Observations on the Word "Pom"

Is "pom" a derogatory term? Pom is what the Australians frequently/usually call the English. It can be used as a noun, as in "bloody poms," or as an adjective as in "pommie bastards"

The frequency of the word "pom" and its variants in the Aussie press has increased dramatically over the past month as England's cricket team has come to contest the Ashes. The fact that Australia has just re-taken the Ashes with an insurmountable 3-0 lead has brought about even more gleeful headlines about sticking it to the pom. (The press coverage has been incredibly over-the-top. You'd think Australia had just landed a man on mars. But wait, given the Aussie sports obsession and a certain suspicion of intellectual pursuits like science, an important Aussie cricket or football victory would probably still rate above landing an Aussie spaceship on an alien planet. And the announcement today that top bowler Shane Warne is retiring from international cricket after this series is being treated like a royal death.)

This article notes how Australia's advertising watchdog (and some English dude who heads up a local brewery) said pom isn't necessarily a bad word, depending on the context, comparing it to Kiwi (New Zealander) or Aussie. I dunno. It seems somewhat less affectionate to me.

Maybe this is where Mel Gibson gets his famous anti-English animus!