I understand our troops in Iraq have a derisive name, an ethnic insult for Iraqis.

They call them “hajis.”

This, like the war, which was wrong from the start, is a disappointment. “Hajis?” That doesn’t sound like an insult. Hajis sounds cute, positive, like the name for some kind of little furry forest animal.

It doesn’t sound mean enough------like “gook” did during Vietnam.

American troops have a long history of putting racially motivated slurs on the enemy. It started innocently enough. During the Civil War you were a Johnny Reb or Billy Yank (the recipients of these names actually took a measure of pride in them).

As the American people have become more corporate and ruthless, the cruelty level of these derogatory names have increased. The Japanese during World War II were called “Japs” (as were American citizens of Japanese descent interned in detention camps in the US). Japs, a shortening for the word Japan, is hardly a creative or intelligent insult, though the way it was said carried plenty of malice. Even newspapers and magazines of that period called them “Japs” in print.

If somebody called me “A-Mary,” short for American, I would hardly blink with anger. In fact, one time a North Korean called me in a thick-syllable drawl a “Yankeee.” This wasn’t an insult because I loved the New York Yankees.

Germans in World War II were called “krauts.” I don’t particularly like sauerkraut, but reducing somebody to a food you don’t like is perhaps an effective way of dehumanizing them.

The intent behind such names is clear. If you dehumanize someone with an ethnic slur, it makes him easier to kill.

The word “gook” first came about during the Korean War, and then moved on to Vietnam. Since Vietnamese were now called “gooks,” Koreans needed a new name. During the Vietnam period, Koreans were referred to as “Zips,” or in the case of North Koreans, “Joe Chink” (adding a familiar American name is a nice touch).

Gook is one of the best because it starts with the letter G, which has a harsh guttural sound (G must be Germanic in origin). Gook. Geek. Gimp. They all reflect mean spirit. Gook really sounds like the guy is a greasy, buck-toothed, fish-eating, manure-plowing, rice-eating dwarf just asking for a bomb in his lap.

But “hajis” for Iraqis? Like the war, it’s not well planned. How about something more insulting, like “mosque muffins,” or “sand niggers” (those of you who don’t like my opinion and want to make me out a racist because I dared to use the “N” word be warned. The purpose of this column is to shame those who use such insults to collectively describe other human beings).

Sand nigger would be an interesting epithet to use on Iraqis since maybe a third of our troops over there are black Americans.

I wonder what they call us?