Military schools, like VMI, are unique in that they develop their own dialect over the years. All military units do it to some extent, but the consistency of military academies and institutions -and their resilience resistance (oops!) to change- makes for some remarkable language.
Was rooting through some old memorabilia and trinkets this morning, and found an old note from my freshman (rat) year at VMI. Here’s a quick background: at VMI, first year students are called Rats. The Corps elects the meanest, nastiest juniors and seniors each year to form the Rat Disciplinary Committee (RDC) to help keep the Rat Mass in check.
There are few things worse than receiving a dreaded “RDC send-up” — at least to a young, stupid 18 year old.
But the language, in hindsight some 9 years later, was hilarious. Here’s what the note read:
“Rat Noonan, you have been summoned to the RDC for purification of the mind, body, and soul. Report to the sentinel box at 2300 hours. There, the cleansing will begin….”
The angel of death poked his sickle out from behind an ace of spades on the reverse.
We took it all so seriously…
the theatrical element is what made the ratline so exciting though!
Or, like what I got whispered in my ear while trying to get out of barracks on evening… “Hey Rat, meet me in third stoop sally port after taps, with your skivvies on backwards!”
Wow, u can open a can of worms on this one. rofl.
Col P – laughed so hard I almost cried when I read that…
2nd classmen on RDC? When did they start doing that, our RDC was all 1st classmen and I’ll have to check all PVTs also. course that was a while ago.
Col P – did you go? :p
John and Doomy:
NO, I DID NOT. Ha! In fact, I can remember, as clear as day, straining off and thinking to myself, “What a weird thing to say, that doesn’t make any sense…” and then realizing what it meant, and almost running out of barracks.
HIDEOUS.
You mean they don’t use 3×5′s anymore?
BR (LTCOL P) – dude that is messed up.
Mike,
2nds on the RDC come and go. Some years they have them, some years they don’t. Usually they only pick a handful, maybe 4 or 5. They’re typically master sergeants – the tradition of RDC members being privates also waxes and wanes – sometimes they’ll allow lieutenants or even captains.
John, it all did seem rather serious back then.
Try walking around an aircraft plant in Wichita using the Phonetic Alphabet. The looks from the supervisors are priceless. I know, I did 6 years at Learjet and am now at Hawker Beechcraft. I do it mostly for sport.
Thanks Slab, had never heard of that before, but haven’t thought of RDC in years, showed my kids a picture of me at a RDC meeting in hte Bomb having a Rat try and hit my hand with his knees and they asked me how I could be so mean. Sure seemed important at the time.