Kat wrote:
Nick Cooper wrote:
On Mon, 28 Feb 2005 10:44:10 -0800, "Roger T."
wrote:
You should try reading some contemporary reports from the 1940s, both
during and after WW2. Vandalism and hooliganism did miraculously
appear some time in the 1980s.
I expect there's a NOT missing from your last paragraph. I'm old enough
to remember Teddy-Boys ripping up seats in the local cinema.... and
later, of course the sea-side battles between Mods and Rockers.

Don't forget the "peaky blinders", a term used to describe members of
gangs of young, single males in late nineteenth century Birmingham.
Similarly, Manchester had its scuttlers and London its hooligans. Legend
has it that gang members stitched razor blades into the peaks of their
caps which were then used as offensive weapons, and this is just one
account amongst many of how the name originated. During the Victorian
and Edwardian periods many references were made by court reporters to
men having the appearance of a 'peaky'. Reports from the same period
state that foul-mouthed peakies often roamed the streets of Birmingham
in drunken gangs, insulting and mugging passers-by.
--
Bruce Fletcher
(To reply replace figure 1 with letter i)
Stronsay, Orkney, UK
http://www.stronsay.co.uk/claremont
Growing old is mandatory.
Growing up is optional.