Armchair warrior is a pejorative term that alludes to verbally fighting from the comfort of one's
living room
In Western architecture, a living room, also called a lounge room (Australian English), lounge (British English), sitting room (British English), or drawing room, is a room for relaxing and socializing in a residential house or apartment. Su ...
. It describes activities such as
speaking out in support of a war, battle, or fight by someone with little or no military experience.
Typical "armchair warrior" activities include advocating sending troops to settle a conflict,
lobbying
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agency, regulatory agencie ...
to keep defense jobs to make outdated military equipment as part of the
military-industrial complex, or to make political messages on radio or television
talk show
A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Show ...
s in favor, or using armed forces in a conflict over trying diplomatic channels.
An early example of the term "armchair warrior" appeared in the 1963 ''
Twilight Zone'' episode ''
No Time Like the Past
"No Time Like the Past" is episode 112 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone''. In this episode a man tries to escape the troubles of the 20th century by taking up residence in an idyllic small town in the 19th century.
...
'', in which a
time travel
Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a w ...
er to the late 1800s uses the term in a speech directed towards a banker who is calling for sending young soldiers to fight a war against
American Indians.
The show's director,
Rod Serling
Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was an American screenwriter, playwright, television producer, and narrator/on-screen host, best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his anthology television series ' ...
, had received a
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...
for injuries incurred while serving as a
paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...
in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
This differs from "
slacktivism
Slacktivism (a portmanteau of ''slacker'' and ''activism'') is the practice of supporting a political or social cause by means such as social media or online petitions, characterized as involving very little effort or commitment. Additional form ...
" in that no action needs to be done by an "armchair warrior" beyond stating a point of view versus an act to give the appearance of making a difference from a "slacktivist". It is more of a variation of "
chickenhawk", which was originally a slang term used during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
to describe a superior officer that was not on the frontlines.
Don Henley
Donald Hugh Henley (born July 22, 1947) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Eagles. He is the drummer and one of the lead singers for the Eagles. Henley sang the lead vocals on Eagles hits such as "Witchy Woman", "Despe ...
refers to "armchair warriors" in his song "
The End of the Innocence".
See also
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Anonymous (group)
Anonymous is a decentralized international Activism, activist and Hacktivism, hacktivist collective and Social movement, movement primarily known for its various cyberattacks against several governments, government institutions and Governm ...
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Armchair general
"Armchair general" is a derogatory term for a person who regards themselves as an expert on military matters, despite having little to no actual experience in the military. Alternatively, it can mean a military commander who does not participat ...
*
Armchair revolutionary
Armchair revolutionary (or armchair activist and armchair socialist) is a description, often pejorative, of a speaker or writer who professes radical aims without taking any action to realize them, as if pontificating "from the comfort of the arm ...
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Armchair theorizing
Armchair theorizing, armchair philosophizing, or armchair scholarship is an approach to providing new developments in a field that does not involve primary research and the collection of new information – but instead analysis or synthesis of exi ...
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Back-seat driver
A backseat driver (also spelled back-seat driver) is a passenger in a vehicle who is not controlling the vehicle but who excessively comments on the driver's actions and decisions in an attempt to control the vehicle. A backseat driver may be unco ...
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Champagne socialist
Champagne socialist is a political term commonly used in the United Kingdom. It is a popular epithet that implies a degree of hypocrisy, and it is closely related to the concept of the liberal elite. The phrase is used to describe self-identifi ...
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Chickenhawk
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Gauche caviar
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Internet petition
An online petition (or Internet petition, or e-petition) is a form of petition which is signed online, usually through a form on a website. Visitors to the online petition sign the petition by adding their details such as name and email address. T ...
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Limousine liberal
Limousine liberal and latte liberal are pejorative U.S. political terms used to illustrate hypocritical behavior by political liberals of upper class or upper middle class status. The label stems primarily from unwillingness of ''limousine libera ...
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Narcotizing dysfunction
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Slacktivism
Slacktivism (a portmanteau of ''slacker'' and ''activism'') is the practice of supporting a political or social cause by means such as social media or online petitions, characterized as involving very little effort or commitment. Additional form ...
References
External links
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Activism by type
Pejorative terms for people
{{Activism-stub