re: Sir and Ma'am..... Do you use it?

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I answered one of her questions with "yes ma'am". This lady legit got pissed at me for calling her "ma'am". Told me that she is not old and you only say that to old people

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I would have got pissed that she got pissed

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Is this something you use, or were raised with, or not? What are your thoughts on Sir and Ma'am?

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I wasn't specifically raised with it, though I saw my Dad say it to folks that were older than himself so I tend to do that to this day. Though at 43, the age difference has to be pretty apparent.

We've never pressed it on our boys. They are both tremendously polite without forcing that issue. If their behavior was bad, I might tell them to at LEAST do that so they at least SEEM polite, but at this point it's really unnecessary. Everyone loves my boys. I tend to focus more on things like looking people in their eyes when they talk to them, and answering questions with a "Yes" or "No" rather than "Yeah" or "Nah."

I have been told on this forum that I'm a shitty parent for this. Frankly, I don't care if other parents insist on it, but I do find it funny when parents insist on doing it in front of OTHER parents which seems far more for the other adults' benefit than the kids being "corrected."

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There will be a dude by along here at some point who teaches his kids not to say it. Can't remember what his handle is, but he's coming.

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Almost positive you're referencing me since you were such a tool last time this topic came up. But, given politeness seems to be an issue for you, I'd have at least expected you to not mischaracterize my POV.

Yep. Still do it all the time, but not with my own parents anymore.

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This lady legit got pissed at me for calling her "ma'am". Told me that she is not old and you only say that to old people. She thought I was being disrespectful

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Almost like getting pissed at a Japanese person for bowing when they meet you out of respect, thinking they're being condescending or whatever. It's just a part of their culture and the way they were raised, and a sign of respect for others I think is pretty damn cool to be honest with you, a sign of civility and gentility if you will.

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Almost positive you're referencing me since you were such a tool last time this topic came up. But, given politeness seems to be an issue for you, I'd have at least expected you to not mischaracterize my POV.

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Thanks for calling me a tool Sir. Have a great day.

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I just don't think saying sir or ma'am is the standard for politeness.

It has much more to do with your demeanor, tone, and actions IMO

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I agree, but you'll be told you're a fricking heathen for saying this.

I'm certainly not saying it's always this way, but there are a TON of kids who are friends of my boys whose parents insist on forcing them to say sir or ma'am who are so poorly behaved that we tend to not invite them to our house unless we sort of have to. There are other who say it and are, and my boys will back this up, THE most polite kids we know...though again it's much more about the rest of their personalities than those several words.

I'd actually find it funny to have some parent tel me my kids were rude because they failed to say it. My boys are about as far from rude as you could get, so if THAT would set off a parent I'd suggest someone's priorities may be a bit skewed...

I do, it's the adult way to behave.

Saying "sir" and "ma'am" sounds like weakling submission, sort of like some act that would take place in a caste system or theocratic authoritarian society. It would be wise to break this habit if/when you plan on leaving the region, because people up north and out west will think you are basically a pushover or a beta wussy with an inferiority complex when they hear this and will try to walk all over you.

This kind of sir and ma'am nonsense is antiquated and belongs in the 1800s. Only brown nosers and arse kissers would be caught saying this stuff these days.

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NoNameNeeded

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