DEAR ABBY: I am a clerk in a store. Recently I asked a young female customer a question. She replied, "Yes, ma'am."
"Ma'am" and "Sir" may seem old-fashioned and out of style, and to some people they smack of servitude, but it fell sweetly on my ears. It was a welcome display of manners, since only minutes before I had heard another young female shopper tell her child, "Get your a-- over here!" -- MILWAUKEE MANNERS MOURNER
DEAR MOURNER: While formal etiquette is not as prevalent as it once was, the majority of people still practice casual good manners.
However, the parent who speaks crudely to her child, regardless of how annoyed she may be, is in for a rude awakening, because in a few years her child will be responding to her in the same manner.