Is That an AK-47 Or Are You Glad to See Me?

Quote:  "By hugging the enemy, wrapping our arms around them, we hope to control them."  Anonymous U.S. commander quoted in the Washington Post.

Figure of Speech:  epergesis (eh per GEE sis), the clarifier.  (Also spelled epexegesis.)

The military is adding "mentors" in Iraq to keep the Shiite militias and death squads, a.k.a. "the Iraq army," from killing Sunnis.  The commander uses an epergesis (Greek for "explanation"), which clarifies a statement—just in case you thought "hugging the enemy" was just a metaphor.

We could stand a little more clarification, though.  Can you tell us who the enemy is again?

Snappy Answer:  "No kissing, though.  Then they control you."

Comments

[Shan Hernandez]

Your snappy answer still has me giggling...

[Fig]

Why, thank you, Shan. It’s a figure, too: an antithesis.
Fig.