The Annual Plea For Help.

[Roger Kettle]

What army officer resigned to take the position of Post Master of St. Louis - Col.Rufus Easton (I think)

I'll investigate this----thanks.

[Roger Kettle]

I can't read anything like this, even from Roger, without thinking I'm being set up. You larrikins, you. By larrikins I mean bastards, of course.

I'm sort of a barrakin.
As you know, Malc, I attempt this damn quiz every year. In recent times, because most people have internet access, the questions have become more and more obscure.
It annoys me but I still waste far too much time with it.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

I can't read anything like this, even from Roger, without thinking I'm being set up. You larrikins, you. By larrikins I mean bastards, of course.

What's wrong with bastards, Malc. Some of us have grown up to lead perfectly useful lives!

To be fair, Vult, Malc didn't imply that bastards were useless, merely devious.

[Vulture]

I can't read anything like this, even from Roger, without thinking I'm being set up. You larrikins, you. By larrikins I mean bastards, of course.

What's wrong with bastards, Malc. Some of us have grown up to lead perfectly useful lives!

To be fair, Vult, Malc didn't imply that bastards were useless, merely devious.

He didn't imply anything - he was being derogatory!

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

He was being light-hearted, Vulture, as was I.

I'm sorry if in the process you felt there was a greater depth to the use of the word bastard than the way it was used in this instance, but although illegitimacy (and if there was ever a term to take exception to it's that one) has suffered grossly unfair stigma by the hi-jacking of the word over the years, thankfully that stigma attached to fatherless children has all but disappeared these days, due to more enlightened attitudes, far greater things to worry about, and the crumbling of marriage as the norm. I guess some of that is to be welcomed, if not all.

The increasingly complex nature of relationships means that the word bastard is now almost exclusively confined to it's own very separate dictionary definition of a 'despicable person', and there is no hint of a crossover into illegitimacy in its common, modern-day usage.

That said, as someone who has on a good number of times wished he was one, I'm very sorry if the use of the word bastard  in any context causes you pain, Vult, and I now regret my flippancy.

[Vulture]

He was being light-hearted, Vulture, as was I.

I'm sorry if in the process you felt there was a greater depth to the use of the word bastard than the way it was used in this instance, but although illegitimacy (and if there was ever a term to take exception to it's that one) has suffered grossly unfair stigma by the hi-jacking of the word over the years, thankfully that stigma attached to fatherless children has all but disappeared these days, due to more enlightened attitudes, far greater things to worry about, and the crumbling of marriage as the norm. I guess some of that is to be welcomed, if not all.

The increasingly complex nature of relationships means that the word bastard is now almost exclusively confined to it's own very separate dictionary definition of a 'despicable person', and there is no hint of a crossover into illegitimacy in its common, modern-day usage.

That said, as someone who has on a good number of times wished he was one, I'm very sorry if the use of the word bastard  in any context causes you pain, Vult, and I now regret my flippancy.

OMG! Tarquin, you do go on.  I was answering Malc's post as a genuine paid up member of the Bastards Union!

There are very few of us left now; we were bastards when being a bastard was something to be proud of; before bastardy got downgraded (or should that be 'dumbed down'?) to 'love child' or other words of that ilk.

As the oldest surviving member of this elite group, I have to make sure that the word bastard is only used to describe fully paid up BORN bastards and not the plebs that are self-made bastards. 

[peter]

I remember when you could be gay and everybody was happy.

[The Peepmaster]

Was it a T-Shirt with "I'm a Happy, Gay Bastard" written on it?

[peter]

You young ones bastardised the word and from there it was all downhill.

[peter]

Tally ho.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

He was being light-hearted, Vulture, as was I.

I'm sorry if in the process you felt there was a greater depth to the use of the word bastard than the way it was used in this instance, but although illegitimacy (and if there was ever a term to take exception to it's that one) has suffered grossly unfair stigma by the hi-jacking of the word over the years, thankfully that stigma attached to fatherless children has all but disappeared these days, due to more enlightened attitudes, far greater things to worry about, and the crumbling of marriage as the norm. I guess some of that is to be welcomed, if not all.

The increasingly complex nature of relationships means that the word bastard is now almost exclusively confined to it's own very separate dictionary definition of a 'despicable person', and there is no hint of a crossover into illegitimacy in its common, modern-day usage.

That said, as someone who has on a good number of times wished he was one, I'm very sorry if the use of the word bastard  in any context causes you pain, Vult, and I now regret my flippancy.

OMG! Tarquin, you do go on.  I was answering Malc's post as a genuine paid up member of the Bastards Union!

There are very few of us left now; we were bastards when being a bastard was something to be proud of; before bastardy got downgraded (or should that be 'dumbed down'?) to 'love child' or other words of that ilk.

As the oldest surviving member of this elite group, I have to make sure that the word bastard is only used to describe fully paid up BORN bastards and not the plebs that are self-made bastards. 

Oh, bugger!   (apologies to any sodomites out there)

[madjock]

And I get told off for bad language lol

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Dictionary.com
bug?ger
?noun
1.   Informal. a fellow or lad (used affectionately or abusively): a cute little bugger.
2.   Informal. any object or thing.

[Diane CBPFC]

Should this annual plea be a calendar event? That way we could all put on our stetsons a month ahead of time to get us in the proper mood.

[Vulture]

Sorry, Roger. We seem to have strayed from the topic slightly. What was your 'Plea' again?