Talk:Ordinary Decent Criminal (slang)

Latest comment: 8 years ago by Narky Blert in topic Usage

Terrorism

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In the US, the word "terroristic" is often used sarcastically, to poke fun at perceived government paranoia or unsophisticated scaremongering. Compare to the ironic use of "communistic" in the post-McCarthy era. Serious discussions (in the US) tend to prefer the simpler form "terrorist". If this is true in the UK as well, it would be worth changing.

Usage

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I believe the term is used by more than the Gardai. Can we get a citation that its use is restricted to that small community? Otherwise, I would advocate removing that part of this article. When I created this article, I believe I had heard its use in places beyond Ireland, but my personal experience is not sufficient verification. However, absent any comparable verification of the assertion that the term's use is restricted to the Gardai, I think that claim should go. *Septegram*Talk*Contributions* 19:12, 8 December 2009 (UTC)Reply

Tony Geragthy's The Irish War gives an example of the variation of "DOCs [Decent Ordinary Criminals]" (page 71) being self-applied by non-political prisoners in 1972 in Belfast, so clearly it's not restricted to the Gardai. Nick Cooper (talk) 10:57, 23 February 2011 (UTC)Reply
I'm on the mainland, and feel sure I heard of "ODC" being used by NI police during the Troubles. There could be newspaper citations. Narky Blert (talk) 20:49, 20 July 2016 (UTC)Reply