If I am saluted by an enlisted member, is it acceptable to stop them and tell them I am not commissioned?

LTJG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 18:10:52 -0400

I was saluted by a senior chief and when i stopped him to say that i was not commissioned he said just return the salute and go about my day.

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Jun 17 at 2014 6:15 PM

LTC Paul Labrador — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 18:15:03 -0400

If you are a cadet at Annapolis you are, by definition, an officer candidate and rate a salute from enlisted servicememebers. With Warrants, you're on your own....

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 20 at 2015 5:19 PM

LCDR Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 20 Aug 2015 17:19:36 -0400

They didn't cover this for you guys in Plebe Summer? Just Kidding.

Seriously though, you may want to check up on the history of the rank of Midshipman, as it was inherited from the Royal Navy. In the "good ole days", Mids went out to sea from a very early age (I believe Nelson was around 7 when he started) in order to learn the trade of being an officer at sea until they could pass the examination for lieutenant. From that point, they could be spot promoted to "Lieutenant Commanding" or Captain. That's a lot of range for those crows and anchors. If things are being run the way they were back "in my day", you'll go out on Summer Cruise as a de-facto JO; I was actually fortunate enough to have the E-DIVO on USS MOUNT WHITNEY let me "borrow" the division for those weeks (I would LOVE to hear what his division chief said about that!).

It's good on you for defaulting to the less favorable alternate position, but keep in mind that senior enlisted, in particular those at a training command...even more so those at a service academy...know their regs better than the 'Dant I'd wager.

Best Wishes and Good Luck Shipmate!

Response by SN Greg Wright made Sep 1 at 2015 4:41 PM

SN Greg Wright — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 16:41:51 -0400

LTJG Private RallyPoint Member Honestly, if a Senior Chief told me to return the salute and go about my day, that's precisely what I would do...

Response by CPO Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2015 4:45 PM

CPO Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 16:45:26 -0400

No one knows the precise origin of today’s hand salute. From earliest times and in many distant armies throughout history, the right hand (or "weapon hand") has been raised as a greeting of friendship. The idea may have been to show that you weren't ready to use a rock or other weapon. Courtesy required that the inferior make the gesture first. Certainly there is some connection between this old gesture and our present salute.

One romantic legend has it that today’s military salute descended from the medieval knight's gesture of raising his visor to reveal his identity as a courtesy on the approach of a superior. Another even more fantastic version is that it symbolizes a knight's shielding his eyes from the dazzling beauty of some high-born lady sitting in the bleachers of the tournament.

The military salute has in fact had many different forms over the centuries. At one time it was rendered with both hands! In old prints one may see left-handed salutes. In some instances the salute was rendered by lowering the saber with one hand and touching the cap visor with the other.

The following explanation of the origin of the hand salute is perhaps closest to the truth: It was a long-established military custom for juniors to remove their headgear in the presence of superiors. In the British Army as late as the American Revolution a soldier saluted bv removing his hat. But with the advent of more cumbersome headgear in the 18th and 19th centuries, the act of removing one’s hat was gradually converted into the simpler gesture of grasping the visor, and issuing a courteous salutation. From there it finally became conventionalized into something resembling our modern hand salute.

As early as 1745 (more than two-and-a-half centuries ago) a British order book states that: "The men are ordered not to pull off their hats when they pass an officer, or to speak to them, but only to clap up their hands to their hats and bow as they pass."

Whatever the actual origin of today’s hand salute, clearly in the tradition of the US Military it has always been used to indicate a sign of RESPECT – further recognition that in the profession of arms military courtesy is both a right and a responsibility of every service member.

Response by CPO Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2015 4:46 PM

CPO Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 16:46:58 -0400

It's more a sign of RESPECT

Response by LT Ed Skiba made Oct 21 at 2018 8:27 PM

LT Ed Skiba — Sun, 21 Oct 2018 20:27:58 -0400

An Ensign is not commissioned?

Response by SPC Stewart Smith made Jan 20 at 2020 3:35 PM

SPC Stewart Smith — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 15:35:20 -0500

I'd go ahead, return the salute and go about your day.
In the lower enlisted ranks we are taught "when in doubt whip it out". Basically you're going to be saluted whether you're supposed to be or not. You can let it rub you the wrong way, or just drive on.

Response by MSgt Stephen Council made Jan 20 at 2020 9:11 PM

MSgt Stephen Council — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 21:11:47 -0500

LTJG Private RallyPoint Member Just return the salute and move on. Correcting someone giving you "too much respect' seems like a waste of both of your time. Besides, you would come off like one of those douches bag NCOs who say things like "dont call me sir! I work for a living!".