New Talking Point: "Stay the Course" = commit to indefinite, open ended

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

hostile occupation of Iraq.

[1620rock]

1. Kill em' all, pile em' up. n/t

[PaDem]

2. You must hate freedom,

for your lack of resolve gives aid and comfort to those that would harm America.

At least that's what John Ashcroft thinks about your sentiment.

[Igel]

3. That's what it's always meant in that context.

Racing slang, 1800s. "Finish the race" or the course the horses are to run, as opposed to dropping out because the horse or jockey are tired or it doesn't matter since they've lost.

I guess it's now taken to be "hold to the course", and the former parallelism with expressions like "stay (for) the service" is lost. Such are folk etymologies.