Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/World War IV

This page is an archive of the discussion about the proposed deletion of the article below. This page is no longer live. Further comments should be made on the article's talk page rather than here so that this page is preserved as an historic record.
The result of the debate was keep. —Korath (Talk) 02:04, Mar 26, 2005 (UTC)

World War IV

Term coined by a journalist, claiming World War III to be the Cold War (which, to the best of my knowledge, it has never been called). Google search throws up games, and references to numerous conflicts (some about the "war on terror", some about Iraq, some about a possible conflict in the Middle East, a couple about the Ukraine). Usage in general seems not to be correct, since World War III hasn't actually happened yet. Did I mention the POV aspect? Chris 16:41, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)

• Keep. It's silly, but it is a persistent enough of a meme in the media that it merits its own Wiki article. It may have been coined by former CIA Director James Woolsey. He has certainly used the term. --AStanhope 17:01, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep. Google search for "World War IV" + terrorism gives 29,300 hits. Article should mention that this is not a widely accepted term. Be prepared for articles on World War V and World War VI DaveTheRed 17:34, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
  • I just deleted World War V last night. RickK 22:30, Mar 20, 2005 (UTC)

• Good point, DaveTheRed. The article should indeed point out that World War III didn't happen and that World War IV isn't a widely accepted term. One can certainly report these facts while maintaining overall NPOV. --AStanhope 17:40, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)

DaveTheRed, I'd suspect there's a lot of false-positives in that search. Chris 17:44, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)

I'd bet there are some false positives in that search, but I'd also wager that enough are solid hits to indicate that the term is legit. DaveTheRed 06:13, 21 Mar 2005 (UTC)

• Keep — wartime propaganda, so it has some historical relevance. — RJH 17:41, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)

• Another good point. --AStanhope 17:48, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)

• Keep. I wouldn't call it propaganda, just a bit of bad phraseology, but it's notable enough nonetheless. android↔talk 17:50, Mar 20, 2005 (UTC)
• Keep, but I don't think the war on terrorism is the only use of the term. I think Einstein's quote about World War IV being fought with sticks and stones deserves mention in there somewhere. Also, I bet there's been a World War IV in some futuristic sci-fi fiction that maybe could be mentioned, though nothing comes to mind right now. -R. fiend 18:59, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep. The content merits an article (throws a rock at Chriscf and claim it WW4, apologizing to Albert Elinstein) SYSS Mouse 19:11, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep but rename to something like Future world wars and add redirects from World War V, VI and maybe VII. (Can we do wildcard titles?) Radiant_* 19:36, Mar 20, 2005 (UTC)
• Keep, real term, don't rename - David Gerard 20:01, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep Colin Angus Mackay 23:30, 20 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep. Have added the Einstein quote. Capitalistroadster 05:30, 21 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Merge/redirect to War on terrorism. Keep. Cohen was not the first to identify the Cold War as World War III; Norman Friedman did the same in his book The Fifty Year War. Gazpacho 08:57, 21 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep. Useful since the term is also used quite a lot in fiction (perhaps a section on fictional World War IVs is needed). Also worth keeping based upon the Einstein quote. Incidentally the first official use of World War III that I ever heard was from King Hussein of Jordan who used the term in a press conference soon after the start of the 1991 Gulf War, to describe that conflict. 23skidoo 20:58, 21 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Keep. The term has been used enough that it merits its own article in Wikipedia. InFairness 22:00, 21 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• keep Yuckfoo 06:56, 22 Mar 2005 (UTC)
• Why was this even considered for VFD? It's legitimate and encyclopedic. Even if POV exists, that isn't grounds for deletion merely revision. Keep. -SocratesJedi | Talk 06:29, 24 Mar 2005 (UTC)

This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and, like some other VfD subpages, is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion, or the decision-making process should be placed on the relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.