MRDA (slang)

MRDA, an abbreviation for Mandy Rice-Davies Applies, is Internet slang meaning "well he would say that, wouldn't he?" It is used to indicate scepticism of a claim due to the obvious bias of the person making the claim.[1][2]

History

The source of the initialism comes from the Profumo Affair, a 1963 political scandal in the United Kingdom. While giving evidence at the trial of Stephen Ward, charged with living off the immoral earnings of Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies, Rice-Davies (18 years old at that time) made the quip for which she is now best remembered: when the prosecuting counsel pointed out that Lord Astor denied an affair or having even met her, she retorted "Well, he would, wouldn't he?" (often misquoted as "Well he would say that, wouldn't he?")[2]

Usage

MRDA is commonly used on CIX,[1] and also appears in information-technology-related articles in the general media.[3]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Ockenden 2005.
  2. 1 2 Phillips 2011, p. 108.
  3. ↑ "In the UK, we say MRDA, or 'Mandy Rice-Davis Applies,' after a once well known scandal"(Schofield 2005)

References

  • Ockenden, Paul (24 October 2005), "Lost in translation", PC Pro, Dennis Publishing
  • Phillips, Tim (3 March 2011), Fit to Bust: How Great Companies Fail, Kogan Page Publishers, p. 108, ISBN 978-0-7494-6014-3
  • Schofield, Jack (20 June 2005), "Linux is 'terrible' says OpenBSD man", The Guardian

Further reading

  • Schofield, Jack (3 May 2007), "PC World editor quits over censorship", The Guardian
  • Winder, Davey (16 May 2005), "Real World Computing", PC Pro
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