# An open letter, to those... wonderful... people in my village. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 18, 2004, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513 "2004-12-18T13:10:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![PaulFitzroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/2acd7d/32.png) [@PaulFitzroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulFitzroy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/41 "2004-12-19T12:06:18Z")
These “Chavs” sound like the absolute worst, most annoying people in the world. I’m sorry, everything about them, according to those definitions anyway, is just the absolute height of annoying to me. The shitty cars with the loud exhausts really just topped it off. I can’t imagine anyone here going around like that in groups downtown and expecting to be taken seriously. (And this is Southern Indiana I’m referring to here.) > [@](#): > > Can you imagine a death match between them and some Los Angeles Bloods (or about 1,000 other groups that I can think of)? Fuckin’ A…The Bloods? How about the Jackson Creek Middle School football team? I wouldn’t even lump “Chavs” in with legitimate tough guys. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/42 "2004-12-19T12:13:45Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > This burberry stuff, do they get it from stealing it off geriatric golfers? Burberry have stopped making their baseball caps because the only people who were wearing them were football hooligans and chavs. A chain of pubs banned anyone who wore them. ---
**Author:** ![Kitchen\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f08c70/32.png) [@Kitchen\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitchen_Wench)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/43 "2004-12-19T12:16:23Z")
I just realized that my stepkids in the UK are chavs. ☹ Particularly my stepson. I have the urge to get him the shirt that reads: FCUKIN’ CHAV. It would probably totally piss him off, though. Of course, he’s hardly talked to his dad for the two years he’s been in the states. Should I do it? ---
**Author:** ![Chimpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@Chimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimpy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/44 "2004-12-19T12:18:16Z")
My sister and her boyfriend are chavs, and the urge to get the “VonChav” T-shirt for him for christmas this year was almost overwhelming. I say do it **Seeker74**. ---
**Author:** ![Kitchen\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f08c70/32.png) [@Kitchen\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitchen_Wench)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/45 "2004-12-19T12:21:18Z")
Please fight my ignorance, Chimpy… What does “Von Chav” mean? I my ignorance is not just a UK/US thing, it’s largely due to the fact that I’ve NEVER followed fashion or trends. ---
**Author:** ![Chimpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@Chimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimpy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/46 "2004-12-19T12:50:06Z")
VonDutch is a popular chav brand, and you can buy the T-shirts with [this](http://image.rakuten.co.jp/buzz-i/img1013799071.jpeg) symbol turned to [this](http://www.chavscum.co.uk/images/shop/vonchav_small.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Kitchen\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f08c70/32.png) [@Kitchen\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitchen_Wench)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/47 "2004-12-19T12:59:58Z")
Ah. Ok, I get it now. So, is “chav” terribly offensive? Would someone who displays the chav attitude and gear be able to laugh if the shirt was given to him/her? I’m speaking in general terms, here. I suppose it would depend on the end user, much like calling someone a redneck. I may have just answered my own question. ---
**Author:** ![Chimpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@Chimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimpy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/48 "2004-12-19T13:02:05Z")
I’m not sure how the average chav would react, but I’d expect not well, it’s not a terribly good present with which to maintain peaceful family relations. ---
**Author:** ![Kitchen\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f08c70/32.png) [@Kitchen\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitchen_Wench)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/49 "2004-12-19T13:05:40Z")
Right. Thanks for indulging me, Chimpy. I didn’t mean to hijack your thread. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/50 "2004-12-20T03:29:47Z")
> [@Chimpy](#): > > …image of yob culture you seem so happy to portray. Okay, we got the chav definition, and I agree UK slang is very cool, but what’s “yob culture”? Youth on board? Youth on brattiness? A word all by itself? ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/51 "2004-12-20T03:57:52Z")
1. Excellent rant, **Chimpy**. Well-written. 2. This, I believe, perfectly illustrates one of the huge cultural differences between the two sides of the Atlantic. Here, our wannabe-thugs wear ‘thug’ clothing. Over there, your wannabe-thugs (I’m assuming that’s an apt description) wear…plaid. _snicker_ Seriously. Someone up-thread said it - plaid baseball caps? My grandfather wore those! ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/52 "2004-12-20T04:12:10Z")
> [@CanvasShoes](#): > > Okay, we got the chav definition, and I agree UK slang is very cool, but what’s “yob culture”? Youth on board? Youth on brattiness? A word all by itself? “Boy” spelt backward. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/53 "2004-12-20T07:18:29Z")
> [@CanvasShoes](#): > > Okay, we got the chav definition, and I agree UK slang is very cool, but what’s “yob culture”? Youth on board? Youth on brattiness? A word all by itself? From my dictionary :- \* YOB , a young man who behaves in a very rude, offensive and\*\* sometimes violent way\* ---
**Author:** ![Chimpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@Chimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimpy)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513/54 "2004-12-20T11:56:12Z")
**Rayne Man** got it, I didn’t realise it was an uncommon word, I’ve always thought it had a nice edge to it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-open-letter-to-those-wonderful-people-in-my-village/280513.md?page=2)