Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site spp3.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!bellcore!decvax!ittatc!dcdwest!sdcsvax!sdcrdcf!trwrb!trwspp!spp3!ansok
From: ansok@spp3.UUCP (Gary Ansok)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Letter Salutations
Message-ID: <286@spp3.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 17-Mar-86 03:58:30 EST
Article-I.D.: spp3.286
Posted: Mon Mar 17 03:58:30 1986
Date-Received: Tue, 18-Mar-86 08:39:54 EST
Distribution: net
Organization: TRW, Redondo Beach  CA
Lines: 27

As long as we're talking about non-sexist language, are there any
suggestions on how to open a letter to someone whose gender you
don't know?  I became curious while sending out resumes and finding
many ads said to respond to "J. Smith" or suchlike.  What should 
the salutation be like for this?  I usually used "Dear Mr. Smith"
but felt really strange.  Actually most of these people turned out to
be women but I decided that 1) the masculine supposedly doubles as
the unspecified and 2) a woman was less likely to be offended by
Mr. than a man by Ms.  (Not impossible, but less likely).  Which
do you folks prefer:

Dear Mr. Smith:
Dear Ms. Smith:
Dear Mr./Ms. Smith:
Dear J. Smith:
Dear Smith:
Dear Sir:
Dear Madam:
Dear Sir or Madam:

		Gary Ansok

	I am proud to be a man
			   human
			   huperson
			   huperchild
			   earthling!