Military question

[mhalachai]

So I'm just rewatching the Stargate movie, and since I know better than to trust Hollywood for (American) military accuracy, a question:

Would anyone, officer or enlisted man, be chewing gum while on duty in their dress uniform? I know the military has many, many regulations on appearance and behavior while on duty, but do they address gum chewing? How about cigarette smoking?

So many irrelevant questions, so little patience for Google...

Comments

[millylicious.livejournal.com]

Indeed. You know the Vandoos?

[millylicious.livejournal.com]

Nevermind, I totally forgot for a second there that you were Canadian *facepalm*

[mhalachaiswords.livejournal.com]

Indeed I do know the Vandoos :) I know only a little about the Canadian Forces, but I know the Vandoos (and the Princess Pat Light Infantry, but that's mostly because of the song)

[millylicious.livejournal.com]

The 'What does Vandoos stand for?' question is the one we get the most from anglo kids in Old Quebec, because it's on all the scavenger hunts the tourist businesses/school groups use.

We're just like *says 22 in french* 'Now repeat it back to me?'

And they get it right away, lol.

[(Anonymous)]

That just hurt my French-speaking heart. Maybe it's *Canadian* French that pronounces it that way...
Either that, or they learned it from The Nanny (you know, "Shut the door" instead of "Je t'adore").

[millylicious.livejournal.com]

No, we say it the normal way (I'm french canadian), but have you ever heard an anglophone (american, english canadian, british, etc) trying to say 22 in french? They make it sounds like Vandoo, because they can't pronounce Vingt-deux right.

The english soldiers weren't able to pronounce 22 right, so over time 'Vandoo' became the 'nickname' for the 22nd royal regiment, because there were only french soldiers in that regiment. (and they were known for their valor, as well as their stubborness and daredevil tactics).