# UK, Ozzie, Kiwi dopes - the word "crazy"

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-ozzie-kiwi-dopes-the-word-crazy/299753>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 17, 2005, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-ozzie-kiwi-dopes-the-word-crazy/299753 "2005-04-17T10:34:20Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![guinnog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@guinnog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guinnog)\
**Post date:** [April 18, 2005, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-ozzie-kiwi-dopes-the-word-crazy/299753/21 "2005-04-18T09:52:57Z")

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> [@Civil Guy](#):
>
> [hi, jack] 'Merkins - That term prob’ly started rat heah in Amurika. There’s a cliche’d skit about a southern politician, maybe Lyndon Johnson, starting a speech, “Mah fella 'Merkans…”
> 
> “Pissing it down” - nope, never heard of it. I think that “piss” is slightly more off-color here than in the English-speaking countries. (Wait… isn’t piss the same range of colors everywhere?.. Well, never mind.) [/ hi, jack]

Wouldn’t you consider California to be in an ‘English-speaking country’ then? I have been there and most people seemed to speak English…

In Scotland, crazy means mad. And mad never means angry.

John

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**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\
**Post date:** [April 18, 2005, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-ozzie-kiwi-dopes-the-word-crazy/299753/22 "2005-04-18T10:35:30Z")

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When it pisses down, the best course of action is to piss off to a piss-up.

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**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\
**Post date:** [April 18, 2005, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-ozzie-kiwi-dopes-the-word-crazy/299753/23 "2005-04-18T10:43:29Z")

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> [@Civil Guy](#):
>
> 'Merkins - That term prob’ly started rat heah in Amurika. There’s a cliche’d skit about a southern politician, maybe Lyndon Johnson, starting a speech, “Mah fella 'Merkans…”

It’s what we call ourselves to distingush us from the damn furriners.  
No, we don’t have “pissing it down”…we also don’t generally use pissed to mean drunk. Pissed = pissed off.

Something to keep in mind if you’re an American bar (bar, not pub, usually).

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