When an E-4 calls me "hey" or "hey man" knowing that I am an officer, should I bother to correct him?

Correct him, after 27 years of service customs and courtesies works, don't lower he standards

You have to correct him right away. You earned your rank and the respect that goes with it. You don't have berate Jim, but he does need to be corrected

You said outside of work. If you're not at work and not in uniform, lucky he even noticed you, I will flat out pretend I didn't see you, however this is also why I live nearly an hour from base and have 5 acres. When I'm off work, I'm off work.

Ok to go against what others have said. You don't work together, you were both off duty, and you're probably a butter bar. No don't correct him. He probably doesn't even know your rank. Be a human off duty. You aren't a hall monitor. If he does it while you are in uniform then yes. Light him up.

Absolutely, new standard made when you do not enforce the standards.

This is extremely situational. If your in uniform and in a Garrison environment yes you should correct him, however don't be a dick about it, at least not the first time you correct someone.

Yes.

The only and correct answer is yes absolutely correct the soldier on the spot.

Yes and ensure he never does it again!!! Ever. Then let his squad leader, platoon Sgt and 1 SG know about his render courtesies.

Standards are things of wonder. Ideals of fluid emphasis, if you will. Or so I began to perceive, ultimately leading to my retirement with no notice or prolongation. As a brand new, young guy coming into the military, I whole heartedly believed in “Integrity, Service, Excellence” and “The Standard”. After returning to AD following a 9 year stent in the ANG and leaving college (due to the events of 9/11) the military was different for my 31 y/o self than it was for an 18 y/o. The adult with life experiences began to see the psychology behind the curtain. Analyzing EVERYTHING I saw how “the standard” was used as the measure; however, like subpar contractors, there was A LOT of “eye-balling”. The standard was inconvenient and demanded as much from the administration as the application, yet…it became all too obvious that, the better the salesmanship, the less important the individual brush strokes became when creating an image or other work of art. As the generations progress (if that’s what we are going to call it) they have more information at their finger tips than any preceding group. They can see through the crap. When you don’t practice the same game as you are trying to coach, you’re players don’t see the value in the work, the discipline, or the outcome desired. It took a long time to break. It’s going to take a lot longer to repair. Perhaps it can really be about the mission, as long as the mission is about national defense and not about personal objectives. When “learning to play the game” becomes more important than holding the standard, expecting the standard, and fixing the holes in the wall rather than slapping a thick coat of paint over them, things like Sir, Ma’am, Sgt, Thank you, and The Standard will matter. Right now, “hey, man” is the least of anyone’s problem. That’s just a symptom.