What the hell, I’ve NEVER heard or read this word in my entire life.
The first known use of straphanger was in 1896. Defined as a standing passenger in a subway, streetcar, bus, or train who clings for support to one of the short straps or similar devices placed along the aisle
I guess that might explain part of that… but I’m seeing consisntent uses from merriam webster’s recent examples on the web for the word.
Strangely enough there is a military alternative definition:
“Straphanger” seems to have a different, and negative connotation in current US military parlance. Since this is a militarily-oriented movie, it is probably the definition that applies.
In an article unrelated to Zero Dark Thirty, I found a reference to strap hangers.
<span style="color:#323232;">"We have a saying in the SEAL Teams about the 90-10 rule. It goes: 90% of the guys that make it through Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training are solid Operators and go on to do great things. The other 10% are constantly bringing the community and their team down. We are always trying to cull the 10% out of the herd. In the military these guys are commonly referred to as “strap hangers”....grabbing at the straps of the good men that participated in this operation."
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