Duck, Ruptured

[David Jordan]

On Fri, 15 Nov 1996, Tod Mahony wrote:

> 
> I think a Ruptured Duck is an *honorable* discharge.  It was also the name
> of a bomber in some WWII movie I caught about 5 minutes of last Sunday.  
> 

It may have also referred to the condition of honorable discharge, but I
know for sure the expression denoted a small diamond-shaped sew-on patch
with an eagle on it (the eponymous "duck"), worn over one of the breast
pockets.  I know because my father showed me one on his WWII uniform.  I'm
not sure, but it either meant the individual was real "short" and *about*
to be discharged, or that the individual *had* been discharged.  In the
latter case it would have meant he was no longer in the military but still
permitted to wear a military uniform for a short time (e.g., to travel
home).  I'm fairly certain that the latter circumstance is the correct
one. 

Recall that, unlike the War in Vietnam where soldiers served for two
years, including a one-year tour of duty in Vietnam, those who served in
WWII served until the war was over.  There were also *way* more American
soldiers in that war.  The armed forces probably didn't want to bother to
sort out, account for, and return the millions of pieces of civilian
clothing surrendered as many as nearly four years earlier in boot camps
all over the States. 

David Jordan
littlcat at netcom.com