Correct use of words is dependent on context.
My father was a DI for the US Army Rangers in WWII. After being wounded during combat in WWII, he was medically retired from the Army. But he never did completely internalize the fact that he was a civilian.
By the time I was 8, I had been taught to execute a correct crisp salute. Then I was taught never to salute anyone because I "had not earned the privilege." I was taught to stand up straight and answer "No excuse, sir; " whenever my father asked me why I had made a mistake or why I had failed to complete a task.
I could field strip a GI .45, clean it, and reassemble it blindfolded when I was nine years old. I called things by the name which the DI, er, I mean Dad, called things. And he called things by whatever military terminology was correct and current in the US Army during WWII. So my brain is close to being hard wired in such a way that it is almost physically impossible for me to refer to a magazine as a clip. I cringe when I hear a magazine referred to as a clip because I was yelled at (only once) at the age of seven or eight for doing so.
But my views and opinions on the subject are in agreement with those who recognize that language, word meanings, and word usage change and evolve over the years. As for correct word usage and terminology, I recognize that it depends on the context and time in history. Military (or former military) folks are not entitled to insist that civilians use whatever military terminology is currently in use (or was formerly in use.) I agree with those who say it doesn't matter what word we use as long as we know what we are talking about in that context, and as long as we treat each other with courtesy and respect.
Words are symbols. Context is everything when it comes to the use of language.
When it comes to certain terms used by the popular media as part of their anti-gun propaganda ( such as "assault weapons", "automatic pistols", "assault pistol", and "automatic weapons", "cop killer bullets", and "bullet-proof vests"), I tend to insist on the correct use of correct terminology. Gun owners in the US are under constant attack, and the weapons most often employed are words.
But I'll tell you what really offends me. It's the use of the word "caliber" to refer to a cartridge designation. A shooter will ask a question like, "What's the best caliber for elk hunting? A .308, a .30-06, or a .300 Win mag?" Doesn't that idiot know that the cartridges to which he is referring are all the same caliber?
