Another kind of buddy

[William Salmon]

> When I need to address a male stranger on the street, I am just as likely to
> use "buddy" for the vocative noun as "mister":
>
>    Hey, buddy/mister,
>       you dropped something!
>       turn on your headlights!

"Hey buddy..." has always seemed a bit condescending to me, not quite
like saying "Hey boy...", but getting there.

WS

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