"purity ring"

[Laurence Horn]

At 5:02 PM -0400 5/24/07, Charles Doyle wrote:
>And things can get way WORSE, Bill. The college-level version of the
>circle jerk (according to legend) is this: A fraternity's neophytes
>are required to stand in a circle facing a pizza on the ground. The
>"jerking" competition procedes, with the "winner" exempt from then
>partaking of the pizza--or, in some versions, the last-place
>finisher must eat the entire pizza. It's all very brotherly! (A
>variant of the same motif is said to have given the famous musical
>group Limp Biscuit its name.)
>
>Yes, why a hasty expression (to adapt Larry's terminology) should be
>deemed desirable does call for explanation.
>

Mine would be that the CJ is, after all, a competition, and one does
strive to win a competition, especially one demonstrating (a young
whippersnapper's notion of) "manliness".  The concept of a
competition to establish who can delay um-self-expression the longest
makes for a very boring tournament and, in Charlie's version, a cold
pizza, than which (almost) nothing is worse.  Of course grown-ups,
with their greater patience and subtletly, can engage in the obverse
mode of competition, whence the celebrated (and gender-nonspecific)
"Master of one's domain" Seinfeld episode.

LH

>---- Original message ----
>>Date: Thu, 24 May 2007 15:40:15 -0500
>>From: "Mullins, Bill AMRDEC" <Bill.Mullins at US.ARMY.MIL>
>>Subject: Re: "purity ring"
>>
>>>
>>>  At 2:38 PM -0400 5/24/07, Wilson Gray wrote:
>
>>>  >"Circle jerk"? That sounds as though it may be a synonym of
>>>"roun(d) poun(d)," an um-game in which a bunch of guys sit in a
>>>circle and each masturbates the guy to his left. The first one to
>>>ejaculate wins. (So I've been told. An Army buddy said that
>>>playing this um-game was the way in which he learned to
>>>masturbate.}
>>>  >
>>>  >-Wilson
>>>
>>
>>I've heard of Circle Jerk since late elementary school, but never
>>actually met anyone who participated (or would _admit_ to
>>participating). (And why would speed be desired in such an
>>endeavor?) But like many adolescents, we talked about it a lot.
>>And you never, EVER, wanted to be named "pivot man" in a CJ.
>>(Dunno why.  I don't even know what a "pivot man" does.  Just don't
>>want to be him.)
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org