Pretention or culture?

[sck5]

My wife absolutely refuses to call me "captain". I am now trying to convince her to call me "World's Greatest Lover". Failing that, "O Great One" would be fine.

But I observe that some people have poles stuck way far up their asses.

Oh, and what I sail around on is a "sailboat"

[Sundowner Porto]

Over my way there are those that give themselves the title - Pretention - and those who are given the title as a term of endearment by friends.

Those that give it to themselves are laughed at and those that are given it are laughed with.

Often a title is used to distinguish one person of the same name to another eg I know a Fishy Robb and a Rob the Brick. One is a builder...

[Travelnik]

And speaking of Luxury Yachts, I wonder why no one posted this yet...

Monty Python's Flying Circus - Raymond Luxury Yacht - YouTube

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by rover88

... Etiquette dictates that others refer to a mature male as "Mister" and yet also dictates he should never refer to himself as such. So calling someone else Captain is polite, while introducing yourself as such is - in my opinion - pretentious ...

Originally Posted by Roy M

I like the part on my license where it says MASTER ...

What Rover88 said.
FWIW: In (slightly archaic) formal written correspondence, traditional etiquette dictates that men be addressed as Mister, and unmarried (school) boys as Master.
I'm Gord. My long deceased dad was Mike, or (sometimes) Mr. May (but not to anyone who knew him).

[Ex-Calif]

- You can only call your boat a yacht if your house is a mansion.

- When I meet couples it is usually the man that is the "captain" - I will usually tell the wife not to worry. She is the Major and he is the General. He makes general decisions and she makes the major ones - pretty much my experience.

- I have no problem with someone calling themselves captain as long as they have passed the tests. Everyone else is Skipper to me. I have a Commercial Pilot license but it would be stupid to call myself Captain. If someone needs the title to feel good about themselves they probably won't be in my monkeysphere long enough for me to worry about them.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by Factor

Licences are in Grades of Master - from Recreational Ship Master to Master class V Class IV and etc to Class I. But you don't need to have a licence to be defined as Master.

Can't tell you how bemused I was, after earning my first master's degree, that no one would call me "Master."

[atoll]

Originally Posted by Bash

Can't tell you how bemused I was, after earning my first master's degree, that no one would call me "Master."

is your surname Bates?

[Astrid]

Astrid is cleaning coffee off of her computer screen.

[Bash]

Not to change the subject, but it's interesting to note that more than 200 of our forum members chose user names that are either Cap, Cap'n, Capitan, or Captain Something or Other.

[Siege]

Originally Posted by Sundowner Porto

Over my way there are those that give themselves the title - Pretention - and those who are given the title as a term of endearment by friends.

Those that give it to themselves are laughed at and those that are given it are laughed with.

Often a title is used to distinguish one person of the same name to another eg I know a Fishy Robb and a Rob the Brick. One is a builder...

And that pretty much sums up where I live too. Even on the tugboat I work on Captain is more of an endearment title than a professional one. We can just as easily call them by their name, sans prefix. However, if I'm at the corporate office, then they address everyone who works in the wheelhouse as Captain. I don't go to the office very often, as I find it really annoying to have that many captains in one place. Reminds me of another title... Chef

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by atoll

is your surname Bates?

Off topic, but thanks for triggering some pleasant memories.

The late Dr.* Allan Bates was the guitarist and founding member of Neil Young’s first recorded (“The Sultan”, 300 copies pressed) group, “The Squires”, in 1960s Winnipeg.
IMHO, The Squires were a step above Chad Allen & the Reflections/Expressions (later, the "Guess Who:, with Burton Cummings & Randy Bachman).
He was a couple of years ahead of me at J.B. Mitchell Jr High School.
We called him “Master Bates”.
➥ BATES, Allan Clifford | Obituaries | McInnis and Holloway Funeral Homes | Calgary Alberta
➥ Neil Young: The Squires' Years by Allan Bates - Uncut.co.uk

* In 2001, “The Guess Who” received honorary doctorates at Brandon University in Brandon, Manitoba. For former lead vocalist Burton Cummings, it was a privilege to receive the doctorate, since he did not graduate from high school.

Winnipeg was a great place to grow up in the 50s & 60's!

[atoll]

sorry bash i couldn't resist!....from the uk childrens cartoon series Captain pugwash!
an urban myth

quote

Captain Pugwash - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Libel case regarding double entendresThere is a persistent urban legend, repeated by the now defunct UK newspaper the Sunday Correspondent, that ascribes sexually suggestive names – such as Master Bates, Seaman Staines, and Roger (meaning "have sex with") the Cabin Boy – to Captain Pugwash's characters, and indicating that the captain's name was a slang Australian term for oral sex. John Ryan successfully sued both the Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian newspapers in 1991 for printing this legend as fact.[2]

[Agape39]

Originally Posted by perchance

Captain Crunch?

ROTFLMAO...

[Bash]

Originally Posted by atoll

sorry bash i couldn't resist!....

No offense taken whatsoever. Anytime you can make Astrid spew coffee....

[Dsanduril]

Hong Kong Ferry Accident

According to an official police statement released late Tuesday, the two vessels’ captains, as well as five other crew members, were arrested on suspicion of endangering the safety of others at sea.

And this is the risk that comes along with the right/respect to put "Captain" in front of your name. The title of "Captain", whether governmentally sanctioned or by position in fact on a PWC carries with it the attendant responsibility. Will be interesting to see the COLREGs discussion that comes out of this.