Military Titles

On page 164 of The AP Stylebook is the list of military titles.  Except for individuals possibly belonging to military families, an explanation for the great number of abbreviations for military personnel provided in the Stylebook is a direly needed reference for experienced and novice editors alike.  Readers will have come across Gen., Lt., Maj., or Col. plenty of times, however the Stylebook comes in handy when looking up the abbreviations for more difficult ones such as those for the different types of warrant officers, enlisted personnel, or enlisted designations. I got a taste of this firsthand when I began volunteering at the VA Hospital in Salt Lake City a couple years ago as whitewater kayaking instructor.  I realized that suddenly being immersed in military slang and abbreviations can leave you feeling really confused.  Apart from the abbreviations, it also took me a second to get used to people constantly using military time.

I didn’t come across any typographical or grammatical errors this week(except the ones in my own writing), so I thought I’d share one from the archives.  In 1992, Vice President Dan Quayle was at an elementary school promoting George H. W. Bush’s new education initiative.  While at the school, Quayle was judging a spelling bee in which one 12-year-old student was given the word “potato.”  The student provided the correct letters, however, before Quayle declared the student’s correctness, Quayle suggested the student “add one little bit on the end.” Quayle was seen mouthing the letter “e” to the student.  This comical “potatoe” mishap was quite damning to the vice president’s credibility.