How did the term "basket case" become a slang term for a crazy/mentally ill person?
by 
Chris Hansen
ANSWERS: 1
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Originally "basket case" referred not to mental illness, but to physical injuries, particularly in warfare. A "basket case" was someone who would have (probably figuratively rather than literally) to be carried around in a basket, someone so badly injured they would never fight again. Being generalized, it means someone damaged to the point of uselessness, someone who will never recover from their ailments.
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