Thursday, September 01, 2011
Bashing square spuds
Someone used the term square bashing the other day – not one you hear much these days, though it used to be pretty popular, especially among those who were old enough to have been conscripted, in peace time or in war.
It seems almost perfect as a description of the mindlessness of learning to march & drill, military style, endlessly bashing the square being yelled at by unsympathetic NCOs, preparing oneself to bash the enemy.
Our parents – both (willing) conscripts during WWII - were fond of reminiscing about it, stressing how important it was for their generation to learn to obey orders instantly when their life might depend upon it, while trying to convey that blind adherence to authority was not always & necessarily so admirable.
The OED finds the first recorded written instance of the term in a book of RAF slang published in 1943.
Interestingly the word bashing as slang for anything militarily arduous & tedious, & was recorded in the Daily Mail in 1940 as spud bashing.
Our fortunate generation missed conscription & the bashing of squares, but we certainly got plenty of spud bashing in, especially at Guide camp.
