Should a 2LT salute a 1LT?

IRT saluting -

1. You're saluting the position that person holds, NOT the person him/herself.

2. As long as the Army has a rank structure, there are going to be superiors and subordinates.  Subordinates initiate the salute until recognized/returned by the superior. 

This comes with the territory. Get used to it. We have wayyyy bigger fish to fry.

I think that most of the people posting here are hypocrites. How many enlisted soldiers salute their platoon leader every time they come around in the motor pool? Not much. This should not be in discussion. Officers have their own mojo when dealing with each other. Most of it bull. When meeting each other, they fawn and stroke each other, then the senior asks the junior officer's first name and that is that.

Standards are standards and NCOs if you are going to bash the officers for them not saluting each other at these levels, then you had better be saluting them every time you see one (whether it was for the first time or two seconds ago). For that matter, how many of you NCOs keep your seat when an officer asks you a question? Probably all of you.

Customs and courtesies may seem archaic to some, but for those that have worn the uniform, shed the blood and stared the demon in the face, they are sacred. This type of discussion only hurts the military.

On another point, the phrases of affection such as "Chief" and "Top", as a First Sergeant I understood that "Top" was a term of endearment. It meant that my soldiers respected me as the Top Sergeant in the company. If a soldier was not calling my "Top" I needed to find out what was going on. It is like father and Dad. Anyone can be a father, but it takes a special person to be a Dad. The same goes for First Sergeants. It has a customary precedence.

Great units do the small things right. That is what I was always taught. Many of the small things are rendering courtesies when appropriate, doing PT correctly, drill & ceremonies and conducting police call. Almost too often, these things are put to the side because of mission orientation or some other excuse. D&C teaches soldiers to be a part of a team and organization. PT helps soldiers not only cope physically with the rigors of battle, but mentally. Customs and courtesies re-enforces a soldier's place in the unit and who's orders they are to follow. Police call stems from the need to keep your area clean for sanitation reasons that translate into the field environment, not for beauty sake.

Live by the regulations and customs of the military, do the small things well, and the big missions will take care of themselves because the basic skills are the most important to mission success.