Thanks

[jrcummings]

That is one of my pet peeve's when a soldier calls me Sarge. It pisses me off to no end. It's happened, I had to let him know we weren't living in an episode of Beatle Baily. As for civilians they can call me Mr. it doesn't bother me at all. Now Sir on the other hand, that would be a demotion to LT lol.

[denise]

I have to admit that even after working on and around Fort Drum for the past 8 months, I still get confused on how to address the various Sgt titles, such as SFC and Staff Sgt. Do you say the whole title or is it appropriate to address the individual as Sgt? Sgt Major I would assume is Sgt Major.

SFC Cummings, please help me out!

Thanks!

[frankcor]

LOL! I remember learning, on my very first day in boot camp to never ever ever address an NCO as "Sir." The resulting verbal barrage would usually begin with "Do NOT call me Sir! I WORK for my paycheck" and would progress downward from there, ending up with a small piece from the end of one's nose missing if the offended sergeant got too close.

I think "Sir" is the required name for NCOs in the Marine Corps, however.

This weekend, I saw a young Marine in dress blues standing in the parking lot of a convenience store talking with two adults. After pumping my gas, I walked up and thanked him for his service. He smiled brightly and said "You're welcome, sir! It's an honor to serve." The proud tears in the eyes of the woman standing next to him clearly revealed she was his mom. He had just arrived from boot camp for a leave prior to leaving for infantry school. Please add him to your prayer lists.

[kim]

I have never been in the military...I never would have made it. They probably would have thrown me out after the first 10 minutes! However, many years ago my husband and I were out with a woman and her boyfriend. The boyfriend was an officer and he was stationed at Griffiss. We all decided to go bowling at Griffiss (did you know there used to be a really cool bowing alley there?), and, obviously we had to go onto the base. It was the weirdest thing when we passed through the gates and the people in the guard shake saluted! I know they were saluting the guy we were with, but it fascinated me.

[frankcor]

denise, in formal language, the full rank is always proper. So "Sergeant First Class Cummings" is always appropriate when you first address an SFC but "sergeant" is usually acceptable for the duration of the conversation.

I never came across a First Sergeant, Sergeant Major or Command Sergeant Major who objected to being called "Top" but I never used it when addressing someone I didn't work with on a regular basis. It'd be akin to calling your boss "Boss."

I'm just glad I never had to work with a Command Sergeant Major of The Army. It would take all morning to say good morning.

[Clipper]

I recently had much the same experience Frank, but with a local boy fresh out of infantry training and ready to deploy. This kid was a punk-assed little pain in the ass before going into the military. I still believe many of our problems would be solved by reinstating the draft.

The costs of a possibly overinflated military, would be offset by the costs of not having so many young men laying around on public assistance, or sucking their mothers and fathers dry. Men undergo military training and return to civilian life with a true understanding of the concept of respect for others as well as responsibility and SELF respect.

I will pray for ALL our troops, including the freshly trained and the boy from here that was transformed into a man by military service.

[frankcor]

Kim, the guard who saluted as you entered the gate was actually saluting the car. Officers had different colored stickers on their front bumpers, partly so the guards knew who to salute and who to simply wave by.

[kim]

Really, Frank? Neat to know!

[frankcor]

Is this place great or what?

[denise]

frankcor said:

denise, in formal language, the full rank is always proper. So "Sergeant First Class Cummings" is always appropriate when you first address an SFC but "sergeant" is usually acceptable for the duration of the conversation.

I never came across a First Sergeant, Sergeant Major or Command Sergeant Major who objected to being called "Top" but I never used it when addressing someone I didn't work with on a regular basis. It'd be akin to calling your boss "Boss."

I'm just glad I never had to work with a Command Sergeant Major of The Army. It would take all morning to say good morning.

Thanks, Frank. That's basically what I do. I have learned quite a bit about the army in the last 8 months and seem to still learn something new every day!

[frankcor]

Great denise. When you get it all figured out, come back and teach us.

[denise]

Oh, I think that could take a very long time! I'm finding it to be a world all of its own.