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Use of the word Sir.


Deuce Stevens SASS#55996

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How 'bout Sport, Slick, Chief or Bubba? :lol:

 

I would have liked chief, but after taking rating exam chief petty officer at least three times, I had to settle for first class. That fouled anchor would have looked good on my resume too. :D

 

Seriously though U.B. you can call me anything, just not late for supper.

 

What I was getting at, was folks that don't really know each other. I have been called most everything you can imagine in jest and I get a kick out of that. I just didn't want Deuce to lose what I think is an admirable trait and habit. You could say it shows upbringing. Sort of like folks never forgetting the bad things about other folks and not remembering the good.

 

I just know you know where I am coming from sir. :)

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Duece; I, like you was taught to say yes sir, no sir. To me it's a courtesy and sometimes a sign of respect. I too have joked about....don't call me sir, I have been out of the service for over x amount of years....but in a nice way....not ripping someone. I think you handled it just fine....by not even acknowledging him the rest of the day. Keep doin what you are doin as you are a fine gentleman regardless of what Wayne says.

 

As for me and you....you can call me sir out of respect for the old and decrepid....lol.

 

KK

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Ditto. (+1)

 

I sometimes get funny looks usin' "Maam" on too young of a lady....

I say "Ya mean, nobody's snapped you up yet? What's with the guys 'round here?" ;)

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I use "Sir" very often as a show of respect and appreciation regardless of the age of the person. I especially like to use it with very young (teen and pre-teen) men because I think it gives them a boost just to know an adult would offer any sign of respect.

 

As far as an adult having an adverse reaction to being called Sir, it sounds like a cry for attention. Perhaps he would have preferred, "Thank you for verifying the emptyness of me guns, me Lord. I beg your forgiveness for calling you Sir, Sire."

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Deuce as an NCO in the Army when someone slipped and called me sir I used the standard NCO response..."Dont call me sir, I work for a living." Growing up the son of an USAF officer my siblings and I called EVERYONE sir, or maam. If you get the chance inquire of the gent what branch he served in and thank him for his service, any coolness will be quickly resolved.

Substitute "Petty Officer" and "Navy" for me, and my response is sometimes the same. Although, when I use it... I do smile to let the victim, er... person I'm talking to know I'm kidding. Then again, sometimes... one just feels old, and doesn't need the reminder. But to let that dictate one subsequent behavior, that's rude, and unacceptable. And yet again, some of us don't feel, let alone act, old enough for the honorific to seem appropriate, even if it is!

 

Duece, POLITE never goes out of style. And, for those for whom it does... well... their loss. You, Sir, did nothing wrong... and everything right.

 

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Hi Deuce,

 

Civility is never out of place. "Sir" is obviously a term of respect.

 

I didn't know that anyone would take offence from being called "Sir." :unsure::rolleyes::wacko: Please, someone tell me it was a joke and no one in their right mind would be offended by this. :rolleyes:

 

Regards,

 

Allie Mo

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Duece, I agree with what everyone else has said! I too, am in the habit of saying Sir, and do it so as a manner of high respect.

 

There aren't many JAs in SASS, you just happent to find one......

 

Cheyenne, who can't get used to being called sir, Culpepper

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I guess I wanted to see if I was missing the bigger picture. I have a ton of respect for our military and veterans and don't want to be disrepectful. But it is a two way street I guess.

 

I was never in the Military either, Deuce..And I would probably have wondered the same thing, thanks for posting..I also tend to forget one is going to run into unpleasant folks no matter where ya are..Even in CAS.. <_<

 

All the good folks ya meet in this game far and away makes up for the few soura**es one will occasionally run into though! B)

 

I try to remember to say "Sir"and Ma'am to be polite, not only at CAS matches, but everywhere I go..And yes,sometimes I forget to..But if they act like a jerk they don't EVER have to worry about me calling them "Sir" or "Ma'am" again..

 

Instead I'll be thinking of various other names best kept to meself and let them wonder why I'm chuckling under my breath as I walk away to a place with better vibes.. :rolleyes:

 

In fact, The use of "Sir" and Ma'am is something I never heard much anymore till I started attending shoots..I find it a refreshing change of pace from all the rudeness in modern society..

 

How about that? A bunch of gun owners bein' polite.. :o

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If you EVER see or hear Justin forgetting his maam's and sir's box his ears for me.

 

 

Not likely to happen, but you know you are surrounded by a bunch of us that will fill in for you as needed. :rolleyes:

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I work in a world were the word "Respect" is thrown around allot ( corrections ) without anyone knowing what the true meaning is... or with the understand that respect is earned and not given or the difference between common curiosity & respect....

 

With many inmates & staff today words like please & thank you, pardon me or excuse me or Sir & madam are a sign of weakness .....

 

I use these words allot ...and I insist that those around me...inmates & staff use them....

 

I have had staff say to me " why are you calling him sir he is just an inmate ...he don't deserve that kind of respect! At that point I give them a little lesson on curiosity & respect....many times in no uncertain terms.

 

When dealing with people a little common curiosity goes along ways...even if they don't understand why you are doing it.

 

So continue to use these words....and if someone don't like it...it is there problem not yours!

 

 

PS...I did serve and I was an NCO....when I was in uniform if somone called me sir I would correct them ...I work for a liveing...I am Petty Officer Brown...do not call me sir!.....I am no longer in uniform....so you may call me Sir if you have a mind to... :)

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Precisly why we love the people of SASS so much, where else could an eleven year old run around unchaperoned (LOL he thought he was alone, but all of his Texas pards were watchin' his every move) at a huge event? The year that Justin won his first World Championship at EOT he was all over Founder's Ranch, he thought he had FREEDOM but, Papa and I knew where he was all the time, couldn't pass anyone we knew without 'em sayin' "hey, we just saw Opie at so-and-so tent LOLOLOLOLOLOL

 

And now that he's seventeen I need those "eyes" even more!!!!!!!

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I use Sir and Ma'am all the time if they don't like it tough. I call a very young lady clerk Ma'am one time and she got upset at me. Told me she was not an old lady and not to call her ma'am. told her it was a sigh of respect for her and her job, then told her if she didn't like it I could always be a f-----g a-----e and total disrespect her if she want me to. She then apologized to me and said thank you

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I don't believe I can add much to what has already been said. UB perhaps said it best when he described such as a "vexation of the spirit."

 

For what it is worth, about ten or fifteen years ago I was at the grocery store and an elderly black couple were struggling to free a cart from the line of them. I stepped up and said something to the effect of "excuse me, let me get that for you, sir." He thanked me, and thanked me for the "sir" part, saying he could still remember being called "boy," and not in a good way.

 

Oh, and it is probably an old one, but this joke fits:

 

A PFC is getting a Coke from a vending machine when a Captain asks him if he has change for a dollar. The PFC responds "sure, buddy, here you go," offering him change. The Captain frowns and says "Soldier, that is NOT how you respond to a superior officer. Let's try that again. Now, do you have change for a dollar?" The PFC salutes and says "No SIR!"

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Calling someone 'sir' or 'ma'am' is as natural to me as breathing. It is just being polite.

 

A mentor of mine in my early days with the Agency told me this. Being polite to someone doesn't make them any more bulletproof. He was someone you didn't want to get on the bad side of. A` marine in WWII, he was stranded in Malaysia when the British surrendered. Alone, he walked through occupied Thailand to get to Burma. Took him over 2 years. Politeness to villagers whose language he didn't speak got him a lot of assistance.

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Howdy, Pards!

Not sure how I might have replied... Probably would have let it go, but the perverse side of me might have been tempted to reply, "Oh, you misunderstood the spelling of the word. I spell that "C" "U" "R" "R"!" :angry: On the other hand, I probably would have let it go.

 

I tend to "sir" gentlemen, as that is also the way I was raised. As far as ladies are concerned, I generally will address a younger woman (say my daughter's ages, around 40) as "Mizz", which is sufficiently slurred that they can't tell if I am saying "Miss" or "Ms". Some more mature ladies are flattered by being called "Miss", and some take offense. Guess you can't please everyone. (Or as Ricky Nelson sang, "You can't please everyone, ya gotta please yourself!"

 

Ride easy, but stay alert! God's Help to the victims of the earthquake in Japan! Godspeed those still in harm's way in the defense of Freedom everywhere! God Bless America! Thanks to all who have served, whether you "worked for a living" or "wore shoulder straps"!

 

Your Pard,

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:D Well, I was taught to always show respect to your elders, folks in authority

Police, Fireman, Judges Doctors ect.. Those in the Military who hold rank of course!

I have never been scolded for using the term Sir or Ma'am, if I was I would refrain out of

courtesy and respect!

Happy trails :)

QDG/Mike

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He obviously wasn't from the South where use of "Sir" and "Madam" are a sign of proper upbringing.

+1... and not only was I raised by a good Baptist, God fearin' Texan mother, but the old man was career enlisted (E8). We could expect the spoon or the belt if/ when we ever forgot our manners.

 

"It's always time for good manners."

 

But, I've also found that the Mason- Dixon is the approximate boundary for the "Southern custom" of using Sir/Mam. If you use it in New Jersey you may only use it once. I'm sure some Yankee can explain why, but I'm not sure I want to know.

 

Bet he was a Yankee. :D

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Bet he was a Yankee. :D

 

I've found that Jackassedness knows no regional boundaries. :lol:

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Howdy:

 

I was taught that you used the word "sir" in addressing anyone you respected. "Ma'am" was for any female you respected. My Colonel called everyone sir - regardless of his/her rating. Makes life a lot easier.

 

But, I fear those days are gone forever, now it is "dude" or some such pathetic expression. I curdle when I am called "dude."

 

 

STL Suomi

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... I have been called most everything you can imagine in jest ...

 

I have been too...at least at the time I assumed they were in jest...

 

I also tell the unloading table Officer, "Thank you Sir/Ma'am." Only once should I've not, I wasn't paying attention, said, "Thank you Sir" and the young Lady unloading Officer was embarrassed. :blush:

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Tell him to take the stick out of his A** !!!!!!!!!

 

 

I was shooting the mini match at Witer Range and a older gentlemen cleared me at the unload table. Like I always do when done I said "Thank you Sir". Well he ripped me a new one telling me that he was no longer in the Military and to not call him sir. As I didn't know his alias I was only trying to do what my Mom and Dad taught me and be polite. Not being in the military ever I kinda would say that the rules don't apply to me, not to mention I have heard "Sir" and "Ma'am" used a million times over and over again. This is about the third time it's happened to me. So what's the deal? Usually I just don't call them anything for the rest of the match. Just kinda wanted to see what other folks' takes are on this were.

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One day at work, I was in my Military Uniform for an ESGR Presenetation Ceremony where I had recognized my Employer for their support of the Military Guard and Reserve. While I was stepping on the elevator one of my Department Chiefs commented to me that so you are a Chief like me. I said sort of, he said what do you mean. I said "you are a Chief in Miami-Dade County, I am a Chief anywhere in the World"!!!

 

:FlagAm:

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maybe he wanted you to call him SENATOR, he may have worked HARD for that title and maybe he thinks hes earned it? :wacko:

hud (who calls EVERYONE sir)

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I heard about an encounter similar to that one time. The older man reamed a kid the same way. The kid said, "I'm sorry, what word did you say offended you?"

 

"Sir!"

 

"I apologize, but I don't understand? Would you spell it, please?"

 

"S! I! R!"

 

"I'm sorry. Maybe I was mispronouncing it. The word I was using is spelled C! U! R!"

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Duece,

obviously, folks around here sure feel you did right. seems to me that if if didnt want you to call me sir, i'd reply with "you can just call me charlie" i hope this thread gets more people thinking about how a curt remark can leave a lasting mark on good folks.

CC

 

oh, and thanks again for not crushing me in the last round of the WR shoot off. :lol:

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Dude, Dude, Dude....

 

you wasted the all time great opportunity to use a Monty Python line:

 

“Excuuuuuuuuse me, Sir. We are no longer the knights who say ni! We are now the knights who say ekki-ekki-ekki-pitang-zoom-boing!”

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