Posted by 10derheart on August 15, 2007, at 15:15:26
In reply to why in the world?, posted by karen_kay on August 15, 2007, at 12:25:47
hey kk,
Because, in particular for our UK (or perhaps specifically English) Babblers, there are other, slang meanings of p*m, so in the interest of being sensitive to those Babblers who might know it as an insult, Dr.Bob leaves it as a 'bad' word....sort of just in case....?
At least that's close to the way I recall it being explained the last time this came up.
From one of the many slang dictionaries on the Web:
P*M
Somewhat derogatory term used by Australians when referring to anyone from England.
Slang interpretation as Prisoners Of Mother England. Referring to the transportation to Australia from England of convicts considered the dregs of society.
Between 1788 and 1868, about 160,000 people were herded onto ships in Great Britain and 'transported' to Australia with the expectation that due to the 12,000 miles distance they would never return.
EX: "Are you a Yank, a Kiwi or a P*mmie b*st*rd?"
-----------------------------------------------Some say instead of the acronym, the term came from the fact the fair-skinned British were frequently sunburned when in Australia, and so their skin appeared to the indigenous people as the same red as a familiar fruit - POMegranate. Seems to be several conflicting histories on the word....
(I didn't include any links to this dictionary (which is full of fascinating stuff if you like words like I do!) as it contains many, many naughty words ;-) But it's pretty easy to find if you Google "slang and p*m [p*m].)
And I KNOW our knowledgeable posters from Oz and NZ and the UK can probably explain this way better than my basic attempt here, or fill what the term 'really' means these days - if it's even is use?? Words are soooo cool!! [yeah, so I'm a dork/nerd]
poster:10derheart
thread:776422
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20070702/msgs/776459.html