More 9.11-Related Words

[Gareth Branwyn]

For those who may be keeping a list of terms related to the Sept. 11 attacks:

The Pit - Can't remember if this has been mentioned here already. This
is the term that rescue workers use for WTC ground zero. "The pile"
seems to be used interchangeably by the news media, but I assume the
pile is the mound of rubble and the pit is the honeycombed pathways
being cut within it to search for survivors underneath the wreckage.

Burger King Special - Used by a DC Air National Guard captain on DC
local news to describe the type of fighter jet being used to protect
Capitol airspace. Used to describe a plane that has a full compliment of
weapons. From the Burger King "Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce"
campaign promoting the "Have it your way" burger. I'd imagine this term
is far from new.

OBL Factor - ["Osama bin Laden Factor"] Just heard this one on MSNBC,
given as a reason why Muslims may be hesitant to give money to Islamic
charities in the future (fearing that some of the money may be secretly
going to terrorist orgs). A Web search finds that this term has been
around for years and is used generally to refer to the impact that bin
Laden is having on policies in and towards the Muslim/Arab world.