Why do so many MSGs insist on being addressed as Master Sergeant?

I wish I could drink. Sgt

Sgt Bob Corridan - The USMC and Army have always done it those two different ways.

SSgt Michael Bowen - I wouldn’t correct you for that, but I would speak to you privately, just so you knew the correct way.

SGM (Join to see) - There is nothing incorrect in my way, there for nothing to be so called corrected privately nor publicly. I understand my rank is only SSgt but my service spans over 30 years . That is by choice I liked what I was doing . Marines in 72 and Army from 83 there after to sept 2008. On Active duty for every war and reserves when there wasn’t. And at no time was my coming back on active duty ever denied or even questioned . I was good at what I did and my Army mos was 13F30. My last combat tour got me a medical evacuation to Germany and then sent to Walter reed for surgery and a med board retirement. I am very familiar with how to address a person by their rank . And do it correctly.

CSM Mike Oldsen
Posted >1 y ago
Because they feel entitled would be my guess. I always called them Sergeant...especially if it upset them.
Hehehe then I would consider your a real Command Sgt Maj and not jst another E9.

OK Sarge.

1SG James Kelly that was a good one

CSM (Join to see) - I talk to God and I try not to piss him off; he has a good sense of humor.
;)

SEMPER Fi.

MSgt Earl King - You Msgt!! lol

CSM Carlson C. - not about being friends, and I am not sure where you think my interpretation of responses came from. I spent 24 years in the military, and I will not walk around blind thinking or acting like double standards did not happen. If you want to that's you. Also, it is not about quoting regulations; you can do that all day; it is about your actions setting the standard, not being a part of the problem but the solution. There isn't mentorship anymore at the senior level.

I agree with you. I never insisted that people call me Master Sergeant, but some people did.

When I was 1SG, My troops that knew me well refered me as Top. I found it as a sign of respect and acknowledgement form a subordinate that I respected. They were usually my fire and forget soldiers. I called a 1SG Top when I was working as a Div Safety officer and he came unglued. I found him to be less then honorable all around, especially with his own soldiers. I think its like black boots vs hush puppies..

I have read a great deal of the comments in this thread with amused curiosity for the most part. I recall working for an E8, in the Navy who had just transferred on to the ship, he was our SCPOIC, he insisted on the people under his command calling each other by their individual rank, rather than by their name. So, I was to be addressed as Petty Officer Wikert, instead of Bob, or Wikert. Most of the people that I worked with at that time had been working together for 3 years and were a very close-knit group, for the most part on first or last name basis. Admittedly, what he was insisting on was technically correct, at the time I was night crew supervisor and in defiance, perhaps, my crew and I still continued to address each other informally when the Senior Chief had left the area for the day. In the Navy, E1-E6 generally were called by their names, at least in my experience at that time, I was an E6 with 13 years. E7 was always addressed as Chief, E8 as Senior Chief, and E9 as Master Chief and if the Master Chief was the ranking MC at the command he would be addressed as Command Master Chief(CMC) although in my experience I never worked for a CMC who insisted on that title. Trust me on this, calling an E8-9 just Chief was a very quick way to a serious correction session, generally called an ass-chewing. Personally, that was never a problem for me as I felt that they had attained that level(rank) by hard work and many years of service. I also recall that my brother-in-law at the time in the late 60's was an E8 stationed at Ft. Hood, my then wife and I were traveling to NAS Kingsville Tx and she wanted to stop and visit with her sister and show her our 3 mos. old son as she hadn't seen her sister for a long time due the 1stSgt's duty stations. At the time a I was an E3, who was in awe of his brother-in-law's elevated military position. So, I insisted on calling him by his rank instead of by name, which he immediately informed me that he was addressed by all of his soldiers as "Top". Just my personal story for what it is worth...

MSG (Join to see) - Close enough.

You don’t know the history of the origin of “Top” then.

I personally refered to all NCO ranks as Sergeant regardless of branch of service especially had fun with the Navy and Marines I knew it pissed them off I would just say get over yourself and walk away. One Time I had a gunnery Sergeant blow his stack there were several officers present form Navy, Marines, Air Force and Army a Navy Admiral walked up and told the Master Gunnery Sergeant to pipe down a Sergeant is a Sergeant

LCpl Benji Smith it’s spelled Sergeant…

LCpl Benji Smith My point is exactly what I said. You spelled it wrong. I’m not exactly sure why you feel like threatening an NCO is going to benefit you at all. But, whatever floats your boat lance coolie.

LCpl Benji Smith I also have a deployment to 4 different countries and a broadening assignment with probably as much or more active duty time as you. So, the NG comment isn’t as relevant as you probably would like to think.

My thoughts also

Ha ha, "Here he comes..." That's the one!

SSG Bill McCoy - He got off light. Very light.

Umm what is a SGG?

I agree that anyone who has been in long enough to make MSG knows what's right...and yet...they do what they want to anyway. I correct Soldiers on this all the time, an the most common response is a story of another MSG that hemmed them up for not addressing them as "Master Sergeant."

I vaguely recall one who insisted on being called "Master Sergeant" because he very emphatically had no desire to ever, ever be a first sergeant.

I remember my first day at a unit, I addressed a MSG as "SGT" and got chewed out for about 10 minutes of "I earned this rank, you'll address me as such." Obviously, that's what I called him, and he ended up being a good mentor, but there are still some out there who are gung-ho about being addressed as such.

SSG (Join to see) - He might have been a good mentor, but he was wrong about that!

MSgt Chris Haggerty - When I first learned the nickname “Top,” I was told it was because the 1SG is the highest ranking enlisted person in the company. No one ever treated any 1SG as if he were a child’s toy. (I never liked the Air Force tradition of calling a 1SG “First Shirt” because it is too easy to call him a “Stuffed Shirt.” But, it's not my decision what their nickname should be.)

SFC Kathy Pepper - Dang Kathy!!!! I didn't realize not using full rank was an Army C&C/time honored tradition. In that case I will allow you to continue. Carry on.

GySgt Kenneth Pepper - By the book, everyone except the 1st Sergeant and CSM are referred to just as Sergeant in the Army. I think the Marine way is just better. When they make me Secretary of Defense, I'll change that custom :^).

SFC Kathy Pepper - The term "First Shirt" is actually an Army tradition going back to when we established pioneer forts. The most senior sergeant in a unit had first pick of the new clothing when resupplied...it actually pre-dates the establishment of the rank in 1847.

Sounds like something I would have done...

Perfect!

One of those crusty, grumpy, old SNCO's, eh... Yeah, every branch of the service has them. ....Chuckle....I love the grumpy SMaj. that Sam Elliott plays in "We Were Soldiers" though!!! Totally cracks me up!!!! Eg: New Lt. crosses paths with the SMaj. first thing in the morning and gives him a cheerful greeting. SMaj. comes back and says something like: "You the fucking weather man now?!?!?!?" Leaves the Lt. completely rattled and dumbfounded as to how to respond. Classic "deer in the headlights" kind of a thing.....lol...lol..... I'm guessing you've seen the movie, so you know what I'm talking about.

MSG James Devereaux - Yet, it exists, and it's an NCO rank. Telling a CPL to go pound sand was just as preposterous as telling a SGT the same. It was always given to some high-speed, well-liked lifer aspirant who just didn't have enough time in service for E5. It would certainly get you into to the NCO club and separate you from the E4 mafia.

MSG James Devereaux - Hate to tell you, but you were taught wrong. A Corporal is a NCO and should be treated as one. In all the units I've been in or worked with, Corporals were top-quality young Soldiers who were put in charge of other Soldiers who were more junior in rank. They were doing a leadership job, and mostly doing it well. Your disrespect of an entire group of NCOs is not any more warranted than me saying "99% of all the MSGs I ever knew were fat, wore their uniforms like they'd just pulled them out of a full duffel bag, couldn't be a 1SG (or shirked their duty and avoided taking a hard job and left it for their peers to take on) and still lived at home with their mommies." I would never say that because it isn't true, but it is for some MSGs, I suppose. Shish, I don't know how some people ever get promoted - well I do, but I don't have to like it...

I was always taught that the only Marine who could be called Top, is a Master Gunny, and that's the only time I ever used the title, and I never got into any kind of trouble for following that advice. Everyone else who out ranked me was by the book. It served me quite well. There's more to this particular story than what I have said, but I'm trying to keep this short.

Cpl Jason Lang - it’s actually Master Sergeants that are called Top and that’s from back in the day when that was the senior enlisted rank they were the Top rank. When they added E-9’s to the rank structure they for some reason never changed who was called Top.

You are correct about the rank titles.
All Specialist ranks were all addressed as specialists and Warrant Officers were addressed as Mister or Ma’am.

Best comment in this thread.

Thank you. The slack you cut us is very much appreciated, because we're only addressing you the way we have been taught to address others according to Marine Corps Reg's. And like I said in a previous comment, what really ruffles our feathers is when someone from another branch tries to call us an "E - something". That's not our rank. That's our pay grade. There are a few Marines out there who truly don't care, but most of us do.

With the advice of my grandfather, and my great uncle who were both Marines, the only time I didn't go by the book when addressing another Marine, was when I addressed the Master Gunny, (in my, specific, squadron), and that term was "Top". Their advice served me quite well on this topic. I never once got in trouble for addressing another Marine the wrong way.

I came across that more with the finance side of the house and when the civilians started taking over positions Army use to hold. It was an erk the hell out of me as well CSM. I'm not a pay grade, I'm a SFC. Now when it came to the lower enlisted of the Navy I asked because their system is crazy.

The only time mentioning a pay grade is correct is when mentioning the backbone of the Army. The E-4 Mafia!

SPC Dennis Kregel hahaha I stand corrected.

I never had an issue with being "that E-4" when a Private was sent to me to get help. Especially when it was an NCO who did it. I knew a lot of my SGT and SSG when we were all SPC together (I had no desire to promote) and when we would be talking and they would mention some BS thing going on I would routinely say "That sounds like an E-5 (or E-6) problem to me." Sometimes out of spite they would delegate the problem to me and reply "Now its an E-4 problem, what?!" Its different when you have the rapport to do that though.