Talk:cluster fuck

A literal gang bang is not synonymous with a cluster fuck, though one might be inclined on face value to conclude that.

The term "cluster fuck" came out of the Vietnam war. It is an adaptation of the term "cluster bomb". Cluster bombs were nasty devices that consisted of a bunch of little bombs in a single container that exploded before reaching the ground, thereby raining a large number of small munitions onto, ideally, enermy troop formations.

The NCO cadre in Vietnam developed the use of the word "fuck" as punctuation, adverb, adjective, and virtually all other English uses in addition to its primary use as a verb.

A "cluster fuck" in virtaully all uses did not mean a from of gang bang (multiple males having intercourse with a single female), but a way in which the military could screw things up in multiple ways all at once. Sort of an alternative and advanced version of FUBAR. Generally the Army was the most accomplished at creating cluster fucks, though the other services contributed their share.