[Ads-l] free-fire zone

[Jonathan Lighter]

OED: 1965

Cites from Newspapers.com:

1.  an area clear of visual obstacles to gunfire.  Rare.

[1917 _Brooklyn Daily Times_ (Mar. 21) 1: Not only has a free zone of fire
been obtained by such a procedure, butthe enemy must come forward slowly
over ground so hazardous of passage.]

1917 _Dayton Herald_ (Mar. 21) 1: A free fire zone in front will give them
clear view of the enemy. Guns have been carefully ranged over all this
forefield.

2..  an area presumably cleared of civilians, where any unidentified person
may be fired on as being an enemy.

1964 _Knoxville [Tenn.] News-Sentinel_ (June 3) 4: Four our planes and
artillery, this has long been a free fire zone. Here we shoot at will, here
we can always drop our bombs.

1965 _Springfield [O.] News-Sun_ (Feb. 5) 1: The shore on both sides was
known VC territory. That meant we were in a "free fire" zone and could
shoot at anything that seemed hostile...Artillery opened up occasionally.

 Etc., etc.

JL
--

"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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