The Chinese, who went through multiple cycles of the growth and collapse of empires, had a concept called "rectifying names." There's a nice short discussion of it on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism#Rectification_of_names

They say,

"Confucius believed that social disorder often stemmed from failure to perceive, understand, and deal with reality. Fundamentally, then, social disorder can stem from the failure to call things by their proper names, and his solution to this was Zhèngmíng (Chinese: 正名; pinyin: zhèngmíng; literally "rectification of terms"). He gave an explanation of zhengming to one of his disciples."

There's a little more -- check it out -- but -- I don't want to get pedantic, but I think it's an interesting concept in this context. Words like "crisis" and "catastrophe" have actual meanings that are worth investigating -- they connote a certain disconnect between means and ends, or just a parting of the ways. Not just "oh shit, this is really bad," but an actual sense of what just happened, or what is happening -- why the fabric is unraveled here and there. But a word like "apocalypse" doesn't really mean anything. It's a myth, sort of a dream phrase. Nice, but no accuracy in it.

But this is really a crisis -- maybe like the way Marx would understand crisis. You have two different ways to value a good, or a currency, or a piece of paper -- there's its exchange value, and then there's the labor value entailed in it; or there is its social value as property or a symbol of property, and its practical value as a useful thing. Usually we negotiate things so the two values get along, they can walk arm in arm. But one thing leads to another and they part ways. Then when after a while they don't coincide, the system breaks down. Commerce fails. Now we must rectify the name -- re-label the thing at its true worth, and begin again. That is a hurtin thing to go through. Your house is not worth what you paid for it, it's worth less. The note your bank carries is not worth what you promised to pay. It's worth less. CitiGroup stock is not worth forty bucks. It's worth one. This is bad, and it feels bad. We have to change so many things -- prices, and owners, bosses, workers, tax rates, all sorts of stuff. We shake up the chain of command. We reorganize units. We change names.

But a day's work is still a day's work, me bucko. I work, you work, we all work the black seam together. It's okay. Tomorrow is another day. That sunbeam shining in your eye is still what it was yesterday. And so is the light that shines out of you. From now on I am going to call you, Sunshine.

Shine on me, baby. What's my name? Yeah, okay, that's right. I knew you were bright when I met you.

You're right. At this stage of our development, this nation deserves an orderly, structured pig rut.

... yawn.

... I am a Rock Lobster.

She sounds shrill to you?

Maybe it's your equipment.

You should try Vonage.

... it's all good ...

I'm not sure it even makes sense to frame this whole thing as a political battle at all. We have in Barack Obama the best-qualified President in a long, long time to evaluate the worth of a potential Justice. Not surprisingly, he picked somebody very, very well qualified. Maybe this time we can just have what our system was designed to give us: a responsible deliberative process and a wise conclusion.

Is there anything a man don't stand to lose

When he lets a woman hold him in her hands?

He just might find himself out there on horseback in the dark

Just ridin and runnin across those desert sands...

Do it, man. Send that Mexicali Blues ring tone to your cell phone.

Callin Elvis ... is anybody home?

I hear Obama has already weaponized our enriched uranium.

Really.

I'm beginning to think Obama may be pursuing a global position of strategic military invulnerability for the United States. I mean, that guy Gates certainly wants that, and Obama kept him in there.

I think he's making an obvious play for the loyalty of the U.S. Military Establishment.

Then what might they do?

She eats up your lies

Like it's good for her

Your lies like apple pie ...

... and she watches as your promises erode

... when all she really wants is you ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPlVinf7gWE

Yeah, you know, she's got a point. If the third base umpire kept calling foot faults on me like that, I might step out of the ring in the third quarter of the hockey game too.

Listen, lady, in the big city it's either fish or cut wood. You gotta decide whether you're a firefighter or one of the baton twirlers, and then make the paint stick. You know what I'm saying? I mean, fun's fun, but you don't want to be the only penguin in the flying circus who's trying to clog dance without her tambourine, if you catch my drift.

Nuff said.