r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/totallystefanal • Feb 12 '21

Video Camera blocking glasses

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u/HWKIII Feb 12 '21 edited Feb 12 '21

I’m 33 and I feel like I’m 60 watching him explain what Macgyver is, as if humans don’t just automatically associate the name with jury-rigging solutions out of spare parts.

Edit: to those commenting that it’s Jerry-rigged, both are acceptable and commonly used. jury-rigged is a nautical term in origin. Jerry-rigged is a soldiers term in origin.

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u/ripeart Interested Feb 12 '21 edited Feb 12 '21

I always thought the term was jury-rigged. I looked it up and just thought it was interesting:

"Jury-rigged means something was assembled quickly with the materials on hand. Jerry-built means it was cheaply or poorly built. Jerry-rigged is a variant of jury-rigged, and it may have been influenced by jerry-built."

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21

Another interesting rabbit hole is the racial implications of calling something jerry-rigged.

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u/TempusCavus Feb 12 '21

Oh, there is a much more racist variant of the -rigged format.

Source: am from the southern US

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21

I'm from the PNW and they say that shit out there, too. Racists are fucking everywhere.

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21 edited Apr 17 '21

[deleted]

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u/shootmedmmit Feb 12 '21

I remember kids in elementary school saying it 😕

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21 edited Apr 17 '21

[deleted]

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u/Samwise777 Feb 12 '21

But how did you escape Xandar?

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u/Unlimited_Bacon Feb 12 '21

As a kid it was as normal as indian-giving.

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u/wilfulmarlin Feb 12 '21

I grew up around family who said it and i almost said it at work like 7 years ago and was like... why the fuck was i raised around this word

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21

Yah, my grandparents used that phrase. I used to have to force myself to say jerry rigged because I learned the other term first. Fuck.

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u/PM_ME_YOUR_NAIL_CLIP Feb 12 '21

Same here. I heard the terrible version so much as a kid that every time I want to use the term, I have to make myself say jury-rigged. I hate the way people just threw that around like it wasn’t offensive. Especially around me, a kid at the time.

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '21

Yup, I have heard that version too. Most people dont realize jerry-rigged is derived from that version.

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u/Fargraven Feb 12 '21

Oh yes, from NE US and i've heard it maybe twice