“China’s bus drivers and ticket sellers have been urged to leave communism behind, with a new training manual instructing them to call travelers ’sir’ or ‘madam’ instead of ‘comrade,’ state media reported on Monday. Older Beijingers, a few of whom still wear ‘Mao suits’ that were once a virtual uniform for China’s hundreds of millions of citizens, will be exempt from the new ruling. ‘Old comrade’ is listed as the final possible choice of address for elderly travelers, but it comes after ‘elder master’ and ‘elder sir,’ the Beijing Youth Daily reported. A newly released manual for Beijing bus staff suggests forms of address ranging from ’student’ to the plain ‘passenger’ for younger travelers, for whom comrade has a different gloss, as a slang term for gay.” (06/01/10)