bag nasty

n. a meal of military rations or other food packed for portability. Subjects: English, Food & Drink, Military, Slang

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Citations: 1992 Robert Holt Gettysburg Times (Pa.) (Aug. 4) “Teamsters threaten movie pickets again” p. 1: Re-enactors have seen and heard of actors and production crew eating lobster, fettucine alfredo, turky, veal and cracked crab at lunch hours while they eat what they call a “bag nasty"—bagged lunches. Re-enactors said the “bag nasty” is served at the sets, which re-enactors can not leave until work is complete. 1992 [Karen Schneider] Usenet: alt.usage.english (Oct. 28) “Re: He doesn’t know jack-shit”: Did he ever eat bag nasties? (Slang for MRE’s—Meals Ready To Eat—K Rats of the future, in plastic pouches.) 1997 Larry Warren Left at East Gate (Feb.) p. 40 @ (Sept., 1998): On the flight line, the food was terrible at best. The menu consisted of either green eggs or “bag nasties,” pre-packed bag lunches with potato chips as their only edible component. 2001 Owen Davies @ Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska Airman (Feb. 1) “Air mail: Box nasties” vol. 45, no. 2, p. 26: This might seem frivolous, but frankly, when you perpetuate terms like “chow hall” and “bag-nasty,” it shows no respect for the services professionals who bust their tails to make sure you don’t go hungry. 2005 Pete Callahan Armored Corps #1 (Mar. 29) p. 281: MRE meals, ready to eat; also referred to by troops as Meals Rejected by Everyone, brown bags, or bag nasties.

Posted 2 Dec 05 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Reader comments:

I wonder if this is a play on “dagnasty”, an alteration of “(damn) nasty” (perhaps modeled on “dagnabit”?). There was also a DC hardcore punk band in the ‘80s called Dag Nasty.

by Ben Zimmer 02 Dec 05, 0434 GMT

Having recently come upon this terrific site, I am compelled to comment for the first time. I worked with a fellow who would often refer to his brought-from-home lunch as a “bag nasty,” but I merely thought he was having us on and thought no more about it. And now I learn otherwise!

My brother-in-law interned in DC, and I recall his cassette tape of this band. Don’t remember the music, but the name stuck with me.

Xanthippe

by Xanthippe 03 Dec 05, 0316 GMT

I received my commission in the Army 30 years ago this month. Back in the mid-’70s we normally ate C-rations out in the field. I recently returned from 18 months in Iraq as a civilian contractor for the DoD. My company held the contract to deliver food (A-rations and MREs)to the DFACs and FOBs. Those that complain about the “chow” in the service today (especially the civilians) would be discusted with the C-rats we lived on. The ham & eggs in a can would be closer to the term bag nasty. The troops in Iraq are being well fed. In fact, there were articles written in the Stars & Stripes that many of the soldiers were becoming over weight. I doubt that they would have gained weight if the food was as bad as the term used indicates.

by Richard 02 Jun 06, 0904 GMT

No doubt you’re right, Richard. But with low pay comes a soldier’s right to complain, eh? No doubt more than a few are poking fun at food that’s better than anything they’re capable of preparing for themselves.

by Grant Barrett 02 Jun 06, 1033 GMT

Grant....roger that! Luckily for me my first platoon sargent; SFC Johnson was an outstanding professional NCO. Being an newly minted 2LT (butter bar, shave tale, or just plain old LT) he respectfully educated me regarding the 3 things that you don’t mess with as they regard to your men. As you know, those 3 things are the troops pay, mail and chow! So yes, it’s practically an Army tradition for the men (and now the women too) to “converse” about their food. Refering their low pay...a service member is never paid enough for the job they do and the danager they face. When I would talk with some of the E-1 through E-4 (and even some of the officers) regarding my job in Iraq , pay usually was brought into the discussion. When I told them that as a 2LT my base pay in 1976 was $660 per month....oh and of course $50 (tax free) each month for food. They just looked at me and couldn’t beleive that was all an 0-1 made. Of course, you could but a new car with V-8 engine for $3500-$5,000. But every person who joins the miltary dosn’t do it for the money....they do it to serve their country, give something back or to be part of something bigger then themselves. Sounds corny I know...but I beleived it when I joined and I still beleive it today.

Regards,

Richard

by Richard Ferree 03 Jun 06, 0158 GMT

A Bag Nasty is not a Mr E (Mystery), More properly known as Meals Ready to Eat or Meals Rejected by Ethiopians like you get in the field. A bag nasty is what you get from the chow hall or the fleet when you don’t have time to actually sit down to eat. Usually they just send out a runner to bring them back to you. It either comes in a brown bag or one of those white boxes like you sometimes get when you buy doughnuts. You get some kind of cold barely edible sandwich (if you are lucky it is a cold cut or a hamburger, if not a nasty chicken patty or some kind of nasty fritter), a bag of chips, a piece of fruit (usually an apple), maybe a bag of cookies and the most infuriating part, one of those little tiny kids fruit drinks with the foil tops that taste like crap. You bust your hump and then you get a bad nasty for your trouble. The only good thing about a bag nasty is that most of the time the reason you have to eat them is that you are too busy to go to chow and therefore too tired or too hungry to care. It is also a slang for a female marine in the sack.

by JoJo 06 May 08, 0924 GMT