well, ill have to agree there 'brats' was a term that originally referred to the children of career military servicemen (who lived on base, or were stationed abroad). it then became used to describe basically an 'unruly kid', or a mischievous one. given the context, id hardly find it offensive. noone said 'your kid is a little brat'.. hell i used the term in my latest gallery image, stating i had to hurry to take the picture because a bunch of little brats were coming up the steps and i wanted to snap it before they started running around all over the place. i dont think many parents got offended by the use of the word - thats taking things overboard. we can sit here and debate whats offensive and whats not for years and never get anywhere. this is the internet - you can argue forever and youll NEVER convince anyone that youre right or theyre wrong.. or get anywhere other than slowly deteriorating into a flamewar. i dont agree with the viewpoint thats being stated over and over that 'who defines what is offensive or not'... 'the word brat is offensive', 'cussing is offensive', etc. and comparing it to the image that started this thread. i dont think these are anywhere near in the same category - its like saying jaywalking and armed robbery are the same because theyre both crimes... and if stricter laws are put in place against armed robbery than jaywalking, some form of 'discrimination' or unjust subjectivity is taking place. pfft.