Frogleg wrote:
>
> On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 13:36:16 -0500, Nancy Young

> >I tried to find it online, but no luck. There was a call for people
> >to write in to the restaurant critic of my local paper asking for
> >opinions on what offends them ... well, I'll just key in the first
> >paragraph:
> >
> >"Listen, you guys, enough already. And that includes me. I never
> >thought, not once, when I asked readers and restaurant employees a
> >couple of months back to talk about matters of service that so many
> >folks would be offended by a casual expression used by servers in
> >addressing diners at restaurants: "What can I get you guys?"
>
> You hit a nerve. I'm a part-time grammar cop, and "guy/guys" drives me
> up the wall.

I think it's a regional/generational thing. I wouldn't think twice
about asking my female friends, you guys want to go out for lunch?
Doesn't offend me in the least if a waiter/bartender refers to me as
such. Having said that, "What can I get you?" does seem to suffice.

> I've been protesting to local media for some time that
> terms such as "victim", "suspect", "man," "young man," etc. are more
> appropriate for professional journalism. Not to mention "you guys"
> becoming gender-neutral.

It's not 'becoming' where I live, as I've mentioned. It is.

nancy