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From: chabot@amber.DEC (l s chabot)
Newsgroups: net.nlang,net.women
Subject: Re: Gender-specific responses to s/he
Message-ID: <206@decwrl.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 14-Jan-85 13:36:43 EST
Article-I.D.: decwrl.206
Posted: Mon Jan 14 13:36:43 1985
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Xref: watmath net.nlang:2414 net.women:4113

Alternatives to "Ms." (-: proposed since "Ms." evidentally horrifies some 
amongst us :-) :

Well, personally, in these happy days of arrived-equality :-!, the term "Mr.",
pronounced "mister" is incorrect: it is derived from "master", and therefore
is technically and politically wrong wrong WRONG! >ahem< , because men aren't
masters of anything any more than women are [ (-: previously, would this
sentence have been "...because men aren't masters of anything any more than
women" ? :-) ].  Soooo, we could replace "Ms." with "Mr." (or even replace "Mr."
with "Ms.", since the latter provides an equivalently appealing abbreviation
for "mister"/"master"), denoting the equal status, but I would rather propose
alternate honorifics to encompass all sexes at once. :-) 

 "Ma'am."	This handy little honorific already exists as an excepted
  or "Mam."	(American) english word.  We're just going to change the
  or "Mamm."	meaning to denote "Ma-a-a-ammal" (ba-a-a-a-a-a).  Or, perhaps
  or "Mm."	it could be short for "Mammonite" (from human beings being the
		only mammals to worship money).  ["Mammonite" could also be
		abbrev. "Mme."]  {Another abbreviation for "Mammal", "ML", has
		been reported to already be in use in certain circles (or
		"hoops").} 

 "NH"		Meaning "No Honorific" (similar to "NMI" and "NMN").  This 
		title has potential large appeal for militant radical whosits
		who wish to demonstrate their departure from traditional
		and degrading class (/gender distinctions.  Them, and also the
		interminably depressed ("I don't deserve an honorific").


Until such time as a universally appealing honorific can be agreed upon, we
should use some place holder honorific, such as "Foo" (or the original spelling,
"Fu.").  "X" would work too, since I believe all of us are supposed to have at
least one of those, right?

;-). L. S. Chabot
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