Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!aplcen!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!brutus.cs.uiuc.edu!psuvax1!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!topaz.rutgers.edu!busboys.rutgers.edu!gaynor From: gaynor@busboys.rutgers.edu (Silver) Newsgroups: comp.lang.c Subject: Re: "foo" origin Keywords: obscenity Message-ID: Date: 19 Nov 89 14:11:38 GMT References: <15080002@hpfijdw.HP.COM> Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Lines: 11 jdw@hpfijdw.hp.com: > [What does foo mean?] `foo' is the first syllable of `foobar', a lighter-hearted misspelling of `fubar', which is an acronym for "fucked up beyond all recognition". As explained to me, the term came into widespread use in WWI to describe the remains of unidentifiable less-than-fortunates. The true obscenity here is not the use of that word which we all say more often than our mothers wished we would, but rather the testimony of human inhumanity. Regards, [Ag]