - noun

A discussion topic at a Beltway coctail party that makes the news cycle.

imminent – adjective

Theoretically possible at some point in the future.

USAGE: Iraq is an imminent threat to the United States.

investigate – verb

1. To sabotage one's own career.

2. To impugn another's character.

3. To terrorize.

interventionism – noun

A doctrine that favors interfering in the affairs of other countries to teach them self-government.

illegal combatant – noun (reprise)

A hybrid of civilian and soldier, with the rights of neither.

COMMENT: I suppose that makes the private security contractor a hybrid of civilian and soldier, with the rights of both (and the responsibilities of neither).

illegal combatant – noun (reprise)

A militant deemed too swarthy to merit Geneva protections.

COMMENT: This is our second attempt to define "illegal combatant." Which one do you favor? Or do you have a third?

IED – noun

Abbr. "improvised explosive device." A kind of asymmetric wartime propaganda using televised roadside explosions to sap the will of the opposition.

COMMENT: This definition closely follows the Pentagon's multi-billion-dollar project to defeat IEDs, the Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO). See comments below.

intelligence – noun

Secret information about an enemy or potential enemy that is leaked when supportive of the President's predetermined policies, and ignored or suppressed when not.

illegal combatant – noun

A militant deemed undeserving of Geneva protections, because he isn't an easy target.

illegal – adjective

(Archaic) Incapable of being denied by press spokesmen or legal counsel.

intelligent design – noun

A religious theory that claims living things are so irreducibly complex that they must have been created by a being so vastly intelligent (i.e. God) that it understands biology.