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From: jc@mit-athena.ARPA (John Chambers)
Newsgroups: net.women,net.flame
Subject: Re: MS/Miss/Mrs.
Message-ID: <46@mit-athena.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 24-Jan-85 10:38:46 EST
Article-I.D.: mit-athe.46
Posted: Thu Jan 24 10:38:46 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 28-Jan-85 05:07:57 EST
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Organization: MIT, Project Athena, Cambridge, Ma.
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Xref: watmath net.women:4264 net.flame:8081

This would be a boring topic, except for one little problem:  the
double-bind that it imposes on us poor males that want to be cooperative.
I mean, when I say "Mrs.", I'm an unregenerate sexist who should have
used "Ms."; when I say "Ms.", I'm also wrong because she prefers the
correct (read: traditional) term "Mrs."

Personally, I'd just as well drop the honorifics entirely, and call
everyone by his/her/their/its/your/... very own personal name.  But
that's hopelessly sexist, too, because women have their fathers' names
imposed on them at birth....

How about this suggestion:  Everyone who gets upset about being called
the wrong name or title make up one of those little signs like they
pass out at conventions, meetings and church socials.  You know, the
ones that say "Hello, I'm ________".  If you'd wear it all the time,
most people would cooperate and call you by whatever fills in the blank.

Granted, this isn't a general solution.  I can't read your sign over the
network.  So maybe you should take care to put the proper honorific in
your signature at the end of your article, and I'll try to use it.  Most
of us will.  Of course, there will always be unregenerates among us.  We
can sic Miss Manners on them when they offend.

				John Chambers [sic]